I am not knowledgeable enough to give you good advice on most of this. I can tell you what I have done, and especially what I have done wrong! We currently run a big server that is probably 10X more than we needed, long story. HOWEVER, with the server, and it's very fast cpu's (yes, plural) we can run workstations as "thin clients" which are like dumb terminals. But when you do that, the network does NOT need to send you all the data, only a picture of the screen as it would be if you had the data. Sorry I am not making this clear, but maybe this will help. Quest Diagnostics sends labs into the system direct. The format that it is in takes AC ver. 3 over one minute to open the file IF I am retrieving the file via our INTRAnet and on a wireless laptop. No matter how fast, how many Gigs, blah blah blah. When you are on "Remote Host" (directly on the server, your keyboard, mouse and monitor are just like they are plugged into the server) the lab opens very quickly, as does every other function of AC. It does not seem to be affected by how many in the office are working. We have 3 Drs. and 12 employees.
Point is this, initial cost was very high for server and setup, but now it is starting to pay some dividends.
The other big mistake was Tablet PC's. We had three computers that were pure tablets. We broke one in the first month, and the other two were only useful for us with a keyboard plugged in. You need a keyboard and the times that the Pen is cool, just aren't enough. I have for my personal use a Fujitsu Lifebook T-4220 convertible tablet/laptop. I love it, but I am not sure it was worth the money, (over 2 grand). I can work just as fast with a $1,000 laptop and could have bought two, putting someone else to work!
