The truth about network computers

From the Tektronix homepage

Most people with a general idea of what a network computer is are attracted to the concept of a device that can do what a PC can at a fraction of the cost. In fact, there is so much talk about NCs these days that a lot of companies--even companies that have no expertise in networks, computers, or hardware manufacturing whatsoever--are announcing plans to market network computers of their own. But the term network computer, although a bit more defined now than when it was first coined (early 1996), is still an imprecise label. And there is still a lot of confusion about what network computers will actually deliver to the corporate enterprise.

Let's start with a purely technical definition. In May 1996, Sun, IBM, Netscape, and Oracle announced a set of guidelines called the Network Computer^TM Reference Profile, a specification designed to encourage interoperability among various "network computers". In order to bear the NC label, an Internet-capable device must meet the following requirements:

• minimum screen resolution of 640x480;
• pointing device (such as a mouse);
• text input, audio output;
• TCP/IP, FTP, NFS, UDP, Telnet;
• SMTP, IMAP4, POP3 (e-mail protocols);
• JPEG, GIF, WAV, AU (multimedia file formats);
• Bootp;
• HTML, HTTP (web protocols); and
• Java application access (not Windows application access).

This profile defines the minimum hardware configuration, Internet protocols, e-mail protocols, file formats, boot protocols, WWW standards, and application access required to meet the NC Reference Profile, but it does little to clarify the practical abilities of a network computer. For instance, an NC, as defined by the NCRP, could be a set-top box that connects to your TV and provides e-mail and browser functionality, or it could be an entertainment/gaming device. This is clearly not the network computer most people think of when they hear the term, but these devices (more properly described as "internet appliances") would qualify as NCs under the NC Reference Profile, as would most PCs in the corporate environment and many PCs in the home. Using the NC Reference Profile as the sole criteria for NC qualification produces results like these that just contradict our common sense idea of what a network computer should be and what it should do.

Obviously, a more realistic definition is needed, one that addresses customer needs.

A practical definition

A sensible person would hardly claim that a PC server with 256MB of RAM, four Pentium 200MHz processors, and 4GB of storage is the equal of an IBM-compatible 386 with 4MB of RAM and a floppy...yet both are called PCs. The same disparity applies to the various NCs on the market. An internet appliance that connects to your TV may be considered a network computer by the home consumer, but to the corporate consumer, an internet appliance would be as inadequate as a kid's toy. That's why it is important to define a network computer in terms of the concrete functionality customers--especially corporate customers--need and expect.

Zona Research defines a network computer "as a device designed to deliver networked information and applications to the user" saying that a "successful NC will meet customer and market requirements, as opposed to an abstract vendor definition." Can every so-called NC meet these requirements? Hardly. And that's the danger in labeling a device an "NC" and ascribing features and qualities to it that it may or may not possess. The NC Reference Profile was designed to address some of the most egregious failings of the PC--namely its high cost of ownership and time-consuming administration--but there are areas which the NC Reference Profile itself falls short. For instance, two far more useful requirements--neither of which is even mentioned in the NCRP--would be Windows application access and legacy IBM and DEC application access. Although the need to access Java applications should continue to grow, there are more users today who need Windows and legacy access than there are users who need Java access.

The table below shows how a network computer with the minimum functionality (as defined in the NCRP) compares with a standard PC and how both device types address a typical corporate customer's computing needs.

 

Obviously using a fat client PC is an inefficient way to meet a corporation's computing needs, and the bare-bones NC is an inadequate solution for the end-user. A successful NC must address all of a corporate customer's needs, from the low cost of ownership and ease of administration inherent in its thin client architecture to the networked universal access of Windows applications, legacy applications, and multimedia audio/video applications.

The advantages and benefits of thin client network computing

The benefits of client/server architecture are indisputable. Because hardware resources can be centralized on powerful servers dedicated to perform specific tasks, upgrades and maintenance can be handled quickly and easily. Software management can be simplified too since information system managers can track single copies of applications on centralized servers rather than hundreds of individual desktop copies spread across the entire organization. What is in dispute boils down to which type of client/server relationship works best, or--put another way--how much of a business's resources belong on the desktop and how much belong on the server. Should IS managers adopt the "fat client" approach--a networked PC? Or should they go with a "thin client"--a netstation?

