On Fri, 15 Aug 2003 19:44:56 -0500 (CDT), Rob <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> Kool, Sam; > I've been really wondering what the heck these shell > accounts are! What are the benefits, or reasons for > using a shell account over using your own computer's > applications? Speed, power, convenience. If you are connecting to the Internet through a dial-up PPP connection to an ISP you are limited by the speed of your modem. With a shell account you are giving commands to a remote computer that will execute those commands on the remote computer and echo just the screen writes back to you. So it is executing on what is apt to be a much more powerful and directly connected computer and it's Internet connection will be many, many times faster than yours. This can be a real advantage because it allows you to perform complicated tasks remotely and then just echo the results to your own screen. All of the processing is done on the faster remote computer. Another advantage is that the remote system will be preconfigured and administered by knowledgeable people. It's already setup and ready to use. This is a real advantage for someone who wants to learn something about the Unix world and is not yet capable of the non-trivial task of administering their own system. Standard Unix programs like PINE and LYNX are easy to use even for the uninitiated like myself. I know nothing about configuring Unix programs--but I used PINE for several years for extensive email. It was easy. This is just the tip of the ice berg, as there are many sophisticated uses for shell accounts--most of which I don't understand. Sam Ewalt Croswell, Michigan, USA -- Arachne V1.70;rev.3, NON-COMMERCIAL copy, http://arachne.cz/
