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Pockit: A tiny, powerful, modular computer [video]

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Re: Pockit: A tiny, powerful, modular computer [video]

#71

Post by XCSme »

tjchear wrote: post #68

Seeing Pockit gives me an idea: can we do something similar for Web APIs? Perhaps a web app with a 2D board where users can place modular blocks the same way one would place Pockit blocks on the magnetic breadboard. We could have a geolocation module, vibration module, button module, slider module, camera module, etc. Like Pockit, the system finds a script with the closest matching blocks to what's placed on the grid…

This is what Web Components[0] was supposed to be, but it didn't really take off.

[0]: https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/Web_Components

Re: Pockit: A tiny, powerful, modular computer [video]

#74

Post by pharke »

kumarvvr wrote: post #56
lanewinfield wrote: post #8

As far as I can tell, this is a single individual that has done all of this work. I am floored at the design and intricacy of this project. Really, truly blown away. I'm sure there are plenty of edge cases to correct for but I haven't gotten so excited by a demo in a long time. I've obviously signed up to learn more.

I am floored by the design. However, the most complex and costly part is the PCB and circuit design. The PCBs used in the blocks are absolutely awesome. Thanks to 3D printers that are cheap, the casing and other plastic materials are easy to make. All that being said, this has very low chance of becoming a real world product. Real world is messy, dirty, wet and an absolutely shitty place for snap on electronics. What…

I don't see why the contacts on the demonstrated devices would be any more vulnerable to the real world than the port on an iPhone. I'm not sure these devices would be mass market since some skill is required to understand and use the software but they would absolutely have a good run at serving the same size market as 3D printers. They could even work hand in hand with 3D printers by providing the 'brains' for prototyped projects.

Re: Pockit: A tiny, powerful, modular computer [video]

#75

Post by vidarh »

h0l0cube wrote: post #44
XorNot wrote: post #40

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The problem with this idea is that it assumes we have to make trade offs: case in point, remember pre-smartphone? I had a PDA which didn't have a camera, didn't have wifi - just a hardwired connection. Now I have sitting next to me a smartphone which has 5 cameras, GPS, wifi, bluetooth, NFC, 128GB of storage and 4G. Basically on a mass production scale it is always going to be cheaper just to put every feature in one…

> Basically on a mass production scale it is always going to be cheaper just to put every feature in one device and build a billion of them. When it comes to physical widgets, there's a limit to how many you could practically have on one device. I think the real value here is that it could be open to market to allow a real diversity of physical augments allowing people to improvise devices that are unlikely to be man…

I'd be inclined to be looking for excuses to put these all over the house.... I don't need them, but I want them just from this video.

Re: Pockit: A tiny, powerful, modular computer [video]

#76

Post by philliphaydon »

renonce wrote: post #64
philliphaydon wrote: post #29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

1 person? Man it's an absolutely incredible feat. I'm also blown away, and I want to play around with it. I would love to try and automate parts of the house and such.

Pockit is just one of the small parts needed to automate parts of your house. All your devices have to cooperate smoothly and this will require a standardized IoT API from manufacturers.

Sure but you could 3d print parts to automate traditional things and build on top of pockit. That’s what I like.

Re: Pockit: A tiny, powerful, modular computer [video]

#78

Post by tjchear »

severak_cz wrote: post #70
tjchear wrote: post #68

Seeing Pockit gives me an idea: can we do something similar for Web APIs? Perhaps a web app with a 2D board where users can place modular blocks the same way one would place Pockit blocks on the magnetic breadboard. We could have a geolocation module, vibration module, button module, slider module, camera module, etc. Like Pockit, the system finds a script with the closest matching blocks to what's placed on the grid…

It's already done. This is how these "website builders" (e.g. Wix) works - your put different modules onto a template and build your site out of these. Also Drupal and Wordpress have similar funcionality via plugins.

Right, but I wasn't talking about website builders. I'm talking about enabling access to a phone's various sensors and capabilities through a manner similar to Pockit.

Re: Pockit: A tiny, powerful, modular computer [video]

#79

Post by tjchear »

XCSme wrote: post #71
tjchear wrote: post #68

Seeing Pockit gives me an idea: can we do something similar for Web APIs? Perhaps a web app with a 2D board where users can place modular blocks the same way one would place Pockit blocks on the magnetic breadboard. We could have a geolocation module, vibration module, button module, slider module, camera module, etc. Like Pockit, the system finds a script with the closest matching blocks to what's placed on the grid…

This is what Web Components[0] was supposed to be, but it didn't really take off. [0]: https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/Web_Components

Far as I understand, web components are used to build websites / web apps. I was talking about how a phone carries a suite of sensors and various capabilities that we can make accessible in a manner similar to Pockit.

Re: Pockit: A tiny, powerful, modular computer [video]

#80

Post by tjchear »

punnerud wrote: post #69
tjchear wrote: post #68

Seeing Pockit gives me an idea: can we do something similar for Web APIs? Perhaps a web app with a 2D board where users can place modular blocks the same way one would place Pockit blocks on the magnetic breadboard. We could have a geolocation module, vibration module, button module, slider module, camera module, etc. Like Pockit, the system finds a script with the closest matching blocks to what's placed on the grid…

How would that be different from NodeRed? https://nodered.org/

What I have in mind is rather different. Imagine your phone simulating a Pockit experience, except the sensor modules are what your phone already provides (e.g geolocation, gyroscope, accelerometer, etc), the I/O are simulated buttons/sliders and screens.

That's what I'm thinking.

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