Thin client vs mini tower for scanner feed & home listening

[spectr17]

I've got a new feed up now off my laptop and I'd like to move it to a thin client or mini tower. I'd like to use the computer to also monitor the feed like a base scanner while at home. Which would be the best to use? Does the thin client offer decent speaker audio and I guess there would be no way to view the feed tags right?

Or would it be best to set that dedicated feed up and just get a 2nd scanner to monitor the feed while at home?

Thanks.

[Rob_K]

Thin client should work if all you plan to do is stream the feeds and listen to the feeds.

To view the tags, you'd probably want to run proscan.

Remember thin client is not designed to have all kinds of software installed on it.

A mini tower is just a small PC with full blown OS. Thin client will use less power and be quieter but does have some limits.

[spectr17]

Thanks Rob,

The feed computer would be dedicated so I don't need it to have much else on it. The extra power use and noise from the small PC would be a plus to not have.

And I get to learn about thin clients right?

[spectr17]

One thing I forgot to ask is would a cheap laptop work to run a feed? I don't see anyone running this setup so there must be a reason I'm not aware of.

Thanks.

[NYRHKY94]

spectra17:

Yes, a laptop (cheap or otherwise) will indeed work for running a feed. I'm running a private feed right now using a used Dell D630 laptop that I purchased through my employer for $50. With a laptop, the only additional consideration is whether or not to run the audio through the on-board sound (mic in/line in) or connect a USB sound card. Other than that, the principal of running a feed is excatly the same.

[spectr17]

Thanks NYRHKY94, I think I'm going to go cheap laptop.The ease of install and familiarity with the software/hardware are my deciding factors.