Predicting: iServe
As I fall into my comfy leather chair, with pipe in mouth, laptop at the ready, and slippered feet warming near the fire on such an ugly day, I began to ponder...
iServe
Quite few interesting things are happening all at once:
1) Mass storage is becoming *quite* massive indeed! Backup solutions such as CD-R,DVD-R and tape become more and more ineffective as Winchester drives have reached 320GB and show no signs of slowing
2) OS X, with its UNIX creamy centre is robust enough to remain "up" for weeks/months at a time without user intervention
3) Hardware advancements are making their way into the fold. Soon Serial ATA, FireWire2, and a whole host of other advancements in I/O will allow greater throughput that is much easier to manage
4) More and more "plain folk" have multiple computers at home.
5) OS X is continuing to innovate. Expect current shortcomings [filesystem, speed, etc.] to improve vastly in the next year or two.
So all this points to what I'll call "iServe". I want iServe to be small and compact. It could come in something no larger than a PlayStation2, have 1 combo drive [superdrive is unneeded as detailed below] and 2 hot-pluggable Serial ATA Winchester drives, a la the Xserve in a simple mirrored RAID. Give the beast 512MB of RAM [the user can add more if needed]. Gigabit Ethernet [or whatever the mundane connection is at the time] and Airport2 are standard. CPU doesn't need to be all that buff. Dual 500 MHz G4s will do well. Graphics chip should be minimal, as it will be headless in normal operation. One PCI X slot will be available for expansion, but I don't see a real need for it, as it will have FW2 ports that will allow for external storage.
I could make something like this for about $600 in quantity. I suspect that Apple could make it "pretty" for about $1200 USD. Probably less.
Now the "why":
As more and more home users bring home more and more computers synching and storing personal data as well as shared data becomes difficult. You don't want to run into a situation where you want to listen to a song only to realise that it is on another computer, in another room, inaccessible. No one wants to have multiple copies of the same MP3/Quicktime Movie/MPEG/etc. strewn across multiple machines.
Store this information on the iServe. The iServe is accessible through wireless and wired networks, even across the internet, through a secure connection. Think of it as a "personal .Mac" where all of your preferences can be stored... even the applications themselves can be stored on the iServe and iSync'd to whichever machine(s) needed the information. Music exists in one location, streamed to the machine that wants it, or copied when needed, all through Rendezvous and iSync
This device should be put into a cellar or closet and forgotten. Only when you want to update the OS would you want to deal with the machine directly. Although, with iTunes, you could easily pop a CD into the optical drive have it query the CDDB, rip everything, then pop the disc out when done. No user intervention necessary [yes, there will always be exceptions]
Just like all other Apple devices, it should be almost idiot-proof. The OS should be able to tell connected machines that something is wrong [drive failure, disk full, etc] so the user can *easily* fix the problem. Drive failure? open up the closet, click a button, pop the old drive out from its slot, put another one in its place. Simple, easy. No reboots!
Just as the XServ has a RAID component with 14 disks, the iServe will have an external disk option, using the FW2 port.
Filesystem improvements will allow rich meta-data to be associated with all files, much like the BeOS filesystem [BFS]. This will allow the "find file" mechanism to search in ID3 tags, email, text, PDF, anything that has text buried inside it. The folder system will be completely dynamic. Folders themselves will be an illusion, a visual representation of queries and relationships. This will allow you to have a "folder" containing all your MP3s, or all your Quicktime files, while keeping them stored in a single location on disk. Think of this as aliases on steroids.
A few interesting tidbits: Apple hired the guy who invented the BeOS Filesystem. Jobs also has strong ties to Ellison and Oracle. It wouldn't surprise me at all to see a database-backed filesystem in Apple's near future.
Now think of this as a distributed filesystem. If your mac is in an iServe Zone, it will have access to everything that the account allows, as if it were locally on the disk. DAta you want to keep gets copied, everything else stays on iServe, until you connect again.
Think about it. It's coming. Rendezvous, iSync, New Filesystem [HFS++??], Modern I/O.
Where do I sign up?
Thanks for listening to this pure speculation. I hope you are able to use this as a launching vehicle for your own predictions on the future of home networking.
.
