Bugbase Brings Open Hardware to the Masses
I'm starting to get really excited about the emerging field of open hardware. The primary concept is analagous to the open software movement in terms of making hardware that can be modified by the user. Bug Labs is now selling a modular computing device running Linux sofware with an ARM processor. The possiblities for this are absolutely unlimited.
Here is an interview with Eric von Hippel from MIT discussing one of the Bugbase modules that has been developed in his honor, the BugvonHippel breakout module that expands the capabilities of the Bugbase into being used as a controller for about any electronic device you could think of. There is also a lot of really good discussion and speculation about where the future economy is going, where design and innovation is user-driven, rather than by the manufacturers.
After all that, I just can't wait to get my hands on one of these!
