The iPad app referenced in the article is a client for VMware’s “VMware View” virtual desktop application. This VMware offering competes with similar offerings from HP, Citrix, Oracle, Microsoft, Netware, and a number of others. VMware View has been around for a few years now and offerings from competitors pre-date that. It is not a virtualization environment for iPad the way VMware Desktop is a virtualization environment for desktop or laptop computers.
The VMware View client connects to a VMware View Server over whatever network infrastructure is available. The main idea behind virtualized desktops is similar to benefits incurred through most virtualization. Instead of having to maintain a fleet of “fat clients” or full-fledged computers, an enterprise would deploy a series of “thin clients” which only have enough resources to communicate mouse moves, keystrokes, and screen refreshes between the thin client and the back end server. The processing is done on a virtual desktop environment hosted on the server. This is very much like accessing a regular server via Remote Desktop Protocol, except in this case, the point is to access a full desktop environment where an end user can do all their work instead of just performing administration tasks on the server. Having all the “desktop environments” – really like virtualized PC’s – together on a server offers advantages for maintenance, security, and disaster recovery that all translate into cost savings for the enterprise. Further savings come from the fact that thin clients are less expensive to acquire as well as being much easier and therefore less expensive to maintain than full PC’s. They also have fewer security issues as they are designed to give very granular control over what if any peripherals can be interfaced. In fact, USB device support at the local thin client is a relatively recent addition to virtualized desktop environments.
Citrix was the one who really pioneered this market space, as they had a server solution that used a browser client to accomplish this when “virtualization” as we understand it today wasn’t even really on the horizon. Next, the browsers running on full-fledged PC’s were replaced by thin clients. Now that virtualization has become commonplace for servers in the datacenter, it has extended into the desktop environment and converged back into the virtual desktop space.
Virtual desktops are a good solution for many applications, but often don’t scale well enough for things like music and graphics/video processing. The resource-light thin clients often don’t have displays or video interfaces that lend themselves to high-end graphic work. As well, the large amounts of data involved with high-end graphic or video processing tend to stress the network infrastructures that connect the thin clients to the virtual desktop server.
While the article suggests that the VMware View client will allow the iPad to gain ground in the business environment, I believe that this is only partly true. Definitely, some job functions would benefit greatly from having a tablet-based mobile device from which you can access a full desktop environment, but certainly not all. It’s really a question of the interface. For example, any function which requires a lot of data input requires a physical keyboard, unless the input can be presented in a standard format with pick lists and very little actual free-form text entry. Yes, there are portable Bluetooth keyboards that can bridge this gap for tablets, but then why not have a lightweight laptop or even a netbook? All you lose is the touch interface. A great deal of the video presentation in the article focuses on how certain control keys are translated into the touch interface of the tablet. Remember that even though it’s virtualized, the desktop environment remains the same as the desktops on full PC’s and was designed for a keyboard-and-mouse interface.
Tablets have some distinct advantages and are currently “the latest thing” in IT. Their intuitive touch interfaces do very well in applications where the main focus is on accessing and presenting information. When tasks start to involve editing or creating content – especially text content – things start to change. I predict that, similar to the netbooks of recent experience, people will find that their application is not universal. They will work very well in some applications, but will not be selected for others. There will be the matter of personal preference where some people will prefer the touch interface of a tablet to the keyboard and mouse interface of a laptop or desktop. As an aside, I think it will be interesting to see if touch screen laptops and PC’s will make inroads into traditional market share. It really is the touch interface that creates all the buzz. Tablets are portable, but so are laptops and netbooks – it just depends on your resource requirements and your budget. My chiropractor has set up her office using touch screen PC’s running an integrated practice management suite. That’s just one example of where a touch screen works well. I wouldn’t see it working well in an environment like the rank-and-file workers in a law firm where the business needs to create and edit large volumes of documentation for contracts, legal filings, etc.
While this news is exciting for some, it is not necessarily practical in a wider context.
About the Author
Silicon Halton member Paul Robinson is Infrastructure Manager with Avante Solutions, Inc with 25 years experience in IT, hardware and software solutions.