ililINFOTECH FEATURE

New versions of thin clientscan solve the many problems

wrought by "fat client" PCsBy Uiane Rouuu

The problems with networkedmodern-day plague for both librarians and network adminis-trators. I'Gs crash, they freeze, they require constant updatingand patching. End users amuse themselves by tlnding ways tocircumvent whatever safeguards the network administratorhas put in place. Depending on the age of the machine andthe operating system installed, PCs display different desktops,a constant source of confusion for patrons. End users oftenintentionally or unwittinglyintroduce viruses into tbe net-work through them. And everytew years, the library has to tlndfunding resources to buy newermachines, because invariablythe PCs become outdated andcan no longer run the programsthe library wants to use.

Their maintenance is thesource ot endless iieadaches,but at the same time comput-ers are the indispensable tool for tbe 21st century. Now, thinclients have reemerged as an excellent remedy for the ailingnetworked PC.

How thin clients workMore than a decade ago, libraries sought alternative solutionsto these problems through tlie use of thin clients in publicaccess areas. Thin clients differ from PCs or "fat clients"because their applications and data are stored on the server,rather than on the thin client itself In a ?C network, someapplications and data may be stored locally on the personalcomputer itself and some may be stored on the server. In a

Diane Romm is VP Marketing, Syiiihio Tahiioh\^iesoi^ies. com)

thin client network, all of the applications anddata reside on tbe server. The thin client issimply a device from which to send requestsand on which to see the results. Thin clients

are essentially empty boxes, mucb like the original "dumh"terminals that connected to a mainframe. Since tbey do notprocess anything themselves, thin clients do not need anyinternal memory. Furthermore, they run at the speed of theserver rather than at the speed of an internal processor. Of-ten no bigger than a trade paperback, today's thin clients alsocome equipped with USB ports to support a variety of re-movable media including floppy disk, CD-RC^M, and flashmemory drives.

The earliest versions ot thin clients were less than satisfac-tory in their performance. They were slow, unable to grapplewith visual displays, and could not support the use of pe-ripherals. However, advances in technology, coupled withincreased bandwidth, bave cbanged all that. Today, anyonewbo has a computer network in place probahly has adequate

34 I LIBRARY JOURNAL I TEBRUARY l.2(IOf>

Wire Watchers: Going thinmeans reducing the clutterof hardware and electricallines that rormerly ran PCs.The Bloomfield Public Library,NJ, has slimmed down in allthe right places—underneathand on top of work surfaces

capability to run cliiii clients whose pertor-tnance will be virtually indistinguishable fromtbat of PCs. In fact, in a recent "blind tastetest" in the UK, end users could not tell whicbworkstations were tbin clients and which were PCs and .ic-tuaily preferred tbe thin clients over the personal computers.Libraries tbat bave an SI Ig wireless network are also perfectlypositioned to take advantage of tbin client tecbnology. Ofcourse, tbe performance ot the thin clients is completely de-pendent on tbe qtiality of thc network, so when consideringa move to thin clients, call in a knowledgeable expert to as-sess your network and recommend any necessary changes andupgrades to minimize bottlenecks.

In a thin client environment, tbe server does the heavylifting. In fact, tbis type of network is often referred to as"server-centric computing." For tbin clients to operate ef-fectively, the server mtist have enoiigb memory to respondinstantly to requests. Tbe server must also bave a programcalled "terminal services" installed. If your server is Mi-

crosoft-based, you may needWindows Terminal Services(Remote Desktop Protocol) orCitrix. If your server is Linux-based, look at tbe Linux Termi-nal Server Project (LTSP). Tbinclients are also available tbat canaccess application servers us-ing other terminal emulationssucb as TN525(), AS4()0, andIBM327().

Ways to be thinThin clients come m two forms.Traditional thin clients have nointernal storage but rely uponembedded software to givetbem tlie instructions neededto boot up. The presence ofembedded software does make

tliem vulnerable to tbe same need for patcbes and updates thatplague PCs. Tbis software is also based on a specific operatingsystem, so among traditional tbm clients you will find Win-dows and Linux versions.

Tbinner thin clients, sometimes called diskless thin clients,have no embedded software and use a boot server to start up.Since tbey have no software in tbem, tbe same unit can oftenfunction witb botb Windows and Linux.

Botb types of tbin clients employ a server-centric comput-ing architecture that centralizes the control of tbe software.This simplifies tbe updating and configuring of your appli-cations, reduces tbe downtime of workstations, and meansfewer complaints from patrons. For libraries, and indeed forany public access sites such as kiosks and Internet cafes, tbinclients provide a multitude of benef̂ its.

