Major features of OSDDlinux:

The main purpose of OSDDlinux is to provide an in silico platform for computer-aided drug design. This is a collection and compilation of large number of software and web services which will be directly or indirectly useful for researches working in the field of drug discovery/designing. Overall objective of OSDDlinux is to promote open source in drug discovery, crowdsourcing and network based collobrations. Following are major features of OSDDlinux:

Service for Scientific Community (for expeimentalist)

If you are an experimental scientist and wish to use in silico tools for prediction or validation of your results. You may use following modes of OSDDlinux for your work depending on your requirement.
  • Online for Occasional Users: If you are an ocassional users as well as security of your data is not an issue then you may use our web servers via Internet. OSDDlinux online facility allows users to use our web server and tools integrated in Galaxy.
  • LiveDVD/USB on local computer with Data Security : This facility is for occasional users who wish to use all services including standalone tools and do not want to compromise with data security. LiveDVD/USB facilitate users to use OSDDlinux on their laptop/computer without Internet connection, as you are running on your own computer so your data is secure.

Platform for Developers

If you are a developer or wants to become developer and wish to contribute software packages or web server in any field related to drug discovery, you may install OSDDlinux on your local machine. In order to facilitate developers in creating infrastructure at their site, we have following options:
  • Developers with no infrastructure: If you have no infrastructure for development and want to start your setup infrastructure. You may install OSDDlinux on your computer which will create in silico infrastructure for software/web server development.
  • Infrastructure on existing linux setup: This facility is for those users who have already linux on their system and wish to create infrastructure for computer-aided drug design. This options is best suited for experienced users.

Linux for Students

In order to facilitate students who wish to start their carrier in software development on linux system, we provide number of options for students to learn and contribute. Following options are available for students
  • Bootable LivedDVD for occasional learning: This option is for those students who have no or little experience of loading operating systems. Using LiveDVD students may boot their laptop/computer using OSDDlinux LivedDVD/USB and may learn computer-aided drug discovery tools on linux.
  • OSDDlinux on Windows/Mac: If you have a laptope/computer with MS-Windows or Apple-Mac and wish to use OSDDlinux frequenly. You may load OSDDlinux in virtual box which will allow Windows/Mac users to boot OSDDlinux in virtual box whenever required. This system is good for those students who want to parallel operating (more than two operating system simultaneously) on their computer.
  • Online hands-on experience on Linux: This facility is created for those users who have limited resources and wish to learn/practice Linux. We will give access to users on our linux machine having OSDDlinux, this will allow users to learn linux as well informatics tools.
  • Learn PERL Programming: We have written large number of perl sripts required for developing software packages in the field of bioinformatics and chemoinformatics. Source code and function of these basic scripts allow users to learn PERL programming for drug development.

Infrastructure for Developing World

One of the major challenges in the field of informatics is creation of workable infrastructure. Nowadays hardware is not costly, major challenge is to setup operating system and software. It is difficult for academicians from developing world to afford costly commercial software packages. In order to facilitate community, we are providing OSDDlinux in different linux flavours which will allow users to setup infrastructure on their machine free of cost. Following options will facilitate users from the developing world:
  • Infrastructure for Bioinformatics : OSDDlinux consists of large number of bioinformatics tools as well as tools required for developing bioinformatics tools. This option will facilitate researchers to setup infrastructure in the field of bioinformatics.
  • Assembling & Annotation of Genomes : One of the challenge in the era of cheap sequencing is to assemble short reads generated from whole genome sequencing or metagenomics. OSDDlinux integrates pipelines which will provide infrastructure at local site to assemble and annotate genomes from high-throughput sequencing data.
  • Computer-aided drug design : In the field of drug discovery, open source software model is at infancy stage. We have made attempt to compile related resources to promote open source model for drug development.
  • Platform for launching services : One of the ambitious missions of OSDDlinux is to provide platform for launching/hosting web servers. This facility will be provided to the users from developing world who can not afford to maintain costly infrastructure.

Promoting Crowdsourcing in Drug development

One of the challenges in the field of drug discovery is how to involve more and more people in drug discovery. OSDDlinux platform provides required infrastructure for drug development free of cost, thus anybody can participate in mission of drug discovery. OSDDlinux provides complete platform for mentors as well as for participant so they may communicate and share their progress.
  • Required tools for development : A large number of software packages has been integrated into OSDDlinux that allows users to develop their own tools.
  • Example-based learning of Web servers : Example based learning is easy, effective & efficient. In order to facilitate learning we have integrated a large number of web servers with their source code so that user may easily learn techniques for developing web-based services.
  • Galaxy-based platform for sharing : Our online galaxy-based service is integrated in OSDDlinux. This will facilitate users in developing and integrating tools in galaxy.

Network-Based Collobration

It will facilitate collobrations particularly remote collobrations via network/Internet.
  • Identical Infrastructure : All the collobrators may install OSDDlinux on their machine, this will provide identical infrastructure in drug development at each collobrator's site. This will facilitate to share their coding with each other.
  • Mirroring of resources : Mirroring facility will allow to launch resources from different sites without any additional efforts.