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2008: Desktop virtualization is coming of age

Quoting TechTarget

Desktop virtualization solutions will get more real in 2008, as businesses seek tighter control of client technology resources while simultaneously offering more flexibility to their employees and business partners about when and where they work.

In the simplest terms, desktop virtualization refers to the practice of isolating the operating system software from the underlying hardware. This can be handled locally on the client device, by plugging in a USB drive with the appropriate software, for example, or installing a separate virtualized operating system; or in a hosted configuration, with a centralized server offering up the appropriate OS software resources. Either way, desktop virtualization goes beyond application virtualization, which focuses on delivery of specific software applications.

"Desktop virtualization is really the purest environment for the client," said Al Monserrat, vice president of worldwide channels and emerging product sales for Citrix, based in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. "You serve the OS by virtualization. You serve the applications by virtualization. You're essentially putting clean applications on a clean desktop and delivering this to the end user."

I was chatting with Dione, VP Panologic yesterday, while she was in transit flying from East coast to West coast, and we shared some amazing ideas about how desktop virtualization is about not complicating the existing desktop solutions. Its about just putting a simple, sexy looking cube like that of a Pano Logic, and you are done. Dione mentioned that they have just too many orders and keep getting them all the time. We need some solid, robust and flexible workplace solutions, existing vendors and server providers need to work to upgrade their existing hardware models towards a more agile workplace models.

Just look at this logical diagram:



and then look at this device:



We all need simplicity. Period!


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