Date
Author
Андрей КОЛЕСОВ; Itoday Ru; -- Специально Для «Времени Новостей
Source
Preserved copy
Translated material
Virtual class
Microsoft introduced a new school computerization program
The education system is a large and tidbit piece for IT suppliers. Firstly, the giant market (in Russia it is more than 50 thousand schools and more than 2.5 thousand universities). Secondly, this market is important to IT companies from the point of view of strategic, long-term tasks (however, only for those who have a long-term strategy)-to accustom schoolchildren and students to their technologies is beneficial.At the beginning of the decade, this was not so: the system of Russian education for the leading players of our IT market was not of serious interest. Schools and universities did not have money, and IT companies have a lot of trouble with them. The education system, especially the secondary, very specific customer, is excellent from companies and government bodies.
The situation has changed dramatically in recent years. Throughout the country, work began on computerization and Internet of schools.
Another evidence of this was the presentation at the Microsoft partnership forum in Moscow, which was specially designed for automation of training classes. It does not yet have a common name, so we will call its individual components: HP Multiseats and Microsoft Multipoint Server (MPS) 2010 equipment.
The key role of this tandem belongs to the software. Microsoft plans to use it as a basis for mass production of equipment designed to work under the control of MPS. The second important point: the demonstration in Moscow took place only three weeks after the first announcement of the release of MPS at the company's headquarters. And the third: this server will enter the market already in the first half of next year, and Russia got into the first wave of localization, which was not typical for new Microsoft solutions.
The traditional option for arranging a computer class is the unification of ordinary PCs into a local network. The second option is the use of the server as a central computer (file server or terminal server) and the use of PC as client places.
In the case of MPS, customer computers are not needed, all data processing is performed exclusively on the server, a typical set of access products is used as a workplace-a keyboard, a mouse and a monitor connected to a server USB port through a small hardware adapter. From the point of view of the user, all this looks like several autonomous PCs. The savings are obvious-the cost of the server and set of adapters (in the standard version-up to ten jobs) will be two to three times lower than the price of the corresponding number of system units. In installation and operation, such a computer class is also much easier.
But on software, including applied, it will not be possible to save. Licenses are needed for each workplace, since each workplace is put in line with a virtual PC.
The idea to get rid of the system unit seems quite obvious, but it is not easy to bring it to life - both Intel hardware architecture, and Windows software environment does not allow you to directly work with multiple keyboard and monitors. However, two years ago, the company Ncomputing solved this problem, which quite quickly managed to carry out a number of serious automation projects (including in the field of education in a number of countries, for example, 180 thousand training places in Macedonia schools, 1.8 million in India universities, 300 thousand in the US general education system). A year ago, Ncomputing began the widespread promotion of its products in Russia.
By the way, Ncomputing is an interesting example of a startup based on an international division of labor. Thus, the development of virtualization software is carried out in Poland, adapters are designed in Russia (developers teams in Rostov-on-Don and Taganrog), managers from Germany and Korea were initiated by the entire project as a whole, production is located in Korea, investors were involved from the USA, and the company's headquarters are located there (in the Silicon Valley).
The NCOMPUTING solution is its virtual VSPACE (analogue of MPS), which can work in the environment for a conventional Windows or Linux, and its own hardware adapter. It is more universal compared to the MPS option.
Recently, Microsoft and Ncomputing have concluded an agreement on technical and marketing cooperation. It is possible that in the framework of this partnership, Microsoft gained access to VSPACE technologies, which allowed the corporation to force the creation of MPS. And NCOMPUTING can now rely on technology and the Microsoft brand.
Microsoft promises to start the MPS OEM settings by the next summer, including in Russia. And this is a powerful objection to Linux supporters in schools.
Prepared in conjunction with ITODAY.RU
 |
- // 16.12.2009
- // 16.12.2009
