> an embeddable Linux VM with Postgres installed, which runs inside a browser.
Wow! I feel like this is the lede. How much work was done supporting the VM and OS privatives (eg networking) vs PG specific work? I feel like a minimal Linux in the browser opens up a LOT more opportunities than just a database.
When figma got bought out, a lot of articles were written about “where’s the wasm applications”, and I feel like throwing Linux into a browser really shows potential. One commenter already wondered if it could be used to compile microcontrollers (so creative, i now want that too), I wonder if it can be used similar to Repl.it, with packaging test environments.
To be very, very clear, I would LOVE a write up about just the linux portion of this interesting project.
v86 can be used for a number of things besides Postgres - things like Repls or other entire applications are definitely achievable.
Networking between Postgres and the internet was a lot of work, and Mark came up with a neat solution detailed in the blog post. This solution can be used for any other application. If you're looking to run a native application in the browser using v86, the repo & blog post is a good launching pad.
The dream is a real wasm native postgres; in fact to get all of postgresql's cool shared mem proccess stuff and make it something like shared array buffer! The dream is also that WASI interface and new-school OS interfaces like memfd_create are increasingly aligned.
Instead of rationalization our interfaces, however, it's just emulation layer on top of emulation layer, tech debt all the way down.
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I am not blaming you all in the slightest, to be clear. Obviously one needs to start somewhere. Just sighing at the state of things.
I think we'll see this - and it would be amazing to get someone to work towards this - once there is an amazingly compelling use case that resonates with the market, then I think there's room for optimization!
Wow! I feel like this is the lede. How much work was done supporting the VM and OS privatives (eg networking) vs PG specific work? I feel like a minimal Linux in the browser opens up a LOT more opportunities than just a database.
When figma got bought out, a lot of articles were written about “where’s the wasm applications”, and I feel like throwing Linux into a browser really shows potential. One commenter already wondered if it could be used to compile microcontrollers (so creative, i now want that too), I wonder if it can be used similar to Repl.it, with packaging test environments.
To be very, very clear, I would LOVE a write up about just the linux portion of this interesting project.