1 / 39

Telecommunications Management 273-436/635

Telecommunications Management 273-436/635. Lecture 10: Client/Server and Intranet Computing. Client/server information processing. Client/server computing has become the new paradigm of information processing in the 1990s Contrasts with

idola-swanson
Download Presentation

Telecommunications Management 273-436/635

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Telecommunications Management273-436/635 Lecture 10: Client/Server and Intranet Computing

  2. Client/server information processing • Client/server computing has become the new paradigm of information processing in the 1990s • Contrasts with • centralized information processing (prevalent in the 1960s - 1970s) • completely decentralized processing ( prevalent in the 1970s-80s). • What exactly is client/server computing is not always clear-cut • There are multiple ways of configuring client and server relationships Grant

  3. Client/server information processing • A client is normally a personal computer or workstation that serves as a networked information requester. • A server is usually a high-powered computer (workstation, minicomputer, or mainframe) that stores and processes data to be manipulated by networked clients. • While clients are normally used for querying and presenting data, and servers for storing and processing, both client and server can actually carry out all the functional computing requirements Grant

  4. Client/server information processing • Client application - generally using a graphical user interface (GUI) • Server application - services such as database management • Network application - connecting client with server Grant

  5. Development of Client/server information processing • Client/server information processing has developed as a result of the combination of a number of events (Goldman, 1996). • Introduction of reasonably priced, powerful personal computers and workstations. • Emergence of affordable, powerful, multitasking server operating systems. • Changing demands of information systems resulting from the changes in new business environment. Grant

  6. Potential benefits of client/server information systems (Goldman, 1996; Stallings and Van Slyke, 1996) • Reduced costs in comparison to mainframe-based information systems • Budget reductions of 40%-80% with significant staff reductions are possible • Flexibility • Information is more accessible and display formats are more flexible • Responsiveness • Client/server tools make it possible to develop and deploy applications rapidly in response to changes in the business environment. Grant

  7. Potential benefits of client/server information systems (Goldman, 1996; Stallings and Van Slyke, 1996) • Improved information accessibility • Distributed information is more easily accessible to a wider user group. • Faster processing of information • The combined power of the client and server increases processing speeds dramatically. • Better information • As a result of improved access to information, faster processing and more flexibility in determining the format in which information is presented Grant

  8. Potential benefits of client/server information systems (Goldman, 1996; Stallings and Van Slyke, 1996) • Open architecture • A variety of vendor solutions can be incorporated. Client/server systems have interoperability of various vendor products (hardware and software) as an essential requirement. • Scalability • Systems can grow easily as needs change by adding or subtracting components. • Multiple client operating environments • A variety of client operating systems can be supported. Grant

  9. Potential disadvantages of client/server information systems • High transition costs • Many “hidden” costs associated with converting to a client/server architecture. • High cost of training support, maintenance, and management • Open architecture and multivendor products increases the requirement for training, support, maintenance, and management • Multivendor architecture • Introduces complexity and incompatibilities Grant

  10. Potential disadvantages of client/server information systems • Lack of management and support tools for distributed environment • Sophisticated management tools for distributed environments are still in the early stages of development • Lack of standards • A variety of “standards” are proposed and backed by rival vendors or consortiums Grant

  11. Potential disadvantages of client/server information systems • Immature support for mission critical applications • Client and server operating systems still do not guarantee the level of reliability provided by mainframes. • Lack of software conversion tools • The cost of conversion from mainframe to client/server environments could be significantly reduced by sophisticated tools. Grant

  12. Logical Architecture of Client/Server Information Systems • Three fundamental components of the client/server model • Presentation function (or user interface) • Application processing • Data management Grant

  13. Logical Architecture of Client/Server Information Systems • The application processing function is sometimes further subdivided into the following: • Presentation logic - the part of the application program responsible for interfacing with the user interface • Business logic - the actual program rules of the application responsible controlling program execution and enforcing business rules • Database logic - the part of the application program responsible for interfacing with the database management system Grant

  14. Logical Architecture of Client/Server Information Systems (Goldman, 1996 p. 47) CLIENT SERVER Presentation Presentation Application Application Communication Data Data Grant

  15. Categories of Client/Server Information Systems • Client/server information systems may be categorized based on the combination of the functional elements (presentation, application, and data) with the platform on which these functions are executed. • Three possible ways of executing the functions. • The function is • performed totally on the client • cooperatively split between client and server • performed totally on the server Grant

  16. Categories of Client/Server Information Systems Client & Server Client Only Server Only Distributed presentation Host-based presentation Client-based presentation Presentation Client-based processing Distributed computing Host-based processing Application Client-based data management Database distribution Host-based data management Data Grant

  17. Middleware • Term applied to software that fits between client/server applications and the enterprise networks • Allows applications to transparently interoperate across a variety of computing platforms and networks • This is done by the use of standard programming interfaces and protocols Grant

