These all seem like weird compromises satisfying neither to people who want to do serious computing nor people to just want to play some games on the go.
The world of Linux Handhelds in 2018
91–100 of 127 posts
Re: The world of Linux Handhelds in 2018
#92Earlier quoted context omitted.
more opinionated like MacOS (but without all the restrictions). Isn't this a contradiction? Pick for you, but still let you pick?
I think this might be possible: all you need to do is provide a good default. Most people will just use that, but those who don’t want it are free to pick something else.
In complicated systems this just leads to literally everyone being unhappy: You get vocal users who's weird combination of settings lead to edge case bugs, leading to devs getting stretched thin playing whack-a-mole and neglecting the needs of base case users.
Re: The world of Linux Handhelds in 2018
#93rip Ubuntu Edge...
Re: The world of Linux Handhelds in 2018
#94I used to be sort of obsessed with some kind of handheld Linux machine. Devices I've had included: HP 200 LX with 40MB PCMCIA storage. Tried to run a cut-down 16-bit version of Linux on it, but I don't think I ever got that running properly. Original Sharp Zaurus, the first Linux PDA. Tried to run Linux on a Compaq iPaq at some point too. Asus EEE PC 401 with the 7in screen and 4GB of storage. The first of the netboo…
I loved my asus eeepc even though I only had one GB. Had a full LAMP stack and it was great for airplane rides. I miss it- and wish there was something comparable today.
There is. The HP Stream and other things are like EeeePCs except faster, with more ram and more storage.
https://www.amazon.com/HP-Flagship-Celeron-Certified-Refurbi...
Acer make similar things. There are also things even cheaper from Light in the Box and other Chinese stores:
https://www.lightinthebox.com/jumper-laptop-14-inch-intel-ch...
Actually, these things are so cheap that the it may well be part of what killed palm tops. Every time I look at a Palm top unless it's this kind of price it's too expensive. That and getting a keyboard and getting a shell on some Android device.
Re: The world of Linux Handhelds in 2018
#95Earlier quoted context omitted.
> The Linux users/developers ecosystem is dominated by techies who mostly find the typical Android/iOS user interface inadequate I think this is a shame, honestly. It’s really optimized for the needs of the minority and keeps it away from the majority.
That's a good thing, the majority isn't a good target group.
It’s a good target group when determining defaults. I’m not saying that we should remove all customizability; rather, I feel that out of the box a device should serve the majority of people.
Re: The world of Linux Handhelds in 2018
#96Earlier quoted context omitted.
I think this might be possible: all you need to do is provide a good default. Most people will just use that, but those who don’t want it are free to pick something else.
In complicated systems this just leads to literally everyone being unhappy: You get vocal users who's weird combination of settings lead to edge case bugs, leading to devs getting stretched thin playing whack-a-mole and neglecting the needs of base case users.
Yes, but this is a practical rather than an inherent issue. You’ll see these crop up anytime you have a lot of people using something.
Re: The world of Linux Handhelds in 2018
#97Earlier quoted context omitted.
I loved my asus eeepc even though I only had one GB. Had a full LAMP stack and it was great for airplane rides. I miss it- and wish there was something comparable today.
There is. The HP Stream and other things are like EeeePCs except faster, with more ram and more storage. https://www.amazon.com/HP-Flagship-Celeron-Certified-Refurbi... Acer make similar things. There are also things even cheaper from Light in the Box and other Chinese stores: https://www.lightinthebox.com/jumper-laptop-14-inch-intel-ch... Actually, these things are so cheap that the it may well be part of what kille…
Those are rather larger. The eee was great for travel- even in economy seats it was convenient to use.
Re: The world of Linux Handhelds in 2018
#98My personal take on Linux handhelds is that they're held back by their user interfaces. None of the options I've seen have the polish of iOS and Android; they just look ugly and painful to use. On desktop this is 1. improving and 2. partially masked by the paradigm that you're supposed to "get work done", but mobile is in a large part still a platform for consumption and issues such as these make it difficult to seri…
Would you consider Sailfish to be a Linux handheld OS? And its predecessor Meego on the Nokia N9. Those are nice to use. The all-swipe interface would be perfect for a modern all-screen device like the iPhone X as well. No need to kludge in support for a home button.
Re: The world of Linux Handhelds in 2018
#99I used to be sort of obsessed with some kind of handheld Linux machine. Devices I've had included: HP 200 LX with 40MB PCMCIA storage. Tried to run a cut-down 16-bit version of Linux on it, but I don't think I ever got that running properly. Original Sharp Zaurus, the first Linux PDA. Tried to run Linux on a Compaq iPaq at some point too. Asus EEE PC 401 with the 7in screen and 4GB of storage. The first of the netboo…
I am still sad that things in the form factor of the Oqo never caught on:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OQO
With a modern multitouch screen and a slide-out keyboard it could be both a capable tablet, and do a lot more... The surface book is too large.
edit: this thing too, the whole 2007 era "UMPC" fad:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samsung_Q1
imagine the same form factor but with modern processor/screen/battery tech, 802.11ac dual band wave2 wifi, a few USB type C ports on it.
Re: The world of Linux Handhelds in 2018
#100Earlier quoted context omitted.
That's a good thing, the majority isn't a good target group.
It’s a good target group when determining defaults. I’m not saying that we should remove all customizability; rather, I feel that out of the box a device should serve the majority of people.
I agree not nearly enough thought is being put into the defaults.
But the majority of Linux users are "techies", thus the defaults should cater to them.