Grid-Enabled Desktop Environments

User interfaces in Grid computing have tended to follow either a command-line or a portalbased approach. Command-line interfaces, such as provided by the Globus ToolkitTM, are flexible and powerful, but arcane. Portals deliver their functionality either through Web browsers, or through bespoke, stand-alone “fat clients”; they present friendlier interfaces to a restricted set of services. Despite its astonishing success in making computing accessible to a vast number of users, the desktop paradigm remains strangely neglected by the Grid community. We argue that the command-line and portal approaches have drawbacks which are retarding the uptake of the Grid, and motivate Grid-enabling the desktop itself. Finally, we describe the GridEnabled Desktop Environment (GRENADE) project, which is exploring the possibilities that arise when the functionality of the Globus Toolkit is integrated within the user’s desktop environment.