Open Source Laser Business Opens In New York

ptorrone writes "If you can't stand the idea of a cookie-cutter laptop and you live in New York City, you have a new option: laser-etching. Phil Torrone, an editor at Make magazine, and Limor Fried, a former fellow at the tech-focused art studio Eyebeam R&D, are working together on Adafruit Laser Services, a new, by-appointment-only business in Manhattan that etches custom artwork onto customers' laptops, iPods, cell phones, and other gadgets." The entire business will be open source. From the Adafruit Laser Services site: "We are publishing how to use the high powered laser system, set up, techniques, business practices and templates. You could start your own laser business, we'll even help you."

Comments

Are the lasers frickin'?

[Drooling Iguana]

And are they attached to the heads of sharks?

That should be.

Re:Are the lasers frickin'?

[UbuntuDupe]

On Slashdot, if you want to find the articles about lasers, remember that the tag you should use is "sharks", not "laser" or "lasers".

Re:Are the lasers frickin'?

[EraserMouseMan]

Maybe the lasers are attached to Penguins instead. Sharks are evil, right?

Re:Are the lasers frickin'?

[Stormwatch]

It's frickin' open source. If you want it to do anything beyond the original features, you get the frickin' source code and change it. Sometimes a frickin' plugin will do!

Re:Are the lasers frickin'?

[neuro.slug]

shark = new Shark();
laser = new Laser();
laser.setType( TypeFactory.createType( "Fricken" ) );
shark.mount( laser );


I think that will do...

Re:Are the lasers frickin'?

[Anonymous Coward]

Thank you captain obvious. Now let me chop my head off before you find your next victim.

Re:Are the lasers frickin'?

[sottitron]

correction: shark.getHead().mount( laser );

Re:Are the lasers frickin'?

[davidsyes]

Frau: AK-TIH-VAYT THE LAY-ZHUR!

----------------
"Lameness filter encountered. Post aborted!
Reason: Don't use so many caps. It's like YELLING."

GODDAMMIT! Lameness is INTENTIONAL!

Re:Are the lasers frickin'?

[patio11]

try {
    shark = new Shark();
    laser = new Laser();
    laser.setType( TypeFactory.createType( "Fricken" ) );
    shark.mount( laser );
} catch(InterruptedBySecretAgentException austin) {
    son.shoot(austin);
} finally {
    this.cackleMadly();
}

Re:Are the lasers frickin'?

[hotdiggitydawg]

correction:shark.getHead().mount( laser ); This is Slashdot. Any function called getHead() has no place here.

Re:Are the lasers frickin'?

[sottitron]

You are right. I mean this is a member function! Sheesh, what was I thinking?

Re:Are the lasers frickin'?

[beckerist]

Isn't that the point? BAH DUM BUM TING!

Adafruit?

[Mendak Jemuna]

Pshh!!...All they do is add an apple and CALL it an upgrade!

How open source is the business?

[EmbeddedJanitor]

Bank account numbers and passwords please !

Re:How open source is the business?

[EraserMouseMan]

Yea, I'd like my free open source etching laser please.

Re:How open source is the business?

[megaditto]

that's not a source, that's a destination. for customers' money.

Re:How open source is the business?

[Walt Dismal]

Oh, pfui! ANYONE can do open source etching lasers. But can they do open source breast implants, I have to ask. (banging my head on the desk in frustration.)

Re:How open source is the business?

[GNious]

So we are now talking about Open Destination Business? *ponder*

Re:How open source is the business?

[h2g2bob]

Nope, just Open Wallet

wait for it.

[binarybum]

mod points to the first person to get a goatse etched powerbook and post it.

you know it's going to happen.

Re:wait for it.

[Anonymous Coward]

mod points to the first person to get a goatse etched powerbook and post it.

So, I guess that would have to be the 17 inch model?

Re:wait for it.

[Anonymous Coward]

f@#$ the mod points by some f@#king faggot

Re:wait for it.

[redbaritone]

Damn. I knew I should have forked over the additional $1500 for a MacBook _PRO_.

