I am a student of Computer Science, finishing my Junior year. I know quite a bit about Linux, I am comfortable working in the command line and commonly used commands. I also have a rudimentary knowledge of C programming and how to compile applications using Makefile.
I am also paranoid about security and privacy. Specifically, I don't want my tablet to be discretely recording my camera or microphone, and wirelessly sending that data to some corporate/government server.
The only reason for why I am seeking to buy a tablet is watching lectures on the go. I download mp4 files of lectures on my PC, copy them over to a USB drive, then copy them from the USB drive onto my tablet's file system. Then I would navigate to where these mp4 files have been copied to, and open them in a video player software, maximize to full screen, and simply watch the video. I want to transfer files via USB drive, or a USB cable connected directly to the computer, no any wireless file transfers or cloud storage. That is the only functionality that I am looking for. I do not want any bells or whistles. In fact, that is undesirable for me.
So I found this tablet PINETAB2 – 10.1″ 4GB/64GB ARM Based Linux Tablet With Detachable Backlit Keyboard [Pre-Order, Delivery Mid-May]
https://pine64.com/product/pinetab2-10-1-4gb-64gb-linux-tablet-with-detached-backlit-keyboard/
I see that it has DanctNix Arch Linux installed. I have used Ubuntu Linux before, so using a Linux OS is familiar for me. There is one sentence here that I don't understand.
"The preinstalled OS is still in beta – most core functionality works but some features (e.g. cameras) remain a work-in-progress."
If this preinstalled OS is still in beta, I wonder what do they mean by "most core functionality"? If the drivers for the cameras or microphone aren't implemented yet, that's a good thing for me, because I have privacy considerations. I don't want the tablet spying on me, I want a very minimalist device.
The only functionality that should be working is the ability to open a video file, and play it in some video player software for me, using the speaker/earphones. Since I will be watching lectures on the bus, I need the earphones driver to work. And obviously I need the touch screen driver to work, otherwise it wouldn't be operational.
I am also questioning, are there any video players softwares available for an OS like this? I am a bit of a nerd myself, but I am not a "super nerd". If I have to download a free open source code from Github, and compile the software, that's fine. If some dependencies or packages need to be installed, that's also fine. But if I need to recompile the entire damn kernel just to add a new driver in, that's where I bail out.
TLDR, my question is ... Is this DanctNix Arch Linux useable as an OS for a tablet? It doesn't have to be "fully complete", it just has to have the bare minimum features for me to work on it. If I have to perform file operations mv cp via the bash shell just to get around the file system, that's fine. I already know how to do that. But it absolutely needs to be able to respond to touch screen events, for me to select which lecture I want to watch. There should be a video player application supporting jumping to an arbitrary location in the video, and adjusting the volume controls. If I have to compile it myself, that's fine, as long as there's not too many hoops that I would have to jump through. The audio driver also has to work, because I will be using earphones for listening to what the professor is saying.
Can anyone please help me make a decision, is this the right hardware or the right OS for me, having known my requirements? Does anyone have information about the DanctNix Arch Linux OS? I understand that this OS is still in development today. But I want to know, are enough features already implemented for it to fit my use case, of opening and viewing mp4 files that are stored on the local filesystem?
I am also paranoid about security and privacy. Specifically, I don't want my tablet to be discretely recording my camera or microphone, and wirelessly sending that data to some corporate/government server.
The only reason for why I am seeking to buy a tablet is watching lectures on the go. I download mp4 files of lectures on my PC, copy them over to a USB drive, then copy them from the USB drive onto my tablet's file system. Then I would navigate to where these mp4 files have been copied to, and open them in a video player software, maximize to full screen, and simply watch the video. I want to transfer files via USB drive, or a USB cable connected directly to the computer, no any wireless file transfers or cloud storage. That is the only functionality that I am looking for. I do not want any bells or whistles. In fact, that is undesirable for me.
So I found this tablet PINETAB2 – 10.1″ 4GB/64GB ARM Based Linux Tablet With Detachable Backlit Keyboard [Pre-Order, Delivery Mid-May]
https://pine64.com/product/pinetab2-10-1-4gb-64gb-linux-tablet-with-detached-backlit-keyboard/
- The PineTab2 ships with DanctNix Arch Linux installed. The preinstalled OS is still in beta – most core functionality works but some features (e.g. cameras) remain a work-in-progress.
I see that it has DanctNix Arch Linux installed. I have used Ubuntu Linux before, so using a Linux OS is familiar for me. There is one sentence here that I don't understand.
"The preinstalled OS is still in beta – most core functionality works but some features (e.g. cameras) remain a work-in-progress."
If this preinstalled OS is still in beta, I wonder what do they mean by "most core functionality"? If the drivers for the cameras or microphone aren't implemented yet, that's a good thing for me, because I have privacy considerations. I don't want the tablet spying on me, I want a very minimalist device.
The only functionality that should be working is the ability to open a video file, and play it in some video player software for me, using the speaker/earphones. Since I will be watching lectures on the bus, I need the earphones driver to work. And obviously I need the touch screen driver to work, otherwise it wouldn't be operational.
I am also questioning, are there any video players softwares available for an OS like this? I am a bit of a nerd myself, but I am not a "super nerd". If I have to download a free open source code from Github, and compile the software, that's fine. If some dependencies or packages need to be installed, that's also fine. But if I need to recompile the entire damn kernel just to add a new driver in, that's where I bail out.
TLDR, my question is ... Is this DanctNix Arch Linux useable as an OS for a tablet? It doesn't have to be "fully complete", it just has to have the bare minimum features for me to work on it. If I have to perform file operations mv cp via the bash shell just to get around the file system, that's fine. I already know how to do that. But it absolutely needs to be able to respond to touch screen events, for me to select which lecture I want to watch. There should be a video player application supporting jumping to an arbitrary location in the video, and adjusting the volume controls. If I have to compile it myself, that's fine, as long as there's not too many hoops that I would have to jump through. The audio driver also has to work, because I will be using earphones for listening to what the professor is saying.
Can anyone please help me make a decision, is this the right hardware or the right OS for me, having known my requirements? Does anyone have information about the DanctNix Arch Linux OS? I understand that this OS is still in development today. But I want to know, are enough features already implemented for it to fit my use case, of opening and viewing mp4 files that are stored on the local filesystem?