Application Virtualization - the new grail

One of the related technologies that Virtualization brings in - is what is termed as "Application Streaming". As a concept - this meshes with the other emerging trend in computing - of SaaS (Software as a service).

"Virtualization — isolates the application from the operating system and other applications — and streaming, delivers the application to the user. Moving the management of desktops to the data center, can reduce hundreds of desktop environments to one that’s under lock and key, while giving the user the illusion that he still has a fat client. Or a server can hold multiple desktop images, each tailored to a specific user’s work based on profiles stored in a directory.
When the user needs them, those applications — and sometimes complete operating environments — can be "streamed" over the network to the desktop, where they execute locally, without the server and communications overhead that comes from traditional client/server or thin-client computing. Some products allow the streaming of just those pieces of software actually needed for that session — perhaps just 20% of an application’s code — minimizing the demand for bandwidth, memory and disk."
http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=282928&pageNumber=1

This is an extremely interesting article - also gives a brief view of how client computing has changed over the years.