Summary: Desktop PCs vs Intranet NCs
Desktop Pentium NC or PC-Xware
Server File Server Application Server
OS 3.1, 95, NT (which to use?) Windows NT
Installation Difficult (every desktop) Easy (once)
Adding New Users Slow (full PC install) Fast
Resource Sharing Manual, Difficult Automatic
CPU Many Wasted Cycles Easy to Tune
Memory Much Wasted More for Everyone
Disk Space Duplicated, Unsecure Fully Shared, Secure
Ease of Upgrade Difficult (every desktop) Easy (once)
Hardware Reliability Low High (no moving parts)
Virus Protection Difficult NT, Java, Floppy Optional
Application Management Distributed Centralized