Phoneblocs

frankus

Myranda said:

What about some sort of OSI type model? different types of module would be addressable and would only look at their own type of signal through a system of encapsulation

The OSI seven layer model used ... exactly... nowhere ;')

Phil_aka_Pip

frankus said:

Myranda said:

What about some sort of OSI type model? different types of module would be addressable and would only look at their own type of signal through a system of encapsulation

The OSI seven layer model used ... exactly... nowhere ;')

persactly: how many implementations are there which stick to it with no deviations?

Myranda

Pretty sure that's why I said OSI type model... something with the same basic concept...  

Phil_aka_Pip

whatever model you had, Myranda, there would always be someone who didn't comply 100% yet manages to dominate the market thus making "some more compatible than others". And we haven't even discussed yet whether it is possible to construct a model with no flaws, that people would be able to comply with 100% and still achieve the required objective. There are several reasons why some people didn't comply 100% with the OSI 7-layer comms model. They include cost, politics, technical inability, engineering requirements. I myself made a 3-layer comms mechanism once because I just didn't need all 7 layers. Although I have to admit it was for a closed system in which there was no requirement to be compatible with anyone else's software.

frankus

I don't hold Phil's negative view.. all modern mobile phones have a mini usb connector except Apple... okay but apart from that...

people who make a stand against common conventions for the benefit of the customer have a habit of making themselves irrelevant.

How many cars don't have a clutch, brake and accelerator in exactly that order? okay apart from automatics...

the issue I see with this sort of thing (at this time) is it determines your architecture, OS design and can impact processing speed. Make designated addresses for hardware types and it's seen as too rigid (you want two cameras for a 3d image?) - make the address bus woolly and the performance suffers...

It might be the idea of cellular phones (pun inteneded - face it, the word-play created this idea) is actually an artifact of a way of thought that may be simply dated. An artifact of a junction of concepts like a steam powered gramaphone or a parachurte for penny farthing riders...or the sinclair C5 a cross-roads of concepts where one or more is doomed.

Standardisation for the sake of a heterogenous network protocol gave us the internet, but almost every other example of a one-size-fits-all solution has been a blazing disaster.

This product encapsulates our need for a technical egalitarian super solution to the not so real or daunting first world problems of delivering cheap tailored products to convince us of our individuality, recycling and parsimony to soothe the green guilt and hysteria we might feel about upgrading our luxury goods all delivered using the promise of easy modularisation (only so far found in some software)... just like your eyes can see this:


... but you can't make it in wood or clay or any real material ... I think the idea being floated is an optical illusion and one that will look humourously dated in maybe ten years, it's going to be chained to the lowest common denominator and designed by comitee.

That said, it looks and sounds like a bad idea so someone will make it and if we're lucky it'll be Alan Sugar, I can't see any of the bigger players risking too much to an all encompassing product when they can simply upload your phone to your camera or your mp3 player to your TV or any other device with a specialised use... think possession rather than borg like assymilation.

Fretwired

VimFuego said:

I take it this is a planned obsolescence thing? Thing is, planned obsolescence is one of the corner stones of the modern economy.

This. Great idea but it won't take off in the way in which he imagines. I could see one company producing it as a niche product as I could see that some geeks would love the idea of being able to customise their phone with different blocks depending on what they're doing - going to a wedding upgrade the camera.

However phones are as much a statement about you as an individual as they are a tool which is why Apple still sell so many phones when you can buy better, cheaper Android phone with a bigger screen. So as they say on Dragons Den I'm out ...

The guy's clever though. Someone should hire him which is what this could be about - a crafty way to promote your talent.