Launching hosted browser service with sound, copy/paste, and printing!

[David Kiley]

So i've figured out how to create a hosted application server that I think fits the bill.

including:
-works in any html5 browser
-completely isolated user space so your security is maintained. No one can access your user space but you.
-full sound support for youtube etc. There is some very slight buffering imperfection (since it has to stream from the server) that I noticed but it's still very fast and works!
-full printer support, when you "print" with the universal printer it creates a pdf snapshot that you can then print locally with your own printer.
-copy and paste from your local applications to the browser session
-Will include all major browsers like chrome, firefox, opera and edge as well as other software like libraoffice, filezsilla and more will also be included. I would love to include lotus smartsuite since it's effectively abandonware but don't think I want to risk getting sued by big blue.
-Very fast from my tests so far. I'm hoping if the service becomes popular I will be able to create multiple dedicated servers for different places in the world to reduce latency. The first server is in canada/east coast.

I've already tested the html5 functions in windows but have to confirm it fully work in arcaos since I have to install my arcaos license in virtualbox.

I think i'll be ready to launch in 2 weeks if my tests are confirmed.
Do I have your attention now! LOL.

[David Kiley]

Just tested all functions in linux with both firefox and chrome (html5) and they worked perfectly. So i'll let you know after i've confirmed it works in arcaos.

[JTA]

Excellent work, David ...

Just to help out your campaign, you can sign me up for 1 seat ... it'll give us a chance to test out all the "sign-up" processes. Plus, I get to be "customer number 1" of thousands or millions!

Nothing breaks things faster than throwing a user at it ...

[David Kiley]

Take a sneak peak:
https://images.syncpedia.com/unsorted/great-artists-steal.mp4

[David Kiley]

Excellent work, David ...

Just to help out your campaign, you can sign me up for 1 seat ... it'll give us a chance to test out all the "sign-up" processes. Plus, I get to be "customer number 1" of thousands or millions!

Nothing breaks things faster than throwing a user at it ...

Thanks, I would appreciate having supporter #!!
You can sign up here:
https://www.syncpedia.com/winflector/112-reserve-your-seat-for-os-2-winflector-hosting.html
or just paypal superservice@syncpedia.com.

It's not winflector anymore. I'll have to update the cart but have to go to bed now(up too late).

[JTA]

Syncpedia.com kept giving "malformed response" (could be related to your previous post), but paypal worked ...

[David Kiley]

Excellent work, David ...

Just to help out your campaign, you can sign me up for 1 seat ... it'll give us a chance to test out all the "sign-up" processes. Plus, I get to be "customer number 1" of thousands or millions!

Nothing breaks things faster than throwing a user at it ...

Thanks a lot for your support. It means a lot! Sorry about the syncpedia.com issue. I recently updated my cart and haven't had a full time to test it yet.

Anyways i've tested it in ArcaOS 5.06 with the default browser and everything works .
You can watch a video of me testing it here (sorry it's a bit rough since I didn't have time to polish it up + I haven't figured out how to optimize the display in virtualbox):
https://images.syncpedia.com/unsorted/arcaos-test.mp4

The only thing that worked a little different is copying text is that you can't right click to paste - you have to type cntrl V, but at least copy and paste works even with the limitation.

Also I forgot to mention it supports file downloads to the native OS too. Basically you download the file and then click "show in folder" and then in that file menu drag it the "webfile" folder under PC. And then it transfers the file to the native os/2 firefox browser.

So basically, a fully functional modern browser (actually 4+ in one go) in os/2! And no need for a console client since all functions work with just the html5 stack.

[David Kiley]

I would be interested in feedback about what you guys feel might be a fair price for this "service"? I going to try to get it as low as possible but just curious what people think seems fair.

[David Kiley]

Thanks John for your support but i've refunded your money and have decided not to launch the service.
There just doesn't seem to be much excitement for the "solution" I found and I was going to drop like $800 to see if it had legs but I think that would be unwise considering the lack of excitement overall. It would seem people would rather hold out for other solutions, like a native browser.

[Dariusz Piatkowski]

David!

...There just doesn't seem to be much excitement for the "solution" I found and I was going to drop like $800 to see if it had legs but I think that would be unwise considering the lack of excitement overall. It would seem people would rather hold out for other solutions, like a native browser.