Thin clients like networks computers are designed for fast display performance, not for storage or intensive data processing. As a result, NCs save in hardware and maintenance costs because they have fewer components and utilize the resources of powerful servers optimized for storage and processing. Fat clients like PCs, on the other hand, assume more of the servers' responsibilities. A typical fat client PC comes with a hard disk, floppy drive, CD-ROM drive, modem, fan, processor, enough memory to run the operating system (along with the heaviest application that will be run at any given time), and other hardware peripherals...not to mention the operating system itself and dozens of applications on the software side.

While it may be argued that processing applications and storing data locally at the client end has advantages, in large companies, the disadvantages outweigh any minor benefit gained. Consider the cost of providing the extra hardware for every PC to accomplish these tasks and the increased likelihood of component failure for any of these added components. Then there's administration costs. With the company's data spread across thousands of PCs rather than stored on a few easily managed centralized servers, backups will be a nightmare for system administrators. And configuring each PC, installing the necessary software on each one, troubleshooting, upgrading...every problem commonly associated with PCs is avoided with thin client NCs.

There are many reasons to replace fat client PCs with network computers in the corporate workplace. With thin client netstations and other network computers, hardware resources and applications are centralized on powerful servers, so hardware and software upgrades and maintenance can be handled quickly and easily on a few machines rather than at each desktop. The client/server architecture inherent in netstations and other network computers distributes application access to all users while centralizing resources, so you can utilize the processors and memory from powerful servers to make the network function as one huge computer. By sharing hardware and software resources, NCs reduce costs and administration tasks.

In some cases, however, it is desirable to run "local clients"--applications that execute locally at the desktop. Running applications locally reduces network traffic and reduces the host's workload by relieving it of some of the processing work that can slow down other applications. Local client applications offer performance and network benefits associated with processing on the desktop while avoiding the administration and maintenance pitfalls associated with fat client PCs. With a multiuser NT solution like Tektronix's WinDD software, for example, network computer users can connect to multiuser NT servers (taking advantage of the centralized servers' resources) and run Windows with a local client application (designed to reduce network traffic).

Likewise, local legacy emulators allow NC users to access the myriad IBM and DEC legacy applications still in use today while reducing the unnecessary network traffic caused by host-based emulators. Although these mainframes will eventually be retired and replaced with newer servers, many corporations have substantial investments in their legacy hardware and software and don't expect to flip the power switch on these machines overnight. That's why it is critical to provide, not only access to the newer Java, video, browser, and Windows applications, but also to legacy applications.

And by offering this universal information access in the way of local client applications, Tektronix offers customers all the network load reduction benefits from the old and the new technologies. Tektronix netstation users may access legacy mainframes and minicomputers using local IBM 3270 and 3179G terminal emulators or DEC VT100, VT220, and VT340 emulators. And every Tektronix network computer comes standard with a local WinDD ICA client to access PC applications via a Tektronix WinDD server. These local client applications provide an even better offer to customers who prefer a low risk alternative to the costly networked PC paradigm. Tektronix network computers provide the full functionality of the fat PC at a thin fraction of the cost.

Network computer solutions available today

Of the handful of former X terminal vendors who have begun the transition to the network computer market and the upstart companies who are making their first foray into the network display market, none can match Tektronix for the breadth of application support and quality. Tektronix has been in the network display market for more than seven years, and has pioneered the multiuser Windows NT access which several other vendors are now offering and which many others still do not provide.

* All of these companies are shipping local browser/Java functionality with their products or have announced intentions to do so.

What makes Tektronix network computers better?

Legacy DEC and IBM applications. Legacy access is important, even in these new Java days. Tektronix offers a more complete set of local clients to support customers who are migrating from their legacy systems than all other NC vendors combined. And our legacy access support is not limited to one series; it covers all of our current production NCs as well as earlier model netstations and X terminals. Most of the former X terminal vendors offer limited legacy support on only some of their NCs. And most of the new NC vendors don't offer legacy access at all. These upstarts either don't understand the value of accessing the millions of man-hours' worth of information on the corporate mainframes or they simply don't have the expertise to offer it. As an independent network computer vendor not tied to any single operating system or platform, Tektronix knows the value of accessing information on other vendors' systems. That's why Tektronix's DEC and IBM legacy access support is superior.