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iiliiINFOTECH FEATURE

Why Network Adminstrators Love Thin Clients

EasyTo Manage

EasyTo Secure

Easyon the Budget

A server-centric network solution means that programsare loaded onto and operate from the server ratfierthan from each computer.RESULT

Tofai control of fhe network from the server room

Thin clients are essentialty empty boxes with nodrives of any kind.RESULTUseless if stolenNo administration at the user's deskNo local machines to secure from viruses and hackers

Thin clients have no moving parts and no built-inobsolescence. You can use machines as old as PentiumIs, and programs run at the speed of the server.RESULT

No need to replace your workstations every three yearsReduced costs for software licensing and electricityYou can reuse outdated hardware with no impacton user experience

Management easeTbe complexity of network management has grown geo-metrically in tbe past decade. With tbe servor-centric ap-proacb of tbin clients, programs are loaded onto and operatefrom tbe server rather than from each comptiter. Tbat meansthe network administrator has to worry about only one ma-chine—tbe server. Tbe librarian does not have to wait for atechnician to fix tbe workstation or upgrade tbe programson it. And the technician's time translates into money. TbeCJartner Clroup estimates tbat one third of the costs for I'C'networks are spent on technical support.

Computer viruses, hacker attacks, and security threatsbave become a nightmare for network administrators. Tbethin client approacb eliminates many of tbese issues becausethe network administrator needs to secure just thc server, notevery workstation. Technicians no longerbave to visit each PC to do patches or /^software updates. In tbe end, yoti gainin productivity, reduce your costs, andstrengthen your network security.

You also never bave to worry abouttbe physical workstations tbemselves.Tbin clients work only wben they areconnected to the network, so they areuseless if they are stolen.

THIN CLIENT COMPANIESEmbedded thin clientsNeowarewww.neoware.com

Wyse Technologywww.wyse.com

Real budget benefitsEvery major computer analyst group haspointed to the reduction in total cost ofownership tbat the adoption of tbin clienttecbnology brings with it. When librar-ies create a computer network, tbey mustconsider a variety of costs, not just tbe ini-tial outlay f()r tbe hardware and software.Otber costs range from the salaries of tbetechnicians to annual software licensingfees and even tbe price of electricity. All of

Diskless thin clientsDiskless Workstationswww.disklessworkstafions.com

Symbio Tecbnologieswww.TheSymbiont.com

Recycled PCsTechnology Rescuewww.technologyrescue.com

Thin clients in librariesEL6 Internet Serviceswww.elbnet.com

this is referred to as tbe total cost of ownersbip.It's much like buying a dry clean-only shirt.The total cost of owning the shirt over fiveyears is tbe initial price of tbe sbirt plus all oftbe accumulated dry cleaning costs. Over time,tbat sbirt could prove to be very expensive.

MSRP prices for thin clients suitable for li-brary Lise range from SI49 to over $400 with-out a monitor. Even tbougb the initial outlayfor thin client hardware may not be mucb lessthan for a comparable number of PCA, the sav-ings over time are dramatic.

Indeed, the Gartner Group has estimatedtbat capital ec]uipment costs, including soft-ware, account for only 20 percent of mostannual costs for a PC' network. The other SOpercent goes to administration and technicalsupport associated with troubleshooting, cus-tomizing, or tinkering witb end tisers' PCsand application software.

Thin clients can often reduce the amountof money that must be spent on annual licens-ing fees as well. Even though tbe library may

still have to pay for server-based licenses for applications sucb asMicrosoft Office, it may not have to pay for licensing Windowson each desktop.

Witb no moving parts and no built-in obsolescence, tbinclients also rarely break. "I used to joke with vendors that ifI had a support call about a tbin client, my answer was ei-ther, 'Turn it off and turn it back on," or 'Hit the Enter key,'"Andy Wbite, associate director for the Health Sciences Li-brary at the State University Library at Stony Brook, says in"Is Tbin In?" {University Business, June 2004). "When you'redealing with tbin clients, it really is tbat easy."

Tbin clients get tbeir power from tbe server, so tbey run ap-plications at that speed. Personal computers, on tbe other band,are limited to the speed of their processors. That's why PCs be-come outdated so quickly. In fact, tbin client tecbnology offers

the opportunity to reuse old macbines. Li-^ braries can dust ofTtbose old PCs they bave

in tbe basement, remove their hard drives.and turn tbem into thin clients. It's an easyway to improve the patron/workstation ra-tio without extra budgetary expense.

Even in an area as mundane as electric-ity, thin clients offer savings. With no needto power internal devices and fans, tbin cli-ents consume only ten percetit of the amountof electricity needed to run a VC. Units areavailable for under $200 tbat need only fivewatts of power and will still display in 24-bitcolor witb a ]600xl2(K) resolution. And tbeyfunctitm silently and generate no beat at all.

Witb life spans two to three times tbatof PCs, thin clients belp libraries avoidthe constant need to replace tbeir work-stations. Instead of spending money ongetting new PCs every tbree years, tbelibrary can allocate a smaller amount ofmoney to buying bigger, faster servers. H

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