The client/server computing model defines the way successful organizations will use technology during the next decade. It is the culmination of the trend toward downsizing applications from the minicomputer and mainframe to the desktop. Enabling technologies, such as object-oriented development and graphical user interfaces (GUIs), will liberate the users and owners of information to use technology personally and directly. Users will no longer need continual assistance from professional information systems (IS) personnel to create and store their business data.

The big losers in this change will be traditional vendors and integrators of minicomputer-based solutions. Forrester Research Inc., a reputable computer industry market research firm, routinely surveys the U.S. Fortune 1000 companies. Forrester projects that by 1993 the client/server market will account for $29 billion in sales. The pervasiveness of this technology throughout organizations dictates that all management levels understand the concepts and implications of client/server computing. Information systems (IS) professionals must understand these concepts and implications, as well as the detailed architectural issues involved, in order to be in a position to offer liberating client/server solutions to their users. IS professionals who do not understand these concerns will be relegated forever to a maintenance role on existing systems.

To address both audiences, this book introduces each chapter with an executive summary. In some of the later chapters, this alone may provide the necessary detail for most non-IS professionals. IS professionals will find the additional detail is included in latter parts of each chapter to explain the technology issues more fully.

Extensive use of charts and other graphics enables these materials to be used as part of internal presentations and training.

To Download this E-Book Click Here.