HoloPorts Still on Track for Q1 Delivery

Important Detail #1: HoloPort Packaging

Check out our prototype packaging for the HoloPorts! These are still rough versions of what our backers will receive but we wanted to give you all a quick peek — even though we know there are some passionate unboxers’ in our community of backers. ;-)

Unboxing the HoloPort

The third iteration that you see in the images is primarily about the positioning, box fit, format, and materials. You may have noticed the colors are a bit off; that’s because these are only digitally-printed samples and not color correct. The most important thing we learned from this prototype run was that though they’re very solid, we still want to improve a few things. We need to do everything we can to limit damage to the HoloPorts considering that we’ll be shipping from three distribution centers to 60+ countries all around the world.

The final prototypes will be:

More robust and very resistant to shipping damage; pantone-matched with special color printing; a great hiding place for playful cats; and printed on recycled paper and 100% recyclable.

Cat pic by brianfagan — Creative Commons license

Important Detail #2: HoloPort Certification

As we mentioned in the last update, we have faced some challenges through the testing process because of all the different certifications required to ship HoloPorts to so many different countries on six continents. Two of those challenges have been fully surmounted. Both the Electromagnetic Compatibility (EMC) issues on the HoloPorts and the Power Supply Units (PSU) interference on the HoloPorts and Nano have been fixed. This is excellent news!

HoloPorts

Unfortunately, by adjusting some of the components we inadvertently created some heat management issues on the HoloPort and HoloPort+ under full processing loads. But with some slight upgrades to the cooling systems this has been resolved. This re-work and revised testing for certification have coincided with the run up to the multi-week Lunar New Year’s celebrations, so although all our component parts are now all manufactured, we can’t begin assembly until our assembly factory restarts after the holiday.

That said, nothing else has shifted. We’re continuing to make great progress on other crucial milestones, and we still intend to ship the HoloPorts in Q1. As a reminder, here are the milestones:

Milestones on the Holo Roadmap in 2019

1) Holo Closed Alpha Testnet Promised in February (not public, available only to Indiegogo Alpha/Beta Testers)

2) HoloPorts Shipped (Indiegogo in first batch, HoloPort store in second batch)

3) Holo Open Alpha Testnet (available to all purchasers of HoloPorts)

4) Holo Full Feature Testnet (including a Testnet of Holo fuel)

5) Holo Beta Mainnet

We’ve come so far with testing and verifying certificates, and know exactly which ones will be certified (FCC, CE, VCCI, IC, etc.), so we put preliminary logos on the latest HoloPort test units. They really look like official consumer electronics with these laser etchings!

HoloPort Certification Laser-etched Certification Logos

Holochain Developer Preview 0.0.3 Released

We’re rapidly iterating towards our beta release of Holochain. Feedback from hApp developers on our team and in our community is helping us prioritize features and shave off the rough spots. With Developer Preview release 0.0.3, we now have a working prototype of a networked DHT implementation, the full programming toolkit that was present in the prototype, and a new set of application building and testing tools. This is a HUGE step forward for Holochain and Holo’s distributed hosting!!

You can follow our progress in the weekly Dev Pulse newsletter, get involved in the development process in our GitHub repo, and dig deeper into our developer documentation.

Holo Alpha-Beta Testers

We’re very much in preparation mode for the Closed Alpha Testnet. We’ll be reaching out to all of our Alpha-Beta Testers by email in the next two weeks with a link to a survey to help begin the test process. We’re really excited to be ready to share the first Holo software with our community!

DevCamp #3 in February

Registration is now open for the final dev camp that our Indiegogo backers will be invited to attend free of charge. This DevCamp from 18–22 of February is focused on Designing your hApp, and will cover the following topics:

Context & Architecture Overview

Membranes: Membership, Privacy & Bridging Microservices

Existing Patterns, Conventions, & Core Apps

Zomes: Modularity and Code Reuse

Data Structures: Entries, Schemas, & Validation (basic CRUD)

Linking: Relationships & Collections

Custom Functions and Business Logic

UI Middleware & Components

As in the past, all DevCamp #3 lessons will be delivered online in a combination of live video workshops and self-paced content available by 00:00 UTC each day. The registration fee for non-Indiegogo backers is $250. Contact devcamp@holo.host if you have questions.

Perk Delivery (Stickers!)

As we approach complete delivery to the Dev Camp backers, we’re obviously still working toward the delivery of the HoloPorts and service perks as well. We have mailed every one of our perk backers their True 3D holographic stickers along with a thank you card. If you didn’t get yours, let us know!

Thank You Card and Stickers Mailed to All our Indiegogo Backers

You are the best backers a world-changing project could ever ask for. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

The Holo team

This update was sent to the supporters of our HoloPort crowdfunding campaign on Jan. 22, 2019