• E-mail
• Print
• Comment
• Font Size
• Digg
• del.icio.us
• Discuss article

New Hewlett-Packard Products to Help Simplify Corporate Computer Networks

Posted on: Wednesday, 3 December 2003, 06:00 CST

Dec. 4--Hewlett-Packard is announcing a round of products today to help simplify corporate computer networks, including a new device that can replicate a Windows desktop personal computer but is simpler for companies to deploy.

The HP Consolidated Client is a computer in that it comes with a keyboard, display and mouse. But the machine is a so-called "thin client" because it has no disk drive storage. Rather, it connects over a network to a central computer called a server to access all software.

As such, the machine resembles others being promoted by competitors. Sun Microsystems' Sun Ray, for instance, works in a similar fashion. But the HP machine differs in that it can run Windows and any Windows software applications, said Nick van der Zweep, director of utility computing at Palo Alto-based HP.

Sitting at an HP client, workers can log in with a password and immediately gain access to all their personal e-mail and files stored on a specific server "blade," a small data center computer that is dedicated to individual employees. When someone is not logged in, the server blade is available to do other computing jobs.

Van der Zweep said this kind of computer is more convenient for computer administrators because they no longer need to worry about moving a computer if an employee relocates to another part of a building. Nor do they have to worry about users damaging their machines by loading unauthorized software on them.

Among the customers for the new HP client is Volkswagen Credit, the Libertyville, Ill.-based credit processing division of the carmaker.

"Some of the early testing shows that it works at the same speed as a Windows desktop PC," said Jack Klosterman, chief information officer at VW Credit. "With this, our system administrators aren't running around the building supporting moves or fixing someone's individual computer that went down."

In other developments, HP is expected to announce in January at the Consumer Electronics Show that it will introduce a flat-panel display TV set, an MP3 music player, and an alliance with a music downloading service that will allow consumers to download music onto their MP3 players. The move follows similar moves by Apple Computer, Gateway and Dell.

-----

To see more of the San Jose Mercury News, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.mercurynews.com.

(c) 2003, San Jose Mercury News, Calif. Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News.

HPQ, SUNW, VLKAF, 7659, AAPL, GTW, DELL,

More News in this Category