Software, Hardware Manufacturers Adapt Products for Flexible Computing

One of the early problems with server-based computing was getting applications to run in a multi-user environment--and then finding support for those applications. No one wanted to touch applications running on a terminal server, it seemed. Now that terminal services is growing in popularity, application vendors have started to make sure that their applications work with Windows 2000 Server Terminal Services. A couple of weeks ago, WRQ announced that the latest version of its Reflection software is Terminal Services-ready out of the box and that the company is prepared to support people who run the software with Terminal Services. This week, Citrix Business Alliance member FileMaker made a similar announcement--the immediate availability of support and documentation for running FileMaker Pro 5.5 (worldwide English only) on Terminal Services with or without Citrix MetaFrame 1.8. Details about running FileMaker Pro with supported MetaFrame and Terminal Services configurations, including system requirements, documentation, and support, are available on FileMaker's Web site.
   
In a similar vein comes a recent hardware development. Thin clients usually don't have removable disks, which makes them more secure but limits their ability to share data. Televideo has added support for USB floppy-disk drives that connect to its thin-client devices. All TeleCLIENT Windows-powered thin clients will include embedded software at no additional cost that lets optional external floppy-disk drives easily connect through their USB port connections. Models such as the new LCD TeleCLIENT TC7370 and the TC7010 are now shipping with this added capability.

IT administrators in environments such as education can now offer users a portable and cost-effective storage solution for TeleCLIENTs. By seamlessly connecting with floppy-disk drives, users can use widely available and inexpensive standard 3.5" floppy diskettes for their portable storage needs. Users can easily access the floppy-disk drive by selecting the A drive icon to access and save files. IT administrators can also remotely manage groups or individual TeleCLIENTs for floppy-drive access by controlling whether the A: drive icon is displayed.