Today PC /
Opensystems LLC is pleased to announce the release of Black Lab
NetOS. This new and web-centric version differs from our main
distribution in that its primary applications all point to the cloud,
and this focus makes NetOS the perfect Chromebook replacement.
Unlike ChromeOS, any and all applications from the Ubuntu
repositories are readily available and installable locally on your
system : LibreOffice, The GIMP, Steam, Banshee, developer tools
(Geany), IDE’s (Eclipse, Android SDK) for use on the system.
Develop and compile Android apps; participate in application
development using familiar tools instead of being hamstrung by
limited web-based editors.
NetOS can be
installed on a wide range of representative 64 bit consumer PCs
(Dell, HP, Lenovo) as well as a Chromebook if you’re inclined to
free yourself from its limitations. And as of today, PC/ Opensystems
is announcing the Cloudbook, a dedicated PC hardware to run Black Lab
NetOS exclusively.
Black Lab NetOS
includes :
Local apps:
VLC
XFCE 4.12
Google Chrome
Skype
Web apps :
Google Docs / Drive
/ Photos / Hangouts / Play Music
Gmail
Outlook.com
Microsoft Office
Online
Slack.com
Facebook
Facebook Messenger
Twitter
Netflix
Hulu
Black Lab NetOS can
be managed through the Chrome Management Console.
For those of you that want to download and use Black Lab NetOS on generic PC hardware you can download it here:
Interested in the
Black Lab Cloudbook? It’s an optimized ACER laptop, designed with
the cloud in mind with the following system configuration:
Color: Electric
Blue / Black
Processor : Intel
Celeron N3050 1.6 GHz
Memory : 2GB of
DDR3L Onboard Memory
Internal Storage :
32 GB SSD
Screen : 11.6-Inch
HD Screen,
Graphics : Intel HD
Graphics,
8-hour battery
The Black Lab
Cloudbook is available for purchase for $250.00 USD. For education
and business facilities we can also arrange multiple shipments with
at least 15 days advance notice.
We have sat down
with Roberto Dohnert to find out the differences between NetOS and
ChromeOS.
Q) Why is NetOS
important? What segment of the market does it serve?
A) NetOS is
important because it serves the business, law enforcement and
educational facilities that have come to rely on web-based
applications and private/public clouds. It also offers the security
and redundancy of a desktop PC, so you can also run local
applications and store data locally.
Q) Chromebooks offer
hard drives and storage devices. How does Black Lab NetOS enhance
security and protect data?
A) Very simple.
ChromeOS primarily stores data on the cloud through Google Drive. In
essence the cloud is just someone else’s computer. The primary
storage of Chromebooks uses that drive as a giant cache and as you
add data, music, pictures etc, old data that hasn’t been accessed
for awhile is deleted. First-come, first-serve The drive assumes that
older data is no longer relevant. Now as a business owner, I want
some data retained locally and securely, for as long as I choose :
financial spreadsheets, internal memos and business plans. Storing
this type of data on Google’s cloud runs the risk of the next big
data breach exposing sensitive company data, available on the cloud
for the world to see. Now you have heard people say “Well it’s
Google’s cloud, a data breach of that type just isn’t possible.”
Tell that to Target, tell that to Home Depot, tell that to any
company that has suffered this kind of exposure. No one thinks it
will ever happen to their provider. Do you think your clients or
customers want their data out there for public consumption? I don’t
think so. Do education facilities want their students’ personal
information leaked to the public? Likewise. Oops is unacceptable in
these circumstances. When you save data to Google’s cloud or
Microsoft’s cloud it is no longer strictly your data. There are
(usually) unread disclaimers involved in using these public clouds,
and once uploaded, that data belongs to Google, Microsoft or whomever
and it essentially becomes public. NetOS gives you localized storage
that will not be overwritten and allows robust and secure data
transmission - only YOU see your data.
Q) How does this
effect law enforcement?
A) Well LEO’s rely
on notes and reports to do their jobs and to make sure that the
criminals and guilty parties wind up where they need to be. Save
that kind of data on a Chromebook you take that chance of it being
overwritten;save it to the cloud rather than your own departments,
and you lose chain of custody. It then becomes a question of
reliability and credibility. When saved to the cloud, can you say
without a reasonable doubt that nobody has tampered with that data?
No. You can’t.
Q) Some people will
claim that all these statements are bitterness, from a relic of the
age of client/server computing, which is coming to an end. How do you
respond to the people saying that “This guy is crazy, he’s just
trying to preserve old-school ways of thinking, a legacy method and
mindset”?
A) Chromebooks are
client/server based, in exactly the same way as that old technology.
Back in the day, you accessed apps and data through a mainframe, and
the resulting data was manipulated through an attached terminal Same
difference here. Only difference being that web apps are more robust,
point-and-click optimized and prettier than terminal output. And
because of faster broadband, you aren’t confined to the vicinity of
mainframe’s location. Client/server isn’t dead at all; it’s
just taken on a different form and has become more convenient. I said
in 2006 that as webapps became more prevalent and as connection
speeds improved, we would see distinctions blur and what was local
become web-oriented. But in the end, you can’t make a webapp as
robust as you can a localized one – only so much data can be pushed
through that pipe before it starts springing leaks.
Q) Hows does NetOS
differ from ChromeOS?
A) You get actual
localized storage and you get a robustness of the appliance and the
versatility of a desktop computer, running apps that you created in
your organization, or any other Linux desktop software. NetOS can
also serve as a development platform;this can’t be done on a
Chromebook. Unless you install Ubuntu or connect to a container. Or
install NetOS.
Q) How does NetOS
save businesses, education facilities and other customers money?
A) You can install
it on a variety of repurposed hardware (even Chromebooks). ChromeOS
only comes preinstalled on its own specific platform. You get the
same management facilities on NetOS that you have on ChromeOS,
without the expense of the proprietary Google platform and hardware.
Q) What are the
system requirements for NetOS?
A) 1 GB or more of
RAM, 1 GhZ 64-bit capable processor, 10 GB of storage space.
Obviously, for web apps, an active internet connection. And the usual
mouse and keyboard
Q) Hows does NetOS
differ from Black Lab Linux and Black Lab Enterprise Linux?
A) NetOS is built
primarily for those who want to use web-based applications. That is
its primary purpose. Black Lab Enterprise Linux allows you that same
great web application usability as well as specific roles builtin :
development, accounting, desktop processing, clustering facilities
and more advanced features. You can also manage the web side of
things through the Chrome Management Console and Webmin for the local
system administration.
Q) When will NetOS
and the Cloudbook be available?
A) Today.
Immediately, if not sooner.
