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Delivering a Mac OS X experience to Apple's iPad

By | February 12, 2010, 6:00am PST

Summary: Aqua Connect brings Mac OS X experience to Apple’s iPad.

From time to time, I hear from the good folks over at Aqua Connect, a supplier of virtual access software for Mac OS X environment. This time, they informed me that they were planning to offer a way for users of Apple’s iPad to access applications and data found on Mac OS X-based systems. This could be important news for users of Apple’s laptops, desktop and server systems.

Here’s what Aqua Connect has to say

The Aqua Connect Terminal Server (ACTS) delivers the Macintosh OS X experience to PCs, thin clients, legacy Macs, and smartphones. Aqua Connect supports iPhone OS through various RDP and VNC clients. iPhone users have been able to use Aqua Connect Terminal Server in conjunction with RDP and VNC clients to remotely access OS X on their mobile devices. The iPad will receive similar functionality as Aqua Connect plans to support compatible RDP and VNC clients as they are released.

Aqua Connect also announced plans to support the iPad in their upcoming Mac Remote Desktop release. Aqua Connect’s Mac Remote Desktop allows users to remotely connect to their Mac desktop through any compatible remote desktop client from Microsoft or other third party vendors. Aqua Connect’s Mac Remote Desktop will allow a one to one connection to Mac hardware for remote access or administration purposes. In conjunction with Mac Remote Desktop, the iPad will allow users to access their Mac hardware remotely on a large display that they can take with them anywhere they go.

Aqua Connect will make it possible to deploy OS X to the iPad. The limitations of iPhone OS are transcended when the Aqua Connect Terminal Server or Mac Remote Desktop is deployed. Applications that are OS X dependent or require a greater amount of memory and processor speed can be deployed on the iPad through an Aqua Connect user session. The Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) allows all of this to be done through fully encrypted and secure connections. With Aqua Connect, the iPad has the ability to run applications and software that are not available on iPhone OS.

The Aqua Connect Terminal Server 3.5 is available now with support for the Leopard and Snow Leopard platforms. Aqua Connect’s Mac Remote Desktop is in the BETA phase and will launch later this year to the public.

Snapshot analysis

One of the key benefits of virtual access technology is making it possible to access applications and data without having to deal with the incompatibilities created by different operating systems, hardware architectures and user interfaces found on the end-point device and the source computer. This approach has been a mainstay of the Windows, Linux and UNIX worlds for quite some time. It is not seen as often in the world of Apple’s’ Mac OS.

To the best of my knowledge, Aqua Connect is the only significant supplier to offer virtual access solutions for Mac OS X-based computing solutions.

So, if your organization has plans to deploy Apple’s iPad or iPhone for that matter and there is a need to access Mac applications, this may be your only choice.

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Topics

Apple Macintosh, Remote Desktop, Apple Inc., iPad, Aqua Connect, Remote Desktop Protocol, Aqua Connect Terminal Server 3.5, Apple Mac OS X, Desktops, Apple Mac OS, Operating Systems, Software, Hardware, Dan Kusnetzky

Daniel Kusnetzky is a distinguished analyst and the founder of the Kusnetzky Group LLC.

Disclosure

Dan Kusnetzky

The Kusnetzky Group LLC is an independent technology industry research firm that focuses on system software, virtualization and cloud computing technology.

Dan's opinions are based upon research, personal experiences and actual use of technology. They are not based upon the relationships the company may or may not have with suppliers, end user organizations, the media, consultants or other analysts.

Dan's research is available on a subscription basis through the Kusnetzky Group LLC. Dan's attendance at industry events or at client meetings may be sponsored by the client. Clients may provide hardware or software for testing prior to the publication of analysis that includes that product. Clients may also provide shirts, jackets, coffee cups, folders, backpacks, pens and other event chotchkies. While nice, these don't effect Dan's opinions or insight about those clients or their products.

Biography

Dan Kusnetzky

Daniel Kusnetzky, Analyst and Founder of Kusnetzky Group LLC, is responsible for research, publications, and operations. Mr. Kusnetzky has been involved with information technology since the late 1970s. Mr. Kusnetzky has been responsible for research operations at the 451 Group; corporate and marketing strategy for Open-Xchange; system software and virtualization research at IDC; and program and product management at Digital Equipment Corporation.; Today, Mr. Kusnetzky focuses on system software, virtualization technology and cloud computing.

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It is new, though... but not in technology terms
SimonS1964 Updated - 24th Feb 2010
Ignoring the raw technology, this is interesting because it once more points in the direction of "desktop virtualisation".

It's interesting to speculate on the fate of phone and computer in the long term and their convergence in the minds of most people.

The technology becomes irrelevant - it's merely the enabler and you end up with some sort of device that is portable, looks great, does stuff, helps you express your personality, and helps you socialise.

