[Tfug] Are boxen obsolete?

[Keith Smith]

Now that is funny!!

On 2015-01-11 10:20, Carl Trachte wrote:
> "Given that I cannot see boxen going away.  Isn't the cloud just a
> bunch of boxen configured to scale?"
> 
> Shhhhhhhhh!  You are ruining all the romance . . . and hype of The 
> Cloud ;-)
> 
> On Sun, Jan 11, 2015 at 10:12 AM, Keith Smith 
> <techlists at phpcoderusa.com> wrote:
>> 
>> I've been hearing (reading) the word boxen for some time.  I assumed 
>> it was
>> a Linux computer, or maybe more specific a Linux hardware server.  
>> Given
>> this discussion I thought I would look for a definition.
>> https://www.wordnik.com/words/boxen says "Multiple computers (or
>> occasionally a single computer), especially those running UNIX.".
>> 
>> Given that I cannot see boxen going away.  Isn't the cloud just a 
>> bunch of
>> boxen configured to scale?
>> 
>> I often joke that someday I will be able to use two smart phones to do 
>> PHP
>> development.  In reality, I have multiple boxen so I can experiment 
>> and
>> perform my duties as a LAMP developer.
>> 
>> In the end I think we will just end up with more devices.
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> On 2015-01-11 09:05, erich wrote:
>>> 
>>> Oh,
>>>              Thanks. I didn't know what BBB stood for. I guess you 
>>> buy
>>> stuff like that
>>> online. Call me old-fashioned. I have to touch & feel it before I 
>>> buy.
>>> My latest is
>>> PC is the size of a large shoebox that I got from SWS.  It has a 
>>> dual-core
>>> AMD
>>> processor. It took a while to integrate the audio. That's because the
>>> newer audio
>>> chips are surround-sound, but the lt-green jack out of the back 
>>> connects
>>> to only
>>> 2 of the pins.
>>> 
>>> Erich
>>> 
>>> 
>>> Zack Breckenridge wrote:
>>>> 
>>>> Erich,
>>>> 
>>>> I say yes, but for different reasons. Couple of good examples:
>>>> 
>>>> *
>>>> http://rwmj.wordpress.com/2014/04/13/caseless-virtualization-cluster-part-1/
>>>> * http://lcamtuf.coredump.cx/edison_fuzz/
>>>> 
>>>> Of course maybe the second one doesn't really count as boxen (but 
>>>> you
>>>> could probably do a lot of work with a PC sized cluster), and the 
>>>> first one
>>>> has no box, but rolling your own device is still worth it in many 
>>>> cases (and
>>>> possibly still cheaper than cloud prices over a year or so depending 
>>>> on the
>>>> workload).
>>>> 
>>>> As TR mentioned, a BeagleBone Black is great for a mini-boxen. I 
>>>> have one
>>>> and it's awesome. I use it as a mini server/router at work.
>>>> 
>>>> Zack B.
>>>> 
>>>> On Fri, Jan 9, 2015, 4:42 PM TR <trexx at pobox.com
>>>> <mailto:trexx at pobox.com>> wrote:
>>>> 
>>>>     Boxen arn't as big anymore but I still assemble parts  The
>>>>     motherboard test to be a SBC,  mine are BeagleBone Black, used 
>>>> for
>>>>     learning ComputerVision.     I hear BBB makes for a good
>>>>     multimedia boxen.      TR
>>>> 
>>>>     On Fri, Jan 9, 2015 at 3:40 PM, erich <erich1 at copper.net
>>>>     <mailto:erich1 at copper.net>> wrote:
>>>> 
>>>>         That is,
>>>>                a computer which has hardware components which you 
>>>> can
>>>>         mix and match.
>>>>         Get the box. Get the motherboard, The processor, etc. Then 
>>>> add
>>>>         the software,
>>>>         (Linux, of course), and configure it to your liking. My kick
>>>>         is multimedia.
>>>>                How many people are doing that anymore? Nowadays you
>>>>         buy the tablet
>>>>         or the smartphone. Many apps come pre-installed, and you get
>>>>         it all from the
>>>>         cloud: banking, social media, etc. Who ever heard of
>>>>         installing a souped-up video
>>>>         display for the smart-phone that you already have. You go 
>>>> out
>>>>         and buy a new one.
>>>>         Right?
>>>>                Never mind that everybody else is getting  monolithic
>>>>         computers with
>>>>         pre-installed software. Will there still be retailers that
>>>>         cater to  geeks like
>>>>         me with unusual tastes in hardware/software?  As you know,
>>>>         Radio Shack
>>>>         isn't doing very well. (That' where I bought my 1st PC)
>>>> 
>>>>         Erich
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>>> 
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>> 
>> --
>> Keith Smith
>> 
>> 
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-- 
Keith Smith