Linux May Hit Single Digit Desktop Marketshare in 5 Years!!! 2375

David L. Johnson I changed a traditional PC (Windows) set-up to a full thin client setup using Citrix. This included 50 travelling salespersons, so it doesn't bind you to the office, on the contrary. As a Citrix set-up processes all data on the central server, so you can focus on creating a fast server set-up. No real data are transmitted, only displays, which is a great boon to security, as you don't have to worry about lost,stolen or forgotten laptops with sensitive data to hit the headlines. The Citrix solution also opens up for many different kind of devices, not limiting you to a thin client or a PC with a thin client program installed.

In this set-up all laptops were identical - their only function was to load the Citrix client program, and they were stripped to bare essentials and locked down to a degree not normally seen.

I have done this 5 times now, and users always claim that it is much easier, working in different locations is a pleasure as settings are always the same, boot time is 5-10 seconds and shut-down the same. Travelling salesmen work effortlessly using a GPRS connection on a mobile phone, although more bandwith that the 56k would benefit. Likewise would a true mobile thin client, which would enable you to dump the PC entirely.

For the windows administrator it is a great boon as error handling is redused to plugging a new device in in case of failure. No reinstalls, no fuddling about with what Bill Gates' legionaiers dreamt up of weird errors, no antivirus, anti spyware anti what-the-next-windowspaluge to it us. Concentrate on a small number of servers instead of myriads of PC's.

These 5 installations were Windows-only at the beginning, but gradually moved towards Unix and Linux, starting with removing the disasters IIS, Exchange and Outlook. Changing PC's to Linux would have been a big help from using Windows. Management thought it was impossible to move away from Microsoft, but what do management know about IT? They knmow about running a business - some of them.

I'd like some valid arguments for keeping 3-400 PC's to be maintained in order to run applications that would run better on a set of central servers. I tried 'the other solution', and I lost all my arguments for keeping the PC.