As usual at WLUG, we went off on a tangent and it was amazing.. What
started out as a side conversation about storage technologies turned into
1.5 hour conversation about LVM / ZFS on Linux / Ceph / GlusterFS /
Synology / FreeNAS / NetAPP and the general philosophies around managing
scalable storage at home and in the enterprise!
This conversation continued at the Boynton and was great fun!
Next meeting is the 10th of October!
Later,
Tim.
--
I am leery of the allegiances of any politician who refers to their
constituents as "consumers".
Hey everyone,
I'm sure we all know how successful Linux is across different markets
today, but I've been wondering about with Linux as a desktop platform
if one were to run a business around selling machines that're built
with it in mind.
The market for online retailers selling devices shipping Linux already
seems diverse enough, but I don't know of any successful brick-and-
mortar stores selling these devices. I think there could be some
advantages to this, including:
- Spreading awareness about Linux and the FOSS community
- Providing on-site troubleshooting and consultation
- Demonstrating different form factors such as Raspberry Pi, Steam OS
machines, workstation etc
- Providing a physical location for workshops, LUGs, and other meetups
- Having a one-stop shop for hardware that's already known to work on
Linux such as USB DACs, wifi adapters, etc
- Generally act as a community center for computer enthusiasts
- Partnering with pre-existing online vendors so customers can test
their hardware in-store
Jumping into a business such as this does sound risky though, seeing as
the Linux crowd is generally very hands-on about computers they
purchase and are willing to fix problems on their own. There are also
many hurdles that the ecosystem has to catch up on in order to be
competitive with applications found only on Windows and/or macOS. That
being said, I think I'm still curious to see how much interest there
would be in selling a platform around desktop Linux in a brick-and-
mortar store with an experience similar to Microsoft and Apple stores.
It would certainly help for attracting new users with a more integrated
approach that we've come to expect from other platforms, and I think
we're in a pretty good position these days for seeing growth.
I'd also like to say that I have no experience in marketing, so I
wouldn't know where to start with doing anything like market research
or studies, so I'm eager to hear any suggestions for how to gauge the
potential for a business idea such as this.
More than happy to hear what everyone else thinks!
Sincerely,
-Josh
Hey Everybody,
We've got a meeting next week!
Date: September 12, 2019
Time: 7pm
Location: WPI Campus Center Mid-Century Room (rm 331) aka. the usual haunt
Topic: Tinkercad codeblocks and more!
I know that a few of us have tinkered with and enjoy using OpenSCAD.
However, for many users the learning curve is REALLY steep and this steep
learning curve has kept many users away from programmatic shape generation
for 3d modeling. Basically writing code to generate a shape.
At our last meeting Frank Sweetser showed off something really cool, which
is that Tinkercad has now integrated a "scratch" like language into
Tinkercad.
At this meeting someone will be giving a demo of this.
I think we would be remiss if we didn't talk about exFAT and Microsoft's
decision to open the patents on it. It *sounds* like we may have exFAT
becoming a first class citizen on linux. Is this Microsoft playing some
long game of embrace, extend, extinguish or are we moving towards some wild
convergence point? In that is the interesting conversation where we think
linux will be in another ten years and for that matter Microsoft.
As usual, snacks and refreshments will be provided and afterwards we'll
head off for dinner and fall deeper down the rabbit hole!
Later,
Tim.
WLUG President
--
I am leery of the allegiances of any politician who refers to their
constituents as "consumers".
Connected Systems has a client with a perm/direct hire opening for the following:
As a Senior Linux Software Engineer with this group on Cape Cod, you will be working on the embedded software and firmware development and enhancements of a new IoT system platform.
Please note our client will consider candidates who can work on-site 1-2 days/week.
We're seeking candidates that have the ability to modify kernels and drivers on Linux based systems. A candidate will also ideally have some form of wireless, wifi or Bluetooth product experience.
10+ years of Linux programming with C++/C coding for Firmware development
Strong experience with Linux systems, Linux Kernels, Linux Drivers and security programming
Experience with Wireless, Wifi, or Bluetooth (BLE) based technology
Bonus points for candidates experienced in Yocto Linux or Systems Architecture
Please Note : All candidates must be US Citizens or US Greencards. Our client cannot sponsor visas.
Salary up to $150K will be considered.
Please send your resume and any questions to me directly.
Regards,
John Spencer
Connected Systems Partners
Office: (978) 455-5550 x208
Cell: (978) 621-9743
jspencer(a)connectedsp.com
www.connectedsp.com
GET CONNECTED!
All information in this email, unless indicated otherwise in the body of the email, is considered confidential and intended for the view and use of the recipient(s) only.
