Broadcaster Valerie Singleton has helped launch the SimplicITy HomeKey in London – a £70 bootable computer on a USB, designed to give older or less able people an easy-to-use PC on cheap hardware.
The HomeKey runs Linux and although it may have superficial similarities to the £22 Raspberry Pi (the Linux system designed to get kids programming), the HomeKey is aiming to do almost the opposite job: hide the complexities of the system and provide an easy machine for people who have given up on getting to grips with Windows or the Mac. The fact that it can use otherwise-obsolete hardware is another advantage.
SimplicITy launched its “envelope” interface about six months ago: it offers the user four main choices – Email, Web, Documents and Folders, and a Tutorial section. Clicking on any of these takes the user to a simplified system which uses words, not icons (most of the digital refuseniks don’t understand icons, said Singleton) and concentrates on simple actions.
The HomeKey idea was though up by SimplicITy’s Liam Proven, and is based on a bootable USB-stick, which launches Linux Mint, on which the Envelope interface is running.
This means a user can launch their own computer on any hardware that can boot from a USB device. It makes no use of the local hard drive, storing documents and emails in its own 16Gbyte store. Care homes could issue these sticks to residents, who could then share computers securely.
The Linux system updates itself in the background automatically, and the key can be protected with a password, if the user desires it.
On the basis of a quick hands-on session, the system looks robust and the interface for email and the web is indeed simple to use. The browser is Firefox, and the system includes OpenOffice for word processing. If users want to do more, it is possible to exit the Envelope and use Linux itself, getting the benefit of presentation software and other things.
In most cases, the Linux system can use any existing Wi-Fi or other networking in the machine it is plugged into, but if this proves difficult, SimplicITy provides its own Wi-Fi dongles. Printer support is also provided for common HP machines, while others have proven easy to implement, said Proven.
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Is the £70 including the computer to boot from, or just for the USB drive? If it is just for the USB drive it seems quite expensive given that someone is then going to have to go out and buy a computer and monitor to run it off.
It doesn't include the computer.
But SimplicITy's idea is that it works with old systems that have no hard drive, which can be picked up for nothing or virtually nothing.
It can also be used on a shared system.
Peter
A cruel hoax on seniors and others who will not appreciate spending £79 on a hollow promise.
It has been known for years that the limited lifetime (the inherent limited number of times one can write) of a USB flash drive--which is all the HomeKey is--precludes its being used as the basic storage medium of a computer, in place of a hard drive. The way an operating system works should render any flash drive useless after only weeks, or months, in the best of cases.
The second part of the problem being perpetrated is that this device is being touted as THE solution for all those old computers lying around. The simple truth is that of 'all those old computers lying around', fully half of them CAN NOT boot (load) an operating system from a USB drive.
Thanks for relaying my earlier answer, Peter!
Flash memory is not as volatile as @The_Electrician thinks. We have test keys that have been in heavy use for 9mth or more now which are fine; I personally have an 8Y old drive with portable apps on it which still runs fine.
As for the bootup issue, we supply a free boot CD which can start the OS from USB even on machines which not only lack BIOS support for USB booting, but which even lack onboard USB ports - I have personally used this on an 11Y old machine which has no USB, merely a USB2 PCI card installed.
A response from Liam Proven, of HomeKey:
The failure mode of clapped-out Flash is that it can't be written to any more - but old data can be retrieved. If the key fails like this, we'll replace it FOC under warranty, for P&P afterwards. Personally I have heavily-used keys that are 6-8Y old now & still work fine. We reckon they will last 'til the user would want a newer, more capacious one or will buy a full-spec PC.
Suggest the elecrician contacts us directly to get the facts rather than speculate wrongly about what we are offering.
Trading Standards will be up in arms that a company selling "a £70 bootable computer on a USB" is actually NOT selling a computer at all. Massive advertising #fail. I look after several "silver surfers" and I can tell you they might buy this "computer" after being misled by the advertising copy.
well my view is you got to see it in action try before you buy its the only way with tech stuff
Its seems compleetly obvious to me that this idea has been plagiarised form an existing product, namely the RoamKey (which was actually called the HomeKey at first!).
I am stunned by the audacity and cheek of claiming this is your own idea.
Totally shameless.