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Litl OS

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It has been suggested that this article be merged into Litl. (Discuss) Proposed since November 2009.

Litl OS is the cloud-oriented operating environment of the litl webbook.

Overview

User interface philosophy

The litl OS interface removes a number of conventional elements of general purpose desktop environments. "Litl eliminates menus, icons, and folders. In fact, we've removed all computer administrative debris between you and the web". Litl state that a set of principles were developed to guide the design of the interface, including: "We used a simple rule: Any computer task that had the word "management" next to it had to be eliminated. File management. Gone. Windows management. Gone.".

User interface structure

Litl OS's user interface utilizes graphic elements called "cards" to organize browsing sessions and content instead of the tabs and menus found on conventional desktops:

— The GUI is based on a series of “cards,” each card functioning like a tab in an open browser window. In the laptop configuration, these cards can appear arranged on the screen like thumbnails, or opened up one at a time in full screen; in the easel/broadcast configuration, the cards appear as a stack and can be selected or “tuned in” ...

Flicking through cards in Easel mode (when the screen is flipped back on itself causing the webbook to be in an A-frame position) is done using a blue-colored click-wheel (called the "litl wheel") on the litl webbook or remote control.

The card concept, easel mode and general usage of the interface are demonstrated in litl's videos.

The interfaces to some web content are also customized by litl or third parties to integrate with Litl OS and are referred to as litl channels. (Litl OS's optional display method for RSS feeds is also referred to as a "litl channel"). Customizations and settings are minimal in keeping with the design goals of simplicity and ease of use.

Designers

User interface concepts were first mapped out by Pentagram working closely with litl. Personas and detailed interaction design were by Cooper Consulting in consultation with litl's internal design team. Fort Franklin also contributed to some design elements.

Software details

The underlying operating system is a mobile/embedded distribution of Ubuntu provided by Canonical. The user interface is written largely in Mozilla's dialect of Javascript using the gjs binding to access GNOME and Clutter UI elements. Litl automatically performs nightly software updates, and the OS stores browser cards, web channels, settings, and contacts online at Amazon S3 using a web service running on Google's App Engine and the Django framework. Litl OS can synchronize information from the Internet to the webbook and between webbooks. Open source components of the operating system's source code can be obtained on DVD from Litl.

Notable software engineers who code for litl OS include Havoc Pennington, a former chair of the Gnome Foundation, and Lucas Rocha, who is currently a member of the GNOME Foundation Board of Directors. Havoc Pennington is currently litl's Director of Software Development.

References

  1. http://litl.com/easy-to-use/intuitive-interface.htm
  2. http://litl.com/essays/philosophy.htm
  3. ^ http://pentagram.com/en/new/2009/11/new-work-litl.php
  4. http://www.masshightech.com/stories/2009/11/02/daily24-Startup-Litl-launches-Internet-enabled-computer.html
  5. http://litl.com/support/index.htm?id=372124
  6. http://litl.com/support/index.htm?id=358655
  7. http://blog.litl.com/2009/11/17/litl-os-card-view-and-browser-video/
  8. ^ http://www.cooper.com/journal/2009/11/yay_for_litl.html
  9. Havoc Pennington, Litl developer (2009-11-16). "Blog entries for November, 2009". Retrieved 2009-12-15.
  10. Lucas Rocha, Litl developer (2009-11-04). "litl webbook: some technical comments". Retrieved 2009-11-09.
  11. C. Scott Ananian, Litl developer (2009-11-04). "litl's technical secrets revealed!". Retrieved 2009-11-10.
  12. "litl Software End User Licensing Agreement". litl.com. November, 2009. Retrieved 2009-11-10. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  13. litl Software End User Licensing Agreement. United States Federal Communications Commission. 2009-10-28. Retrieved 2009-11-09.
  14. http://foundation.gnome.org/about/
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