SMART CLIENT; A BETTER WAY THAN BROWSER
Why Smart Client is a smart option.
Written By: Dynatek, Inc.
In recent years, the term “browser” has gained significant popularity in the mortgage industry. Lenders say they want it, yet many aren’t sure why. Vendors are trying to provide applications that use it; however, many are struggling to deliver the same functionality available in today’s robust Windows â-based applications.
Providing advanced technology doesn’t have to mean sacrificing functionality… there is a better way. While browser-based applications do have their place, many are jumping on-board this trend without fully understanding its limitations or their options. In fact, if you listen closely to the latest technology buzz, you might be surprised with what you hear. The latest movement is toward a best-of-both-worlds hybrid called smart-client.
Trends and buzz aside, Microsoft® has published several technology perspectives clearly outlining their stance on browser-based applications. An article on Microsoft’s .NET Framework Development Centeri details why, relative to a rich-client environment, the browser-based model works for IT administrators, but leaves much to be desired for both developers and end users. Instead, Microsoft introduces the idea of running in a smart-client environment to better serve the interests of all three parties.
Smart-client applications combine the power and flexibility of the rich-client model (client-server), while also providing most of the advantages available in a browser model. This includes easy distribution, thereby reducing the problems and cost associated with maintaining a client-server application, and backend control for administrators.
In order to understand why smart-client is a better option in many instances; one must first understand the pros and cons of both the client-server and browser-based application models.
In a client-server environment, software is loaded directly on the user’s PC and interacts with a server on the backend to access shared data. This provides a rich and fast user experience, also allowing access to the local disk and local application programming interfaces. So, one might ask: why is there a movement away from this environment?
First, connectability and e-commerce are hot-topics in the mortgage industry. The Internet has allowed for dramatic advancements in the way of integration, and lenders are demanding more. This has driven the browser movement, fueled by the idea that if some is good, more must be better. Second, lenders are looking for ways to improve their operation and stay profitable in a highly competitive market. Of course, they want to do so in a way that makes sense and in a way that is manageable.
For end-users, that better way means not being tethered to the back office by a network connection, while maintaining functionality. For the administrators, the biggest challenge is software distribution. In a traditional environment, new installation and version updates must take place on each individual computer – an especially daunting task for large companies with hundreds or thousands of users.
Browser-based applications take a totally different approach. The browser-based application is easy to install and maintain. It can target many desktops without having any impact on the user’s computer. Users connect to a server via an Internet connection, eliminating distribution and version issues completely. On the other hand, users are still dependent on the volatility of the Internet, and simply having an Internet connection at all. Functionality is often sacrificed as well.
In a browser environment, the user does not have fully intelligent, client-side applications running interactively with their data. This imposes limitations on things like advanced edit checks and the ability to interact with other programs like Microsoft Word and Excel. Instead, singular elements of data are exchanged back-and-forth with the server. This can be slow, especially in highly data-intensive, heads-down data-entry applications where the performance of the application is critical. Further, one must also take connection speed into account. Browser-based applications work by sending data over the Internet. This can be relatively slow as compared with network speeds, and as the database becomes larger there may be performance issues.
Similar to a client-server environment, with a browser application the user must always be connected… period. Without a connection, the user can no longer communicate with the server, and therefore can no longer operate, not effectively addressing the issue of mobility. Compound this with the still limited availability of high-speed Internet connections (estimated in 2002 as only 16% of the 39% of households that are engaged in some form of home office activityii), especially in rural areas, and the even more limited availability of wireless and it becomes clear that browser-based applications are not the end-all, be-all answer that some had thought. In the end, the user is still tethered in some fashion, and without an Internet connection they cannot function at all.
Smart-client refers to the latest application design model used to build intelligent applications that combine the power and flexibility of the client-server model with the ease of distribution of the browser-based model. Characteristics of a smart-client application include utilizing local resources, like a CPU or local memory; interacting with web services that provide access to data or an LOB application; enabling intelligent installation and updates; and it is offline capable so mobile workers do not have to re-key data when the return from the field.
