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An $89 remanufactured Ubuntu workstation

symplepc.com

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Re: An $89 remanufactured Ubuntu workstation

#121

Post by pervycreeper »

egd wrote: post #24

They're cheap enough that my first thought was to pick up a couple and figure out what I'd do with them later, but the disadvantage here is that they're older boxes, which means they're going to be energy hogs (for the performance point, at least). That's what makes the eco pitch interesting - they're reducing e-waste, which is good, but energy efficiency on newer boxes (especially if you just need minimal performanc…

That depends. If they happen to heat a small area around the user, then it will allow the ambient room to be at a lower temperature overall, leading to a net power savings because (counterintuitively) of lower efficiency.

Re: An $89 remanufactured Ubuntu workstation

#122

Post by TD-Linux »

voltagex_ wrote: post #107
TD-Linux wrote: post #69

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This reflects my experience as well. Not only did the B+ add a switching power supply, but there is proper USB power protection and soft-start as well. Unless GP is referring to the flash problem of the RPi 2.0, which is readily solved by using a case, piece of tape, or an epoxy blob (which I imagine is what will be added to the manufacturing line eventually)

What do you mean by soft start?

Many DC devices have capacitors on their power rails. When they are plugged in, they generate a huge current spike as the capacitors charge up (limited only by the resistance and inductance of the capacitors/wires). This is enough to overwhelm the power supply and cause a reset.

The solution is a current limiter of some sort. Sometimes this is as simple as initially powering the USB port through a resistor, watching until the USB voltage gets high enough, then switching over to a direct connection.

Re: An $89 remanufactured Ubuntu workstation

#123

Post by Nzen »

pervycreeper wrote: post #121
egd wrote: post #24

They're cheap enough that my first thought was to pick up a couple and figure out what I'd do with them later, but the disadvantage here is that they're older boxes, which means they're going to be energy hogs (for the performance point, at least). That's what makes the eco pitch interesting - they're reducing e-waste, which is good, but energy efficiency on newer boxes (especially if you just need minimal performanc…

That depends. If they happen to heat a small area around the user, then it will allow the ambient room to be at a lower temperature overall, leading to a net power savings because (counterintuitively) of lower efficiency.

There are a number of factors influencing that conclusion. Many people opined on this issue a little while ago, "heating people rather than spaces" https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9034678

Re: An $89 remanufactured Ubuntu workstation

#124

Post by patcheudor »

Shank wrote: post #102
patcheudor wrote: post #98

"Data control by large corporations and government agencies is a tangible concern. Our Symple PC represents another, environmentally intelligent and privacy-aware path. It is one of the most planet-friendly PCs in the world. The case is made from recycled ABS plastic, the parts are recycled..." Hold on, hold on. They are directly marketing this solution to call centers, non-profits, etc., claiming it's "privacy-consc…

No offense, but tampering with firmware on motherboards, hard drives, and network cards to breach privacy sounds more like NSA/EquationGroup/TAO, not parts recycling centers. Unless you're implying that we should be checking every component for NSA tampering, I'd need some solid statistics to back up the idea that firmware backdoors are suddenly commonplace from refurbished/recycled computer parts.

NSA/EquationGroup is just in the news right now. There have been growing concerns about UEFI for years as well as a lack of reporting. Note this from Dick Wilkins UEFI report:

"Examples come from Intel, Microsoft, Mitre, NIST, Linux distros and others. Some are public and some are available only under NDA via direct communications with the involved companies."

Is it likely to be seen in the wild often? Likely not, but that's not the point. If it's seen more than once, then you have a problem if you build an entire business selling "trusted platforms" based on recycled equipment. At that point, expect your claims to be busted. What happens the first time someone actually finds a confirmed trojan in a firmware component of a product they sell? It doesn't matter if it is legitimate or a plant, it will reverberate through the news cycle like Lenovo-Superfish and the damage will be done.

This isn't to say this business model is a bust. Just be very cautious about claiming it supports privacy. There are plenty of educational scenarios where hardware which has been compromised would be of no issue.

http://www.uefi.org/sites/default/files/resources/2014_UEFI_...

Re: An $89 remanufactured Ubuntu workstation

#125

Post by pervycreeper »

Nzen wrote: post #123
pervycreeper wrote: post #121

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That depends. If they happen to heat a small area around the user, then it will allow the ambient room to be at a lower temperature overall, leading to a net power savings because (counterintuitively) of lower efficiency.

There are a number of factors influencing that conclusion. Many people opined on this issue a little while ago, "heating people rather than spaces" https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9034678

Could be. I'm just observing that there is a law of conservation of energy and that heat can be useful, so the question of using old computers in terms of environmental impact is not as clear cut as many internet comments suggest.

Re: An $89 remanufactured Ubuntu workstation

#126

Post by nitrogen »

pervycreeper wrote: post #125
Nzen wrote: post #123

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There are a number of factors influencing that conclusion. Many people opined on this issue a little while ago, "heating people rather than spaces" https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9034678

Could be. I'm just observing that there is a law of conservation of energy and that heat can be useful, so the question of using old computers in terms of environmental impact is not as clear cut as many internet comments suggest.

Heat from natural gas is typically cheaper than heat from electricity, so unless you can get away with heating a much smaller area, the gas will win.

Re: An $89 remanufactured Ubuntu workstation

#128

Post by erose »

egd wrote: post #24

They're cheap enough that my first thought was to pick up a couple and figure out what I'd do with them later, but the disadvantage here is that they're older boxes, which means they're going to be energy hogs (for the performance point, at least). That's what makes the eco pitch interesting - they're reducing e-waste, which is good, but energy efficiency on newer boxes (especially if you just need minimal performanc…

I'm shipping a 1953 from Cuba via airplane to be green!

Re: An $89 remanufactured Ubuntu workstation

#130

Post by notatoad »

batrat wrote: post #82

10/100 Ethernet... why not GbE port? i would love to have something like this in my homelab, but the Ethernet port (for me) is rather limited.

Because they aren't setting the spec sheet, they're selling refurb computers from it departments, and most of those were originally specced with 10/100
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