Nice Slashvert.

[Anonymous Coward]

Nice Slashvert. Come on folks, this is unique? Special? New?

Re:Nice Slashvert.

[snark23]

The laser-etching part isn't unique...

but a completely open-source business? If that's not novel, it's certainly unusual. I think it's pretty cool. Hopefully we get a follow-up post in six months to see how well the concept works.

What would be really interesting, though, would be to have some more "standard" open source businesses... laundromat, convenience store, teriyaki joint, etc. The kinds of shops that don't take immense resources to start up.

I suppose the franchise concept provides a closed-source equivalent: pay money for a howto

Re:Nice Slashvert.

[Anonymous Coward]

It's fluff. It doesn't mean anything. Open what? I mean, come on. I know Communist wing nut down the way that has a bike shop based upon the principles of his leftist beliefs. Maybe HE way the first "Open Source" business? Come on!

Re:Nice Slashvert.

[XnR'rn]

Adafruit are the same people that made x0xb0x - a Roland TB-303 reverse engineered clone. (Hmm, there was a wikipedia article some time ago, but now it is gone.) Which is open source hardware. Or more likely free hardware, as in GNU definition of free. Btw, it sounds great, like the real thing, but clearer. Must be the advances in transistor manufacture since '82s...

They make money by selling you pcb's and kits with all the transistors, diodes, triodes, and necessary chips. The documentation is publicly available, with all the necessary schematics and part numbers, so you're free to make your own copy.

I've bought a kit from them, and they are great. :D

Well, the site's farked, but check out flickr

[Fulcrum of Evil]

wow, laser-etched nori!

Oh! Oh! Can I Be First?

[ahem]

"Do not look at laser with remaining eye."

Open Source?

[flghtmstr1]

I thought open source referred to simply making the source code available for public viewing. How can a business "open source" something which is not code? I have noticed an increase in the improper usage of the term "open source" as of late; I've even heard people say that pirating software is "open sourcing" that piece of software.

Re:Open Source?

[Drooling Iguana]

From TFS:

"We are publishing how to use the high powered laser system, set up, techniques, business practices and templates. You could start your own laser business, we'll even help you."

Re:Open Source?

[MyNymWasTaken]

Can you not even spend the slight moment to RTFS?

We are publishing how to use the high powered laser system, set up, techniques, business practices and templates. You could start your own laser business, we'll even help you

Re:Open Source?

[ptorrone]

well - all the templates, files, schematics, software we make, jigs, tools - anything that we can open source will be. we didn't construct the laser cutter (maybe we will make a new one) but we'll do our best to put everything out there.

Re:Open Source?

[Anonymous Coward]

Ah crap, accidently modded troll. Finally found a downside to the new discussion system.

Re:Open Source?

[ampathee]

I've even heard people say that pirating software is "open sourcing" that piece of software.

Wow, we need to stamp THAT out quick. Look what happened to "hacker".

Re:Open Source?

[seanadams.com]

How can a business "open source" something which is not code?

It's a pretty intriguing question actually. Maybe not open source, but businesses can certainly be a lot more open. At Slim Devices we pushed that envelope quite a bit by inviting customers to participate meaningfully in developing the products. <plug>There is an interesting article just posted at Fast Company which asks Is this the company of the future?.</plug>

I believe it _is_ a model that will work well for many other companies, and in fact I've spent plenty of time wondering just how far you could take it. As an extreme, imagine if a new business were to begin with open discussions of strategy, fund raising, hiring, executive comp decisions, etc. Discuss it all on forums and let an open community create the whole thing, not just the products.

Re:Open Source?

[Speare]

Um, the term "Open Source" was in use in the business information and intelligence communities for a long time before someone decided to use it for computer source code and all-around informatic hippy-ness. Anything that's known on the street, published in a newspaper or magazine, is open sourced; this is the opposite condition of something which is secret or privileged. And by the way, who the hell made you the language police?

Re:Open Source?

[RealGrouchy]

It's like an Open Source business model.