The Visigothe
iServe
Quite few interesting things are happening all at once:
1) Mass storage is becoming *quite* massive indeed! Backup solutions such as CD-R,DVD-R and tape become more and more ineffective as Winchester drives have reached 320GB and show no signs of slowing
2) OS X, with its UNIX creamy centre is robust enough to remain "up" for weeks/months at a time without user intervention
3) Hardware advancements are making their way into the fold. Soon Serial ATA, FireWire2, and a whole host of other advancements in I/O will allow greater throughput that is much easier to manage
4) More and more "plain folk" have multiple computers at home.
5) OS X is continuing to innovate. Expect current shortcomings [filesystem, speed, etc.] to improve vastly in the next year or two.
So all this points to what I'll call "iServe". I want iServe to be small and compact. It could come in something no larger than a PlayStation2, have 1 combo drive [superdrive is unneeded as detailed below] and 2 hot-pluggable Serial ATA Winchester drives, a la the Xserve in a simple mirrored RAID. Give the beast 512MB of RAM [the user can add more if needed]. Gigabit Ethernet [or whatever the mundane connection is at the time] and Airport2 are standard. CPU doesn't need to be all that buff. Dual 500 MHz G4s will do well. Graphics chip should be minimal, as it will be headless in normal operation. One PCI X slot will be available for expansion, but I don't see a real need for it, as it will have FW2 ports that will allow for external storage.
I could make something like this for about $600 in quantity. I suspect that Apple could make it "pretty" for about $1200 USD. Probably less.
Now the "why":
As more and more home users bring home more and more computers synching and storing personal data as well as shared data becomes difficult. You don't want to run into a situation where you want to listen to a song only to realise that it is on another computer, in another room, inaccessible. No one wants to have multiple copies of the same MP3/Quicktime Movie/MPEG/etc. strewn across multiple machines.
Store this information on the iServe. The iServe is accessible through wireless and wired networks, even across the internet, through a secure connection. Think of it as a "personal .Mac" where all of your preferences can be stored... even the applications themselves can be stored on the iServe and iSync'd to whichever machine(s) needed the information. Music exists in one location, streamed to the machine that wants it, or copied when needed, all through Rendezvous and iSync
This device should be put into a cellar or closet and forgotten. Only when you want to update the OS would you want to deal with the machine directly. Although, with iTunes, you could easily pop a CD into the optical drive have it query the CDDB, rip everything, then pop the disc out when done. No user intervention necessary [yes, there will always be exceptions]
Just like all other Apple devices, it should be almost idiot-proof. The OS should be able to tell connected machines that something is wrong [drive failure, disk full, etc] so the user can *easily* fix the problem. Drive failure? open up the closet, click a button, pop the old drive out from its slot, put another one in its place. Simple, easy. No reboots!
Just as the XServ has a RAID component with 14 disks, the iServe will have an external disk option, using the FW2 port.
Filesystem improvements will allow rich meta-data to be associated with all files, much like the BeOS filesystem [BFS]. This will allow the "find file" mechanism to search in ID3 tags, email, text, PDF, anything that has text buried inside it. The folder system will be completely dynamic. Folders themselves will be an illusion, a visual representation of queries and relationships. This will allow you to have a "folder" containing all your MP3s, or all your Quicktime files, while keeping them stored in a single location on disk. Think of this as aliases on steroids.
A few interesting tidbits: Apple hired the guy who invented the BeOS Filesystem. Jobs also has strong ties to Ellison and Oracle. It wouldn't surprise me at all to see a database-backed filesystem in Apple's near future.
Now think of this as a distributed filesystem. If your mac is in an iServe Zone, it will have access to everything that the account allows, as if it were locally on the disk. DAta you want to keep gets copied, everything else stays on iServe, until you connect again.
Think about it. It's coming. Rendezvous, iSync, New Filesystem [HFS++??], Modern I/O.
Where do I sign up?
Thanks for listening to this pure speculation. I hope you are able to use this as a launching vehicle for your own predictions on the future of home networking.
.
The Visigothe
Comments
Anyway, here is what I think is holding it back.
- It has to be ungodly easy to use, If some one can't set up a simple server, they have little business with two computers.
- It has to be cheep!
- It's hard to convince the average joe that he needs an other computer that dosn't even have a monitor to set in the correner and flash LEDs.
I think the greatest thing would be for it you be a little more beffey of a server and have it support netBoot so you could have a couple diskless iMacs.[ 09-26-2002: Message edited by: smithjoel ]</p>
I personally wouldn't mind a product like iServe but the masses won't get it I think.
