Dev boots a PC from Google Drive cloud storage — a storage-less laptop becomes a truly cloud-native computer - eviltoast

Ersei, the developer behind this so-called Cloud Native Computer, says the project was primarily a “silly” pursuit. There is also a problem with booting from Google Drive currently being very slow. However, the dev also boasts that “the possibilities are endless” and would welcome any companies or individuals who wish to get in contact and discuss commercializing this project or something related to it.

  • jfx@discuss.tchncs.de
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    4 months ago

    Soo, booting your computer from someone else’s computer?

    I mean we’ve had thin clients and PXE for ages?

    • mox@lemmy.sdf.org
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      4 months ago

      And bootp before that, and tftp before that. So I think roughly… 35 years?

    • SchmidtGenetics@lemmy.world
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      4 months ago

      More being able to use cloud storage and not need a full physical secondary computer. In theory the cloud can be accessed anywhere, even if a portion is down, not the same for a single physical PC.

        • SchmidtGenetics@lemmy.world
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          4 months ago

          The cloud is many computers with a redundancy, you putting multiple PCs in remote locations so you can access when one goes down….?

          One requires two physical computers, while one requires one and the cloud. Not a hard concept here or anything people.

          • catloaf@lemm.ee
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            4 months ago

            The joke is about what exactly you’re doing with the cloud with no physical computer in front of you.

              • catloaf@lemm.ee
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                4 months ago

                Because you said “not need a physical computer”. If there is no physical computer, with what device are you accessing the cloud?

                  • Sanctus@lemmy.world
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                    4 months ago

                    No one is arguing against its redundancy. We are saying you still need your own physical device to access the cloud. Whether its a computer, phone, or anything else. That was the joke.

                  • catloaf@lemm.ee
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                    4 months ago

                    Traditional computing involves a computer on a desk. If everything is in the cloud, and there is no physical computer, then there is nothing on the desk. How do you access the cloud with a bare desk? That is the joke. Presumably you meant that there is no singular server, and a deliberate misinterpretation like the other commenter’s is a form of humor (Brône, 2008).

            • SchmidtGenetics@lemmy.world
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              4 months ago

              Okay so you should comprehend how multiple “computers” allow a redundancy over a single one.

              Yeah….?

              You can’t access a remote physical computer without internet either? So what’s your point here?

    • GamingChairModel@lemmy.world
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      4 months ago

      Do thin clients and PXE require a server specifically configured to serve a boot image? (Genuinely asking.)

      I’m not sure whether this project is doing something new by just accessing network resources that are nothing more than shared files, without any specific software running on the server (beyond just a server serving files).

      • catloaf@lemm.ee
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        4 months ago

        Yes, they do. The novel thing here is serving the files out of Google Drive.

        There are existing PXE servers that run over the Internet, like boot.netboot.xyz, so that you don’t have to run your own (assuming you trust everyone involved in that connection). Those are far more practical.