<grumble>HN has given N O D E love for the design aesthetic of the presentation and video format recently, but it feels like I'm being fed the details via Morse code. It's infuriating! There is no summary, no overview, no block diagram, just a wall of transcribed prose and gamble on a non-indexed, un-subtitled 8 minute video. I imagine many people (myself included!) will just go "Okay, there a black brick and screen thing with an RPi zero (or is it a different model?) in it ... or something" and move on.
Perhaps this is intentional in the same way the OpenBSD homepage is purposefully ugly, to scare off people and create a small effort-moat.</grumble>
I've been using OpenBSD for about 20 years so I feel like I can talk about this issue.
If you browse web.archive.org for old copies of the www.openbsd.org site, you'll notice that the current design is from many years ago, back when lots of websites looked like that.
It appears that the current design is from around the year 2000:
Over the years there have been attempts by users to redesign the site. Each had their own problems. I think that for a site redesign to be accepted, it would need to be a major improvement both technically and aesthetically, and for maintenance of the new site to be real easy. OpenBSD devs don't want a bunch of churny work hoisted on them.
Just as an aside, I've noticed in this thread that you're making low-effort, kind of rude posts about an important project that's not even related to the actual subject, which is Raspberry Pi. Why are you doing that?
I think the major difference is that with OpenBSD it's quite clear what it is, an OS so secure that it sacrifices comfort. That's not an option for most people using a Client and probably neither on the Server because those are usually deployed at work places where standardization is usually more important than sophistication. But I agree, it's not clear what NODE is for, although I get the impression it's a remake of 90s credit card sized "PDAs" (not sure if they ever had a real name).
The first two paragraphs seem to summarize the project fairly well. The text itself also appears to be fairly well organized.
I haven't watched the video itself (I'm browsing this between compiles and integration test runs), but I certainly can't find any fault with the textual side of things.
I understand in some respects, but for me I just read the headline and go "Oh, that's interesting!" and then read it or watch the video. If I do not like the headline then I do not read the article.
I do agree that subtitles should be included though, basic accessibility in my eyes.
The OpenBSD web page is 126kB (less after gzip). Once the image resources are cached, it's only a measly 4kB for the HTML and 4kB for the CSS. I'd say that more than makes up for the page being ugly.
Now this, this is a project we can all get behind. Adding radio with kill-switch and getting PostmarketOS working on this will essentially make this a smartphone replacement to reclaim mobile computing from the duopoly.
Also, N-O-D-E publishes all the requisite files; Essentially making this a 'Build your own smartphone' project and those who don't want to get their hands dirty could order one from the website when available.
This will be a niche product and for that I’m sceptical it’s sustainable on the long run. There’s no way this would even make a dent to Apple’s or Google’s marketshare.
Sure, it’s a nice device for tech-people, but general consumers will most likely not use this.
I kept thinking "oh nice, you'd just want to add a---" and you've already done it! Incredible stuff. I can't wait to see how this progresses. The keyboard design is really neat. It reminds me a lot of the old Nokia N900, still the best phone I've ever owned.
Do you have any idea how much battery life you get?
This is impressive work, and I would like to have this, or something like this.
A question is whether the amount of clever effort that went into working around constraints of the Pi Zero, would be enough to incorporate the Pi Zero aspects of this assembly into a single board?
Also, maybe not even an exact Pi, but using a RISC-V core and fully open firmware, even if less powerful at this time?
I actually do like the fact that it uses an existing Pi Zero board, even if much creativity is needed to add so much functionality to it in a small space. It reminds me of gopro cameras being taken apart and custom modules added to make it lightweight to use on small drones. I think this is a developing trend, leading to somewhat of an open source supply chain of creative applications for hardware devices. I think we benefit of the economies of scale of the Rpi boards already, just like we do from individual chips, so these custom boards ties that together nicely.
