Newsgroups: biz.digital.announce Path: nntp.gmd.de!Germany.EU.net!EU.net!uunet!hobbes!xenitec!nntp.et.byu.edu!netline-fddi.jpl.nasa.gov!nntp-server.caltech.edu!pagesat.net!decwrl!pa.dec.com!rjones From: pr-news@pa.dec.com (Digital Press & Analysts News) Message-ID: <9411071901.AA27341@raptor.pa.dec.com> Approved: rjones@pa.dec.com Subject: Backgrounder/Multia Multiclient Desktop Sender: rjones@usenet.pa.dec.com Date: Mon, 07 Nov 94 11:01:12 -0800 X-Received: by usenet.pa.dec.com; id AA20384; Mon, 7 Nov 94 11:01:17 -0800 X-Received: by raptor.pa.dec.com; id AA27341; Mon, 7 Nov 94 11:01:15 -0800 X-To: DECnews for Press and Analysts:; Lines: 238 |||||| Digital Press and Analysts News |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| Digital Equipment Corporation Maynard, Massachusetts 01754-2571 Editorial contact: Tom McFarland (508) 467-7880 Background for Editors MULTIA MULTICLIENT DESKTOP To meet the growing demand for a desktop computing solution that addresses rapidly changing information access and systems management requirements, Digital Equipment Corporation has developed the Multia MultiClient Desktop. The Multia Desktop is the ultimate client -- a revolutionary combination of Digital's Alpha AXP technology with Microsoft (R) Windows NT (TM) and a highly optimized X11.R6 server. These industry leading technologies have been integrated with superior desktop management software and packaged in a single low-cost device. The Multia Desktop delivers easy, high-performance access to Microsoft Windows, Microsoft Windows NT, UNIX, and existing host- based applications across the network. Increased productivity requirements are driving the demand for information access across the enterprise. However, interoperability roadblocks often prevent organizations from exploiting all of the networked resources available to them. In these environments, desktop devices are based on a variety of platforms, while applications typically are dispersed throughout the enterprise on disparate servers, workstations, minicomputers, and mainframes. In addition to posing access problems for end users, this mix of multivendor systems has resulted in a desktop environment that is difficult to manage effectively and is very costly to maintain. It's In The Numbers According to a Nolan, Norton, & Co. (NNC) research finding* published just under two years ago, 55% of employees in many large organizations utilize a PC or workstation and 70+% of these are connected to a local area network. These percentages, NNC reported, are continuing to grow at an aggressive rate. While an increase in the number of networked desktop computing devices may be a critical factor in the proliferation of client/server implementations, it has evolved with a cost. Gartner Group, in analyzing PC cost/benefit payback**, found that PC administration is a nightmare that will likely get worse before it gets better. The firm reports that the average PC is a connected device that runs more than five applications and is administered by an IS support group weakened by severe budget constraints and a lack of desktop management tools. NNC agrees, reporting that the end user computing (EUC) situation often appears unmanaged and out of control. Hidden Costs -- A Growing Concern While desktop devices seem to defy IS' attempts to manage them effectively, they also defy efforts to contain their increasing cost of ownership. According to the Gartner Group, total cost of ownership of a PC-based device has climbed to $8,000 annually -- from less than $4,000 seven years ago. This is due largely to more frequent and higher labor costs for administration, technical support, and end-user operations. The firm estimates that an enterprise with 2,000 PCs averages about $16 million annually in direct and hidden costs for those devices. It is the hidden costs, Nolan, Norton says, that can add $6,000 to $15,000 annually to the direct cost of implementing a PC or workstation. In fact, the NNC survey revealed that hidden costs -- the time consumed by peers supporting one another in the absence of dedicated support managers -- represent the largest cost category associated with EUC spending. Surveyed companies tended to spend more on peer-to-peer support as a component of overall EUC spending than on all direct spending categories combined. "You Can't Get There From Here" The unabated deployment of desktop technologies also has posed problems for end users. Today's mainstream IS environment is populated by a mix of PC, UNIX, and mission-critical host-based systems that have been installed for decades. With multiple applications running on the typical desktop device, and information residing on multivendor data sources spread across the breadth of heterogeneous enterprise networks, users are continually clamoring for new and improved ways to simultaneously access and integrate multiple data sources. This becomes particularly obvious in environments where UNIX systems and applications are expected to co-exist with "power desktop" RISC PCs and high performance servers running Microsoft Windows NT 32 bit applications. In addition to finding ways to interoperate these powerful and increasingly popular technologies, IS managers are also required to meld PC and legacy data sources into the mix. They must find ways to deliver data from technically disparate sources to end users demanding easy access to different kinds of data -- access that meets increasingly stringent performance requirements. Clearly, the complexities of client/server computing and the rapidly increasing empowerment of end users are straining traditional desktop hardware, software, and networking architectures. A new generation desktop computing platform is required in order to meet the challenges posed by the spiraling cost of EUC and by user demand for easy access to and greater interoperability with more data. Digital's Multia MultiClient Desktop is the high performance