Chris' XFree86 stuff [was: Re: [plug] usbkeybd device under Debian?]

[Harry McNally]

On Tue, 30 Dec 2003 17:42:29 +0800 James Devenish
<devenish at guild.uwa.edu.au> wrote:

> Hi,
> 
> Is this related to your previous message about your LTSP XFree86
> project? I wasn't really paying attention at the time. What is the
> aim/advantage of this project? 

Hi James

Chris can speak for himself although I've brow beaten him on reasons why
_I_ think it has merit. Here goes:

As Craig Ringer has said elsewhere, LTSP servers have as little as 8MB of
additional memory usage as each new user is added (assuming that they all
use similar applications which means most of the apps share common memory
including libraries).

So the idea of "LTSP in a box" would be to populate a PC with one AGP and
four PCI video cards and use USB hubs or somesuch to achieve four extra
keyboards and mice. Sit those around a pentagonal table and you have an
Internet kiosk or LTSP type setup in the office.

Why ? A single "gaming performance" machine is perfectly adequate to run
a group of LTSP type office or Internet kiosk users. At todays prices
this saves say 4 x $600 (ish) which I'd propose can be spent on the
additional cost of LCD displays.

The power saving of using a single PC box for five users is extended by
using the low power LCD displays. This reveals my real agenda, low power
systems for reduced greedhouse gasses. Pass the mung beans. Brad, put
down that flamethrower :-P.

I've since thought about a simple little USB to eight PS/2 port box
(pentagonal of course) based on say the Cypress Semiconductor USB
microcontroller and a bit of driver code to support the multiple keyboards
and mice. This is simpler than the BTBH [0] first option which was a PCI
card with eight ps/2 ports. Why waste a PCI slot that could be used for a
video card (and USB will be available on any new m/b) ? My suspicion is that
this box and ps/2 keyboards and mice will be cheaper than USB hub and USB
keyboards. But USB would be a way to start the project and prove it up. 

Does anyone else see this as useful ? 

IOMega (I think) have done the two user idea but on a Windows box. Collect
virii at double the rate. But no Linux drivers mentioned. Have they
signed a deal for access to Microsoft kernel innards that has
exclusivity clauses about "other" ports ? Just asking :-)

All the best
Harry

[0] Bigger Than Ben Hur

-- 
linux.conf.au 2004		The Australian Linux Technical Conference
http://lca2004.linux.org.au/	12-17 January 2004, Adelaide, South Australia

Are you a computer angel?	http://www.computerangels.org.au/