"We've removed the distractions..." So, no browser is included then? That won't be very useful.
And also "Commercial-grade media support". Those two things are at odds, aren't they?
And why is it a "terminal" and not a "computer"? Is it because "terminal" is a geeky word?
And no pictures, other than the very obvious render? How thick is it? What kind of connectivity/ports does it have? Is it completely flat, or wedge shaped? Can the keyboard be detached somehow? What's the deal with those weird keys? What does it look on the inside? What's the software that it's actually using? What WM is that? Can I install it on my laptop? Where is the source code? So many questions.
It looks a lot like vapourware to me. And at that price point, I'm not sure who is going to buy that.
I think a very common misconception makes this a terrible idea.
We, developers, are also "common computer users". Just like a sound engineer, a graphic designer, a movie editor, or any specialist, really, has fancy hard- and software, but remains also a "general user".
I have to do my taxes. Write a CV, or a speech. I have to make a presentation. I want to watch netflix. Listen to spotify. Must use trello, read my email, or use that abysmal internal time tracker. Play a game. Order new sneakers. Find a restaurant. And no, I don't do all that in emacs, terminal, bash scripts and lynx. Like every "general computer user" I use my computer for those things as well.
Despite what Hollywood makes it look like, developers, hackers, sw architects, sw engineers etc do use the stuff that everyone uses as well. Commonly and often.
I live in a world with lots of custom x11 apps. Unfortunately, browsers couldn't historically consume enough data fast enough (though that's probably changed I. He last several years.)
Not everything in the world is a browser.
I'm guessing they're targeting people who currently use something like a Bloomberg terminal and used the word "terminal" because that community already used it.
I'm vaguely interested in looking at new window managers. I3 is nice but isn't perfect. I'm happy to look at new ways of doing things. It seems a bit retro to tie a specific WM or a specific Distro to a specific bit of hardware. Sort of like a MBP with macOS.
- Calligra with two 'l's is the name of a KDE office suite.
- Why does the keyboard have macOS keys? At least as a Linux user, I've felt like most Linux desktops reflect the Windows keyboard layout more.
- Can I have pictures of the internals of the machine, or is this a 3D rendering?
- The Workbench OS makes a lot of claims that I want more information about. Is this a rice on a common WM or something they made themselves? Why is it "suitable for sovereign and secure deployments"? Won't having homebrew and DNF lead to conflicts (this is more of a general question, since I genuinely don't know)?
Nonetheless, I have to say that it does look cool from a design perspective, and with the pace of DRAM prices, maybe the actual system price won't actually be that crazy in a few months.
> Why is it "suitable for sovereign and secure deployments"?
It doesn't have device "drivers", it has device travellers.
When you go to shut it down it pops up an annoying dialogue box saying that its "First Amendment Rights Are Being Violated" that won't go away, even though it's made in Shoreditch which is nowhere near the US and therefore the US constitution is about as relevant as Kenya's.
I think this will fly right past a number of people, but I appreciated it. As soon as I saw the word "sovereign" in the quote, my mind was already making the association with the nonsense people. My GPU's device traveller is a real pita, sometimes.
To be honest, every time I see something this paper-thin yet slick and polished, I just assume it's mostly AI slop. The barrier to launching vaporware has never been lower.
Content over presentation is a signal for quality more than ever.
So this probably should be the top comment, but I'll reply to add to my nitpicks. Calling it workbench OS does confuse a bit from the amiga workbench, although I doubt these people are aware of that.
I highly doubt anyone is “dailying” an Amiga today for any actual work (other than retro fun), so I suspect there won’t be even a single person who expects this to be compatible with Amiga.
Likewise anyone looking for like a FPGA new Amiga hardware knows anything that says it’s got a Ryzen is not the droid they’re looking for.
"Get out of your way" is marketing speak to cover for missing applications. I've rarely seen such a blatant piece of marketing. "A computer for experts". Any computer with access to a terminal prompt is a computer for experts.
ehhhh, i disagree partially. a less cynical take would be to call it “opinionated”.
any computer can be for “experts”, but that’s not the same as delivering something preconfigured and opinionated.
nobody has actually seen this thing in action yet, but in my head it’s hardware + some opinionated linux distro (i imagine something like omarchy) + support.
certainly not what everybody would want, but if there are people that enjoy configuring their systems then there’s people that don’t.
Why do I feel like this is kinda like the hipster carrying his typewriter on the bus?
It seems like stuff like this is more about presenting an “identity “ instead of actually doing anything real. My immediate assumption from seeing someone with this would be that they are more about appearing to do a thing than actually doing it… so perhaps a good ux designer.
To be fair, I switched when apple silicon cut my compile time by 75 percent even using x86 emulation, dollar for dollar, and I got 2x battery life out of the deal for free. I run Linux most of the time in a VM these days, but I also really enjoy the ability to run largish (70b) models at Q6 with reasonable performance, thanks to the unified memory. They got some stuff pretty right, have to give them that.
There are few more photos of this HW here [1] and [2]. Apparently a real HW already exists. Also, it seems there is a storage space inside the box [3] and that the keyboard is foldable..
I was hoping to see a flip up 12” x 4” screen. A bunch of devices have been showing up recently with this particular format of OLED. Here’s one that may or may not be vaporware, but which links to a couple of other devices with the same screen, so presumably something is shipping:
Alas, this is more of a BBC B / Amiga format nostalgia fest, from the homeland of the hipster dads, Central Shoreditch.
This device could certainly add real value though if the OS / hardware integration gets nailed. That is, after all, where the Raspberry Pi really shone brightly: defining a standardised and working platform.
