StreamingOS: Low Cost Education System
Abstract As technology improves in the 21st century, using mobile devices for educational purposes is becoming more common in primary and secondary schools. In addition to the cost, this technology becomes quickly outdated and needs to be replaced, forcing schools to spend continuous amounts of money on maintenance. StreamingOS is a system that provides students and teachers with inexpensive thin endpoint devices, with the resource-heavy OS being streamed to these devices from a backend server using container virtualization. The objective of this project is to design a powerful, inexpensive device and streaming system that enhances the learning experience. StreamingOS uses an inexpensive endpoint device and container virtualization to visually render and stream the execution of applications from a server or the teacher’s computer to these devices used by the students. The system design leverages concepts learned in distributed computing, operating systems, database theory, and networking courses. The advantage of this design over current alternatives is that it is scalable while enabling the teacher full control of what software each student views. The inexpensive hardware helps break down the barrier of the lack of technology in school settings and empowers teachers to incorporate more modern-day means of learning in their classrooms.
Our team would like to acknowledge our consultant, Professor Wojciech Golab. Professor Golab provided feedback that was crucial in deciding on the target market for our product, as well as giving suggestions for improvements on some key areas of our design.
As technology improves in the 21st century, using mobile devices for educational purposes is becoming increasingly more common in primary and secondary schools. However, the devices come at a high cost. In the United States, it is estimated that the cost of educational technology ranges from $142 to $490 per student. In addition, this technology becomes quickly outdated and needs to be replaced, forcing schools to spend continuous amounts of money on maintenance. With StreamingOS, we aim to alleviate these costs by providing students and teachers with inexpensive thin endpoint devices, with the resource-heavy applications/OS being streamed to these devices from a backend server using container virtualization.
The objective of this project is to design a powerful and inexpensive device and streaming system that enhances the learning experience. StreamingOS uses an inexpensive tablet (or alternative) and container virtualization to visually render and stream the execution of applications from a server or the teacher’s computer to these devices used by the students. The system design leverages concepts learned in distributed computing, operating systems, database theory, and networking courses. The advantage of this design over current alternatives is that it is scalable while enabling the teacher full control of what software each student views. Due to the inexpensive hardware, it breaks down the barrier of the lack of technology in school settings and empowers teachers to incorporate more modern-day means of learning in their classrooms.