I'm starting to think that we are in an age where more people would
prefer an appliance for their computer needs. Most services are
leas-able on the Internet, so give users an appliance with certain core
functions. I'm thinking along the lines of how PDAs work. I can buy a
Sony, Palm, or a few others and they all run PalmOS, and they all have
the same core functionality, but they also have different storage and
built in hardware. Take this concept to a more versatile computer system
using a PROM for the OS, and you might be able to satisfy this user. As
long as it does a few basic things. An embedded Linux system could do
this well. Manufacturers could sell set-top versions, and normal monitor
versions just by swapping the video cards. I know this idea isn't for
most people on the list, but I think it might server the users we have
been talking about better. Users would not be allowed to do dumb things
in this scenario, and the normal concerns of a full blown Linux system
would not be warranted. For those who think this violates the UNIX way,
well for the user yes, but for the developers no. They can be as clever
as they want. If this user wants it as simple as possible, then the
opportunity to be clever is not their concern. We cannot provide a
system that both allows the users to be very clever, and is sufficiently
secure as to protect their data from others and themselves. Below are a
few of the things that I believe would be necessary to support most users.
-Browser Internet with dynamic content
-Read email
-Office Suite
-Personal Finance Software.
-Manage Digital Images and Cameras
-Support USB thumb drives
-Manage digital video and music
-DVD/CD burning
--
"Nobody goes there anymore; it's too crowded."
--Yogi Bera
--
[email protected]
http://www.kernel-panic.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/kplug-list
