ABSTRACT
The context for planning research computing in the university has changed radically over the past decade. In 1969, most universities had one large computing facility that supplied researchers with most of their computing service. Many major research universities find the majority of their research computing being done outside of the central academic computing facility, and most universities are experiencing rapid growth of decentralized and external research computing. The expenditure required to secure a computer with sufficient power to do useful research work has dropped precipitously in the last decade. Increased density and speed in computer circuitry have been accompanied by a reduced cost per circuit element to yield greater than a tenfold improvement in price performance. An increasingly competitive marketplace for computing professionals and an inflationary economy have led to steadily increased staff costs. These costs have been only partially offset by productivity improvements.
