Earth OS

= a system orchestrating all the existing free & open ideas so that all aspects of life are served by free, open, P2P tech and services only

URL = http://ma.juii.net/ma-documents/main/EarthOS.pdf

Abstract

"This document constituates an early version of EarthOS ("Earth operating system"), which is a system apt for dealing with all natural resources in a sustainable way. This document contains both a framework of design principles and technical interface standards, and also the actual list of equipment items.

EarthOS will finally use only free and open DIY technology. Next to sustainability, it focuses on independent / autarkic and resilient living, while also maintaining a reasonable standard of living. The main structural elements are "levels" of equipment, which are nested inside each other to support a growing number of people with increasing autarky and comfort, yet necessarily decreasing mobility. All this is based on a common global infrastructure level (L1). Equipment levels range from the backpack equipment level (L2) for individuals over a truck-based level for small groups (L3) up to land based (L4) and ocean-based communities (L5). The L5 communities have the additional option of legally being sovereign.

Note that this document is currently just a long collection hints to existing free and open projects and a list of own ideas, far from containing all detailed technical instructions. It's a take on an Earth operating system from a top- down, systems engineering perspective, and as such should already be useful to offer an evolving mental framework for all technical detail work. (Note also, that this document is still half German; it will be all English eventually.)"

Proposed Taxonomy

Level of Autarky

Autarky level is the degree of autarky enabled by packages of the same level. One can avoid higher autarky levels by buying the items normally produced at the next higher autarky level ("buying out of the tech tree"), or harvesting them from civilization scrap. There are the following autarky levels:

○ AL0: based on products (equipment is built from bought or salvaged products; provides no autarky; for example, a package ecosystem that recommends mostly or only commercial products is on this level) ○ AL1: based on product modules (equipment is built from bought or salvaged product modules, such as stepper motors etc.) ○ AL2: based on semi-finished products (equipment is built from bought or salvaged semifinished products, such as metal treads and sheet metal) ○ AL3: based on raw materials (equipment is built from bought or salvaged raw materials) ○ AL4: based on pure nature (equipment is built from raw materials that are mined or collected from pure natural sources)

Level of Mobility

Mobility levels indicate the highest permanent mobility achievable with a certain open design product (a sledgehammer is not ML 3 just because you could put it into a backpack):

○ ML0: fixed level (no meaningful mobility, just re-creation at the target site) ○ ML1: relocation level (transportable, but not for doing so regularly) ○ ML2: movable level (transportable, for example within vehicles used for housing; including rapid recreation at the target site from scrap and movable parts) ○ ML3: wearable level (wearable within a backpack or personal equipment; including rapid recreation at the target site from scrap and wearable parts) ○ ML4: immaterial level (information)

Social Level

It is obvious that one cannot combine all ALs with all MLs: one cannot have a tool set that enables raw material production just with a backpack.

Also, one can define "social levels", which is the lowest size of a group in which a product can be used meaningfully:

○ SL0: no social level (meaningful for individuals) ○ SL1: family level (ca. 2-10 people; also including intentional communities of that size) ○ SL2: extended family level (ca. 11-25 people; also including intentional communities of that size) ○ SL3: tribe level (ca. 25-150 people; limited by the special "number of people where everybody can know everybody") ○ SL4: global level (more than ca. 150 people; to lead to stable social systems through localization, only non-material (knowledge, software) open design products must be on this level)

More Information

Bio of creator: http://edgeryders.ppa.coe.int/user/user_profile/matthias

Author contact. Matthias Ansorg <[email protected]>.