  18. Middleware Segmentation Applicationsthat need to Communicateacross different Networks Source: http://www.moma-inc.org/education/taxonomy.html Grant

  19. Intranets • Are intra-organization networks based on Internet technologies • Seek to apply the functionality and benefits of the Internet to the organizational network while retaining the security associated with proprietary networks • The growth of intranets has been phenomenal • Adoption of the intranet is business is many times faster than that of other recent technologies like the personal computers Grant

  20. Attractive features of intranet-based computing • Rapid prototyping and deployment of new services • Scalability (allow organizations to start small and build as requirements increase) • Low intensity training needed for users and developers • Multi-platform implementation • Open architecture Grant

  21. Attractive features of intranet-based computing • Supports a range of distributed computing architectures • Supports integration of legacy information sources • Multimedia support • Low initial investment I n new software and infrastructure Grant

  22. Intranet applications architecture (Telleen, 1997) • Standard content • Creation tools • Discovery agents • Environment managers Grant

  23. Intranet applications architecture (Telleen, 1997) Creation Tools Standard Content Environment Managers Discovery Agents Grant

  24. Standard content • It is very important that users develop vendor independent content standards. • The fundamental role of intranets is to provide organizational information to users in a transparent and flexible way. • If the intranet is developed with a focus on the browser technology, then companies might find themselves held hostage to that technology • Beware of web pages that say "This page is best viewed with (browser name) " Grant

  25. Content creation tools • HTML allows the creation of standard content using a variety of content creation tools • Word processors or spreadsheets normally require the use of the same tool to work on a document • Standard HTML content can be read and updated by different tools • This allows for greater collaboration and sharing of information across a variety of platforms • Content creation tools developers are introducing proprietary elements into the tools to keep users • Content can also be generated dynamically from databases Grant

  26. Discovery agents • Database management systems are a form of discovery agents that search the database for relevant information • Most WWW documents tend to be much less structured than databases • Documents are dynamically linked to each other and can be located anywhere on the Intranet or Internet Grant

  27. Discovery agents • Spider-based discovery agents are used to catalog the entire web • Products (search engines) such as Alta Vista from Digital, Excite, Magellan are widely used • Specialty agents are also being developed to focus on particular information Grant

  28. Environment managers • Environment managers are designed to provide an integrated view of the contents and tools of an intranet/Internet site to enable rapid and efficient site development • Most environment managers available today tend towards deploying proprietary tools • This is because vendors want to build and increase market share • Examples of environment managers include FrontPage from Microsoft and SiteMill from Adobe Grant

  29. Intranet tools and functions • Electronic mail • Threaded discussion • Document to threaded discussion • Forms to mail • Forms to database • Database to HTML Grant

  30. Intranet tools and functions • Personal agents • Standard Script Libraries • Shared white boards • Voice and video conferencing Grant

  31. Building intranet applications • Think beyond traditional applications - think about the whole function Grant

  32. Building intranet applications • Develop the process in terms of functional classes and how they relate to each other • Tracking (customers, resources, inventories) • Configuring (products, solutions, benefits, • Informing • Publication (push) • Notification (pull) • Exchanging • Negotiations (ideas) • Collaboration (ideas) • Transactions (money) Grant

  33. Building intranet applications • For each function within the solution identify whether the process being supported is structured, semi-structured or unstructured. • This will help identify the tool to be used • Structured - database technologies • Less structured - message-based technologies Grant

  34. Building intranet applications • View each interaction with the user in terms of appropriate degree of push or pull • Push what is needed now and has a short life • One-time notices and requests • Personal communication • Pull what will be referenced in the future • Anything printed for large number of employees or clients • Recurring communications • Unclear whether to push or pull • consider user-initiated push (listservers, and personal agents) Grant

  35. Building intranet applications • Support learning by individuals and the organization Grant

  36. Intranet management roles and functions • The web administrator • A non-technical role, responsible for fostering opportunities for cooperation among organizational entities and for overall management of the intranet content. Chairs the web council. • The Webmaster • Primarily responsible for installing and managing web technologies and for training and supporting functional specialists in their use. They are also responsible for maintaining the web server and related technologies. Grant

  37. Intranet management roles and functions • Publishers • Information owners. • Editors • Determines what information will be created and managers the creation and updating processes. • Authors • Content creators Grant

  38. Intranet organizational roles and functions • Web Council • responsible for setting policy, standards and high-level style guides • responsible for monitoring the enterprise map for currency and adherence to standards • Editorial boards • To coordinate editorial activities • Focus is on content not technology • Web technical committee • Technical in focus • Committee of Webmasters Grant

  39. Reference • Telleen, Steven L. (1996/97) Intranet organizations: strategies for managing change, http://www.intranetjournal.com/library.html Grant

More Related