![](https://seccdn.libravatar.org/avatar/cabdbf4d350ab6a15265803acab1634d.jpg?s=120&d=mm&r=g)
Dave Howorth said the following on 05/14/2013 12:07 PM:
James Knott wrote:
Hearns, John wrote:
So it might be that the 'multi-seat' is really a GUI version of what we were doing with PDP-11s back in the 70s and 80s, that is having many terminal plugged in to one box and many people logged in simultaneously and making use of the multi-processing and process separation capabilities of UNIX.
Back in the late '70s, early 80's, I worked on a system running on a Data General Nova 800 with a couple of dozen users. It sure wasn't Unix or even RDOS that they were running. It was a custom system that ran only one application. It was used for sending telegrams. In addition to the operators, sitting in front of terminals, there were also several Telex lines connected for incoming traffic from that network. The system could also support up to two remote sites, with up to 4 terminals each. This computer then sent the telegrams, via several 75 b/s Baudot serial lines to the main computer.
Yes, but the multi-user part of it is not the issue, nor even multiple X-servers. It's multiple physical screens, keyboards & mice that are the 'novel' part of the equation.
Maybe; maybe not. If they are remote terminals, X-terminals (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/X_terminal and as it says "Not to be confused with xterm or other terminal emulators running under X". See also http://searchnetworking.techtarget.com/definition/X-terminal) In the limiting case there are implementations of the X Display Server that run on PCs. You are, obviously, familiar with the ones running under Linux :-) (Someone tell us briefly about XDMCP) But there are also versions for MS-Windows. Somewhere I still have a copy of the old Hummingbird Connectivity Suite which included the Exceed X Display Server for the PC. http://www.softpanorama.org/Unixification/Hummingbird/index.shtml The point here is that UNIX always - wall certainly since the mid 70s - a multi-user OS. Heck the old PDP-11/45 with just a 10M disk was supporting 20-40 people at one development/documentation site I worked back in 81/82 before we got a VAX. Yes that was with VT-100 grade terminals (OK, Wyse-60s), but offloading the GUI-ness to PCs (see above) ... I seem to recall Intel advertising the early 8086 chip as being as powerful as the PDP-11. All of which gets back to the LTSP model. or ... http://www.tldp.org/HOWTO/XDMCP-HOWTO/ -- He who stops being better stops being good. - Oliver Cromwell -- To unsubscribe, e-mail: opensuse+unsubscribe@opensuse.org To contact the owner, e-mail: opensuse+owner@opensuse.org