Hello folks! I just caught on to Purism and what you are all doing here and would like to thank you all for your service. Personally, I very much appreciate the fact that you take privacy and security seriously. And that you align your values around freedom. What you are doing is like no other, and I feel it is very important!!!
I am in the market for a computer to research, develop, and learn basic computer science and security with. One that respects my privacy and frees me from corporate blobware. So I searched and researched and ended up stuck with you all. That is a good thing btw. Reason why is you are the only ones who seemingly have removed the workings of blob both in hardware AND software. I think you all deserve a round of beers and appaluse.
So I am interested in the Librem 14, possibly waiting for a newer revision, as well as the Mini v2. Before I make a purchase, I would like to have a few questions answered, if possible. My goals for the Purism machines are: to learn to code and develop software, create a vm workstation for hacking and security testing, and I would like to dig into ML and AI a bit. (I think that is mostly run with GPU’s) but, I would like this all to be run on my Purism machines. I do plan on getting both, not sure which one first.
Can I install an eGPU on the libram 14 and the Mini v2? I would like to have a gtx1080 +/- for any dev work or hacking ie: hashing, ML, and AI. Seems like some eGPUs require thunderbolt 3 x4 lanes? Also, I see that the prefernce is those 4 lanes be from the cpu directly rather thru the chipset. or have a gpu dedicated IO. Something maybe Purism could consider adding to their line of products? There is The Beast which can connect via nvme too.
Can I install a samsumg pro 980 nvme gen 4 into either the Librem 14 or the Mini? I wonder if Purism hasn’t modified the firmware for the drives they use? IIRC the 980 pro be it around the fastest nvme around?
Can I install regular Corsair ddr4 2400 1.2v laptop ram in either machine? I already have 64GB (2x 32GB) modules. I notice the ram speed is rather slow, any idea when then will be updated to 3.2ghz or more? Or possibly ddr5? I would wait a year or two if the next product coming up has these improvements.
Yep that’s about it for now I think. I ask here because of security concerns and potential incompatibility issues, possibly some of you folks out there have already tested some of these ideas?
It would be great to have an eGPU in my backpack with my Librem 14 and say, I can take it to my friends house and we can hack his wifi using gpu hashing, or I can learn ML on the gpu and get involved with the AI - Deep Learning stuff. I appreciate any feedback and opinions! Cheers!
no, there is no Thunderbolt support on either device. In theory you could use an adapter on the m.2 socket but that’s not been tested / wouldn’t be supported, but I don’t believe there’s support on the firmware side for dynamic resource allocation of PCIe devices
yes, will just run at PCIe 3.0 x4 speeds. Purism does not modify the firmware on any storage drives they resell - we don’t have the source to do so.
RAM support is limited by the SoC/chipset. Standard DDR4 sodimms are fully supported.
This would be interesting to see Purism developlater in time, possibly this is something that could be of use? I feel that with eGPUS being more popular now, it will be a trend for folks wanting gpu computation. I certainly want it, and I am not even a developer. For the time being, I can use a separate computer that is not connected to any Internet connections for this high speed activity. Hopefully, this will be worked on. Being that some folks use the 4 cell and leave that second nvme drive inactive, it could be a chance to capitlize on some new feature sets if it isnt too difficult to code into your machines.
Thanks.
Would this mean that 3rd party ssd’s installed, say purchased from bestbuy, would they be a security risk?
Okay, Just curious though if 3rd party hardware would be a security risk?
Thanks. I checked into this item as well, but will have to wait and see if it works. thanks for the links, I just happened to watch that video and a few othes before posting this.
For consideration sakes, what is the risk on using this computer connected to the darknet, deepweb? I just wonder if anyone has had issues surfing, communicating, trolling or hacking with Purism products. I do plan on surfing the internet, with intentions to learn how its built, not the for the content. Most of my work will be in the deepweb and darknet for research will deffinitely be a thing. Would it be stupid, to use this computer in said manner?
I only ask because I do not believe in stupid questions, just stupid people. Its okay if I am one of them, I ask so I can learn without suffering the losses. Also, I have no intentions on violating laws, I am a white hat character and hope to find a secure device to learn and grow with. thanks for any help with perspective.