Windows applications. More than legacy access, today's corporate users require access to Windows applications. Tektronix pioneered the current rush to provide Windows application access to non-PC users with the introduction of WinDD software in 1994.

Without legacy or Windows application access, customers will have to port their applications to Java to use these NCs. In contrast, Tektronix network computers are far more flexible. In addition to supporting the most comprehensive suite of legacy applications and PC applications available, most of the 150,000-plus Tektronix netstations in use today can be upgraded to full network computer status.

Multimedia applications. Few NC vendors offer multimedia features like true 30fps (frames per second) digital MPEG-1 video. Some vendors claim they can sometimes display 30fps video--when no other application is running or when the audio is muted. But Tektronix's XP400 series--with its dedicated digital audio and video coprocessors--is the only NC solution available that plays 30fps digital MPEG-1 video synchronized with DAT-quality audio...even while other applications are running.

Quality hardware. One persistent myth about the network computer is its supposed $500 pricetag. Some vendors claim a $500 starting point, but $500 products usually do not include monitors or a network interface cards (NIC) or other components. (Remember, the NCRP only specifies support for a 640x480 resolution monitor; it doesn't state that a device must include one.) Even with a low-end monochrome display and the bare bones minimum to run this "network computer" on the network, the price will more likely end up in the $800 to $1000 range. Tektronix netstations come with high quality monitors that adhere to international emission standards such as MPR-II and TCO 92. Corporations concerned with the health of their employees require a higher quality device than a so-called $500 box that attaches to a TV.

The question is whether an $800 device with a cheap monochrome display will meet your needs. People who stare at them for eight-plus hours a day need displays with high resolutions and high refresh rates to avoid eye fatigue. Most corporations are more interested in the long-term health of their employees than in saving a couple hundred bucks and will provide their workers with quality color displays. Even home PC users are eschewing small, low resolution monitors in favor of 17-inch color monitors at 1024x768 resolution or better.

Summary

Clearly, not all NCs are equal. Some NCs would be better described as internet appliances, set-top boxes for your TV, or internet gaming devices; and even PCs can technically meet NC requirements, but these fat client devices are better described as PCs, not NCs. Before deciding on a specific network computer, be sure it meets all your organization's current--and future--needs. The netstation is a proven NC that goes beyond what a mere NC can do by providing total access to all your organization's information. And the netstation, because it adheres to the client/server model, beats the PC by reducing maintenance and administration costs.

The network computer is the latest in a long line of inexpensive network display devices that started with the text terminal and evolved into the windowing X terminal in the late 1980s. The X terminal did well in Unix environments but never became widely adopted because of its inability to seamlessly access the ubiquitous Windows applications. Tektronix cleared this obstacle by introducing WinDD, the first multiuser NT solution that allowed non-PC users to access thousands of off-the-shelf 16-bit and 32-bit Windows applications. And along with WinDD came the netstation, the successor to the X terminal that provided universal access to all information regardless of its type or location on the network.

Now we are entering the era of network computers running browser and Java applications, and with them comes a nascent challenge to the hegemony of Intel/Microsoft in the computing world. Many NC vendors see the network computer with Java support as the ultimate low-cost, easy-to-use, open system alternative to the costly PC. Java could even become the cross-platform lingua franca in the computing world, replacing Windows as the number one worldwide OS--a formidable task, but not impossible. Software developers would have to adopt Java as their development platform (instead of Windows) to create their applications. But if such a move guarantees that their Java-created applications will be compatible with Macintosh, Unix, and other platforms--in addition to Windows--then there is a strong incentive to do so.

This conflict portends a change is possible, even likely. Consumers and vendors alike should prepare for either result. Although no one will know the outcome of this battle for some time, what we at Tektronix do know is that virtually every user will still need access to Windows applications in the mean time. So it's no wonder a number of NC vendors have followed Tektronix's lead by offering some form of Windows access with their NCs (despite Windows access not being an NC requirement). Even Sun has licensed Citrix's ICA for delivery of Windows applications to its JavaStations. Tektronix protects your investment by offering netstations that will still be in use long after your PCs and limited function NCs have been replaced.