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OnLive Intros Virtual Windows 7 Desktop With Office for iPad
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The same way we use to do it 8 years ago, by buying a Windows server license and the appropriate number of per-user CALs.
I like it
What a sweet app. I can take all the advantage of virtually running an OSX or Windows program on my iPad without the overhead of actually storing the programs or OS on my iPad.
The only current downside may be fully utilizing the programs since they don't necessarily recognize touch input and want too much keyboard input.
What a sweet app. I can take all the advantage of virtually running an OSX or Windows program on my iPad without the overhead of actually storing the programs or OS on my iPad.
The only current downside may be fully utilizing the programs since they don't necessarily recognize touch input and want too much keyboard input.
Cute - how long did you have to search to find that BSOD from a driver that won't be running on the system?
Yes, RDP was so Amazing when it got introduced... back in Windows NT 4.0 Terminal Server edition.
Don't point out when Apple fanatics get excited about technologies that Windows innovated in 1996 (before the late turtle-necked overlord's company bought Apple).
Or using it over the network speeds that 98% of the US has....
RDP is really good at reducing bandwidth requirements, but high latencies can bring it to its knees.
I'm pretty sure RDP is just a pale imitation of ICA and that Microsoft just lifted the stuff straight from Citrix, and managed to always be one step behind.
Though I'll grant you, they probably did it that way in agreement with Citrix. In exchange for integration into the Windows server administration tools, Citrix probably gave Microsoft the go ahead to implement Citrix Metaframe light in the form of Terminal Services (which is what it really was).
(the fact that tsadmin can display both ICA and RDP connections should be a big clue).
Windows ported to a tablet didn't work ten years ago, it probably won't work today and into the future.
If these are virtual machines, their best licensing plan is to purchase Data Center edition (per CPU) and you get unlimited VM's. They also have Windows Azure (Windows in the cloud), but I am not familiar with the licensing for that.
I'm pretty sure RDP is just a pale imitation of ICA and that Microsoft just lifted the stuff straight from Citrix, and managed to always be one step behind.
Sounds just like Apple with Fingerworks, Nuance, Konfabulator, ....
I wish I could say that my sense of humor was that refined and metareferential. But no, I just posted the first BSOD screenshot I came across on Google.
Are... are you serious?
Do you live under an Apple-branded rock?
What next, the Xbox 360 isn't popular either?
I agree, however THIS is not a port, it's a virtualization.
BIG difference.
As long as a user doesn't have to spend too much time in the virtualization mode and can, let's say, open a highly stylized word document and make some changes from an iPad, then this app has some very useful utility.
Most of the time it's less important to actually HAVE the Windows or OSX application on an iOS iDevice than it is to be able to access the program via virtualization and get or manipulate data that only the program can give you.
I'm pretty sure RDP is just a pale imitation of ICA and that Microsoft just lifted the stuff straight from Citrix, and managed to always be one step behind.
Though I'll grant you, they probably did it that way in agreement with Citrix. In exchange for integration into the Windows server administration tools, Citrix probably gave Microsoft the go ahead to implement Citrix Metaframe light in the form of Terminal Services (which is what it really was).
(the fact that tsadmin can display both ICA and RDP connections should be a big clue).
Microsoft sold the rights for Citrix to use Windows NT 3.51 to make WinFrame (terminal server), after NT 4.0 was released. Once they saw that there was a market for Terminal Services, they put together NT 4.0 Terminal Services Edition. After that Citrix made MetaFrame, which runs on top of Terminal Services on Windows 2000 and later. Anyone that uses MetaFrame/XenServer/etc. must also pay for Microsoft TS cals, in addition to Citrix cals.
Game Changer
Don't you get it?
This is a tremendous Game Changer!
Why would anyone need a windows computer (and windows license) any longer?
This will also shrink the Market for VMWare and Parallels alike on desktops. Why would anyone do local virtualization if they can get it on the cloud?
What is going to be the point now for Microsoft to develop a Windows tablet if anyone can use Legacy software in the cloud?
Even better, no F... Windows updates, virus nor desktop admin !
In my own experience, for instance, as I gradually moved from MAC to PC, my parallels installation is used less and and less now. Basically I mostly use it now to access Explorer only websites and old legacy software.
Imagine if I not only can get rid of that 25-39Gb Parallels installation on my Mac, but also access legacy software in the comfort of my iPad!
When will that be available world-wide? I need it !!!!
Somehow this looks wrong to me
Don't you get it?
This is a tremendous Game Changer!
Why would anyone need a windows computer (and windows license) any longer?
This will also shrink the Market for VMWare and Parallels alike on desktops. Why would anyone do local virtualization if they can get it on the cloud?
What is going to be the point now for Microsoft to develop a Windows tablet if anyone can use Legacy software in the cloud?
Even better, no F... Windows updates, virus nor desktop admin !
In my own experience, for instance, as I gradually moved from MAC to PC, my parallels installation is used less and and less now. Basically I mostly use it now to access Explorer only websites and old legacy software.
Imagine if I not only can get rid of that 25-39Gb Parallels installation on my Mac, but also access legacy software in the comfort of my iPad!
When will that be available world-wide? I need it !!!!
Latency and throughput power. Not to mention your provider would need to actually have your intended software - quite likely not to be the case.
Not yet. This is still VNC which is still too laggy for real use. MS will likely develop a port which will alllow real time functions and only occasionally need to go to a cloud for more power. That will be the game changer.
Yeah, this way there will zero optimizations for tablet input. Instead of a few questionable ones. Wonderful.
I just...why? There are lots of RDP apps already. Or Office-compatible apps. The thing worth having would be actual Office apps on iOS.