Compare Microsoft's software with Wal-Mart's business model: we see the output of it, but we don't quite know what techniques they used to get there (like upper-level management techniques, how they decide where to locate their stores, etc.) Try to track down the manufacturers for Wal-Mart products. Try to get a tour of the factory to see the working conditions. Hell, try to take a look at Enron's accounting practises (oops. Too late for that one).

There are many companies in many sectors who go to great lengths to protect their "source": what it is they're doing that will eventually be their output. An "open" company (okay, I admit that the "source" part is unnecessary, but it does add context to what is meant by "open") will let you see the practises of the company, so that company can show it has nothing to hide.

With business as with software, openness builds trust.

- RG>

Re:Open Source?

[Herby Sagues]

Smart publicity stunt. Since very few people has access to etching laser equipment and the market is probably small to justify many competitors in the city, they have little to lose. By announcing they are Open Source they get lots of publicity, especially to the same nerds that would etch a penguin on their laptops lids. They'll do well. Not so for their imitators.

Re:Open Source?

[takuto]

The company I work for does etching as a courtesy to our customers. We use co2 and yag lasers, as well as more conventional mechanical etchers. The lasers range in size from smaller desktop etching units, all the web up to a beast of a cutter whose cutting area is slightly larger than my carport. I have worked with these machines for awhile now, and over the years I've created the equivlent of everything these guys are saying they will 'open source':

well - all the templates, files, schematics, software we make, jigs, tools - anything that we can open source will be. we didn't construct the laser cutter (maybe we will make a new one) but we'll do our best to put everything out there.

Take it from me, these guys have nothing to open source. None of these things even amount to very much, not even to someone trying to start up an identical business. I'd liken it to a restaurant saying they are becoming 'open source', then releasing instructions on how to drive a car and deliver a pizza. Either they fully realize that, and are just looking for publicity, or they just don't know what the hell they are talking about. Seriously, why the hell is this on news? What is next? Maybe some kid announcing his new plan for a MMORPG, and that he is looking for programmers and artists to join his team as unpaid volunteers, because his game is 'like totally going to be better than WoW'.

Re:Open Source?

[seriv]

Not necessarily. This business is only running in NYC. while I doubt anyone would run another shop in NYC, I could imagine someone running one in Chicago or LA as successfully as these guys. I think that is more or less the point of making it "open source," to open the business to a wider customer base without launching a chain.

Re:Open Source?

[freewaybear]

I've even heard people say that pirating software is "open sourcing" that piece of software.

Wow, we need to stamp THAT out quick. Look what happened to "hacker".


That is the understatement of the year. If too many idiots use the term "open source" like that, well, I just hate to think about it.

Re:Open Source?

[Firehed]

Okay, who do I contact to send over my shipping address? I'd like two-day delivery of my high-powered laser system, but I'll settle for UPS ground since they're so willing to help out.

Maybe I am asking a bit much from their offer to "help", but we're all in the holiday spirit of giving, right?

Re:Open Source?

[hhawk]

Any "trade secret" could be opened sourced.. from a business rule to some secret formula...

Not only what's in Coca cola?

But, How to make it. (how much of x and y, and how to make a batch)

How to build the machines that make it. (how to build a bottling line, etc.)

The business logic for how to market and sell it.

If they hedge their raw products through purchases on the open market, the math behind how they buy and sell the options, etc.

I could go on and on..

Re:Open Source?

[ptorrone]

wait what? really software we make, templates and hardware jigs - i guess you'll just need to watch and see. the how-tos, material settings, everything you can't "get" without paying will be available. since you created the "open source" of all this, where is it?

Re:Open Source?

[badzilla]

That would be Open Cola then...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OpenCola

Re:Open Source?

[XnR'rn]

Actually, Adafruit were doing "Open Source" business before starting this Laser service. They sell DIY x0xb0x kits, and they provide full schematics and part list for the thing, as well as the instructions on assembling one.

With Roland TB-303 being in really short supply, the x0xb0x is a really good alternative for creating Acid sound. It is true to the original reverse engineered clone. Sounds the same as the real thing. :D And has some nice things like USB port. :)
I've got one kit from them, and Im planning to use the schematics to make another box without purchasing anything from them.

