Brian wrote: > > > In the 70s, one powerful computer ran many dumb > > video/keyboard terminals. > > In the 80s we adopted the one computer to one terminal > > model and maintain > > it today. Today, with personal computers so powerful, is > > there a way to > > again run several dumb terminals from one computer ?? > > Cool idea! Actually, in hindsight I think they had it right > in the 70s. Heck of a lot easier to administer than a bunch > of PCs all over the building. So I can see why you're > wondering. It CAN be done but I've never done it. > Basically > it involves exporting the virtual consoles in linux to > physical consoles (Wyse terminals essentially) out the > serial > port. In theory you could run multiple X sessions also this > way. Just set yourself up with a monsterous 1.33 Ghz > (overclocked of course) and a gig of RAM and you have a nice > thin client solution for 4-6 users. Has anyone here tried > something like this? I run our entire office of 35+ users off a 330Mhz sparc/512MB with Solaris and a dual 800 Mhz pentium III/512MB with Linux. We run Autocad, StarOffice, Netscape, and an inventory control/sales analysis/accounting package which is a mix of gnome / text applications (the text apps are being ported to gnome when I have the odd moment free from reading this list). I do about 2 hours of admin / week, and we haven't had any downtime since we switched to Linux (no nines, just a one and zero's...). We bought 35 neoware X-Terminals in 1994 for use with SCO Unix. We have had 0 terminal failures in a little more than 6 years of continuous use. They run gnome and autocad perfectly, neither of which existed when the terminals were built. I love Unix, I love X, and I especially love Linux.