VB6 thin client

[Daniel Dittmar]

Mark Carter wrote:
> Suppose I wanted to combine a thin client written in VB6 with a server
> on a remote machine. Since this is the python group, assume for now
> that it could be written in python (although VB6 would be a nice
> alternative). What technologies would I use?

Depends on who told you to use a thin client:
- marketing: just use the old program and *call* it a thin client.
- your professor: tell him that you abstracted the layers (presentation,
network, application, database) into abstract interfaces, which allows you
to replace each individually with the best technology available. If his golf
games are sponsored by Oracle, tell him that central servers are good
(insert 'grid computing' if your professor occasionally reads). If his golf
games are sponsored by Microsoft, tell him that many smaller servers are
cost efficient.
- your boss: ask him what is actually required of a thin client
 ** no installation (browser only)
 ** easy updatable (getting updates automatically from server)
 ** business logic written in a specific language => application server
 ** distribution of processing power (allowing cheap client machines)
- anyone else: talk of SOAP, XML-RPC, WebServices, multi tier architecture

Daniel