Still, they are great! :)

Re:Open Source?

[iabervon]

ccording to the GPL: "The source code for a work means the preferred form of the work for making modifications to it." Open source applies just as well to fields other than software, but there are a lot of fields in which it is not valuable to the user. There are a lot of types of works where the creation of a modified work is meaningless, because what matters is a particular official version (anyone could create a modified US Constitution, but only the original has any particular force). And there are some where people might create a new work with some relation to the original, but none of its content (if you want to do an alternative ending for Peter Pan, for example, you don't need the source to the original beginning).

So, if you want to have your own laser-engraving business, and you want to do things differently, you have "the source" if you have whatever Adafruit would modify to make the same changes you want to make.

Re:Open Source?

[K8Fan]

This sounds very interesting. I do tech support for a small company (about a dozen employees) that has a 100 watt laser that we're needing to replace. It's just one part of a business that also does rubber stamps, signs and badges. Researching different models of lasers, equipment and software has a cost, and knowing what works and what doesn't has quite a bit of value. We're half the country away from you and have no interest in providing this service outside our immediate area. I'll be contacting you. Thanks!

Did someone say

[markov_chain]

Laser cookie cutter? If yes, that is freaking cool!

Open Source?

[Anonymous Coward]

>> The entire business will be open source.

Freakin' open source lasers!

Will eventually migrate to manufacturers

[tulsaoc3guy]

Neat idea. I predict these laser-etching machines will propagate first to the Cartridge-World-type stores, then to the ubiquitous Kinkos stores, and eventually Dell/Gateway will accept your image via upload for burning at the factory.

Re:Will eventually migrate to manufacturers

[The Benefactor]

The O2 store on Oxford Street will laser etch an image onto your phone if you're an O2 customer. Its all part of their way of giving away freebies at festivals and other events to keep customers loyal without having to drop their prices.

Language does that

[svunt]

See, the issue here is that the 'source' in 'open source' refers to source code - jigs, templates etc are not source code. However, this is a regular enough linguistic phenomenon - see "Irangate" "workaholic" etc. There's no Irangate hotel, nor is there a lot of workahol going around, but we get it.

Re:Language does that

[ptorrone]

there's other software that will be developed, right now no one has anything out there, and certainly not open source - i'll try my best!

Re:Language does that

[trentblase]

You're not really thinking like a computer scientist. Schematics, templates, jigs (presumably the instructions on building them), etc. can all be source code if you define the language and target system correctly. For example, the template is presumably a set of instructions that tell the engraver where to engrave, what power level, how long, etc. These instructions get compiled or interpreted by the engraver and executed just like any other source code would. amirite?

Re:Language does that

[XnR'rn]

Exactly. Same with hardware schematics, used parts list, and assembling instructions. As they did with other fun stuff they are also offering. See my previous comments. Im a satisfied customer, and I am really glad I have the schematics, as I am planning on assembling some hardware on my own.

Actually, I could do that without purchasing anything. But: a) I wanted to support them for the good work and b) have all the necessary parts for the first box.
I really wished more people would do the same as them. :)

garbage

[Anonymous Coward]

this is garbage and completely a spam advertisement. why is this allowed??????

Re:garbage

[freewaybear]

this is garbage and completely a spam advertisement. why is this allowed??????
Because it's fricking lasers, and that's fricking COOL!

Not, you nailed it...

[Frosty Piss]

However, this is a regular enough linguistic phenomenon - see "Irangate" "workaholic" etc. There's no Irangate hotel, nor is there a lot of workahol going around, but we get it.

No, you hit the nail on the head with your first sentence. It's not Open Source. It's way cool, very neat, but it's not Open Source. Typical Slashdot rocket trajectory, high on fumes.

My god...

[way2trivial]

I've ordered commercial laundry equipment.

trust me, equipping a landromat takes resources.. immense resources....