I think what you are discovering/ experiencing is that the core group of Desktop OS/2 users is very small, I mean for the most part these are the folks that post on our forum here, and if you want to be generous you can add a few more bodies from the AN entity.

Point being, there probably isn't enough of 'ground roots' support to make up critical-mass for what you intended to do.

I also suspect that for all those who belly-ache about the browser focused issues we have are probably running OS/2 in a VM, or if it is on bare metal are most likely using other approaches (locally to their infrastructure) to get around the problems. I am certainly one of these folks and connecting to a LAN Win11 box through RDP gives me all the functionality I need w/o ANY risk.

For this reason the suggestion I made in one of your threads was to get someone like AN to put a business entity backing behind this and perhaps that type of a service might also be communicated to a much larger potential 'customer' base?

Regardless, I thank You for the effort you put into this as your solution came together very nicely.

[David Kiley]

Dariusz,
Thanks for writing your feedback. Yes, I am not sure there is really a need for it even if I tried to launch with help from AN honestly. Enterprise customers might not even care about web access and it seems (like you said) that desktop users are content with what they have.

I was surprised so few people are interested here (even though it's a small niche community) just because it offers a lot more than standard RNC, being able to play sound, print, copy and paste and transfer files.
But having to trust me for security is a big con, even though I think qualified and the software is secure the way it is designed.

Anyways, i'm still mulling it over but I appreciated your thoughts.

[mauro]

hi David, my 2 cents about it if useful:

-as simple user, I consider an actual web browser essential for any OS to be usable, just because the possibilities to access services via browser are growing.  Only think the case you like flight simulation, it was impossible till yesterday to play that without a very performing or game pc and mostly also without Windows, you had to purchase MS FS2024 for 80$ to discover if your pc would support sufficient fps or not. Now with GeoFS you do it for free via browser with almost same simulation level, just by Web GL support.

-With Dooble QT5/QT6 it has been done a very important step ahead thanks to the personal effort of Dave, it will be useful to have vs lack of alternatives, clear from now that ARCANoae wont take any initiative about a browser development.

-Payware? Talk about, I could personally agree for a reasonable cost when an application is so useful, what I do not like much -again personally- is a mantaining fee to be paid time to time.

Thanks anyway for your contribution

[Alfredo Fernández Díaz]

Hi David,

[...] I am not sure there is really a need for it [...] I was surprised so few people are interested here [...] Anyways, i'm still mulling it over but I appreciated your thoughts.

First, I wanted to say thank you for undertaking an awesome initiative, even if I wouldn't be an early adopter -- at the end of a hiatus I am currently busy with other stuff and I have a bad need to wrap my head around things very well before embarking on anything.

Now, from my own and some friends' perspective as occasional OS2 developers I can tell you that, regardless of possible reasons, and I haven't seen that things have changed much, you can expect enthusiastic support of a few people and next to zero useful feedback from all others. As an example, I once found a program of mine in a CD released by a now extinct usergroup from Germany IIRC. So obviously they, not I, had decided the program was good or useful enough to put it into their CD -- but not even the people who prepared it did ever contact me. Others have shared similar 'zero feedback' stories with me in the past, so I have come to think that the stereotype of os2ers living in caves and coming only to see if there are some news every ten years or so has quite some real grounds -- and I wouldn't say I am not a bit like that myself. My takeaway: you never can be sure what the demand for something is, especially in advance of development.

With the above in mind I would advise to persevere in developing what you need or is of use for yourself, and think only afterwards whether others may find it necessary, useful, convenient, worthy, etc.

[David Kiley]

Thanks everyone for your thoughts. I've decided to do it after all. I already purchased the licenses needed for the server so it is now just getting everything setup and developing the site for its public face.

I'm probably crazy doing so but I figured if I at least like it and maybe other people will too.. we shall see. I will post when the site is up - hoping in few weeks or less.

[David Kiley]

With the above in mind I would advise to persevere in developing what you need or is of use for yourself, and think only afterwards whether others may find it necessary, useful, convenient, worthy, etc.

Thanks, Yes this is what i've decided to do. Proceed with creating what I like and see if others feel likewise or not later.