The biggest advantage of a smart-client application is that it is dis-connectable. Because the user interacts locally, he or she can still operate without an Internet connection, automatically syncing data with the server upon reconnection. For example, a loan officer could check out a loan on their laptop and take it home, work on the loan, and return the next day to check it in.
iii Microsoft Architecture Update Newsletter
In contrast, a browser requires a connection at all times. Because the user is just looking at screen drawings of the application and not running it, if the connection is broken, the user can no longer engage the server and exchange data. Much like a screen-shot taken from a client-server application, you can see it and it is helpful, but you cannot interact with it. If it is updated, you must still be able to talk to the server to exchange new information.
Navigation can also be a challenge for the end-user in complex browser applications. Users want to access the information they’ve entered at any given moment – most web pages aren’t designed for multi-tasking and random movement through their screens. In a smart-client environment, users have direct and immediate access to everything because the application runs and is controlled locally on the user’s PC.
So, what about distribution? Smart-client offers the best of both worlds. Administration is easy, controlled completely on the back-end by a system administrator. Applications can be delivered in one of three ways. First, applications can be delivered on a disk, where it is then installed on individual machines. Another distribution option is via an application deployment infrastructure where updates are automatically distributed to all users from a centralized server. The third option for distribution is to employ no-touch deployment. In this scenario, applications are delivered from a remote Web server using the Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP). Users simply click a button to load an application directly on their PC, where it will then run and interact with the server.
Other advantages of a smart-client environment are that applications are self-contained and isolated, eliminating versioning conflicts. In a client-server environment, installing a new version often caused problems between other local applications that were incompatible. This issue is eliminated in a smart-client environment, which allows communication between programs written in different languages and operating on different platforms, also allowing developers to bring their customers new and better products, faster.
As people have begun to realize the reality and limitations of browser-based applications, a new buzz is definitely emerging among lenders and vendors alike. Everyone is getting excited about this new hybrid called smart-client and what it can really provide. For Dynatek customers, smart-client technology is just around the corner.
MORvision Titanium offers the best of both worlds. It addresses the needs of the end-users and administrators better than anything else on the market by allowing for disconnected activity with docked and undocked work capabilities. It allows users to work through network problems and Internet issues, eliminating dips in productivity, while also simplifying the problem of distribution for administrators with centrally managed software deployment and back-end control. MORvision Titanium also offers the rich functionality of an enterprise system by providing full reporting, management and security capabilities.
MORvision Titanium is the first and only mortgage automation system of its kind. It’s rare, durable, lightweight, corruption resistant, and strong.
Mortgage Automation Has Changed Forever.
i, ii Smart Client Application Model and the .NET Framework 1.1
Microsoft .NET Framework Development Center
http://msdn.microsoft.com/netframework/using/building/windows/analystreports/smartclient.aspx
iii “What Makes Smart Client So Smart” by David Hill
February 13, 2004
Microsoft Architecture Update Newsletter
http://msdn.microsoft.com/architecture/community/newsletter/022004newsletter.aspx#au1
About the author: Founded in 1986 and headquartered in Livonia, Mich., Dynatek has been revolutionizing mortgage automation for retail and wholesale lenders for nearly 2 decades. Dynatek’s MORvision is a flexible solution that automates everything from point-of-sale and web origination through processing, underwriting, closing, secondary tracking and delivery. Dynatek is attributed with a long list of industry innovations including their award-winning Plug-In Partner Network, which seamlessly connects MORvision users to industry partners with just one click; and their unique Control Center, which offers capabilities for eMortgage, business process management, and multi-client support. With Dynatek’s complete mortgage software solution and multi-faceted approach to customer service, the company has earned numerous industry commendations and the respect of hundreds of full-service financial institutions across the nation. For more information on Dynatek or to schedule a live demonstration, call 800.462.5545 or log on to www.dynatek.com
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