Free Capitalism

[farquharsoncraig]

Ironic that the anti open source astroturf likes to associate Ayn Rand ideals when here is an excellent example of how the open society subscribes directly to one of Rand's principles, namely that perfect capitalism cannot happen without idealism and openness. Capitalism is not about the money, it's about the joy of doing something.

Re:Free Capitalism

[jonathan.soeder]

Actually Capitalism is about paying workers 20$ to do something, which they may or may not enjoy, and then charging others 100$ to enjoy what the workers did. And I'm sure the capitalists enjoy this, so I guess you have somewhat of a point.

Re:Free Capitalism

[Anonymous Coward]

Easy solution: start "Innumerate Pseudo-Marxist Products, Inc." and give your workers all the money, reserving none of it for return on investment, equipment replacement, taxes, energy, buildings, marketing, etc.

We'll all be pleased to hear how that works out for you.

Re:Free Capitalism

[kanani]

of course, capitalism also gives said workers the ability to start their own business in which they can charge their customers $100 for work performed by their workers for said $20

Re:Free Capitalism

[chasethetail]

Calm down there guy. If you don't like Rand read something else. If your professor whines about Rand too much, tell him to read something else. This is about fricken laser beams, not Randian Objectivism BS.

Re:Free Capitalism

[Anonymous Coward]

It doesn't give them the ability, it gives them the opportunity to try and the minute possibility to succeed. Ability comes from some variable combination of ruthlessness, luck, intelligence, and nepotism. In either case, this presents a dilemma for those who wish to live their lives according to the golden rule. Treat others how you wish to be treated. Nobody buying labor and skill on the cheap in order to sell it high would like to be on the other end of their transaction would they?

Manufacturer support?

[Wilson_6500]

I guess that they're not being used for research purposes, but whenever I've worked with lasers it's always been key that communication with the manufacturer is possible. Continuum (etc.) certainly benefits if they're the only ones that ever fix my laser, but then again they have processes for verifying that their calibrations won't screw up my data by more than a certain small amount.

I guess it really doesn't matter if you're just blasting a CO2 laser in the vague shape of words or something. Sure, alignment is tricky, but I've aligned a low-power open-cavity HeNe on my own--and I imagine if a laser of that power and size gets misaligned, it's probably beyond help.

Re:Manufacturer support?

[Technician]

I guess it really doesn't matter if you're just blasting a CO2 laser in the vague shape of words or something. Sure, alignment is tricky, but I've aligned a low-power open-cavity HeNe on my own--and I imagine if a laser of that power and size gets misaligned, it's probably beyond help.


I've done some work on the laser etchers by Laser Systems. The CO2 laser is a sealed RF pumped unit from 15-50 watts. The alignment to get it to the target is no big deal. I have aligned one that was knocked out of alignment in shipping. On the X-Y table, the laser enters from the rear and hits a mirror on the Y axis. Removing the mirror and using a piece of masking tape, the first mirror is aligned so the burn marks on the tape are in the same place with the carrige near and far. You want one spot, not two. After replacing the first moving mirror, the second one is removed and the proceedure is repeated for left/right motion adjusting the first moving mirror to overlay the burn spots. To burn the spots, the laser is adjusted to about 2 watts and turned on for just a moment to mark the tape.

The symptom of a mirror alignment problem is the image fades towards the lower right corner as the beam starts to miss the next mirror in the optical path and the beam starts to miss the lens.

The laser unit itself is modular and is sent in for repairs if it's not up to par.

Re:Manufacturer support?

[Wilson_6500]

Hm. With the HeNe lasers I always worked with, the symptom of a misaligned output coupler or high reflector was that you didn't have any significant laser output. I didn't think gas flow lasers were different, so maybe it's something further up the beampath you're talking about. I imagine if the cavity itself were to get damaged, there'd probably be bigger problems than the mirrors.

Re:Manufacturer support?

[Technician]

Hm. With the HeNe lasers I always worked with, the symptom of a misaligned output coupler or high reflector was that you didn't have any significant laser output.