This is exactly what iPods were invented for, and a darn good idead it was too.
This way, as you stated, you put it in the basement, out of site, where the cable comes into your home, and it also turns every TV and stereo in your house into a client that can:
1) play streaming video
2) play recorded broadcasts on demand (TiVo like - as the cable into the house is going into the iServe)
3) play iTunes music.
4) play your iMovies and iPhoto collections
5) let you browse the web on your TVs
We'd probably require some simple digital set-top device with a remote control to access all of these features, but it would create a real value of having a server in the house which cannot be simply duplicated by file sharing and backup utilities already available in OS X.
[ 09-27-2002: Message edited by: vr6 ]</p>
As far as rendezvous obviating the need for something like the iServe, I think quite the opposite, you *need* a central location to store everything, otherwise you are stuck in a peer-to-peer chaotic mess. Rendezvous, NetBoot and all the other cool Apple innovations can be put to good use with dedicated HW. The idea is to have *both* p2p when you need it, central storage when you need that. None of this is mutually exclusive.
The idea is that this isn't a "computer" per se, but an appliance, much like your refrigerator, except instead of storing your food, it stores your data, automates household functions [sprinkler system, lights, heat, pool temp, security system, video recording, etc.] Computers that access the functional parts of the iServe do so in a "really big remote control"-type way, as an application [much like the System Preferences Application with panes for behaviours] on a remote machine [iBook, desktop, whatever] running OS X.
This is what I think of when I think "convergence". Screw an iPod/phone/camera hybrid. Let each device be what it is. Keep the hardware simple, manage it through software. Open the specification [OSS??] so anyone can write modules for the system.
Computers are at a point [in the home] that they are fast enough to do almost anything.... Now the possibilities are endless. NeXT had a system, "Zilla" that allowed applications to use other machines on the network for remote computation. This same software can be updated and coupled with Rendezvous to allow all the machines on a network to render a DVD video of your wedding. Your iMac too slow? No problem! Allow the rendering to be distributed to the iServe and other other nodes on the system. Rendezvous allows for this type of collaboration by broadcasting publicly accessible services.
OS X, with iSync, Rendezvous, "Zilla2", iServe. The killer combination for home use that scales *very* well into the professional sector.
Watch this thread. It'll happen in a short time, I can promise it. [Assuming we don't die a horrible death due to lack of G5
Also, the security/light/water control systems being monitored via iServe-like devices is reality and most new homes can be built with these options from many, many local dealers.
The only problems tying all these ideas together were standards. No real interface standard, and still, none exists. Wouldn't it be nice to have a standard interface into each device so the controls for such systems would talk in a standard language (XML, HL7, that sort of language). Really, until the standards are set, it would be hard to implement such a thing.
A company like Apple could talk to various IEEE participants and push the idea, but it would help to have a larger consortium, rather than a single company pushing their standards. The larger the push, the more influence they would have to develop industry standards.
Enough thoughts for now.
<strong>
The only problems tying all these ideas together were standards. No real interface standard, and still, none exists. Wouldn't it be nice to have a standard interface into each device so the controls for such systems would talk in a standard language (XML, HL7, that sort of language). Really, until the standards are set, it would be hard to implement such a thing.
A company like Apple could talk to various IEEE participants and push the idea, but it would help to have a larger consortium, rather than a single company pushing their standards. The larger the push, the more influence they would have to develop industry standards.
Enough thoughts for now.</strong><hr></blockquote>
NO! Never stop thinking!!!
Yes, you are correct, none of the ideas presented are "new", but now they are becoming feasible. As for a common language for control, I thought that is what X10 was about. I know it can be used to control lighting, and those annoying security cameras you see advertised in web pop-ups.
Personally, I haven't looked into X10 too closely, as I don't feel the need to control my lighting, etc. I *do* however want a central place to put my crap so I can access it from any node in the house [or on the net] and set my iServe to record some show while I'm at my office. Sure, some people could go nuts with the thing, and try to hook up everything including their microwave and refrigerator, but I think most will use it for the simple multi-media computing tasks [TiVo, MP3, Quicktime, webserving, etc.]
A home media server that can store all of the electronic media you own or subscribe to and make it easy to edit and play would be a real winner as I see it. Basically, imagine that this thing broadcasts through cable channel 01 and FM frequency 88.9 whatever you request it to from a bluetooth equipped remote control.