Yes, this computer is a reasonably secure computer. Before you poke around places that you feel may get you in trouble for whatever reason make sure you read up on OpSec and varying measures you can take to protect your identity and the security of your products.
Its almost as if you expect everyone to know everything about everything… and that is simply not possible. I ask because there is a curiosoty and a reason to ask specifically. Its okay you dont want to contribute or help, but leave the attitude out of it. please. I will give one reason why I asked such an important question,
I do not know everything and I am seeking bits of information.
@ookhoi was saying that you should do thorough research and educate yourself before heading off into the deep web. Learn to swim before you jump into the deep end.
It’s ok if you don’t appreciate/understand someone’s response but leave the attitude out of it.
Well from my perspective, the attitude started with his post. I AM conducting said research, and when one studies, they tend to ask questions. thanks for understanding. The attitude is mutual to the dead end response I received. If you dislike said attitude, perhaps refrain from giving one? and just answer the question? lol
It is odd to me that you would adopt that perspective when someone is trying to help you. Perhaps removing your pride from the equation would make others’ assistance easier to swallow.
Also appending “lol” to the end of your statement just makes it so people don’t take you seriously, in which case, why bother?
@UnknClone I think this is a classical case of talking on different levels in sense of Schu von Thun’s communication model, so let’s all reject from escalating this. I think that @ookhoi wrote that sentence as an advice. What you wrote in your posts in this thread looks like your knowledge on the “dark web” and other tech stuff is limited at this point. If you now visit this “dark web” you cab easily break your cover and reveal information about you accidentally. Depending on what you do in this part of the internet the consequences can range from trivial to severe. So he gave you the advice maybe not to engage with this part of the internet atm, so at the moment. He could have explained that a bit more.
So to get you educated about you could as usually start with reading the wikipedia articles about the Tor network and other anonymization networks, the TorBrowser and maybe Tails, and the official documentation of these projects. Topics related to online privacy and surveillance are Cookies, Browser-Fingerprinting, Transport-Layer-Security, NoScript, encrypted DNS, privacy friendly search engines and probably more.
I think this is funny, it appears you lack reading skills. I would suggest you read the entire post, I can give ya a hint, the pride and attitude started with [ookhoi]'s post. have a nice day!
which was exactly my point. WHO knows everything? If this is the typical response when someone asks a question, I would be happy to find another source of information. When the attitude is tossed my way and I simply toss it right back, dont be surprised!
Yes, I am simply unaware of all the ways this is possible. I do not know how the Librem is built, and what its vulnerabilities are. Also I am unaware of all the ways TOR is unsafe. Who actually does? The Navy research dept perhaps.
He didn’t explain anything at all. Moving on.
I plan on only researching and learning how the tech works. I have of course read about TOR and learned the basics. I wouldn’t be here if I already didn’t have a general knowledge of the technology. Intention is to prevent revealing my cover as Purism takes the time and effort to remove vulnerabilities in firmware and hardware that could very well do just that. I am unaware of how the Librem operates with TOR and of course I do not know everything. So I simply asked for input. I should have been more specific but, I didn’t want to take the time.
Already done. But I appreciate this. I do have these sources bkmk’d so I can refer back to them when I need. I usually do this a few times a week as I am always learning, everyday.
THIS is prolly the most helpful info in this thread. THANK YOU! That is all I wanted. Just a little bit of info I am not read up on.
Although I have a technical background, I’m really a johnny-come-lately to the privacy and security tech side, so I was seeking the same information starting about 6 months ago which when I started to research the topics and ordered my Librem 14 (any day now?). Consequently, read ALL the puri.sm/posts, researched ALL the current privacy-oriented mobile phones, laptops, and operating systems. One of the best resources I found for privacy-related tech information was Rob Braxman Tech youtube channel. I highly recommend you immerse yourself in his videos and even ask him direct questions during his weekly live youtube broadcast Friday nights 8 pm PST. The following are all Braxman’s TOR-related videos: https://www.youtube.com/c/BraxMe/search?query=tor.
Thanks. I have that guy on yt subbed and I too feel he is a great source of information. I have around 30 - 50 subs for said area of interests, and use those tools accordingly to assist in tracking those interests. I have a few yt accounts though, lol as you can imagine. Cheers for sharing!
have a nice day!