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The "general-purpose" differentiation is completely artificial and shouldn't be used except in very narrow circumstances (for example, when discussing the econo

The "general-purpose" differentiation is completely artificial and shouldn't be used except in very narrow circumstances (for example, when discussing the economic impact of the entire mobile market) The only thing that should matter is the device's raw computing power. The user should have the same level of control over code execution that the manufacturer has post-sale. That should apply to every single appliance and product on the market that uses a chip.

cyberax 2y ago
> The "general-purpose" differentiation is completely artificial It's not. > The only thing that should matter is the device's raw computing power. It's not.
- EMIRELADERO 2y ago
  Care to elaborate?
  - Nevermark 2y ago
    Most people would find living without a general purpose mobile iOS or Android device a serious practical disaster. The software & hardware that comes together in general purpose mobile devices is non-trivially different from simple raw “computing” capabilities.
    - EMIRELADERO 2y ago
      What I meant by general-purpose computing not being a good benchmark is that whether a user should have the control I described should not turn on whether the device in question is considered a "general-purpose computer". It should not be a part of the criteria.
  - cyberax 2y ago
    Computing power doesn't matter at all. It's the expectation of running arbitrary software. My smartwatch has a CPU that is far less powerful than my WiFi access point. But I absolutely expect to be able to install third-party apps on my smartwatch. And I can't care less about making my WiFi AP drive an external monitory displaying spreadsheets. FWIW, gaming consoles are not used as general-purpose devices. PS3 was probably the only console that attempted that, and it was utilized by less than 2% of users. For me, a great criterion for "general purpose" computers is this: "Do people use the device to work with spreadsheets?" Mobile phones certainly qualify.
    - EMIRELADERO 2y ago
      I refer you to my reply to the other comment.
    - theshrike79 2y ago
      Installing a 3rd party OS/Firmware on a WiFi AP has been done for decades already and is mostly expected. I don't want to run random self-made apps on my watch, I want it to work reliably at all times. And that is done by using APIs and frameworks provided by the smartwatch manufacturer. There are fully custom watch solutions where you can program everything from bare metal up yourself. Get one of those. --- As for the PS3 "general purpose" thing, it was 100% to get around EU tariffs. PCs were on a lower tariff than gaming consoles.

cyberax 2y ago

> The "general-purpose" differentiation is completely artificial It's not. > The only thing that should matter is the device's raw computing power. It's not.

EMIRELADERO 2y ago
Care to elaborate?
- Nevermark 2y ago
  Most people would find living without a general purpose mobile iOS or Android device a serious practical disaster. The software & hardware that comes together in general purpose mobile devices is non-trivially different from simple raw “computing” capabilities.
  - EMIRELADERO 2y ago
    What I meant by general-purpose computing not being a good benchmark is that whether a user should have the control I described should not turn on whether the device in question is considered a "general-purpose computer". It should not be a part of the criteria.
- cyberax 2y ago
  Computing power doesn't matter at all. It's the expectation of running arbitrary software. My smartwatch has a CPU that is far less powerful than my WiFi access point. But I absolutely expect to be able to install third-party apps on my smartwatch. And I can't care less about making my WiFi AP drive an external monitory displaying spreadsheets. FWIW, gaming consoles are not used as general-purpose devices. PS3 was probably the only console that attempted that, and it was utilized by less than 2% of users. For me, a great criterion for "general purpose" computers is this: "Do people use the device to work with spreadsheets?" Mobile phones certainly qualify.
  - EMIRELADERO 2y ago
    I refer you to my reply to the other comment.
  - theshrike79 2y ago
    Installing a 3rd party OS/Firmware on a WiFi AP has been done for decades already and is mostly expected. I don't want to run random self-made apps on my watch, I want it to work reliably at all times. And that is done by using APIs and frameworks provided by the smartwatch manufacturer. There are fully custom watch solutions where you can program everything from bare metal up yourself. Get one of those. --- As for the PS3 "general purpose" thing, it was 100% to get around EU tariffs. PCs were on a lower tariff than gaming consoles.