Accessing X Applications over the World-Wide Web

Abstract. The X Protocol, an asynchronous network protocol, was developed at MIT amid the need to provide a network transparent graphical user interface primarily for the UNIX Operating System. Current examples of Open Source implementations of the X server, require specific software to be downloaded and installed on the end-user’s workstation. To avoid this and other issues involved in the conventional X setup, this paper proposes a new solution by defining a protocol bridge that translates the conventional X Protocol to an HTTP-based one. This approach makes an X application accessible from any web browser. With the goal of leveraging the enormous browser install base, the web-based X server supports multiple web browsers and has been tested to support a number of X clients. 1 Motivation The staggering rate at which the World-Wide Web has grown over the last decade is evidenced by the number of websites that are accessible over the Internet today. Web browsers, the end-user appli...

• Type: Conference
• Year: 2005
• Where: OTM
• Authors: Arno Puder, Siddharth Desai
• Keywords: Install Base, Internet Technology, Operating Systems, OTM 2005, Web Browsers