DevTerm and the Fifty-Year Computer

2024-06-20

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Recently I revisited a post by Ploum that discussed a computer designed to last fifty years.^ I first read it when it was posted in 2021, and even back then it influenced the way I think about sustainable computing, but I found myself reflecting on it even more these days.

Last year I received a ClockworkPi DevTerm, a PC kit with a retro aesthetic similar to the Kyocera/Tandy TRS-80 Model 100. It uses on a Raspberry Pi CM4 and is capable of running a full desktop. A few months ago I removed the DE, and now I use entirely through the command line. Further, I keep it offline with radios off by default, only syncing data on demand.

I discovered that I now get bored with the device fairly quickly. At first I saw that as a problem, but now I see it as a benefit. As Ploum points out, modern computers ply us with notifications and online time sinks. It's easy for us to pick up our smartphones and start browsing apps for some kind of content to stimulate our minds; most of us do it so impulsively that we're not even aware of how many times we do it or how much time we actually spend on it. I'm guilty of this myself. An offline-first computer does not demand the user's attention on a whim, because it will not feed the user an endless stream of new content. I only log into the DevTerm when I actively want to do something on it, such as writing this very Gemini post.

The DevTerm is small for a laptop but big for a UMPC, with the base machine measuring 21 cm by 16 cm and with the printer spool weighing about 715 grams. I often carry around a small shoulder bag, but the bag contains a notebook and my work phone along with other things, and the DevTerm gets in the way too much for me to justify carrying it all the time. Ploum reminds me that this is a good thing: the DevTerm's size requires me to justify when I might really get use out of having it with me, rather than simply bring it everywhere "just in case." If I have a legitimate use case for it, I'll take it, and if I don't, it's far more practical for me to leave it at home.

When I do use it, often I still don't need to connect it to WiFi. I write text and code locally, which doesn't require an Internet connected of any kind. Meanwhile, I have a USB Ethernet adapter, allowing me to use a wired connection. I plug in the cable when I'm ready to transfer data, and when I'm finished, I disconnect again. That grounds my use of the Internet and makes the decision to use it a very conscious one. I choose to sit where the cable is and go online, in the same way that using cash to buy something gives a tangible sense of how much money I'm spending.

I don't feel compelled to use my DevTerm the way I am to use my main desktop or my smartphone. But that's not a bad thing. That means I've broken my addiction to it. Now the device is tailored to my use cases, rather than my use cases being tailored to the device. These are the kind of things I would want from a computer that I want to last a very long time.

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[Last updated: 2024-10-06]


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