[K12OSN] I need to make Flash work faster....wanna pitch

[David Trask]

"Support list for opensource software in schools." <k12osn at redhat.com> on
Wednesday, January 12, 2005 at 10:44 AM +0000 wrote:
>These are unrelated concepts.  It is possible to network boot a
>traditional 'fat' client that can be diskless or perhaps only
>have a local swap file/partition.  Apps load via NFS from the
>server but run locally.  Try, for example, booting a
>knoppix CD on one machine and enabling its PXE server, then
>let a client boot from it.  The client will run everything locally
>just like a CD boot. The main thing you need on the client
>is a faster CPU and more RAM than for a thin client, but if you
>are using PC's that used to run Win98, this should work fine and
>scale to more clients per server.  You could split the difference
>by running the WM locally but run large apps like openoffice from
>an application server.  You'd have a big win on display intensive
>apps like tuxtype or multicast streaming video displayed by vlc.
>The downside is mostly that there is no bundled installation
>like k12ltsp for booting fat clients and no good menu-builder for
>mixing in apps from an app server when the WM is local.

That's what I thought....my clients in the lab....(the place where I
really need to address the FF/Flash issue) have P4's....256 mb RAM...etc. 
My understanding of local apps is that somehow the app gets pulled down
the pipe and uses the local resources to run....ie: CPU and maybe RAM? 
Next summer I'll be installing straight thin-clients in the
lab....thus...the CPU and RAM should be fine....minimum CPU will be VIA
533 mhz.....and the RAM will be at least 128 AFAIK.  I use IceWM...so
buidling a menu item shouldn't be too hard should it?  Assuming security
is not an issue at this stage what's the best way to start?

David N. Trask
Technology Teacher/Coordinator
Vassalboro Community School
dtrask at vcs.u52.k12.me.us
(207)923-3100