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We have discussed cloud computing from different perspectives on a large number of occasions. For embedded Linux engineers and enthusiasts, one exciting aspect of cloud computing is its application on thin clients.

One of the basic concepts of cloud computing is the use of resources obtained through Internet. By integrating clients with limited capabilities, cloud computing is largely similar to client-server computing with LAN, using dumb terminals or thin clients that were once very popular. ("thin" means that these devices themselves have limited processing power (or no processing power at all), and they depend on the processing power on the server.

Because a large amount of data must be transmitted over the network, bandwidth has become a limiting factor. In the mid-1990s, graphical thin clients were all the rage, but their applications were still largely limited to LAN because they could not meet the bandwidth requirements. For Internet, the speed still needs to be improved. But even in the face of such limitations, the benefits of centralization-especially hardware costs, because computers are more expensive and thin terminals are cheap-are still worth weighing.

Network computing

With the rapid development of high-speed Internet access and the continuous improvement of the functions of the Internet infrastructure itself, the above tradeoffs are no longer needed. Migrating to higher throughput makes a variety of interesting technologies feasible.

Now, you can use a Web browser to perform tasks on a remote server, which previously could only be done through software hosted on the local machine-even some graphical operations such as page layout or image editing. A large number of companies create services to meet demand. Imagine any task you perform locally, and some companies in other locations offer this service online, probably for free.

This example paves the way for new ways to access information over the network, including entirely new software and devices. Dumb terminals are no longer used, and very thin clients no longer exist. For some, the definition of "thin" has been expanded to include any system with access to Internet, regardless of overall functionality: newer devices such as mobile phones, netbooks and mobile Internet devices (MID), or even old desktops and laptops that have been redesigned. If the server can reach the same level of functionality, content, and connectivity as Internet, then all clients are thin clients.

Most industry analysts agree that the use of thin clients, especially mobile phones, has grown dramatically. In fact, thin clients will be the primary means of accessing Internet for most people in the near future.

As John Gage predicted in 1984, the network eventually evolved into a computer.

Bottom line

However, usefulness is usually not a major factor in determining whether it can be widely adopted. More accurate judgments can be made in terms of absolute and relative costs related to value (especially when considering adoption in developing countries). The degree of "fat and thin" of the client is directly related to its cost, because weaker systems have lower costs. Similarly, the cost of cloud-based software is directly related to whether it can be adopted on a large scale.

Innovative market and cost-value ratio

Supporting technologies such as cloud computing and thin clients are prompting organizations to consider different investment and marketing approaches. For example, One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) produces extremely low-cost equipment (currently around US$200), develops education-related software, and in order to create educational opportunities in countries that do not previously have any Internet access or technical training, marketing is targeted at governments in developing countries, not individuals. Although this kind of behavior is bound to bring huge benefits to the company, on the whole, it is beneficial to the whole world.

The case of OLPC also shows the importance of the relationship between value and cost. Consider the overall cost of a "fat" client. Imagine a technical writer who works on a laptop in a cafe. The laptop may contain all the resources needed to complete the project-word processors, page layouts, drawing tools for illustrations and legends, conversion tools for XML and PDF-all included in the laptop, which could be worth 2000 dollars and have desktop-like functionality. The price of the software may be close to that of the system itself, resulting in a total investment of $4000.

By contrast, suppose the tech writer uses a thin client in the same cafe-a smaller, resource-limited system that may cost only 1/10 of the expensive laptop mentioned earlier. Thanks to the software and storage provided in the cloud, this thin client may have no moving parts, only a very simple processor, resources to run modern Web browsers, and fast network connections, but the technical writer can have a lot of resources, perhaps even more than local users, and has good security. He or she can know whether the work he or she has done can be saved if the battery is dead or the laptop is stolen.

Compared with using local machines, the software available in the cloud can generate documents of the same quality and have the same degree of control over the final work, but it is completely free of charge. at the same time, it has been adopted by the enterprise, advertising or some other innovative profit process. The total investment of users is only $200.

Characteristics of the cloud

The * operating environment of thin clients around cloud computing has the following characteristics:

Highly customizable

A cheap or even free operating system

All the necessary applications, cheap or free

Networking is built into the operating system kernel

Small enough to fit into a small device

Provides enough flexibility and functionality to run a full laptop

It saves electricity and can extend battery life to a limited extent.

Linux meets all these standards. It is used in mobile, enterprise and embedded fields, including special consumer devices such as book readers and set-top boxes. And by implementing virtualization, Linux can also run applications built for Windows ®, Mac OS X, and other operating systems.

Linux: cloud-oriented operating system

Linux has matured and can be used as an embedded operating system; its free nature-in terms of cost and royalty-free licensing-has revolutionized a market previously dominated by a handful of companies that require royalties to be paid strictly per user. Linux now provides real-time support and structured driver support, its flexibility is unmatched by other proprietary real-time operating systems, and the availability of related applications is also *. Linux forms the basis of at least four new netbook operating systems, which has contributed to the explosive growth of smartphones and is expected to continue to expand market share over the next five to 10 years.

Linux's flexibility, developer control, power management utilities, and overall stability make it ideal for older, recyclable systems. Old machines can be reinvigorated by loading Linux to replace (or supplement) the host operating system.

Applications that access the cloud

What is the application? It refers to components other than the operating system in the cloud access process, and costs must also be taken into account here. The cloud makes thin clients possible, but the key to reducing costs is to limit the cost of software running thin clients.