I suppose this could be useful for someone who doesn't have an association with a company that offers Win vs RDP, and reaaally wants to write a letter on the iPad without Pages.
Yes, RDP was so Amazing when it got introduced... back in Windows NT 4.0 Terminal Server edition.
My thoughts exactly. I use a virtual windows (via VPN and RDP) most days on my iPad. (As some of my clients live in the IT Ice Age)
All this is, is a company providing servers lo connect to an a client to install on the iPad.
.
Funny how this is not much different from what computer systems started out with in the 1950ies: big servers somewhere that run all the software which users would access via connected terminals.
With more powerful terminals/PCs in the 90ies this idea was revived and dubbed "Thin Clients". The concept being that you only need reasonably powerful (i.e. cheap) front-end machines that handle little more than the UI while everything else is done on the server in virtual sessions.
Yet that revival failed miserably.
Not sure using tablets as the new "thin clients" would make this any better or more successful today...
I wonder...
Windows tablets failed because merely switching from a mouse-driven system to moving and clicking an on-screen cursor with a pen or finger was not the way people wanted to work on a tablet.
All those desktop UI widgets, open-/close-/check-boxes, etc. don't really work well on a tablet when using a finger.
That is why iOS is different to Mac OS X.
And that is why iOS took off after so many years of Windows Pen editions.
This is a great solution for people wanting to deliver PowerPoint presentations, or briefly touch up some Word or Excel documents.
But never would I want to create a huge Excel spreadsheet or long Word document with that kind of virtualization solution.
It's all about timing. People didn't need access to their data and computer processing from multiple locations on multiple devices, and the supporting technologies didn't exist. We are now getting to a point where both the need and the technologies are in place, and the timing is beginning to be right. There have been many, many ideas that came about prematurely and failed miserably, but when brought about with the right timing were successful. OnLive may or may not be the company to ultimately bring it about, but it may be the spark that moves us down the pathway to remote computing and away from the focus of the main computer being in the home or carried around with you. Computers in the home will still be necessary of course, but will take on the role of managing and linking the myriad of devices that we use rather than being the main source of processing power, programs and data storage that they are today.
As Ballmer struggles at CES to take M$ beyond what Ed Bott described only yesterday as: "two screens and a question mark", did we just witness yet another Palo Alto startup secure the certain demise of Windoze tablets? - before they even get started? I think we did. Remember the date.
There are now two cloud-based services competing to stream Windoze on iPads - meaning the iPad market just expanded exponentially. Nice business model guys.
There are now two cloud-based services competing to stream Windoze on iPads - meaning the iPad market just expanded exponentially. Nice business model guys.
@madtowndoc:
The mobile computing revolution is unstoppable, that's for sure. With ubiquitous LTE (and beyond) mobile computing solutions will be possible that could ultimately make laptop maybe even heavy lifting desktop computers obsolete.
Yet I am worried about inherent flaws - flaws that no improved timing will ever solve.
For example to paraphrase Steve Jobs: "On a tablet, the moment you use a pen, you lose."
This does not mean there is absolutely no market for pen based tablets, certainly artist love a pen interface, but this is a niche market.
Similarly to this example I believe that any desktop OS made accessible 'as is' on a mobile device will always be a niche market.
The real breakthrough happens if someone created an on-the-fly "UI translator", a 'skin' if you want, that transforms desktop UI widgets and mouse-centric gestures to finger-usable ones, turning any Windows app into a true tablet OS app.
The companies best suited for this task are of course Microsoft for Windows and Apple for MacOS X. And I would not be surprised if they are already working on this.
Yet the mere fact that we do not see these as products yet might indicate inherent flaws even in this approach. Usability studies might show this as not really working as well as needed - to go beyond a niche market.
Ultimately a dedicated solution, an application from the ground up designed to be finger- rather than mouse-driven, might be the only way to go.
Perhaps the ideal cloud computing solution are applications that can run locally but also on the server, where heavy lifting is done remotely (perhaps some functions only available remotely) while still providing a 95% off-line capability too. Slower, but still fully usable.
Software management and updates would be driven remotely though, so the user is not bothered.
I would not be surprised if a hi-res quad-core iPad 4 (in about 1 year's time) is targeting exactly that kind of solution.
The mobile computing revolution is unstoppable, that's for sure. With ubiquitous LTE (and beyond) mobile computing solutions will be possible that could ultimately make laptop maybe even heavy lifting desktop computers obsolete.
Yet I am worried about inherent flaws - flaws that no improved timing will ever solve.
For example to paraphrase Steve Jobs: "On a tablet, the moment you use a pen, you lose."
This does not mean there is absolutely no market for pen based tablets, certainly artist love a pen interface, but this is a niche market.
Similarly to this example I believe that any desktop OS made accessible 'as is' on a mobile device will always be a niche market.
The real breakthrough happens if someone created an on-the-fly "UI translator", a 'skin' if you want, that transforms desktop UI widgets and mouse-centric gestures to finger-usable ones, turning any Windows app into a true tablet OS app.
The companies best suited for this task are of course Microsoft for Windows and Apple for MacOS X. And I would not be surprised if they are already working on this.
Yet the mere fact that we do not see these as products yet might indicate inherent flaws even in this approach. Usability studies might show this as not really working as well as needed - to go beyond a niche market.
Ultimately a dedicated solution, an application from the ground up designed to be finger- rather than mouse-driven, might be the only way to go.
Perhaps the ideal cloud computing solution are applications that can run locally but also on the server, where heavy lifting is done remotely (perhaps some functions only available remotely) while still providing a 95% off-line capability too. Slower, but still fully usable.
Software management and updates would be driven remotely though, so the user is not bothered.
I would not be surprised if a hi-res quad-core iPad 4 (in about 1 year's time) is targeting exactly that kind of solution.