eRacks Systems

Here's an interesting OS design idea we came across: Loss32. Instead of running a normal Linux desktop and launching Windows programs through W**E (a compatibility layer that lets Windows apps run on Linux), Loss32 flips it: build the whole desktop environment on top of W**E itself, sitting right on the Linux kernel.

It's a different philosophy than projects like ReactOS, which tries to reimplement Windows from scratch, or older efforts like Lindows. Whether or not Loss32 ships as real software, the idea is worth thinking about if you care about how these compatibility layers actually work under the hood.

We build and support Linux systems all day, every day, so stuff like this is right up our alley. Read the article here: https://share.google/EX42ZLs8zHGJ5nQkj

There's a tool in the Claude Code ecosystem called Ralph Wiggum, named after the Simpsons character, that takes a brute force approach to agentic coding (AI that works through tasks autonomously instead of waiting for step by step prompts). It feeds its own failures and stack traces back into itself and keeps grinding until the task is done.

It started as a 5 line Bash script from a developer who got tired of manually re-prompting every error. Instead of fixing the bottleneck with more reasoning, he just automated the retry loop.

We run a lot of boxes doing exactly this kind of unattended, always on compute work, whether it's agentic coding, local AI inference, or batch processing. If you're building out a server to let something like this run overnight without babysitting it, that's the kind of workload our AI server line is built for.

https://share.google/BV8mO04avcVMEGoxb

New Post: eRacks/GAMER: A Linux Gaming PC That Boots Straight Into Steam https://buff.ly/9fx1p1I

Jellyfin Desktop (formerly Jellyfin Media Player) is the desktop client for the Jellyfin media server, built on Qt 6 (a cross-platform app framework) with MpvQt for playback and multi-profile support.

We install and configure it on eRacks/NAS systems; it has been our approach to self-hosted media serving for a long time. The client is the easy part. The server underneath still needs to be sized right, run reliably, and be configured properly for your library.

If you're running Jellyfin or thinking about it, the hardware side (storage layout, drive counts, network throughput) matters more than which client app you point at it.

https://share.google/fAFSwuqdbkr5XHaEY

Fedora is planning a rework of its Games Lab spin for 2026, moving from Xfce to KDE Plasma to better support Wayland (the modern Linux display server tech) and giving the whole thing a refresh aimed at showing off where Linux gaming actually stands today.

It's a small story but it points at something real: Linux gaming has gotten a lot more capable in the last few years, mostly thanks to Valve's work on Proton and the Steam Deck. Distros are starting to catch up and showcase that properly instead of treating it as an afterthought.

Our new eRacks/GAMER is built for exactly that: solid hardware running Linux, booting straight into Steam, drivers set up and tested. Proton runs Windows games, and only a handful of publishers still lock Linux players out.

https://eracks.com/products/desktops/GAMER/

https://share.google/UblEntD9IWsJ8YfFa

Why can a 65-inch 4K TV cost $250 while a smaller, less capable computer monitor costs $1,000? Bruce Perens put it plainly on LinkedIn: most of the income from the TV is fees for recording your viewing preferences.

It's the inkjet printer model, only worse. With a printer, the cheap hardware is paid for by the ink. With a smart TV, it's paid for by your viewing habits, every day you own it.

So here's a better answer than "buy a dumb TV": buy the cheap smart TV and never connect it to the internet. Skip the Wi-Fi setup, leave the network port empty, and use it as a plain screen.

Then put a machine you control in front of it. That's what we've built since 1999: servers and desktops running open-source software you can inspect, with no business model built on watching you.

Bruce's post: https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7514075935512653825/
eRacks: https://eracks.com/

AMD is reportedly working on a broader supply deal with Samsung to lock down memory (RAM and flash chips) for its chips, and Samsung's hoping it turns into foundry (chip manufacturing) orders too. When a company AMD's size starts securing long-term memory commitments, that's usually a sign supply is getting tight and prices are moving.

We watch this stuff closely because it feeds directly into what we quote for NAS and flash storage builds. Memory shortages ripple into DRAM and SSD pricing fast, and lead times stretch out when the big players start locking up capacity.

If you've got a storage refresh or expansion on the roadmap, this is the kind of signal that argues for moving sooner rather than later. We build both eRacks/NAS for spinning storage and eRacks/FLASH for all-flash arrays, and we can walk you through what's available right now versus what might get harder to source.

https://www.tomshardware.com/tech-industry/semiconductors/amd-seeks-broader-partnership-with-samsung-as-it-looks-to-secure-memory-supply-samsung-reportedly-hopes-to-turn-its-memory-supply-relationship-with-amd-into-foundry-orders-for-logic-chips

Texas sued Sony, Samsung, LG, Hisense, and TCL for using ACR (automatic content recognition, tech that screenshots your TV display repeatedly) to track what you watch and sell that data, often without your knowledge.

This is why we say: buy a dumb TV, not a spy tool. Get a plain display and put your own device in front of it, something you control, that doesn't phone home every half second.

It's the same thinking behind why we build on open Linux and open-source instead of locked-down black boxes. If you don't control the software, you don't control the data.

https://share.google/PHOmXsAi83ZedXxAk

Interesting one: used AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D chips (a CPU, or processor, built for AM4 motherboards) are reselling for up to $800 on the secondary market. That's more than a brand new 9800X3D costs at retail. People are paying a premium to stay on DDR4 (an older, cheaper memory standard) instead of upgrading platforms.

It's a good reminder that "old" hardware doesn't mean "worthless" hardware. A platform that's stable, well supported, and already paid for can out-earn its replacement cost for years.

We build on that same principle. When we spec a server or workstation, we're thinking about total lifespan, not just this quarter's chip.

https://share.google/p25TllaMwONq9OhPb

Saw an article making the rounds about how Windows 11 virtual desktops (separate workspaces for different apps) beat out Linux workspaces in a few specific ways, naming different backgrounds per desktop and renaming workspaces as the gaps.

If you're running Linux because you want the control and openness, little workflow gaps like this shouldn't be a dealbreaker. There are desktop environments and configs that close most of these gaps, you just need someone who's spent time in them.

We build and configure Linux desktops and workstations all day, every day. If your workspace setup is bugging you, ask us, it's usually an easy fix.

https://share.google/Ok3wQDvxmxHcKlsLP