ACP – Page 3 – Thin Client Technology

Monthly Integrator Spotlight

October 10, 2012September 15, 2014 Tom Jordan

ThinManager Grows With Expanding Operations

When a large globally recognized beverage company needed to expand their North American facilities from coast to coast, they called on the Barry Wehmiller Design Group. With more than 25 years of experience as a global supplier of manufacturing technology, and over 600 dedicated technical professionals, they were the obvious choice for such a large project. When it was time to improve and upgrade those facilities, the Barry Wehmiller Design Group called on ThinManager.

“We looked at a number of different options and settled on the ThinManager Platform because of its great reputation as it was created specifically for industrial applications. It seemed to be an ideal solution for the plant floor. It doesn’t carry a lot of overhead and it is very easy to install. That was one of the primary considerations when we chose ThinManager,” said Mike Sommars of Barry Wehmiller Design Group. He then explained the totality of this large multi-phase, multi-location project that was deployed and expanded upon over a period of time. [...]

The 2012 ThinManager Roadshow Rolls to the Finish Line

October 3, 2012September 15, 2014 Tom Jordan

Earlier this year, we wrote an article explaining the long and proud history of the ThinManager Roadshow. Since then, the Roadshow has spent the summer traveling across tens of thousands of miles while visiting eight cities, two countries, and hundreds of people all wanting to know how to get the most out of their ThinManager ready thin client systems.

This year, ACP raised the bar by holding the Roadshow at some of the most famous and eclectic locations we could find to make sure that after spending a day talking about how ThinManager increases efficiency managing automated industrial environments, that everyone could have a little fun. From stadiums, to racetracks, to museums, the legend of ThinManager continues to spread across the land. [...]

The Greatest ROI Comes From the Money You Don’t Have to Spend

September 12, 2012September 15, 2014 Tom Jordan

Last month, we discussed how the often used “Return on Investment” statistic is one that is skewed by the data that is or is not used to determine initial cash layout of a proposed deployment. However, one important part of that equation that has always been unavoidable when pricing out a proposed deployment is hardware. When thin clients were first introduced, their initial cost savings over PCs was obvious. But over the last decade, PC prices have continued to drop while thin client prices have, for the most part, stayed the same. A quick review of new product press releases this month from manufacturers such as AIS, HP, Acer, and Ncomputing shows that while some thin clients can still be purchased at a very manageable price point, most of the current models on the market can cost up to $700 per unit. [...]

MailBag Friday (#16)

August 31, 2012September 15, 2014 Tom Jordan

Every Friday, we dedicate this space to sharing solutions for some of the most frequently asked questions posed to our ThinManager Technical Support team. This weekly feature will help educate ThinManager users and provide them with answers to questions they may have about licenses, installation, integration, deployment, upgrades, maintenance, and daily operation. Great technical support is an essential part of the ThinManager platform, and we are constantly striving to make your environment as productive and efficient as possible. [...]

The Benefits of Shadowing Clients

August 29, 2012October 2, 2012 Tom Jordan Leave a comment

Here at ACP, we have been working tirelessly to discuss and promote the important distinctions between ThinManager and the competition. The most prevalent of those distinctions is that while other centralized management solutions manage the server, ThinManager manages the clients as well as their connections to the server. A prime example of this is the Shadowing feature, which is perhaps the most used ThinManager function by customers as well as integrators.

Shadowing is a function that allows an authorized user to view what is running on a remote client from anywhere using a number of methods with just one simple mouse click or keystroke. For most system engineers, using Shadowing from their Control Room is the most common usage, as well as being simple and convenient to deploy. This useful feature greatly reduces the time between an operator reporting a problem and an administrator being able to review the current session. Now an engineer or administrator can simply view the individual session currently running at any client in the facility without having to leave the Control Room. With Shadowing, it now takes minutes to review a problem client or session instead of hours. [...]

Where is the Real Return on Thin Client Investment?

August 9, 2012March 13, 2013 Tom Jordan Leave a comment

Everything you read about thin clients, zero clients, or anything other than a PC will tell you there is a device that is better and saves you more money compared to their competition. More often than not, these claims are validated by a report paid for by a hardware manufacturer that only talks about their specific client matched up against another client chosen as comparative fodder because they know they can beat it. These reports are not false, nor are they inaccurate. They are, however, slanted to omit where the savings really are to paint a far prettier picture. After all, their first, last, and only reason for commissioning such a report is to sell you their newest hardware release. [...]

MailBag Friday (#11)

July 20, 2012July 27, 2012 Tom Jordan Leave a comment

Virtualization in an Industrial Environment (Part 1)

July 18, 2012July 27, 2012 Tom Jordan Leave a comment

This is the first in a three part article focusing on the entire process of Virtualizing in an industrial environment. While there is a lot of talk about Virtualizing and VDI, we wanted to focus on the viability and deployment of Virtualization in an industrial and manufacturing environment which would speak to the concerns and difficulties specific to this industry.

Part 1: Centralization Before Virtualization

Virtualization.

It is everywhere and there is no escaping it. It is written about, discussed, recommended, and deployed in offices and facilities around the world every day. It is the iPhone of IT…you might not know why you are buying it, you just know that everyone else is using it so it must be the next great thing. But as implementation of virtualized environments continues to become the norm rather than the exception, industry publications are reporting that up to 40% of Virtualization deployments are never completed and eventually scrapped. [...]

MailBag Friday (#10)

July 13, 2012July 27, 2012 Tom Jordan Leave a comment

How WinTMC can work for you

July 11, 2012July 27, 2012 Tom Jordan Leave a comment

Imagine having the power to turn a PC work station into an easy to manage secure terminal in any industrial situation. Now imagine that work station being a simple and reliable system with increased functionality paired with decreased ownership cost. Your imagination is here.

With WinTMC, ThinManager provides a complete solution for organizations that need to use PCs as part of their terminal server network. For many network administrators, WinTMC may be the missing piece to help their network be more cost effective, productive and easier to manage. [...]