A New Campaign For A Fully Open-Source Computer

[phoronix]

Phoronix: A New Campaign For A Fully Open-Source Computer

A new crowd-funding campaign seeks to produce "the first truly free and fully open-source computer utilizing only non-proprietary hardware and software under the GNU General Public License."..

http://www.phoronix.com/vr.php?view=MTQ0NzE

[Kivada]

A fully open system is actually exactly what I've been wanting. However wanting to give it away for free? how do they expect to perpetuate the product past the initial run?

[red_team316]

The fact that they chose flex funding for the campaign, the video looks like a spinning minecraft creation and doesn't have any real direction on how they will proceed, isn't very convincing. I've backed the Parallella project(http://www.parallella.org/, which for a $99 computer, will far outpace this and is an open source hardware project). The ProjectQ motherboard that will run any OS (which is going into my next development box) even is more appealing regardless of the price difference in hardware. While it is good that they have a noble idea and thought to contact Phoronix for news coverage, their idea is half baked, especially when involving hardware, especially considering the amount they are asking for.

[ncopa]

From the article:

Our goal isn?t to change the Internet, our goal is to replace it.

Are their other goals as realistic as that?

[ssam]

if you like the ideas have a look at freedom box. It has Eben Moglen and Bdale Garbee behind it.

[oliver]

The issue right now, is software rather then hardware.

Unless they wish to also release VHDL files, which I doubt, this isn't a huge thing really. It's really not about x86, but arm, at 99 USD, you don't have a lot of x86 options. x86 has firmware/microcode issues that would work against their statement.

As for arm, the most open SoC is the Allwinner A10, A20 series and there the only thing left, is lots of man-hours to write/port/clean the drivers. You have a fully opensource platform (sans GPU, which libv is working hard on).

So what exactly are they crowdfunding? Or they just trying to get rich quick over our backs?

[Sadhu]

There is also Bunnie's open laptop: http://www.bunniestudios.com/blog/?p=3265
It will be ARM SoC based.

[Ramiliez]

Looks like scam to me

[duby229]

the issue is ICs. CPU, GPU, chipset, etc... There is billions of dollars invested in existing platforms, 250 grand isnt even a drop in the bucket.

[intellivision]

The issue right now, is software rather then hardware.

Unless they wish to also release VHDL files, which I doubt, this isn't a huge thing really. It's really not about x86, but arm, at 99 USD, you don't have a lot of x86 options. x86 has firmware/microcode issues that would work against their statement.

As for arm, the most open SoC is the Allwinner A10, A20 series and there the only thing left, is lots of man-hours to write/port/clean the drivers. You have a fully opensource platform (sans GPU, which libv is working hard on).

So what exactly are they crowdfunding? Or they just trying to get rich quick over our backs?

There are a few x86 options that are cheap in bulk, the AMD Fusion line and XCore86 however are the only ones that have adequate open source support at a low price point.
The only other option there is VIA, and Unichrome doesn't have the best FOSS support.