workstation or desktop?

[dodo]

Now Dell offers 4X MEMORY On select Servers and Workstations. So with almost same money I can get a kind of powerful Dell 340 workstation with a lot of memory instead of a 8200 desktop. If it is for personal use which one is a better choice? What is the big difference between workstation and desktop. I am using Dell workstation 620 at work, but I don't see any essencial difference comparing to my desktop at home. What I can do with a desktop but I can not do with a workstation, or the other way around?

Thanks a lot,

dodo

 

[jdini76]

The Differences use to be OS. Workstations would come with NT and desktops would come with windows 9X. But now that isn't the case anymore. now it comes down to what you want to do with it. sometimes "workstations" don't have as powerfull mutimedia options as a "Desktop". for instance a graphics card on a workstation may only have 16 megs, but 32 or 64 on a desktop. also the "worksation" may not have a sound card. Make sure it has what you want. If it does then it doesn't really matter whether it is a Workstation or a Desktop.

 

[dodo]

Thanks a lot for the information. So how does people define a workstation?

 

[corkyg]

Fundamentally a workstation is one of the worker bee terminals on a network. They normally depend on a server for much of their software and storage. They are designed to be part of a network topology.

A desktop can be a real desktop or a full tower on the floor, and is typically an independent unit needing no help from any other. They are often linked as members of a peer-to-peer network.

 

[Magicthyse]

Well-it depends on which industry you're from I guess. Most people would term a workstation as something which is used by the engineering industries - something that's significantly more powerful than regular 'terminals' (such as the Dell Optiplex for example).

 

[corkyg]

"Well-it depends on which industry you're from I guess."

Nope! It is a networking term that has been used for over 20 years that I know of. Check any reference you want to . . . networks are made up of servers, hubs, switches, routers and workstations.

There is an established definition in any industry . . . workstations are made up of individual computers or multi-units that are called "workgroups." They in turn can be linked to network servers or work as peers.

It seems to me that "most" people simply create their own definitions for things without researching them.

When in doubt, ask your MIS director.

 

[Psychoholic]

<< Nope! It is a networking term that has been used for over 20 years that I know of. Check any reference you want to . . . networks are made up of servers, hubs, switches, routers and workstations. >>


The term "workstation" is more widely used than just for a networked environment. It is more common for that term to refer to a networked environment, however Magicthyse is correct as well. Well equipped computers built to run intense CAD or other similar applications are often referred to as "workstations" even if they aren't in a networked environment.

 

[Psychoholic]

Case and Point.
Mid-Range Pentium 4 Workstations



<< It seems to me that "most" people simply create their own definitions for things without researching them. >>


Many times in another sector of the industry a term can have an entirely different meaning.

 

[Psychoholic]

<< Check any reference you want to . . . >>


Damn, I'm on a roll.

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