In 2008 Dell released a series of home user desktop focused machines that offered Linux by default. This was a huge opportunity for the Linux desktop and Dell took into consideration the requests of real Linux users in their decisions about how the release would happen. After spending some time with one of these machines I must say that this machine was most definitely a DOA product. Though it was perfect for Linux users it lacked some serious features for average users.
I recall the time when the petitions were available and I, along with thousands of other Linux users, voted "yes" to request Dell provide Linux machines for the Desktop market. But when it came to the distro selection Ubuntu users would rule the day. And this for me always comes back to the commercial viability of Linux as an operating system. It would have been my preference to see Mandriva be the default choice. After all it was my distro of choice at the time. This meant that I never had to install any codecs to play back an mp3 file and that I had commercial games available from my distro out of the box. But on the Ubuntu side of things you had to work to get things going. At that time many companies were embracing Ubuntu as their platform of choice and Ubuntu was insanely popular among new Linux users and veteran users alike. Hulu had their desktop client, Amazon had their MP3 downloader for the Ubuntu desktop and many other companies targeted Ubuntu as well. Though the out of the box vanilla experience was smooth it lacked most proprietary multimedia codecs.
I still believe if Dell had gone with Mandriva it could have been a much better experience for someone who wanted to pop in a DVD and watch a film or play a wma,mp3,wmv etc out of the box. And it could have potentially saved Mandriva as a company. But that always brings me back to what we see today with the real world success of Linux on the desktop. And that success arrived in the form of ChromeOS. ChromeOS is Linux at it's core but it's a locked down proprietary prison for the users that harvests their data and their biometric information. So what is the answer to commercial success? It's still my opinion that Linux as a commercial product will likely always end in a ChromeOS/Android like experience where a jail break is needed to actually be usable for tech minded and freedom minded users.
So what is the real benefit to a "year of the Linux desktop" in the commercial sense? Is there one at all? Did Xandros on the EEE pc have any meaningful impact on making free software more user friendly? The answer to commercial Linux on the desktop is and has been ChromeOS for some time now. I used to have a suspicion that commercial success would be a negative for Linux users ideal year of the Linux desktop. I would say that, for me, that has now been confirmed. And I believe that the future commercial success of free software and Linux will likely be seen only in products like the Steam Deck, Chromebooks, Phones and other products that don't truly respect the freedom of users.
I still would love to see the year of the Linux desktop that doesn't involve commercial products and big companies. But the world of computing is ever changing and the desktop market has become less relevant as well as the architectures that we use and our OS of choice. More software works in the browser and more devices fit in your pocket than ever before. Most Free Software and "Open Source" target many OSs and architectures. So is the obscure dream of mass Linux desktop adoption ever going to be a reality in my opinion? No.
-Matt
I was just playing a bit at the office because I plan to record new music there as well and post it here for supporters rather than sell albums. :D This is just a quick mp3 of me messing around on the guitar.
I recently decided that I wanted to created a "mobile" system that was as heavy as possible and sturdy. But when it came to the power source I didn't want to limit myself by using batteries that were light weight and easy to port around. So I decided to use ATV SLA batteries for this purpose. The L in SLA of course meaning lead which is a rather heavy element. I've nearly completed this dual screen system at this point and on the day of completion I will weigh it and see if I have accomplished a heavy, bulky, portable computer or not! hahaha It's going to be fantastic.
Anyway, there are many benefits to using an SLA battery. Some of which being the many automotive electrical components that are available for the voltage range of the batteries 14-10V. There are also SLA batteries that are meant for use in emergency lighting, outdoor cameras and UPS systems. But those batteries are meant to remain stationary and function in an upright position. While on the other hand, ATV batteries can ...
I recently needed to purchase some LED lighting for a new space that I am setting up for computing and video. I wasn't exactly sure the cost of such lighting but upon checking I realized that it was far more than I was willing to spend. I did however find some very affordable LED lights and small gauge wire all for $7 at a store called The Dollar Tree. These lights are meant to be powered from 3 AAA size batteries at 4.5V or around 5.2V fully charged. So I knew that I could run them in series at 5V 1/2A and use them for lighting this space. I purchased 6 of these lights and 4 spools of wire for $7. After some soldering, shrink tubing and cable routing I now have 3 lights to the right of me and 3 to the left. It's actually not too bad and I saved about $153 doing it this way!
I'm still in the process of setting up this space but it's coming along alright so far. Should be ready to go very soon hopefully!
I plan to do some new videos about a few systems that I have been working on and ...
Should be getting back on track here and posting about some interesting things. I've been working on building systems in some very cool old steel cases and will be doing to videos on the topic. Plus a very good friend of mine has gifted me a classic Linux system that I really can't wait to do an in depth review of.