Most developers know that some web-oriented applications with large features are completely free, including Web browsers (such as Firefox, Opera, and Chrome), e-mail software (such as Thunderbird and Evolution), instant messaging (such as Pidgin and Trillian), and multi-platform application environments (such as Java ™technology). Combining only these four application types will form a powerful thin client that is completely free.

It is important to note, however, that free, open source operating systems and applications do not mean that they can constitute a completely free device. As the famous open source developer Jamie Zawinski once said, "Free software is free only if your time does not create value." You must put some effort into designing and implementing the system on the basis of free software, just as you must do when developing proprietary software. However, because the basic product is free and its source code is available, the value obtained from free software during this period is much higher than that of paid software, even if the process itself takes longer.

As a result, it is not surprising that the number of embedded Linux developers has now exceeded 100000, and the number is growing.

What thin clients currently exist?

This section will introduce several types of thin clients that are currently on the market. Many of these clients are new devices and are still looking for their niche markets among customers and enterprises. All of these clients share some common features: they themselves have low storage and processing power, are used to perform related functions, are all designed around cloud computing, and all run on operating systems based on Linux and other open source software.

Netbooks

The netbook is a small, low-power (by modern standards) but fully functional laptop that usually supports wireless Internet access. Netbooks is designed to be used as a thin client, and most of them do not have fan or disk drives.

Examples of netbook include OLPC XO, Asus EEE PC, and MSI Wind. Most netbook runs full Linux distributions, such as Fedora or Ubuntu, but some use distributions tailored to them, such as OLPC's Linux-based Sugar operating system, which is developed by educators as a learning environment. The Sugar interface can also run on standard Windows or Apple systems (see Resources for a link for more information).

MID

A mobile Internet device (MID) is a very small device with a touch screen and sometimes you can choose to install a miniature keyboard. Sometimes referred to as ultra-mobile PC (UMPC), MID supports wireless Internet access and is specifically designed for mobile applications (they are about the same size as mobile phones). The main difference between netbooks and MID is their size, because they usually use the same processor, but MID is generally weaker: they use less storage, less memory, and smaller screens.

Examples of MID include the Nokia N810, Sony Vaio P, and Acer Aspire ONE series. Almost all MID devices run on various Linux versions. In particular, Nokia devices run Maemo, a comprehensive kernel and middleware platform whose user environment is limited and optimized to maintain the availability of application resources, but some developers have also created alternative desktop environments. You can also use Ubuntu MID Edition, which, together with Moblin, can be built on top of a set of Intel ®- based middleware, resulting in a powerful operating environment.

Intelligent mobile phone

These fast-growing phones, originally used as corporate devices for reading email and browsing Web, have become very popular. Many smartphones come with keypads and fast, long-lasting Internet connections, thanks to the huge development of 2.5G and 3G mobile data networks.

Examples of smartphones with keyboards include the new Palm Pre, HTC G1 and OpenMoko projects. Smartphones without keyboards include Motorola Krave ZN4, Samsung Anycall SCH-i859 and Emblaze Mobile Edelweiss, as well as Purple Magic reference designs from French company Purple Magic. All these phones use the Linux operating system.

Recently, many new mobile phone designs running various Linux versions have been released. Linux distributions designed specifically for smartphones include Android (Google products) and LiMo-based software. LiMo is a smartphone standards organization.

Special equipment

The main functions of some dedicated devices also depend on the network. E-book readers must download books in some way: Amazon Kindle uses a mobile phone-based network connection to connect directly to Amazon's server. Note that Kindle is running Linux. Other dedicated devices with network capabilities include the TiVo Digital Video Recorder (DVR) and the Roku Netflix Player video stream set-top box, both of which run Linux.

Mixing equipment

There is a new device on the market that may be called a hybrid cloud computer. It is a standard office laptop that provides an interesting feature: Linux-based thin clients are built directly into the hardware, sharing keyboards, screens, and network connections. It may seem strange to have two computers in one chassis, but the advantage is obvious: the thin client can connect to the network like a mobile phone immediately after boot, use a standard battery for 18 hours, and after hibernation, the user can boot up and enter the larger machine as needed. This is a real cloud computer with local backup.

Currently, the only hybrid device is the Dell Latitude E4200/E4400 series (this feature is called Latitude ON), but more similar devices are planned in the future.

Greener cloud

Both cloud computing and the use of Linux-based thin clients can bring environmental benefits.

Cloud computing uses resources centrally, which means that all hard processing occurs on large, fast machines somewhere in the cloud. Some companies-especially Google-use this concept as a core concept, placing server clusters physically close to power stations, such as Oregon and Eemshaven. Netherlands (close to a large windmill power station). Because a large amount of electricity will be lost in transmission, this method is not only environmentally friendly, but also beneficial to the company. Google also has a patent (famously) for a buoy wave power server cluster that can not only be located in the same location as a power station, but also financially affordable.

Thin Linux clients have other benefits. First of all, they are very "thin", which means they contain low-power hardware, so they are more power-efficient than expensive laptops. Second, they run Linux, which provides many power management advantages, even for older hardware.

Third, and most importantly, Linux can run anywhere. Instead of throwing the old computer into the electronic pollution junkyard, provide it with a brand new, inexpensive hard disk-or boot from a CD or USB flash drive (UFD)-and reconfigure the computer as a thin client.

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