What are "Thin Clients"? / What is LTSP? / What is Edubutu?

What are "Thin Clients" ?

Diskless-clients are just one method of connecting computers together to form a network (lab).

Workstations are referred to as diskless-clients or "thin-clients" since most of the processing is performed by the server, and routine tasks (like accepting input from mouse & keyboard and displaying graphics on monitor) are performed just in the thin client's internal memory (RAM).

Advantages of Using Diskless Workstations:

• Save money on hardware (use older machines as workstations, purchase one powerful central server)
• LTSP is distributed under GPL (Gnu Public License) and will always be free
• Ease of upgrading or installing software on central server instead of creating and installing images on multiple machines...
• Thin client workstations are reliable (I have seen this with my own eyes)
• Reduced vulnerability from viruses

What is LTSP?

LTSP stands for (Linux Terminal Server Project). Here is a link to their website: ltsp.org

LTSP is a free application to connect older (legacy) machines to act as "workstations" which are connected to a central computer... The technology was developped by Jim MacQuillan, who is the inventor and current project leader of LTSP. I actually had the pleasure of meeting Jim when he accepted my invitation to speak at Seneca's Open Source Symposium several years ago (Know referred to as FSOSS).

I still maintain that that the LTSP irc is one of the most user-friendly IRC channels on the Internet...

Seneca College's Involvement in LTSP

Since 1998 one of my colleagues at Seneca College, John Selmys, experimented with a technique to cost-effectively connect old "junky" computers that did not have a hard disk drive to a more powerful computer server. When that computer department moved in 2005, it was discovered that those "ancient" machines were still being used by students to work on their assignments / perform homework...

Seneca College, over the past 6-7 years have supported Seneca staff to start projects to donate, install, and support several high-schools in the Toronto area that are in need of affordable networking solutions. I was one of the people involved in this project. I also have volunteered to help set up a Linux lab for a church in Orangeville, Ontario...

Here are some pictures of the Linux Computer Labs we helped to set up:

Highschools:

• [ png ] Emery Collegiate Secondary School (Toronto, ON)
• [ jpg ] Parkdale Collegiate Institute (Toronto, ON)
• [ ] George S. Henry Secondary School (Toronto, ON)

Other Organizations:

• [ ] Westminster United Church (Orangeville, ON)

What is Edubuntu?

To be completed ...