I am puzzled why there are no widely available laptop-like cases for the Raspberry Pi, especially considering that now there is a 8 GB version of it. "pi‑top [3]" came close, but it was somewhat childish and apparently it's not sold anymore.
Part of the problem is how thick the Pi's are. They're small computers on their own. But in a laptop case, they're chunky. Much thicker than your average off-the-shelf laptop. Plus, there's still rough edges when trying to use them as desktops. The Pi Zero would work in terms of size, but is very underpowered for desktops. The Pi Compute would probably be the perfect fit, but that hasn't been updated in a rather long time. Also underpowered.
So I can see why there's not much of a market. The hobbyists are largely doing something other than standard desktop use, and the people who need laptops (even cheap ones) are better served with something off-the-shelf. The best bet for the future are the handful of laptop-style docks coming out. Just plug your phone or pi into one of the external ports and go.
6:55 haha one pixel is a letter, the form factor is really cool I thought it would just be a Pi inside but there is also a bigger board combining functionalities.
I do have a inclination for "disposable" computing (old $50 Chromebooks using i3-wm) though and mostly I notice it's the ram so yea i3-wm is a must. This is cool it's full/has everything.
Needs more compute I think. I've started seeing small form factor builds like this 6GB ram 4K capable cube thing for gaming using Atom processor. Oh Larkbox it's called
I'm a bit saddened by the lack of built in keyboard in this iteration. I see the modular bit, but it kinda takes away from the "terminal in your pocket" idea.
Well, supposedly[0] the next iteration of the CM will be based on the Pi 4 guts, and expose the PCIe capabilities. The maker of the hardware being discussed also mentions that they might try the compute module (it probably makes a lot of sense from the custom PCB side of life?).
What kind of SBC to use for such a project really is an interesting question.
On one hand I would love a "shell" where I could just plug in a compute module and have a working portable. On the other hand, the compute modules are more expensive and seem really hard to source, why it's easy and cheap to find a Pi Zero. If one would need to solder it to an expansion board oneself, this would probably be a hurdle for many people. And then, if we are thinking about different boards, why not something else entirely? With more/better capabilities, like included charging circuit or as you mentioned, PCI-E?
I guess there is just no good answer on what would be an adequate basis for such a type of computer. Every option has some drawbacks somewhere.
I wonder what the price range for this would be. I’d readily pay up to 300 but would think twice if it goes above that.
im thinking that this device could be upgraded, modded, fixed, have full control over the software, have privacy and last but not least: no planned obsolesce
I wonder if that keyboard module could be reworked to attach to a pinephone; obviously you'd have to replace the actual connection to switch from usb to i2c, but otherwise it looks nearly drop-in.
[+] [-] verytrivial|5 years ago|reply
Perhaps this is intentional in the same way the OpenBSD homepage is purposefully ugly, to scare off people and create a small effort-moat.</grumble>
[+] [-] Panino|5 years ago|reply
I've been using OpenBSD for about 20 years so I feel like I can talk about this issue.
If you browse web.archive.org for old copies of the www.openbsd.org site, you'll notice that the current design is from many years ago, back when lots of websites looked like that.
It appears that the current design is from around the year 2000:
https://web.archive.org/web/20010118233800/http://www.openbs...
And that one of the oldest archived versions of the page, from 1997, already had much of the same information and organization, just with less color:
https://web.archive.org/web/19970327004719/http://www.openbs...
Over the years there have been attempts by users to redesign the site. Each had their own problems. I think that for a site redesign to be accepted, it would need to be a major improvement both technically and aesthetically, and for maintenance of the new site to be real easy. OpenBSD devs don't want a bunch of churny work hoisted on them.
Just as an aside, I've noticed in this thread that you're making low-effort, kind of rude posts about an important project that's not even related to the actual subject, which is Raspberry Pi. Why are you doing that?
[+] [-] Fnoord|5 years ago|reply
If you would like to see ugly pages, there's probably a Geocities mirror up somewhere which one can browse through for an ample amount of examples.