product that solves this business problem. The Multia MultiClient Desktop Generation The Multia Desktop addresses the rapidly changing needs of users and MIS and business managers operating in multivendor, client/server environments. It boosts user and workgroup productivity by providing easy point-and-click access to any networked data source and allows MIS managers to centrally configure the Multia Desktop environment to meet individual and workgroup requirements. Unprecedented in its application integration capabilities, the Multia Desktop is the ultimate client, providing seamless, high-performance access to Microsoft Windows, Microsoft Windows NT, UNIX, and legacy applications -- from a single device. The device supports a variety of networking environments, including IPX/SPX, TCP/IP, DECnet, LAN Manager, NetBEUI, NetBIOS, and PATHWORKS. The Multia MultiClient Desktop combines Digital's Alpha AXP technology with a highly optimized X11.R6 server, Microsoft Windows NT Workstation Version 3.5, and superior desktop management software to evolve desktop computing to a new level of functionality. The product incorporates network protocols to provide interoperability across an entire enterprise. Each Multia Desktop is Internet-ready, with built-in access to the information super highway provided via the Mosaic graphical Web browsing program. Industry standard PCMCIA and PCI option slots allow expansion to support multimedia capability, FDDI, and various network connections. Multia Desktops are designed to adapt quickly to changing business needs. It's In The Software The Multia Desktop's unique software -- the key to the device's superior interoperability -- provides unparalleled application and configuration management features. PC, UNIX, and legacy applications can be accessed and utilized simultaneously. PC applications (MS Windows & MS Windows NT) are downline loaded to a Multia Desktop and run locally; X applications are run remotely and displayed on the desktop using the X protocol; and legacy applications can be run using built-in terminal emulators. The configuration manager pulls all of the software components together into a seamless environment that offers simple, transparent interaction with desktops and applications. The software enables a system administrator to create and manage individuals or workgroups of Multia Desktops from a single Multia Desktop device located anywhere on the network. Each desktop can be customized to automatically start the required applications. The system administrator defines all hardware, software, and network settings for seamless access and integration. The Multia Desktop Target The market opportunity for the Multia MultiClient Desktop is based on the emerging client/server computing model. Discussed by industry experts for years, client/server computing is now proliferating at a an accelerating pace. Many users operating in a client/server environment have been forced to work with two or more devices on their desktops in order to access and work with various applications and databases. While several devices on the desktop provide access to different platforms, users are still hampered by their inability to seamlessly integrate the data. The impact of this lack of interoperability on departments and organizations is incalculable, and is an impediment to the growth of client/server implementations. Within the client/server market, the Multia Desktop is targeted primarily at the "power desktop" segment. According to San Jose-based Dataquest, Inc., the power desktop market will be dominated by performance-oriented RISC-based PCs and UNIX workstations. It encompasses the high end of the PC market and the low end of the workstation market. Multia Desktops are positioned as companions to PC servers and UNIX servers and workstations. For organizations expecting to incorporate Windows NT into existing UNIX, PC, and legacy resources, Multia provides the flexibility to integrate the applications on one high-performance desktop device. Selling For Success Multia Desktops are available for delivery in four standard system configurations supporting a wide variety of monitors and keyboards and are priced between $3,495 and $6,000, depending on configuration. The product fits into Digital's newly announced selling and distribution strategy. Digital is expanding its market focus by recruiting new value added resellers who will buy through commercial distributors. The goal is to efficiently service the installed base while continually adding new customers. The Components & Peripherals business unit has introduced new business practices to support this strategy. Tomorrow's Desktop Today The Multia MultiClient Desktop addresses the needs of a rapidly changing desktop computing environment. The device embodies the requirements for high performance, access, and manageability that users and managers are looking for. By implementing Multia Desktops, organizations are investing in the future. The device's unmatched interoperability lets MIS and business managers upgrade their application portfolios and server technologies knowing that their Multia Desktops are adaptable to the requirements of next-generation applications and business practices. #### Sales Inquiries: 1-800-777-4343 Note To Editors: Alpha AXP, Digital, the Digital logo, DECnet, LAN Manager, and PATHWORKS are trademarks of Digital Equipment Corporation. Windows, NT and Microsoft are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation. IPX/SPX, NetBEUI, NetBIOS and NetWare are registered trademarks of Novell Corporation. UNIX is a registered trademark of X/Open, Company, Ltd., and may be licensed in certain geographies. * Multi-Client Research Study: "Managing End-User Computing," Nolan, Norton & Co., 1993 ** Strategic Analysis Report: "Management Strategies: PC Cost/Benefit and Payback Analysis," Gartner Group, 1993. 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