??R e v i e w i n g t h e 2 0 0 8 P r e s i d e n t i a l C a n d i d a t e s

T h e 2 0 0 8 P r e s i d e n t i a l c a m p a i g n w a s o n e f o r t h e h i s t o r y b o o k s f o r a v a r i e t y o f r e a s o n s . P e r h a p s n e v e r h a s t h e r e b e e n s u c h a d i v e r s i t y o f c a n d i d a t e s t h r o u g h o u t t h e p r i m a r i e s a n d t h e g e n e r a l e l e c t i o n . C e r t a i n l y , i t i s a h i s t o r i c a l e v e n t o f s i g n i f i c a n c e f o r a l l c i t i z e n s o f t h e U n i t e d S t a t e s o f A m e r i c a a n d w i l l b e r e v i e w e d a n d s t u d i e d f o r m a n y y e a r s t o c o m e . H e r e i s a s h o r t s u m m a r y o f t h e d i f f e r e n t 2 0 0 8 P r e s i d e n t i a l c a n d i d a t e s .

O n e o f t h e m o s t i n t e r e s t i n g o f t h e 2 0 0 8 P r e s i d e n t i a l c a n d i d a t e s i s H i l l a r y C l i n t o n . M r s . C l i n t o n w a s a f r o n t – r u n n e r f o r m u c h o f t h e p r i m a r i e s a s a D e m o c r a t i c c a n d i d a t e . S h e i s m a r r i e d t o f o r m e r P r e s i d e n t , B i l l C l i n t o n , a n d h a d s e r v e d a s a S e n a t o r f o r t h e s t a t e o f N e w Y o r k . S h e r a n a t o u g h r a c e b u t l o s t i n t h e e n d a n d i s c u r r e n t l y t h e S e c r e t a r y o f S t a t e ; a p r e t t y g o o d c o n s o l a t i o n p r i z e .

F e w 2 0 0 8 P r e s i d e n t i a l c a n d i d a t e s m a d e a s m u c h n o i s e a s M i t t R o m n e y . A f o r m e r g o v e r n o r o f M a s s a c h u s e t t s , t h i s s e l f – m a d e m i l l i o n a i r e a n d b u s i n e s s m a n e l e c t r i f i e d m a n y s e g m e n t s o f t h e R e p u b l i c a n p a r t y . H e l o s t i n t h e p r i m a r i e s a n d i s c o n s i d e r i n g a n o t h e r r u n i n 2 0 1 2 .

T h e o l d e s t o f t h e 2 0 0 8 P r e s i d e n t i a l c a n d i d a t e s w a s J o h n M c C a i n . T h e U . S . S e n a t o r f r o m A r i z o n a w a s a f o r m e r V i e t n a m v e t e r a n w i t h a l o n g h i s t o r y o f b i p a r t i s a n w o r k o n a v a r i e t y o f d o m e s t i c a n d i n t e r n a t i o n a l i s s u e s . H e b e c a m e t h e o f f i c i a l w i n n e r o f t h e R e p u b l i c a n p r i m a r y , b u t e v e n t u a l l y l o s t t h e e l e c t i o n . M a n y s a y i t w a s d u e t o h i s c o n t r o v e r s i a l s e l e c t i o n o f t h e f i e r y b u t u n e x p e r i e n c e d r u n n i n g m a t e , S a r a h P a l i n .

B u t t h e w i n n e r a m o n g t h e 2 0 0 8 P r e s i d e n t i a l c a n d i d a t e s w a s B a r a c k O b a m a . T h e y o u n g S e n a t o r f r o m I l l i n o i s h a d a m e t e o r i c r i s e t o n a t i o n a l p r o m i n e n c e a n d q u i c k l y t o o k t h e l e a d i n t h e D e m o c r a t i c p r i m a r i e s w i t h o n e o f t h e m o s t e f f e c t i v e c a m p a i g n s i n r e c e n t m e m o r y . B o t h R e p u b l i c a n a n d D e m o c r a t i c p o l i t i c a l o b s e r v e r s w e r e i m p r e s s e d a t t h e e f f e c t i v e n e s s o f h i s c a m p a i g n a n d h e e n d e d u p w i n n i n g t h e e l e c t i o n p r e t t y h a n d i l y . W h e n h e w a s e l e c t e d o n N o v e m b e r 4 t h , h e b e c a m e t h e f i r s t A f r i c a n – A m e r i c a n p r e s i d e n t i n t h e h i s t o r y o f t h e U n i t e d S t a t e s .

Y e s , n o m a t t e r h o w y o u l o o k a t i t , t h e 2 0 0 8 P r e s i d e n t i a l c a n d i d a t e s w e r e a l l i n c r e d i b l e c a n d i d a t e s w i t h v a s t l y d i f f e r e n t b a c k g r o u n d s a n d p e r s o n a l i t i e s w h i c h m a d e t h e e l e c t i o n a p a r t i c u l a r l y m e m o r a b l e a n d i m p r e s s i v e o n e . A s e a s o n e d p o l i t i c i a n , e m e r g i n g B l a c k c e l e b r i t y p o l i t i c i a n , a t o u g h w o m a n , a n d a s u c c e s s f u l b u s i n e s s m a n a l l c o m p e t e d b u t o n l y o n e c o u l d b e P r e s i d e n t , t h o u g h a l l c o n t i n u e t o c o n t r i b u t e t o t h i s c o u n t r y t o m a k e i t t h e c o u n t r y i t i s t o d a y .

