>> On Sunday 12 February 2012 04:58:58 pm Timothy Pearson wrote: >>> Just to jump in here, there is one use case for a lightweight DE that >>> doesn't involve obsolete hardware: multiuser mainframe-type systems. >>> When >>> you have 50 users on one central server, each with a session that is >>> being >>> accessed via a remote desktop protocol such as VNC or even the X >>> protocols, slight reductions in the overhead of each session make a big >>> difference overall. >>> >>> Just something to think about in these odd times, when the personal >>> computer is being "replaced" with a variant of the old central >>> mainframe >>> model.... >>> >>> Tim >> >> Are you talking about cloud computing? > > A specific type of cloud computing, yes. Most cloud computing is Web > based, but there are a few instances of cloud computing where the entire > desktop GUI is handled on the remote server and the client is just an I/O > device with a network connection. > >> I've been wandering how that would actually work. I mean, if we all get >> rid of our boot devices and use "the cloud" to boot our computers and >> run >> our apps, how would we configure our computers to know what server(s) to >> boot from? How would TDE tie into that (as in, how will it work being >> loaded from "the cloud", and how would the TDE desktop environment >> change >> as a whole)? I know that's thinking way far in advance as far as TDE >> goes, >> but I'm just curious ;-) > > Remember these? > > http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Network_Computing_Devices > > Make the monitor into a touch flatscreen, update the network conection > with WiFi and Gigabit Ethernet, integrate the optional monitor and > keyboard into a laptop- or tablet-like device and I think you have where > we are going. > > Truly scary for developers, content producers, or anyone with data worth > stealing, but for the masses it might actually work rather well (and there > would be big bucks to be made in providing computing services to these > devices). > > Just my $0.02. :-) > > Tim Whoops--that should obviously read "optional *mouse* and keyboard" above. Tim