A more accurate, descriptive word is, I believe, pre Web 2.0 (or Web 1.0?).
[+] [-] efficax|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] imtringued|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] blablabla123|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] jhomedall|5 years ago|reply
I haven't watched the video itself (I'm browsing this between compiles and integration test runs), but I certainly can't find any fault with the textual side of things.
[+] [-] Accacin|5 years ago|reply
I do agree that subtitles should be included though, basic accessibility in my eyes.
[+] [-] sgt|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] Abishek_Muthian|5 years ago|reply
Also, N-O-D-E publishes all the requisite files; Essentially making this a 'Build your own smartphone' project and those who don't want to get their hands dirty could order one from the website when available.
[+] [-] limomium|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] saagarjha|5 years ago|reply
I think it’s a bit too thick to reclaim anything, to be honest, but its nerd cred is off the charts.
[+] [-] asutekku|5 years ago|reply
Sure, it’s a nice device for tech-people, but general consumers will most likely not use this.
[+] [-] jstanley|5 years ago|reply
I kept thinking "oh nice, you'd just want to add a---" and you've already done it! Incredible stuff. I can't wait to see how this progresses. The keyboard design is really neat. It reminds me a lot of the old Nokia N900, still the best phone I've ever owned.
Do you have any idea how much battery life you get?
[+] [-] marasal|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] neilv|5 years ago|reply
A question is whether the amount of clever effort that went into working around constraints of the Pi Zero, would be enough to incorporate the Pi Zero aspects of this assembly into a single board?
Also, maybe not even an exact Pi, but using a RISC-V core and fully open firmware, even if less powerful at this time?
[+] [-] kokey|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] projektfu|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] kozak|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] dunnevens|5 years ago|reply
So I can see why there's not much of a market. The hobbyists are largely doing something other than standard desktop use, and the people who need laptops (even cheap ones) are better served with something off-the-shelf. The best bet for the future are the handful of laptop-style docks coming out. Just plug your phone or pi into one of the external ports and go.
[+] [-] jcun4128|5 years ago|reply
I do have a inclination for "disposable" computing (old $50 Chromebooks using i3-wm) though and mostly I notice it's the ram so yea i3-wm is a must. This is cool it's full/has everything.
Needs more compute I think. I've started seeing small form factor builds like this 6GB ram 4K capable cube thing for gaming using Atom processor. Oh Larkbox it's called
[+] [-] jascii|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] jamesgeck0|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] mschuster91|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] cricalix|5 years ago|reply
0: https://www.tomshardware.com/news/raspberry-pi-nvme-support-...
[+] [-] Grumbledour|5 years ago|reply
On one hand I would love a "shell" where I could just plug in a compute module and have a working portable. On the other hand, the compute modules are more expensive and seem really hard to source, why it's easy and cheap to find a Pi Zero. If one would need to solder it to an expansion board oneself, this would probably be a hurdle for many people. And then, if we are thinking about different boards, why not something else entirely? With more/better capabilities, like included charging circuit or as you mentioned, PCI-E?
I guess there is just no good answer on what would be an adequate basis for such a type of computer. Every option has some drawbacks somewhere.
[+] [-] rcarmo|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] unknown|5 years ago|reply
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[+] [-] bildung|5 years ago|reply
Edit: It even has the same sliding keyboard as the OQOs! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OQO
[+] [-] NiceWayToDoIT|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] shaan7|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] uberneo|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] antupis|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] asddubs|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] jamesfmilne|5 years ago|reply
edit: He does indeed say he's contemplating this.
[+] [-] grugagag|5 years ago|reply
im thinking that this device could be upgraded, modded, fixed, have full control over the software, have privacy and last but not least: no planned obsolesce
[+] [-] yjftsjthsd-h|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] Kolians|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] atum47|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] loraa|5 years ago|reply
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