Due to the laser power and wavelength (invisable and starts fire) the laser unit is factory sealed. The alignment I was talking about is entirely downstream of the laser head. The alignment is completed with all interlocks in place and functional. The lid is opened, the mirror tweaked and tape replaced and then the covers are closed and the alignment is checked with burn marks on the tape. The chance of exposure to invisible laser radiation while performing alignment is none.

FYI the laser is not a gas flow laser. It's a sealed tube and is RF pumped. The laser unit is factory service only by exchange.

http://www.ulsinc.com/english/laser_systems/laser_ systems.html

See the CO2 Laser Cartridges section for details of the laser head. They now have sizes from 10 watt to 120 watt in air cooled or water cooled units.

Is this new?

[east coast]

Just remember, most pyramid scheme businesses are open source too.... they depend on it.

Re:Is this new?

[GentlemanRogue]

I beg to differ... the last thing a pyramid/Ponzi schemist would want you to discover is what's behind the curtain... for you would then see the lack of value in the product/service you're ostensibly being pushed to promote or consume, and the house of cards would come tumbling down.

In some sense, nearly every form of viral marketing is a pyramid scheme itself, the difference being that the products and services promoted successfully through such a method usually have a value or utility associated with them. In a pyramid scheme, the only "value" rests in extending the pyramid.

-- this is not the sig you're looking for

Re:Is this new?

[east coast]

In a pyramid scheme, the only "value" rests in extending the pyramid

Yeah, and as a member of the scheme you know this because that's the appeal... the concept of getting others involved and getting a cut of their income is widely the basis of recruiting others into such an organization. How can you claim this isn't true?

As for lack of value in a service or product: are you crazy? Just about everyone out there knows that WalMart is a (small) step above a second hand store and look at the people flock to it. In our consumer society value is taking a backseat to quantity. The people know they're buying a shoddy product.

link?

[WillRobinson]

I am very interested, and have sent an email to you, but still is there a link to look at the system besides the products you engraved?

Re:link?

[ptorrone]

hey will, i'm responding to 100+ emails. the system is an epilog mini 35w + filter system. i'll look for your note and send back infoz too.

Re:link?

[Anonymous Coward]

Some of us would be interested in reading more. Even without design info, I would be interested in costing information. It could appear next to an add-to-cart button on http://store.makezine.com/SearchResults.asp?Cat=20 or http://www.adafruit.com/ if you like.

Re:link?

[Fry-kun]

second that.
I was about to send you an email asking the same thing: what are the start-up and operating costs? (start-up would be cost of the laser device, and operating - your electrical bill)

Re:link?

[ptorrone]

send a note, we're posting it all.

hold executive bonuses in escrow for a few years

[SgtChaireBourne]

... and give your workers all the money, reserving none of it for return on investment, equipment replacement, taxes, energy, buildings, marketing, etc.

We'll all be pleased to hear how that works out for you.

Not necessary. We can extrapolate from existing businesses where they give your executives all the money, reserving none of it for return on investment, equipment replacement, taxes, energy, buildings, marketing, etc.

Corporate bonuses need to be kept in escrow for two or three years just to be sure they are warranted. Having to plan more than 2 months into the future would likely force executives to start working for the best interests of the companies rather than their individual wallets.

a boring cookie-cutter business

[swell]

.

The intro began with:
""If you can't stand the idea of a cookie-cutter laptop..."

Why would such a person want a cookie-cutter business? If you follow directions closely, you will have a duplicate of the original business. Well you might as well open another t-shirt business, taco shop or Starbucks and join the retail lemmings of the world. A business must have some thing or things unique to prosper.

--

But the crux of this discussion is the word 'open source'. Is it appropriate? And the unique thing my post has to add is:
Does 'cookie cutter' go with 'open source'?

We deride M$ for products that are acquired from creative minds outside the company, and many loudly proclaim that M$ does little creative ground-breaking work in-house. But isn't the open source industry also a bit bland? Isn't bland essential to open source?

If a program as unique and popular as PacMan or VisiCalc was produced by an open source organization, what would happen? Would it be immediately pounced upon by imitators and perhaps even more interesting versions? I'm asking because I'm not sure. I tend to think it would be watered down somehow and I doubt anyone would get much credit or money from their inspiration.

