Chapter 3-4, Question 2

Why is it advantageous for educators to share resources and programs on a network? What concerns are associated with program sharing?

It is advantageous for educators to share software and other digital resources on a network. It is time and labour efficient and circumvents the problem of having to install software at every workstation individually. This is accomplished by simply installing the programs on the server's hard drive, which leaves the workstation computer's hard drive open for storage of other files unique to that workstation's applications. The workstation operators are free to copy the software to the individual machines if they so choose, or they can simply run the program from the server.

Another benefit to sharing software is cost efficiency. Software is often very expensive. Usually, companies offer institutions the opportunity to purchase software at a discounted price for exclusive network usage. The discount is often quite substantial and is usually more efficient than even buying the program at a bulk discount for each machine.

There are a few concerns regarding the sharing of software via a network. Foremost is the fact that all of the workstations rely on a single copy of the program. If problems occur with the network's copy of the program, all workstations could potentially be unable to access the networked resources. Many networks keep redundant resources in the form of backup servers, to prevent any interruption of services.