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[37.33.67.252]) by smtp.gmail.com with ESMTPSA id c126sm2023005lfb.2.2016.03.12.01.38.23 (version=TLSv1/SSLv3 cipher=OTHER); Sat, 12 Mar 2016 01:38:23 -0800 (PST) Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8 Mime-Version: 1.0 (Mac OS X Mail 9.2 \(3112\)) From: Jonathan Morton In-Reply-To: Date: Sat, 12 Mar 2016 11:38:20 +0200 Cc: Alan Jenkins , make-wifi-fast@lists.bufferbloat.net, bufferbloat-fcc-discuss , "cerowrt-devel@lists.bufferbloat.net" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Message-Id: References: To: David Lang X-Mailer: Apple Mail (2.3112) Subject: Re: [Make-wifi-fast] [Cerowrt-devel] arstechnica confirms tp-link router lockdown X-BeenThere: make-wifi-fast@lists.bufferbloat.net X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.20 Precedence: list List-Id: List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , X-List-Received-Date: Sat, 12 Mar 2016 09:38:26 -0000 > On 11 Mar, 2016, at 22:40, David Lang wrote: > Actually, devices show up in Windows "network neighborhood=E2=80=9D. Ah, you see, I tend to keep Windows off my network until the network = itself is set up. Also, there=E2=80=99s a Linux machine sitting between = the LAN and the modem, which effectively blocks UPnP. That=E2=80=99s = probably why I haven=E2=80=99t noticed such subtleties - that, and they = aren=E2=80=99t listed in the router manuals I=E2=80=99ve read to date. = Maybe I just have old routers. > But the biggest barrier is probably that the web interface is > cluttered with features you don't need, so there's a setup wizard you > go through once, and you don't touch that even if you're curious > because you're at risk of resetting it. That=E2=80=99s a good observation, and suggests a design principle to = follow in future. > Just because they screwed up the WNDR3800 with too many different > coloured lights, it doesn't invalidate the principle. It=E2=80=99s not just the WNDR, and not just Netgear. Every router = I=E2=80=99ve seen has too many lights which provide too little = information - and even I have to squint and read the manual to figure = out what it=E2=80=99s telling me. Except Apple. Then you have *one* light which provides too little = information - but at least I don=E2=80=99t have to read the manual to = figure it out. :-) > You have a much larger display, which gives you room for help text and = images, not just a handful of characters. You might assume that I=E2=80=99m thinking of a 16x2 character display. = I=E2=80=99m not - that=E2=80=99s too small to be user-friendly. Rather, something like this, which gives 128x64 pixels (equivalent to = 21x8 characters with a 6x8 font) and the freedom to draw icons and = choose fonts: https://www.adafruit.com/products/250 There are also small OLED displays which give a sharper, higher-contrast = readout, but these are more expensive, lack the capacity of = colour-coding anything, and appear to be so small that some people might = have difficulty reading them despite the sharpness and high contrast. The original Macintosh put a whole desktop environment on a tiny (by = modern standards) 512x384 mono display. We don=E2=80=99t even need = *that* level of sophistication. I=E2=80=99m confident 128x64 mono will = be enough if carefully designed for - it is substantially more than a = classic Nokia phone provided. > A display is nicer than just LEDs, but it's also a lot more expensive. Yes, it looks like a decent display+controller combination is more = expensive than a mini-PCIe ath9k card (even discounting the markup = associated with Adafruit providing a maker-friendly kit rather than raw = devices). It will therefore be a significant contributor to the BOM = cost. This is justifiable if it also contributes to the USP. On the = upside, with a status display we can reduce the number of LEDs and = associated optical channels, perhaps all the way down to a single power = light. > I also don't like large glowing displays on devices. I frequently put = tape over the LEDs to tone things down as well (especially in bedrooms) An RGB LED backlight can inherently be dimmed - and this could occur = automatically when out of setup mode (keyboard disconnected) and the = overall status is OK. Also, since it illuminates a relatively large = area, the colour can be discerned without high brightness in the first = place. > I don't know if you really can simplify the configuration the way you = are wanting to, but I'd say give it a try. Take OpenWRT and make a = configuration program that you think is better. Yes, I probably should. > You even have a nice browser based tool to start with (luci). If you = can make a browser based tool work well, then if your tool is = better/easier, it can be widely used, or you can then try hardware = versions of it. Since the entire point of my proposal is to get away from the =E2=80=9Cweb= interface=E2=80=9D concept altogether, and I have an allergic reaction = to =E2=80=9Cweb technology=E2=80=9D such as JavaScript (spit), that=E2=80=99= s *not* what I=E2=80=99m going to do. Instead, I=E2=80=99ll prototype = something based around an emulation of the display linked above. But I will take a careful look at Luci to help generate a requirements = checklist. - Jonathan Morton