From: Charlie Noah
> For the thick-headed (or is it thin-headed) among us,
> would you define a few terms for us, perhaps with some
> plain-English examples?
Sure, Charlie, with examples... also note that my blog has lots
of articles about thick- and thin-client development, languages,
and tools.
> Character UI
Your "green screen" 80x24 app that runs in a terminal emulator.
> Thick-client
> Thick-client GUI
GUI program installed and running on the end-user PC, like
Outlook, Quickbooks, TurboTax, or a terminal emulator. For our
purposes, open the program and you get menus, data entry screens,
and reports presented as a GUI. Software like this can be
self-updating, as a significant percentage of software these days
is.
> Thin-client
> Thin-client browser (is it the same?)
Yes, same, though these days to some extent thin-client could
also include mobile apps for iPhone/iPad, BlackBerry, Windows
Mobile, etc.
Most people these days want a Rich Internet Application deployed
in the browser, where AJAX techniques are used for field-level
validation and to eliminate screen flicker. A thin-client can be
used for data entry, enquiries, or to allow trading partners to
do remote reporting from data you expose for them. These days a
trend is increasing toward plugins like Adobe Flash/Flex or
Silverlight - I see these as "thickening up the client" because
more code is running in the browser without actually deploying
software into the client's PC. Java Applets for a rich
experience are (arguably) dead.
> Personally, I prefer to maintain as much control as possible
over
> everything I can, but that's just me.
I agree. My choice of technology these days is the .NET
Framework which can be used for thick or thin development, web
services, Windows services, and to plugin to lots of common
software. Coding with .NET allows freedoms and control that we
do not have with tools specifically designed for BASIC
programmers to put a GUI on their app. For example, I'm
currently using .NET to enhance apps with telephony capabilities
("Hi, this is your widget provider, your order is ready. Press 1
to confirm your delivery address or 2 to be transferred to one of
our associates...")
[ad] To get from any GUI to jBase we need a connectivity tool.
My choice for this piece is mv.NET, having spent time with many
others over the years. With mv.NET I can enhance a MV/jBase
system over Windows or *nix with a thick or thin GUI, connect
other apps into jBase, or exchange data with internet-based
services. As I mentioned about Osmosis and DesignBais, when I
like something I often take steps to sell it. My company has
been a worldwide reseller for mv.NET for a few years now and I've
never regretted it. mv.NET does not include a GUI developer
interface like the other products, but for this we use Visual
Studio, and the results are quite compelling. I can provide
screenshots of recent work and testimonials from happy clients on
request. It would be best to discuss this specific product
off-list, so emails are welcome to the (munged) address below.
[/ad]
HTH
Tony Gravagno
Nebula Research and Development
TG@ remove.pleaseNebula-RnD.com
Nebula R&D sells mv.NET worldwide and provides related
development services
remove.pleaseNebula-RnD.com/blog
Visit PickWiki.com! Contribute!
http://Twitter.com/TonyGravagno
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