BOSaNOVA Targets Turtle-Shell Thin Clients with 'The Rabbit'

Published: January 31, 2006

by Alex Woodie

BOSaNOVA this month rolled out a new Linux-based thin client device designed as a 5250 dumb terminal replacement for iSeries shops, but with an eye toward a Windows network future.

BOSaNOVA created the thin client after looking at all the other options available in Ethernet thin clients today, and picking what it considered the best features. To separate its new thin client from the teeming masses of so-called "turtle shell" thin clients, it dubbed it The Rabbit, "because only in a fairy tale would a turtle beat a rabbit," says Martin Pladgeman, president of BOSaNOVA, which is based in Phoenix. The term turtle shell refers to a physical resemblance to the armor-plated reptiles.

The Rabbit has many things in common with other Ethernet thin clients. It uses an AMD 533 DX processor running at 400 MHz, features 128 MB of RAM memory and 64 MB of disk-on-module (DOM) storage. It runs the Linux 2.6 kernel, has no moving parts, and comes in a svelte aluminum case that can be hung from the back of an LCD monitor.

But the similarities end when you take a look at the software innards that make The Rabbit run, according to Pladgeman. BOSaNOVA's market has historically been focused on the AS/400 and iSeries, so the company added some features to make The Rabbit more like what a midrange user would expect coming from a greenscreen world.

BOSaNOVA's new thin client, called The Rabbit, is shorter than your average No. 2

The difference begins with the setup process. Instead of requiring a mouse to set up the thin client, which is the case with other popular thin client vendors, The Rabbit enters setup mode by holding down the space bar, just like in the old dumb terminal days, Pladgeman says. Setting up The Rabbit is a simple three-step process, Pladgeman says. "It's positioned to be a greenscreen replacement with no training required," he says. "If you don't count the ATP, you only have to enter data into two boxes [including device names and IP address]. It's extremely simple to set up."

Another example of BOSaNOVA's attention to iSeries detail is exhibited in The Rabbit's session management capabilities when power is turned off to the unit. With other thin clients, the units just power down without worrying about any open TCP/IP sessions to the iSeries, Pladgeman says. "The problem with that is the AS/400 thinks it's still open, so when it reboots, it can't get the same session back, because it thinks it's still in use," he says. The Rabbit handles this by first closing open sessions before powering down.

The Rabbit has another trick up its sleeve--it can be reconfigured as a Windows-based terminal (WBT) for accessing Windows applications running on Windows Server 2003 or Windows Terminal Server via Citrix and Sun Microsystems's Tarantella emulators that are embedded in the product.

"Basically it's a greenscreen terminal, [but] a benefit over other thin clients on the market is you can reconfigure and use it as a WBT," Pladgeman says. "Today you're iSeries specific, tomorrow you're iSeries and Windows. You can co-exist your built-in 5250 with ICA or RDP session at the same time." And while The Rabbit functions as a WBT, it never actually loses its Linux identity and becomes a full-blown Windows device, because the ICA and RDP emulators are Linux programs.

As rabbits do in the real world, BOSaNOVA's Rabbit has some quickness on its side. It is 30 percent smaller and runs 30 degrees cooler than other turtle shell thin clients on the market, Pladgeman says. That heat savings comes in particularly handy when mounting The Rabbit to the back of an LCD monitor, because hotter devices tend to melt the glue used to attach the Velcro straps.

The Rabbit is being rolled out to BOSaNOVA partners now. The product comes with a suggested retail price of $395. For more information, see www.bosanova.net.