Living with Limits in the Post-PC Era

Article from ADMIN 10/2012

By Ken Hess

With the Personal Computer approaching middle age, industry analysts tell us that we're entering the Post-PC Era. That might be true by the formal definition of a "Personal Computer," but – no matter what we call the end user's device or in whatever form we recognize it – it's still personal computing and that device is the new personal computer.

In ADMIN issue 09's "Welcome" column, I discussed the strained symbiosis between mobile device management in bring your own device (BYOD) programs and users. In this issue, it's all about dealing with the hardware and placing limits on what we want that hardware to do once inside our realm. Sure, there's a user on the other end of that device, but it's the hardware that we have to develop a rapport with first. We have to greet its interface, learn its idiosyncrasies, conquer its faults, control its activities, and then hand it back to its owner, the user. By controlling the hardware, we also control the user and create a more consistent environment.

It all started with the Commodore PET personal computer back in 1977 as the first successfully mass-produced and mass-marketed computer exclusively for desktop computing use. It looks like what we all think of when we imagine a traditional desktop computer. But, when contemporary analysts write and speak about the Post-PC Era, they're talking about desktop computers and standard laptops as well. By my definition, the Post-PC Era generally includes netbooks, ultrabooks, tablets, and mobile phones – essentially any portable personal computing device.

What the so-called Post-PC Era brings to us as system administrators is inconsistency. System administrators hate inconsistency. We spend countless hours perfecting and polishing our "Gold" images so that our users will have an easy startup and smooth daily operating experience. And, we do it to ensure consistency.

The inconsistency arising from the Post-PC Era is a result

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