Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

Shopping For Linux Compatible Hardware

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

  • #31
    Originally posted by mattmatteh View Post
    i dont know if i would do this on amazon, just a compatibility list would do. there are a existing lists out there but find them difficult to use and search. i think if phoronix wanted to do something like that, just start a compatibility list and make it better than whats out there. then users can go find someplace to buy it.
    If it's done, it would be tied to a store or stores, for revenue generating reasons.
    Michael Larabel
    https://www.michaellarabel.com/

    Comment


    • #32
      Yes. Would like.

      Comment


      • #33
        Originally posted by L33F3R View Post
        meh. black star green star is kind of stupid to put it lightly. If your someone like me who doesnt care what kind of driver they use as long as it works, then its an insult or in a best case lead buying.

        Lets be honest. If you cant research your card before you buy it for linux then you probably wont use such a service anyways.
        sure, lots of people looking for green stars may already have the knowledge, but i still that it would be a good idea.

        Comment


        • #34
          ... like Music to my ears!

          Just want to add my voice saying I like where this thinking is headed!

          Please think it out before you get started... because although this ability/service is badly needed it has also been attempted in the past and it seems that each of the projects end up getting mired at similar points in their development.

          I'll list out some of the hurdles/issues to consider in designing such a system...

          - Do not make a one-off system, instead make a full-fledged open source project. This will help the project spec evolve to cover the changing needs by leveraging the community.
          - It would need to be able to take into account the way chipsets change even within individual model numbers.
          - It would ideally have a public api so that desktop apps can be written to load up to it. PTS could be _seriously_ leveraged here. Another example would be data collecting web-widgets that could be added to help forums to aggregate user experiences, tips and results.
          - It would ideally be federated so that other similar systems can easily and simply share data.
          - As difficult as it is, try to be comprehensive... printers, Monitors, mainboards, etc... (This is one area where federation can ease the burden)
          - Try to make it an earner for you. I don't think anyone would reasonably mind sponsored tie-ins to services like Amazon (or others) as long as the service doesn't rise or fall on their whim.
          - For example, would Best Buy be willing to kick some money your way if people find a device they like and want to know know which Brick'n'Mortars stock it nearby?


          The biggest problems I've observed with systems like this is that they end up being isolated, and thus increasingly difficult to maintain.

          You're in a great position to fully address this problem and make it a thing of the past.

          My final suggestion is to let us help out. I've marveled at how a community so rich in innovation, initiative, and infrastructure has yet to satisfactorily address this problem. Anyway, I'm excited to hear that someone with the resources and vision is taking this on.

          Let me know how I can help!

          Comment


          • #35
            services should be useful first

            A quick note...

            The discussion about the rating system is something of a distraction. Here's why:

            People have different reasons for using linux.


            It's just that simple. Ideally a system like this would have all the information necessary to rate among many indexes of interest and concern.

            The 'free-ness' of hardware is a high concern for me, but not everyone.

            If a school system or retirement home wants to switch to linux but need a binary driver for their printers (for example) I would still be excited for it.

            This service needs to have as much correlated open info as possible. So it should be possible to customize to the interests of the person who is searching. I wouldn't expect me and my grandma (over-used cliche) to *want* the same information about what printer to get.

            So it's not necessary to ham-fist the interface to impart the importance of the range of software freedoms. In the same vein it would be short-sighted to not direct people to educational resources and explain in simple terms why it matters.

            As a community we need to remember that limiting options isn't a substitute for education or comprehension.


            cheers,

            Comment


            • #36
              Great idea

              I really like the idea..

              YACL (Yet another compatibility list) is the worst thing possible. Now I would have to check another site just to see which has the best most up-to-date information. (However it might be good to let compatibility lists pull info from the store)

              Echoing some other readers (I'm more comfortable buying hardware from newegg than from amazon)

              Ideally we could (eventually) do product comparisons and see real phoronix test suite data on it's performance. Imagine, I'm configuring a system (of all phoronix store approved components) and now I want to see which video card will get me the best performance on ET:QW. If you can integrate that into the buying experience that would rock.

              Comment


              • #37
                Nice idea.
                Hopefully I can buy there too (living in Europe).

                Comment


                • #38
                  I don't think integrating with Amazon.com is a good idea. Put up your own website (Phoronix is big enough to do this).

                  But don't restrict to only be a compatibility list! Attach some sort of 'pricewatch' to it, like this website Tweakers.net does. For those who can't read Dutch: all shops in and around the Netherlands having the product (AMD Phenom X4 9950) are listed. Not only the price without shipping are there, but also including shipping costs.

                  In addition to that, display PTS-results with every product!

                  And for the love of God, don't restrict yourself to America-only. Make the whole website (every aspect of it) translatable.

                  Comment


                  • #39
                    Great idea but...

                    Wouldn't be simpler to add on each hardware's page a paragraph with the mention "Open source Linux driver released for this hardware" ?

                    You could add also some icons in this paragraph to let the user know on what distribs the driver works out of the box.

                    I think that is the two main informations a linux user want to have when he buy hardware.

                    It's not very difficult to realize if you use the help of the community, but you have to build a (web-based and centralized) system where users can commit they reports about hardware.


                    Though, that's a great idea, even if Amazon isn't the cheaper vendor. I can pay a little bit more if I have the certitude that my hardware will work.

                    Comment


                    • #40
                      Originally posted by oelson View Post
                      Though, that's a great idea, even if Amazon isn't the cheaper vendor. I can pay a little bit more if I have the certitude that my hardware will work.
                      But you can get the exact same hardware cheaper elsewhere. So why pay more? Create a 2nd Pricewatch, really.

                      Comment

                      Working...
                      X