Term of the Moment
application framework
Definition: workstation
(1) An early term in the telecom industry for a combined telephone and computer.
(2) A user's computer in a network. In this context, workstation is a generic term for a client machine in contrast to a server or mainframe. See terminal, server and mainframe.
(3) A high-performance, single-user machine geared to the professional rather than the consumer. Employed for video editing, computer-aided design (CAD), software development, medical imaging and scientific applications, workstations use a fast multicore CPU with large amounts of memory and storage. Today, a workstation is typically an x86-based computer running Windows, Linux or macOS. A high-end Mac with Apple's own M series may also be considered a workstation. See x86 and Apple M series.
Earlier Workstations
(2) A user's computer in a network. In this context, workstation is a generic term for a client machine in contrast to a server or mainframe. See terminal, server and mainframe.
(3) A high-performance, single-user machine geared to the professional rather than the consumer. Employed for video editing, computer-aided design (CAD), software development, medical imaging and scientific applications, workstations use a fast multicore CPU with large amounts of memory and storage. Today, a workstation is typically an x86-based computer running Windows, Linux or macOS. A high-end Mac with Apple's own M series may also be considered a workstation. See x86 and Apple M series.
In the 1990s, these workstations from Sun, Compaq and SGI ran Unix for CAD, medical and scientific applications. The pushed the performance envelope, although today's desktop machines are far more powerful. See Sun, Compaq and SGI. (Images courtesy of Sun, Compaq and SGI.)