backup & low downtime for home network

[Robert Brockway]

On Fri, 7 Dec 2007, D. Hugh Redelmeier wrote:

> Thanks for the link.

No problem.

> None of those have good enough video for me.  The one with the nicest
> form factor supports at most 1280x1024 (32 bit).  The one with the
> best video seems to support up to 1600x1200 (16 bit).  Neither lists
> resolutions suitable for "wide screen" monitors that seem to be taking
> over the world.

I doubt widescreen would be a problem.  This is X afterall.  I may be 
testing this hypothesis soon.

> My desk has a 1920x1200 LCD and a 2560x1600 LCD.  Most PCs out of the
> box support 1920x1200 and most recent video cards support 2560x1600
> ("dual link" DVI).
>
> For C$300, with careful shopping, you can get a current PC with things
> that sound valuable and surely did add to the cost of production:
> - DVD writer
> - 320G hard drive
> - 1G of RAM
> - MS Windows Vista
> - 2GHz processor
> - lots of interfaces, including ethernet and VGA
> It makes the more expensive diskless workstation look overpriced.

Most of the advantage of thin client comes after you purchase the system. 
Think about issues like:

1.  Power consumption.
2.  Heat output (particularly in summer)
3.  Power consumption for cooling systems
4.  Noise polution
5.  What happens when your low end PC dies.

How quickly will you be back working again? Remember a thin client system 
can afford to have a more reliable server.  Don't compare 1 PC to 1 TC. 
Compare 2-4 units (in a home) or 50+ in an office.

6.  Performance.

You quote a PC with 1GB.  Well you know what, in a home with 4 thin client 
the users can share a system with 4GB for a comparable price and enjoy 
better performance.  Memory is consumed more efficiently on a 
modern multi-user operating system.

The reality is a CPU is idle most of the time a person is using it (even 
between key strokes).  Multiple users on a more powerful system can enjoy 
the full power of that system most of the time.  This is a real win.

The advantages go on and on.

> If there were a comparable market for diskless workstations surely
> there would be better prices and better choices.

So many people are unaware that anything except the workstation paradigm 
is even possible that any alternative has been fighting an uphill battle 
for years.  H/W manufacturers across the board have a vested interested i 
more H/W being produced.  Despite this people are finally catching on and 
thin client is becoming more common.  It's just happening 20 years after 
it should have happened (for reasons I mentioned earlier).

The reality is computer hardware has become a huge and under-reported 
environment issue.  It has also become a huge health issue in Asia where 
a lot of the equipments up.

See there is a lot more to this than just getting good "bang for your 
buck".

Cheers,

Rob

-- 
"With sufficient thrust, pigs fly just fine..."
 	-- RFC 1925 "The Twelve Networking Truths"
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