Puter
Dev tools
web desktop environment
SHOW HN2024
1,274points
319comments
#2of 3,515 in 2024
Top 1%of 2024 by points
How HN took it
MixedNo clear lean
52 positive, 72 neutral or asking, 9 mixed, 22 critical, out of 155 comments about the project. Thread score +0.24.
Execution: 20 for, 11 againstIdea: 12 for, 6 againstDesign: 6 for, 3 againstPerformance: 5 for, 0 againstPrivacy: 2 for, 2 against
The thread, comment by comment
Each row is a top-level comment and its replies, in HN's order. Select a cell to open that comment on HN.
positive neutral or mixed critical about another commenter or something else the maker
What HN said
What people liked
Slick, fast desktop UI in the browser
From 3 comments
This is insanely cool! Looks really slick too, even in a mobile screen. jQuery?? I cannot imagine how difficult it is to not break this when you make the slightest change, hats…
mavili on HNTwo places where the project is very impressive: 1. Emulating a desktop with windows so smoothly on both desktop and mobile. This webapp is much snappier than most webapps these…
renonce on HNSuper slick demo, I'm on mobile and it's impressively fast nevermind functional. But it is 'just' a DE webapp right? From 'internet OS' here (which actually I don't think you use…
OJFord on HN
Clean, readable codebase
From 2 comments
I just want to point out how clean and pleasant to read this codebase is. I'm starting to learn JavaScript, coming from a background of systems programming, and I bookmarked this…
dlivingston on HNWhy is this so easy to read compared to React? https://github.com/HeyPuter/puter/blob/master/src/UI/PuterDialog.js
hliyan on HN
Vanilla JS and jQuery choice praised
From 3 comments
That warms my heart: “ - Why isn't Puter built with React, Angular, Vue, etc.? For performance reasons, Puter is built with vanilla JavaScript and jQuery. Additionally, we'd like…
tambourine_man on HNThis looks amazing. Also; > Why isn't Puter built with React, Angular, Vue, etc.? > For performance reasons, Puter is built with vanilla JavaScript and jQuery. Additionally, we'd…
isoprophlex on HN> For performance reasons, Puter is built with vanilla JavaScript and jQuery. jQuery is overdue for a comeback.
firstbabylonian on HN
Objections
Unclear what problem it solves or why someone would use it
From 3 comments
I still don't get the appeal. Why would you want this again?
eisbaw on HNWhat is this used for?
thatgerhard on HNI used it, I loved it! But why would someone use it?
0xDeveloper on HN
Calling it an OS overstates it; it is a desktop web app
From 1 comment
Super slick demo, I'm on mobile and it's impressively fast nevermind functional. But it is 'just' a DE webapp right? From 'internet OS' here (which actually I don't think you use…
OJFord on HN
Not truly local; account creation uses a remote server
From 1 comment
I tried running it locally and connecting to it with Firefox but it just gives me a log in dialog and trying to create an account fails. With Vivaldi creating an account works.…
kwhitefoot on HN
Requests
Terminal improvements such as globbing and home directory paths
From 3 comments
Love it! It would be nice if `~` was mapped to home directory (e.g. `cd ~/Desktop`) Hard to resize windows. If I want to grab the right edge there is only 1 pixel to work with.…
Kalanos on HNLove it! I liked the Solitaire implementation. The terminal seems very lacking, "ls" worked but e.g. "ls *" or the "find" command didn't work.
qiqitori on HNDoes globbing not work in the shell? I made (touched) a bunch of shit* files in ~/Desktop to amuse myself, which I guess is fine. And then I made a few shit* files in ~, which…
ssl-3 on HN
Mobile mode or responsive UI
From 1 comment
One of the things I find curious here is that there's no mobile story to speak of. Drag the window narrow, and all that happens is that the taskbar icons look squished. Is there…
1attice on HN
Python support
From 2 comments
Love it! It would be nice if `~` was mapped to home directory (e.g. `cd ~/Desktop`) Hard to resize windows. If I want to grab the right edge there is only 1 pixel to work with.…
Kalanos on HNhow can I pip install on this?
chse_cake on HN
Questions
What is it used for and why would someone use it
From 3 comments
What is this used for?
thatgerhard on HNI used it, I loved it! But why would someone use it?
0xDeveloper on HNSuper slick! What are some common applications for this, though? I can't think of a reason I'd want to access this versus, say, a remote vm?
drumttocs8 on HN
How AGPL applies to backend apps
From 1 comment
Curious how AGPL would apply for something like this. This seems like a tool to put a nice front end on a complex app, but would that trigger copyleft for the the overall backend?
waldrews on HN
How it handles privilege escalation and sandboxing
From 1 comment
The docs say a this can be used for remote access to servers and workstations. How does it handle things like privilege escalation and sandboxing? I'm assuming you mean remote…
jethro_tell on HN
Alternatives named
Kera Desktop
From 1 comment
This reminds me of Kera Desktop [1]. Featured on HN 8 months ago, 343 points, 111 comments [2]. [1]: https://desktop.kerahq.com/ [2]: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=36260589
infogulch on HN
DaedalOS
From 1 comment
Ah, Puter! That fascinating project surfaced on HN about a year ago, claiming the top spot for most of the day. I'm delighted to witness its transition to open source, allowing…
redbell on HN
Switchboard
From 1 comment
We also do a desktop in a browser, but some core differences are you can launch real browsers in our environment and essentially load any web-based app you want collaboratively.…
theogravity on HN
EyeOS
From 1 comment
Anybody remembers the original (not Apple) iCloud web desktop? Or EyeOS?
throwaway11460 on HN