Wanna listen to an iTunes playlist on your hi-fi system, just tune in to 88.9 on your tuner and choose the playlist from the lcd screen.
Wanna see the pictures of your trip to DisneyWorld on your big screen TV - turn to channel 1 and select that iPhoto roll.
Wanna record every episode of The Sopranos for playback whenever you want, there's an application for that and all of it leverages the same storage and processing power.
This is a great idea, but the technology may still be too expensive to pull it off for a large enough market now. It is after all an Xserve + a few things.
[ 09-27-2002: Message edited by: vr6 ]</p>
Go and configure a PC at Dell or Gateway for under $500 bucks, you can do it. You cannot at Apple's site.
I think the iServe should be a slightly altered G4 Cube, with some of your expansion ideas. I do think it SHOULD have RCA/S-VIDEO in/outs and it would make the coolest entertainment server.
Maybe the eCube? 'e' for entertainment.
<strong>
This is a great idea, but the technology may still be too expensive to pull it off for a large enough market now. It is after all an Xserve + a few things.
[ 09-27-2002: Message edited by: vr6 ]</strong><hr></blockquote>
Keep in mind the XServe is expensive due to the components. The iServe model uses already existing [inexpensive] components and relies on software to do all the "Cool Stuff".
Anyone remember "Agents"? A few years ago, as the Internet was gaining popularity people started talking of "intelligent agents" that would go out and "do stuff" that you requested... Read email, get news based on criteria you select, etc. Again, this is nothing new. Having a single interface to these agents however, is beginning to be possible. the Cocoa frameworks allow for messages [data] to be passed to any Cocoa application that will accept it. Through Cocoa services you could subscribe to an iCal calendar of television shows, and pass that information to your recording agent. The recording agent can then email [page, SMS, whatever] you telling of success or failure.
This leads to the network effect. The more Cocoa applications made, the more services available to the user. I am a *huge* fan of services and have amassed quite a number of them. All that is needed is a central interface to "glue" the services together in a graphical way.
The HW is here and has been for quite sometime. The software is getting there. Closer by the minute.
Good Times!
<strong>Good idea, I like it and have been thinking about something like this for a while too. I think Apple has to offer a headless Mac for under $500 bucks! Gawd, they are getting killed in the sub-$500 market.
Go and configure a PC at Dell or Gateway for under $500 bucks, you can do it. You cannot at Apple's site.
I think the iServe should be a slightly altered G4 Cube, with some of your expansion ideas. I do think it SHOULD have RCA/S-VIDEO in/outs and it would make the coolest entertainment server.
Maybe the eCube? 'e' for entertainment.
The problem with the sub $500 arena is that there is no profit in it. Apple, like it or not is a premium brand. They [Apple] are smart enough to not get into the super low-end, as they cannot win, and they cannot make money.
That being said, there is no reason why they can't offer something like described above for around $1000. As I said, I can make one for about $600 and that was being conservative.
.
The Visigothe
Sounds cool, but I don't see Apple doing something this cool. Maybe but I doubt it. It seems like Jobs isn't interested in taking such risks, and I don't really blame him. Until profits improve and Apple begins to gain market share, they can't afford to have any more failed products like the Cube.
[ 09-28-2002: Message edited by: Junkyard Dawg ]</p>
reminded me of this for PC's
<a href="http://www6.tomshardware.com/network/02q3/020919/index.html"; target="_blank">http://www6.tomshardware.com/network/02q3/020919/index.html</a>;
a little server. no monitor, no vid card, no nothin, everything is built into a small compact easily moveable server box that contains betweeen 1-4 HD's. just plug it in. and the network auto detects it. no software no configuring no nothing. just plug it in and it works.
i know alot of ppl that would buy one.
EDIT: actually i was reading up on it on quantums website. it already has full support for windows, NT, as well as MAC, Unix, and linux.
so i guess what you predicted already exists for macs. its just not made by apple. and it is for under $600
[ 09-27-2002: Message edited by: Aris ]</p>
so, it would hold video, music, audio,
Apple would need to decided if it would want it to be a receiver (center of home theater) or just a component. Depending on that, you have varying objects.
BUT, come-on, it would use the video of the tv for it and also have a web interface for remote accessing it! <img src="graemlins/smokin.gif" border="0" alt="[Chilling]" />