Userful corporation is taking on the public access computing market with software that enables a Linux PC to connect up to 10 monitors, giving each user the experience of being connected to a standalone computer. The Canadian company’s “1-Box” approach lets up to ten users can browse the Internet, send email and run applications from one computer. The strategy eliminates the need for servers and networking equipment, save significant money on hardware and is deployed in several libraries in that country. The company also gives some environmental impact savings on ewaste and energy due to their solution. Read full story. Elsewhere, Linux takes a step toward desktop acceptance.
Linux public access distro delivers extreme ROI
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that the concept of the dumb terminal and time sharing has come around full circle under a new, improved guise.
Except that all you need for this are multiple keyboards, monitors, mice, and video cards.
Coquitlam Public Libaries (BC) are reporting significant (35% to 40%) cost savings using the Userful solution. Details are in the June 2004 issue of Computers in Libraries. (ISN 1041-7915). Ironic or not, it helps the bottom line.
This isn’t a dumb terminal – it’s a single computer with 10 monitor/keyboard/mouse sets. There’s a significant difference.
Note that “dumb terminals” (now known as “thin clients”) can also be a good solution for those kinds of uses: with Xdmcp and 100Mbit connections, it works very well (with 1Gbit you can’t tell the difference between a standalone workstation and an X terminal). The only think I haven’t been able to work out is sound, however – whatever I try, it always comes out of the main computer, not the thin client…
All in all, the Userful 10-in-1 computer is a really cool concept, and shows that innovation isn’t solely Microsoft’s domain.
This isn’t a dumb terminal — all the applications run on the one machine shared by 10 users. Although of course you can also use MS rdesktop, Citrix etc.
The userful stuff is more like a mini-mainframe plus dumb terminals all in one. The interesting twist is that the expensive mainframe is replaced by increasingly powerful commodity PC hardware, and the networking by standard keyboard and monitor connections.
I think its very interesting, so does any one know if there is an open software solution for this? Would it not be great to have one home computer that runs two or three monitors and inputs with mouse and keyboard. Now the whole family can expirience the linux desktop.
.. stupid question , but where do you plug 10 keyb / mice in ??
I believe they plug directly into the computer
http://www.userful.com/products/discoverstation-faq#Anchor4
It’ll be cool if it works with wireless keyboard and mouse.
Not sure if there’s any “wireless montior”
This could be a really useful solution, although I wish they would stick to selling the hardware and software I would of thought places with low budgets would shy away from rental agreements.
“Running DiscoverStation requires both a hardware purchase and a monthly software rental/support contract.”
I went to a new optician about a year ago.. all they where running was 3270 clients on all the machines and had Windows Pro and high end boxes just for that.
I think keyboards and mice extentions are badly needed badly for this the normal “5 to 6 feet” aint a great deal to play with.. when sitting 6 to ten people.
Id like to see a picture of the solution.. ie what type of graphics card they are using etc your going to need to have a far few pci slots i would think…
oh and ppl wanting to keep their keyboards and mice from being stolen should never use wireless (a picture from their website shows logitec wireless K&M).
All you’re going to get when you register for the trial is the a message:
“Thank you for your signing up for the 1-Box for Linux Trial Version software. We will contact you once the software becomes available.”
Followed by marketing and “useful” links.
So much for ROI.
I succeeded once to get sound with remote X connection. You need to run esd –promiscous on the connecting machine. I haven’t tried that with other sound servers.
ltsp.org?
LTSP is thin client, this is zero client. Thin client has problems with streaming video and rich media (aka Flash) this system performs like a PC.
http://userful.com/document/top-10-reasons-not-to-choose-thin-clien…
I’m actually pitching this idea to my company, and Userful has been extremely helpful in doing this. It seems like they’ve come up with a great thing here.