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Free Software and Open HardwareFree Software and Open HardwarePosted Jul 5, 2012 13:09 UTC (Thu) by pboddie (subscriber, #50784)Parent article: Akademy: Plasma Active and Make Play Live
There seems to be two principal approaches when trying to make devices that are friendly to Free Software: adapt existing devices to take advantage of their widespread and timely availability and reduced cost per unit; attempt to design and manufacture new devices with a carefully chosen selection of components.
The former approach seems to be plagued by the kind of manufacturer vagueness around components and GPL non-compliance as seen here, whereas the latter seems to be plagued with secretive component vendors and uninterested manufacturing companies who apparently aren't interested in talking to anyone not commissioning or buying millions of units.
To an extent, there have been some minor successes with the latter approach, perhaps not in terms of something that would satisfy those who expect volunteer projects to deliver something as polished and as cheap as a blockbuster product from a major manufacturer, but certainly in terms of figuring out the supply chain and manufacturing challenges in a fairly satisfactory fashion. My impression is that the likes of OpenPandora and GTA04 still struggle, but they are able to work with facilities that don't seem completely intent on taking their money and pushing them out the door as soon as possible.
It's a shame that Nokia didn't open up their developer-targeted devices (or elements of their manufacturing capability) as various people suggested: that would have really empowered some open hardware projects. As someone who was practically a spokesman for Nokia, I wonder if Aaron Seigo regrets such missed opportunities too.
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Free Software and Open Hardware Posted Jul 20, 2012 18:23 UTC (Fri) by oak (guest, #2786) [Link]
> To an extent, there have been some minor successes with the latter approach, perhaps not in terms of something that would satisfy those who expect volunteer projects to deliver something as polished and as cheap as a blockbuster product from a major manufacturer,
Looking at the history of continuation projects for older (now retro) computers from last century, in few years even the successful niche projects / companies products will be ridiculously outclassed in features (CPU performance etc) by the main line while costing at least as much, often even more.
I.e. they wither away fairly soon because the market is fairly small to start with & not growing much and it doesn't renew itself because devices are so expensive and there's no trend of buying new device every few years.
> but certainly in terms of figuring out the supply chain and manufacturing challenges in a fairly satisfactory fashion.
There needs to be some kind of growth path for the product, either with the device itself, in the accessories & peripherals available for it, or in how it can be used. Preferably with all of them.
I think open hardware and especially Arduino would be good models to look into and interact with. They've made the things really easy to use (even for kids) and extend and have engaged the artistic community and that provides new kind of creative uses for the devices.
Just look at the TED talk on Arduino and what it's being used for. :-)
Adding 3D printing and some retro computing/emulation stuff to the mix could give some interesting cross-pollination from some additional HW hacker communities.
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