back to article OnLive sneaks Windows 7 into the iPad

Tablet fondlers can finally get some work done thanks to streaming cloud supplier OnLive, which now pipes the full Windows 7 experience from its data centres to punters' palms. Right now the free app doesn't maintain any settings between sessions, but does provide a working Win 7 desktop, and copy of Microsoft Office, which …

COMMENTS

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  1. Mage Silver badge

    Not new

    So the iPad can run a Terminal session.

    The important bit isn't the iPad, but how reliable and flexible Onlive's Cloudy Remote Windows will be. How does it compare with "designed for cloud" things like Azure and Google Docs.

    Badly I imagine in terms of bandwidth needed.

    1. Craig 12

      Everyone seems to be missing the point a little. Yes, VNC or RDP on an iDevice is nothing new. But this service is giving you a machine running windows and word. You didn't need to buy the machine, windows, or word, or keep it running at home all day.

      As for reliable/flexible/bandwidth: OnLive run 1,000s of simultaneous high-definition low latency streams to gamers (and do a decent job of it). A blinking cursor in word is not going to prove a problem :)

  2. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    But is is usable?

    My experience to date is that the ability to run Windows on a touch/tablet device is not a problem. The real issue was with the software - an interface designed for a mouse can be really difficult (impossible in some cases) to use with touch. Microsoft's tablet computer's always felt crippled for this reason - it wasn't the hardware, but the software. The only solution was to connect a stylus or mouse. How will streaming the same old software to a tablet make this situation any better?

  3. John 180

    Well worth a look . . . .

    . . . . . only its only available to US region, as clearly stated on the site. Great fact checking.

    1. Bill B

      I've started to get wise to the fact that Bill Ray is in the States, but having logged into theregister.co.uk I still get a little thrown by these articles which are USA only.

  4. This post has been deleted by its author

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      If you read the article it explains that.

    2. Ru
      FAIL

      Because this one actually comes with Windows

      as a hosted service, instead of making you provide your own license, hardware and connectivity.

      Read, comprehend, post.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        @Ru - No, his question is valid.

        How is this different from a company buying hardware, installing Windows software on it and offering you a VNC or RDP access to it ? This has been done for years so where's the novelty ? Oh, I see, the fact that it runs on iPad.

    3. sabroni Silver badge

      Not better, but different

      because they provide the machine that's running windows.

  5. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Logmein in iThings now FREE

    Don't forget that as of last Dec, Logmein has had a free iPad/iPhone App that allows the usual remote control of an apparently unlimited collection of machines including Macs though maybe not Linux etc. The restrictions of mouse-less operation will also become apparent there - pending Logmein's attitude to making a few nice UI tweaks.

    1. Craig 12

      I tried this, didn't really like it. Not much better than regular VNC stuff that you can at least control end-to-end. The amount of info you give to LogMeIn (and the amount of control/power it gets over your system) is a teeny bit worrying.

  6. Chris McEwam
    FAIL

    Only available in US store

    Unless you have an account on the US itunes store you cant get the app

  7. Chris McEwam
    FAIL

    Only available in US store

    Unless you have an account on the US itunes store you cant get the app

    Vmware has been using their VIEW app to stream virtual desktops to ipads for a while now. their interface is pretty good.

  8. Toothpick
    Pint

    Fondleslab mentioned yet again ...

    ....in a reg article. Time for another beer

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      @Toothpick - Please take good care of your liver

      The number of Apple related articles on el Reg is increasing.

    2. James O'Brien
      Pint

      @Toothpick

      How is it your able to spell let alone not be dead then? The way the articles on crApple are increasing here Im afraid for alot of us and drinking when we see something about Apple

  9. Jame_s
    FAIL

    Jame_s

    i'm so happy that there's now an app that turns a $600 poser toy into a $300 keyboardless netbook whilst making it miscrosoft's gimp.

  10. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Free application offering Windows 7 and Office ?

    To Microsoft lawyers: All hands man your battle stations!

  11. Mikel
    Go

    There's a for-pay version

    No doubt that will allow persistence, installed apps and whatnot. No need for Windows on the client device is a delight.

  12. SpaMster
    Coffee/keyboard

    Confuzzled

    So who pays for the client access license? i'm confused. Do you have to pay for this on on-live like the games or is it completely free. I can see microsoft flexing their muscles when they see this tbh

  13. Reue

    Old news

    We've been doing this for ages. Setup an remote connection on ipad using one of the many free applications, which hooks up to the external internet facing RD Gateway, passing that through to the load balancers which link the connection up to on of the terminal servers in our thin client farm. Use Appv to stream the applications to the terminal servers and each user gets access to their personalised applications on a windows desktop through tablet device.

    And the best bit, with full profile redirection, all saved documents and settings are carried across between terminal servers each time they get reassigned by the load balancers.

  14. Aitor Ibarra
    Mushroom

    Where's their agreement with Microsoft?

    Hosting Windows client OS (XP, Vista, 7 etc) and renting it out is a strict no-no. Microsoft do not allow it under SPLA (which is how everyone offering hosted services based on Windows has to license). The only workaround is to give each end- user their own hardware (i.e. no virtualisation, unless the server is hosting desktops for one company ONLY, which kills abilty for hoster to consolidate) and then you'd have to charge up front for retail licenses (what Desktone are doing IIRC).

    You could put together a VDI service based on Windows Server (RDS) which you can make look and feel pretty much the same as a client Windows, and consolidate more (RDS supports multiple desktops per server) or give each user their own instance (if you want to give each user local admin rights). However, some applications will refuse to install on a server OS.

    Lots of hosting companies have tried and failed to get Microsoft to budge on this, even when large amounts of money was waved at Microsoft. I can't believe OnLive are doing this without agreement with Microsoft, so maybe Microsoft has finally decided to allow hosters to offer VDI...

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      "o maybe Microsoft has finally decided to allow hosters to offer VDI..."

      Or maybe they have a cunning * plan

      *=not to the users benefit

  15. James Pickett (Jp)

    Onlive mapped iPad Gestures

    I watched a video demo of this. It's worth noting that Onlive have made an attempt at mapping the iPad gestures to Windows functions making the user experience potentially better than a simple RDP session to your own desktop.

    Obviously many of us here could set up something similar for ourselves, but making the whole thing as simple as an app download will be compelling for many.

  16. Microphage

    streaming cloud Windows 7

    > Tablet fondlers can finally get some work done thanks to streaming cloud supplier OnLive, which now pipes the full Windows 7 experience from its data centres to punters' palms ..

    Which would rely on a decent Internet connection, something my "broadband" provider seems to be unable to provide ...

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