To what extent is is possible for open source vendors to provide a unique product. Not kinda unique--unique. To what extent will that determine their fate?

Re:a boring cookie-cutter business

[Shadyman]

Why would such a person want a cookie-cutter business? If you follow directions closely, you will have a duplicate of the original business. Well you might as well open another t-shirt business, taco shop or Starbucks and join the retail lemmings of the world. A business must have some thing or things unique to prosper.

I don't see laser shops on every street corner, so it's obviously not yet 'cookie-cutter' enough. It's still a relatively new idea (using lasers to etch various things like laptops, etc)

Re:a boring cookie-cutter business

[bensch128]

If a program as unique and popular as PacMan or VisiCalc was produced by an open source organization, what would happen? Would it be immediately pounced upon by imitators and perhaps even more interesting versions? I'm asking because I'm not sure. I tend to think it would be watered down somehow and I doubt anyone would get much credit or money from their inspiration.

Look at gcc or glibc or linux kernel or libstdc++. These are all hugely popular and used programs with no equally popular forks. It's not worth anyone;s time or effort to maintain a extremely divergant fork. Of course people add new features and code to these projects all of the time but by and large, most of the submissions are folded back into the main branch. Everyone benefits because noone gets a monopoly position with any of these tools.

The problem is a matter of perception IMHO. Games are easy and profitable to produce as closed source because they are one-time programs. kernels and word processors are much easier to produce as open source because they will be used over and over and over again and have more and more features added. You can make money from either. Just look at Redhat, Novell, etc...

Cheers
Ben

Macdonalds of Laser Etching?

[knuxed]

If this catches on,it might even become like a chain of laser etching shops.Just that no royalties or franchise fees needs to be paid and if everyone contributes back to the "source code",then most problems can be ironed out and everyone is happy

Though there is one problem,how does one etching business gain over the other?Is it purely like Burger King where its based on geographical location or through special things the shop can do.

If this comment is crap,just mod me down

Re:Macdonalds of Laser Etching?

[djupedal]

>'Though there is one problem,how does one etching business gain over the other?'

That question is rooted in a traditional business model, which is what this type of business is trying to not be.

Instead of thinking that competition is part of the business plan by default, why not think cooperation instead. If your shop uptown gets a large order that it can't handle and meet the delivery date, you hand off the excess production to another shop downtown.

If you can't afford to pay for a promotion, contact other shops and ask if they want to share the cost and the publicity.

If you need extra labor/staff for the next two weeks, ask your neighbor shops if they have a qualified employee they would be able to loan out.

Dude

[CODiNE]

Whatever, they're called LAZARS

YES!!!

[EaTiN cOfFeE bEaNs]

Now I can get "Bad Mothafucka" etched on my iPod!

I can't figure you lot out...

[6Yankee]

With all the privacy concerns around here, I'd've thought a cookie-cutter laptop would be a good thing...

Adafruit?

[spacerog]

Adafruit? haha Lemon, that's a good name. But your still Lemon! - SR

Old-school hacker connection

[nstrom]

Website hosted on 199.201.145.20 by the l0pht, if people still remember them.

OrgName: L0pht Heavy Industries
OrgID: LHI
Address: 46 Waltham St
City: Boston
StateProv: MA
PostalCode: 02118
Country: US

Re:Old-school hacker connection

[ladyada]

some ip's are -lucky-

We're very sorry Mr. Smith...

[TechnoLust]

but Tom came in to work hung over and turned the laser all the way up. We burned a hole right through your new MacBook Pro. Thankfully, you signed the waiver, so we're good. I hope you have backups of all that business data though.

In Toronto, Canada....

[brainkiller]

The laser etches you :)

If you are in the Toronto Area you can visit

http://laseretch.sublimeideas.com/

There are also 20 free etching giveaways....

If can't stand the idea ...

[Anonymous Coward]

"If you can't stand the idea of a cookie-cutter laptop..."

Translation: "If you have more money than sense..."