A brief overview of thin client computing

Before the introduction of the personal computer in 1984, the first computer systems treated monitors and keyboards as simple input/output devices, not as a computing device. A user logged in to the central computer and began a session, sending keyboard entries to the computer and receiving back computer output on the monitor. Each monitor and keyboard was a client to the central computer, although ‘client’ was not the term used to describe this keyboard/monitor combination. The central computer served all the needs of its clients.

Having no computing power, the keyboard/monitor client was software thin, that is, the unit had only the hardware and firmware necessary to communicate with the central computer, but no software at all. Thin client computing was the first type of computing available to most computer users before the mid-1980s.

In the mid-1980s, the personal computer took root in business and by the 1990s, the keyboard/monitor client was replaced by micro-computers, usually with a Windows operating system. These computers had computing power, including memory, secondary storage, and peripheral connectivity to such devices as printers, faxes, and modems. Computing power was now available to most users, and software, simple and sophisticated, became available for micro-computing in nearly every application area.

Distributed, rather than centralized data processing, became the best model, now that computer power could be distributed throughout an organization. Each department had its own server and maintained its own data. Each ran its own software. Since one part of an organization will often have need of the data or processes of another part, as is the case with businesses, the inter-connections of computers was required. This interconnection enables computers to request services from other computers. Computers making a request to another computer is in the client role, while the computer receiving and processing the request is a server.

The server would certainly have the data and processes it owned. These would be used exclusively by the department. The same would be true of the client. The client is a role. The computer that fills the role of client may be a server in its own right. It may have programs and data that are exclusively for the use of the client. Any client that has programs and data that are relevant to the organization’s information system is known as a ‘fat’ client.

The difference between fat client computing and thin client computing is the source of all processes and data. With a fat client, some of the processes and data it requires comes from itself, the client, but other processes and data may come from a server. With thin client computing, no processes or data comes from the client. All processes and data are run on, maintained by the server. In thin client computing, your calculator, spreadsheet program, and word processor are all on the server and run on the server. The server holds and maintains your data. In thin client computing, the computer reverts back to the earlier role of the keyboard/monitor client. Some servers must act as a centralized computer for the thin client. Thin client computing requires session management.

Thin client computing may become the standard in years to come, but that will be a long time yet. Most computer users prefer to keep as much computing power at their finger tips, without relying on a service. Some prefer to serve themselves. Others continue to press the notion that thin client computing in a service oriented architecture will be the only reasonable way to go. Fat and thin client computing are likely to coexist side by side for years to come.

Dolphins Tickets

For years Dolphins tickets have been among the easiest to come by in the National Football League. This is in spite of the team’s long-standing tradition of success and litany of famous Hall of Famers who’ve worn the teal and orange.

The problem is that Miami simply isn’t a great sports town. In fact it’s one of the worst in the United States, up there with Atlanta and Los Angeles. My theory on this is that all three of those places have an inordinately high number of transplants – people from other parts of the country, or other countries entirely – that already have established rooting interests and therefore don’t care as much aboutt the home team.

So Dolphins tickets can be had for a song. Compare that to Giants or Jets tickets, and it’s a whole different ballgame. Those two teams have combined to build a new stadium at the Meadowlands and tickets are in such high demand that the teams aren’t just charging for the cost of the ticket, they’re charging for “Seat License” rights. That means if you want to buy season tickets, you have to put down $2000 additional dollars up front if you’re a Jets fan to get ahold of them. For the Giants it’s even more – $10,000. And people are snapping them up left and right. It’s a remarkable lesson on supply and demand, even in this battered economy.

As I’ve said, Dolphins tickets aren’t even in the same league. Miami’s high percentage of transplants – either northerners who’ve moved to Florida for the weather and lack of state income tax, or foreigners (usually from the Caribbean) who have no rooting interest in American Football – limits the fanbase. Sure, some may go to a game or two a season, but rarely are there sellouts and there’s never the same, sixty-thousand strong base of lifetime season ticket holders like there are for the Giants and Jets, or Redskins, Steelers, Cowboys, Patriots, and a half dozen other teams.

This also applies to baseball, basketball, hockey and soccer in Miami. All the franchises in these sports have struggled to attract and maintain fans in spite of producing championship level teams in the recent past. Again it’s the transplant theory at work.

Interestingly, though, the new soccer franchise in the city, Miami FC, has tried to turn that dynamic around and capitalize on it by marketing heavily in Caribbean and Central American immigrant neighborhoods, as well as in those countries themselves. And it looks like it’s begining to work, as the crowds have started to increase for their home games and they’ve created a hispanic/haitian/jamaican/american identity. It remains to be seen whether this is a viable long-term strategy, but for the time-being it appears to be a step in the right direction.