Not much of a terminal without a monitor, is it? Or is its output entirely audio?
I'm curious what the physical size of the machine is. Is it GPD MicroPC-sized or are we talking about a normal laptop? 100g or 10kg?
When I worked in a call center I learned to use the Data General terminal's keypad to type in people's credit card numbers as fast as people could say them. I would not want to use this keypad because I wouldn't be able to use my right hand on it, and that's the hand that knows the keypad. Then again, I don't do that much numeric data entry these days.
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And also "Commercial-grade media support". Those two things are at odds, aren't they?
And why is it a "terminal" and not a "computer"? Is it because "terminal" is a geeky word?
And no pictures, other than the very obvious render? How thick is it? What kind of connectivity/ports does it have? Is it completely flat, or wedge shaped? Can the keyboard be detached somehow? What's the deal with those weird keys? What does it look on the inside? What's the software that it's actually using? What WM is that? Can I install it on my laptop? Where is the source code? So many questions.
It looks a lot like vapourware to me. And at that price point, I'm not sure who is going to buy that.
We, developers, are also "common computer users". Just like a sound engineer, a graphic designer, a movie editor, or any specialist, really, has fancy hard- and software, but remains also a "general user".
I have to do my taxes. Write a CV, or a speech. I have to make a presentation. I want to watch netflix. Listen to spotify. Must use trello, read my email, or use that abysmal internal time tracker. Play a game. Order new sneakers. Find a restaurant. And no, I don't do all that in emacs, terminal, bash scripts and lynx. Like every "general computer user" I use my computer for those things as well.
Despite what Hollywood makes it look like, developers, hackers, sw architects, sw engineers etc do use the stuff that everyone uses as well. Commonly and often.
Not everything in the world is a browser.
I'm guessing they're targeting people who currently use something like a Bloomberg terminal and used the word "terminal" because that community already used it.
I'm vaguely interested in looking at new window managers. I3 is nice but isn't perfect. I'm happy to look at new ways of doing things. It seems a bit retro to tie a specific WM or a specific Distro to a specific bit of hardware. Sort of like a MBP with macOS.
Idk, 96GB of Ram and 1TB of storage on a Mac Studio is $3999. At least this one comes with a keyboard.
- Calligra with two 'l's is the name of a KDE office suite.
- Why does the keyboard have macOS keys? At least as a Linux user, I've felt like most Linux desktops reflect the Windows keyboard layout more.
- Can I have pictures of the internals of the machine, or is this a 3D rendering?
- The Workbench OS makes a lot of claims that I want more information about. Is this a rice on a common WM or something they made themselves? Why is it "suitable for sovereign and secure deployments"? Won't having homebrew and DNF lead to conflicts (this is more of a general question, since I genuinely don't know)?
Nonetheless, I have to say that it does look cool from a design perspective, and with the pace of DRAM prices, maybe the actual system price won't actually be that crazy in a few months.
It doesn't have device "drivers", it has device travellers.
When you go to shut it down it pops up an annoying dialogue box saying that its "First Amendment Rights Are Being Violated" that won't go away, even though it's made in Shoreditch which is nowhere near the US and therefore the US constitution is about as relevant as Kenya's.
Content over presentation is a signal for quality more than ever.
I highly doubt anyone is “dailying” an Amiga today for any actual work (other than retro fun), so I suspect there won’t be even a single person who expects this to be compatible with Amiga.
Likewise anyone looking for like a FPGA new Amiga hardware knows anything that says it’s got a Ryzen is not the droid they’re looking for.
any computer can be for “experts”, but that’s not the same as delivering something preconfigured and opinionated.
nobody has actually seen this thing in action yet, but in my head it’s hardware + some opinionated linux distro (i imagine something like omarchy) + support.
certainly not what everybody would want, but if there are people that enjoy configuring their systems then there’s people that don’t.
It seems like stuff like this is more about presenting an “identity “ instead of actually doing anything real. My immediate assumption from seeing someone with this would be that they are more about appearing to do a thing than actually doing it… so perhaps a good ux designer.
Deleted Comment
[1]: https://www.pentagram.com/news/caligra-computers-for-experts
[2]: https://www.instagram.com/p/DPEvytujE4k/
[3]: https://www.instagram.com/p/DPEvytujE4k/?img_index=8
The whole project looks like a special edition collectors item, not something anyone would use.
Deleted Comment
Definitely not a company with deep experience of developer culture.
I expect this will look slick and have a few nice features, but there's going to be a lot of "How do I...?" "No."
I get that economies of scale don't apply to something so niche, but that's just a bad deal. I'd rather get Framework Desktop.
https://liliputing.com/kernelcom-is-a-compact-mini-laptop-wi...
Alas, this is more of a BBC B / Amiga format nostalgia fest, from the homeland of the hipster dads, Central Shoreditch.
This device could certainly add real value though if the OS / hardware integration gets nailed. That is, after all, where the Raspberry Pi really shone brightly: defining a standardised and working platform.
Old enough to remember when the hipsters moved in, I feel vindicated. Vindicated!
(I like the beeb/amiga comparison, and I like the textured case, but I don't like the left-hand numpad).
I'm curious what the physical size of the machine is. Is it GPD MicroPC-sized or are we talking about a normal laptop? 100g or 10kg?
When I worked in a call center I learned to use the Data General terminal's keypad to type in people's credit card numbers as fast as people could say them. I would not want to use this keypad because I wouldn't be able to use my right hand on it, and that's the hand that knows the keypad. Then again, I don't do that much numeric data entry these days.
What's the ⌘ "interesting feature" key for?
But what I mean is, what X-Windows keysym and modifier does it map to?