At 19:57 -0500 4/22/04, Sellam wrote:
The computer is now just
hardware, and soon enough, with cool technology like keychain
harddrives
or what not, you'll bring in your own OS and software tools and
modify the
hardware to your purposes, leaving it as it was for the next user.
I think the NeXT Optical drives were intended to provide a
functionality like this. Carry your own OD media around, stuff it into
the NeXT you sit down at, and your entire (256Mbyte) environment is
right there with you. (I'm not sure I have a reference to support
this, though. Maybe NeXT sales materials? Anyone else?)
Performance didn't live up to the rapidly moving HD performance of the
day, and the idea got overtaken by network via ethernet. Sit down,
telnet into your machine back home.
A recent variation on this theme is the 'Home on iPod' feature that
Apple were rumoured to add to MacOS X.
See
for a
description of how to do a cut down version of it yourself.
Another possibility which is closer to the Optical drives is the
ability of any Mac with firewire to boot off a firewire disc (including
the iPod).
Cheers,
Brian.
--
Computer programmer: n. Red-eyed mumbling mammal capable of conversing
with inanimate objects.