[PLUG] PLUG Constituent Poll 2021

[Robert Citek]

On Tue, Sep 28, 2021 at 12:45 AM Michael Dexter <dexter at pdxlinux.org> wrote:

> On 9/27/21 6:19 AM, Daniel Ortiz wrote:
> >> help when the person's computer doesn't have an OS yet?
> >>
> > There is a way, but it is less than ideal and may need correction by
> people
> > who see flaws in the way, but here is a way it could go.
>
> Easy. Dell iDRAC Enterprise.
>
> <ducks>
>
> Michael


No need to duck. Very viable solution, albeit pricey and limited in scope.

There are also generic KVM Over IP Switches such as the Lantronix Spider,
which has an optional power control unit.  These work quite well for server
and desktop systems ( not great, but good enough for most cases ), but
again, pricey.  And they don’t work for laptops.

On Wed, Sep 22, 2021 at 3:39 PM John Jason Jordan <johnxj at gmx.com> wrote:

> A virtual clinic is a possible alternative, but I can foresee some
>
difficulties. For example, quite often at the clinics we have someone
> bring in a computer and want to install Linux on it. Usually the person
> has already tried and failed. Usually we are successful, but getting
> the job done often requires sitting in front of the screen. How can we
> help when the person's computer doesn't have an OS yet?


A very valid question.  How often does this scenario come up?  Is this user
a Linux neophyte, an expert, or somewhere in between?  The expert already
knows Linux, likely has spare hardware, and probably knows how to set up a
remote assistance environment ( video, audio, lights, etc. ) using that
spare hardware. The neophyte presents a more challenging scenario.

Ultimately, what we would want to know is, what does the user really want
to accomplish?

Some possible goals and possible solutions:

- Learn bash: use WSL on Windows 10; open a terminal on a Mac; run Cloud 9
on AWS; run AI notebooks on GCP.

- Learn programming: use just about any cloud provider.

- Learn Linux GUI: get a Shells.com account; use a VM on an existing
system, e.g. VirtualBox on a Mac.

- Learn how to install Linux: use a VM on an existing system, e.g.
VirtualBox on a Mac.  If you already have VirtualBox, have a look at using
Vagrant with it.

- Install a particular distro of Linux on some particular type of physical
hardware: This state can be very challenging, especially with very old or
very new or broken hardware. It would be desirable for the user to get
familiar with Linux first and/or know how to set up a remote assistance
environment with spare hardware.

Those are just a small set of possible goals and solutions.  With the
possible exception of the last item, everything else can be done remotely
and screen shared, e.g. via Zoom, Tmux.

I’d be happy to work with anyone who would like to try out edge cases and
explore possible remote solutions.

Regards,
- Robert