The iPad, coupled with virtualisation technology like this, is another step along that road to a future where the architecture is of little interest; towards true democriticisation of technology.
View in thread
0 Votes
+ -
Choices
jragosta 12th Feb 2010
While this may be a good choice, it's not the ONLY choice as you suggest
in your last paragraph. Go To My PC has already stated that they will be
supporting the iPad, as well. So you have at least 2 options and can
choose which one works best for you.
0 Votes
+ -
RE: Delivering a Mac OS X experience to Apple's iPad
FionaHD 12th Feb 2010
I find it mildly humorous that some company makes it part of
their business plan to make a product do something it was
never designed to do. Don't you think if Apple wanted it to
do those things, they would have built it in? Seems like a
waste of resources to re-engineer a product thusly.
0 Votes
+ -
RE: Delivering a Mac OS X experience to Apple's iPad
aj.redmond@... 12th Feb 2010
Apple has had their own Mac software for this for some time. It is called Apple Remote Desktop. It is up to version 3.1 so it is mature. Features such as Remote drag n drop, power copy and task templates make it very powerful too. This is strictly for administering Macs though. You can purchase an unlimited license for $499 and it's a Universal binary that will work on Intel or PPC systems.
0 Votes
+ -
You don't even need to buy it - it is part of the OS
richardw66 13th Feb 2010
Both the VNC client and server are included in OS X.

So all that is needed is a VNC client on the iPad/iPhone/iPod Touch.

If this company is selling a VNC client for those platforms then that is
useful.

If they are trying to offer an RDP client so that they can sell a more
expensive and unnecessary RDP server for OS X, to replace what it
already has then that is stupid.

Yet again some research, fact checking, accuracy and balance would
be useful in this article.

Adding positive spin to a press release is not journalism, although it
does often happen in the place of journalism.
0 Votes
+ -
Citrix
Jkirk3279 12th Feb 2010
Apparently you missed the Citrix announcement?

With an iPad Citrix client users will be able to access apps
installed on Windows 7.

I speculate that providers may pop up allowing iPad users to
lease backup space and install their apps in that client space.

I'm glad to hear there will be multiple solutions though. You
could end up with one thin client able to run anything !
0 Votes
+ -
YEs - the iPad may be one thin client with so many uses
richardw66 13th Feb 2010
Contrary to what the MS supporters have been blathering about - the
iPad may just turn out to be really, really useful.

It is funny how just about everyone I have spoken to about getting a
computer would be very well served by an iPad.

The only issue is would they ever need a decent desktop for anything?
And come to think of it an iMac on their desk, an iPad when they are
away from their desk, and VNC from the iPad to the desktop would be
a great way to work.

If you want to sit at the desk you have a full computer, if you want to
sit anywhere else you can still use the computer remotely.

The brilliant thing about this is even if they have a PC desktop then
they can still use it from their iPad.

Which is precisely why the MS/PC supporters are so afraid of the iPad,
you are not locked out of using one just because you have a PC.

And once you use an Apple product, the FUD spread by the PC
supporters gets removed. Once people start looking at Apple products
without the FUD they often switch to Mac. Be afraid windows geeks, be
very afraid. Oh, you already are...
0 Votes
+ -
RE: Delivering a Mac OS X experience to Apple's iPad
dclhacker 13th Feb 2010
"This approach has been a mainstay of the Windows, Linux and
UNIX worlds for quite some time. It is not seen as often in the
world of Apple?s? Mac OS."

Huh. Well, I guess I must've been imagining stuff with Apple
Remote Desktop and also the vnc:// and X-Windows client &
server and ssh client & server connections I've been making all
these years. Built INTO the UNIX OS X, just as in Linux, not an
add-on (if even possible) with Windows.

So, how exactly is "Apple's' Mac OS" (sic) not a UNIX?
Technically, it's more UNIX than Linux if you rely upon the
owners of the UNIX name, the UNIX Open Group at
www.unix.org, to have any say in the matter.
0 Votes
+ -
Nothing new here
minardi 15th Feb 2010
What's the idea of this article? I have VNC on my iPhone and I have Apple
Remote Desktop (that works flawlessly BTW). All iPhone apps are
compatible with iPad. What are they bringing new here?
0 Votes
+ -
RE: Delivering a Mac OS X experience to Apple's iPad
Rick_K 15th Feb 2010
I believe that you should have let someone familiar with OS X
write this article. Maybe you should at least speak to
someone that has used OS X for more than 35 seconds.
There are so many pieces of wrong information in this article,
it is not worth reading, I just lost 2 minutes of my time that I
will never get back.
0 Votes
+ -
It is new, though... but not in technology terms
SimonS1964 Updated - 24th Feb 2010
Ignoring the raw technology, this is interesting because it once more points in the direction of "desktop virtualisation".

It's interesting to speculate on the fate of phone and computer in the long term and their convergence in the minds of most people.

The technology becomes irrelevant - it's merely the enabler and you end up with some sort of device that is portable, looks great, does stuff, helps you express your personality, and helps you socialise.

The iPad, coupled with virtualisation technology like this, is another step along that road to a future where the architecture is of little interest; towards true democriticisation of technology.

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