UP TO NOW, MANUFACTURERS STRUGGLED TO MERGE PLANNING WITH OPERATIONAL CONTROL DUE TO INFLEXIBLE DATA PROCESSING TECHNOLOGY. BUT, ENTERPRISE-WIDE CLIENT/SERVER COMPUTING BREAKS THE MOLD, ENABLING YOU TO MAKE TECHNOLOGY WORK THE WAY YOU WANT--PUTTING THE RIGHT INFORMATION IN THE RIGHT PLACE AT THE RIGHT TIME TO MAKE A COMPETITIVE DIFFERENCE. CLIENT/SERVER TECHNOLOGY CREATES AN INFORMATION NETWORK THAT IS PRO-ACTIVE AND USER-CENTRIC, NOT REACTIVE AND UNFRIENDLY. IT ENABLES COMPANIES TO DISTRIBUTE PROCESSING--AND DECISION MAKING--WHERE IT MAKES THE MOST SENSE, AND WILL BE THE CRITICAL DECISION-SUPPORT SYSTEM THAT STEERS EVENT DRIVEN PRODUCTION. THIS PAPER WILL COVER THE BASIC COMPONENTS OF CLIENT/SERVER COMPUTING, HOW IT WORKS, AND ITS BENEFITS.