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PPENDIX
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Typical Hardware
Requirements for a
Linux Development
Workstation
here are many factors that go into selecting an appropriate hardware specification for any
given task; and the final specification will vary greatly depending on a particular environ-
ment, budget and time available to accomplish the task. In general, however, the things that need
to be considered are: the speed of the processor, the amount of memory, size of the local hard
drives, network connectivity, the video card and the display. Depending on the development
projects to be undertaken, additional devices such as modems, sounds cards and the like will
also need to be considered.
The three situations that we will consider are a single developer working on a project
alone, a distributed environment in which multiple developers are accessing a single machine via
remote log-on (telnet, ssh or X-Windows), and a distributed environment utilizing a software
repository.
A.1Parts of a Workstation
Computers consist of many parts working in conjunction with each other to turn fluctuations in
current into meaningful output on the display screen. Much of the work of the computer takes
place using the motherboard, the processor(s) and the computer’s memory. These components
provide the “horsepower” that largely determines how fast the computer runs.
Working in conjunction with these parts are things like the hard disk drive that provides
the internal long-term storage. There is also the video card that is used to convert the information
in the computer into something that is readily usable to us mere mortals and the modem or net-
work interface card that permit computers to communicate with one another.
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