Back in college while I was studying for my advertising degree, I was faced with a technological dilemma. Many of the production and design classes that I was taking relied upon the use of closed source applications like the Adobe CS Suite. I knew there were open source tools like The GIMP and Scribus that produce the same result, but during lab time I was in many cases forced to use a particular software that we were required to learn for completion of the course. The conflict between my belief and advocacy for the use of open source, and the scholastic requirement to use a particular operating system and software had never been more apparent.

It's interesting to note that the professors themselves could have cared less about the application being used. They were simply being instructed by higher-ups to follow certain criteria, the same criteria more than likely being practiced by other colleges and universities. To them, it made sense. After all, why wouldn't you educate students on the actual tools used in the real world? I knew there was another alternative. I did what I thought any college student would do for any other problem. I talked to the coolest professor I knew. You know, the one that would email you before Friday's class saying they couldn't make it in that day and to go have a beer instead, but still managed to learn a great deal from them in the end. His advice was simple, he said, “All that matters is, can you get the work done?” I knew that I could, and I would. I was ready to start believing again. The challenge had been accepted. I started using exclusively open source not just for his class, but all of them. Something magical began to happen. The groups I worked with were downloading the applications I was using, as no student owned the expensive counterparts that were being used in labs. Our work became more collaborative. It was getting done faster. The quality was better, and people began to take notice. Suddenly it became evident that it's less about the tool, and more about the result. Before I knew it a degree was in hand, and all without sacrificing my open source beliefs. 

So where did I go from there?

Ohava was selected to showcase next Thursday at the Tech Coctail Mixer at the Shadowroom in D.C. The Mixer follows the Tech Cocktail Startup Mixology Conference. Speakers at the conference include Steve Case founder of AOL and Chairman of Startup America, Alexis Ohanan Co-founder of Reddit and many more outstanding pioneers and founders. We are thrilled about the opportunty to engage the community via this great tech mixer. Please come check us out and tweet at #ohava during the event for the chance to win a Ohava OpenBook GO. To learn more about the event and purchase tickets click here.

This past weekend somethig incredible happened. Ohava was Reddited. 

We had just launched our site two days before it happened. It was sometime in the early afternoon and I noticed a significant traffic spike via Google Analytics. Upon further examination, I learned someone had kindly submitted us and we were getting upvotes! This was the kind of luck we couldn't have expected. We were asking each other, "Did you submit us?". From there we had two of the most exciting days in recent history.

How it Happened

After launching our site, we made a decision to do some basic advertising. One of the avenues we chose was a simple facebook ad; stating that we made Linux computers and that we were offering 11.04% off with the coupon code NARWHAL in honor of the release of Ubuntu 11.04 Natty Narwhal. Somone (more on him later) saw the ad and decided to submit us to Reddit.

Hello Reddit!

I am an avid redditor-in fact I should do less reddit and more Ohava-in this situation it worked out though. I saw the post and let the crowd know that I was the founder of Ohava. From there we engaged in the most satisfying customer outreach experience I have ever had. We learned what people want and we learned that the community was behind us. For that we are eternally grateful. 

The Lessons:

• Create value and put it in front of people - they will help you create more value.
• There is a demand internationally for Linux computers (we're working on getting it done).
• Specs, specs, specs. It really is what's on the inside that matters. Nerds like us, want to know exactly what's inside their machine.
• Server sizing - We got this one right. Nginx pulled through like a champ and let us reach 4000 people over two days.
• Pictures. It's worth a thousand words. We're going to get a photographer to take some photos ASAP.
• People want dedicated graphics, ARM processors, SSD (done), no windows key, and much more. We are going to listen to you. It might take some time but everything we were told is helping us be better.
• Reddit! is awesome - I knew this already, still it deserves saying.

The Fallout:

We have a lot of work to do to be the kind of company you deserve. We're going to work tirelessly to make sure we respond to your feedback We have to get better at shipping, providing accurate infomation, and adapting our technology. 

P4bz the OP is receiving a free OpenBook GO. We can't thank him enough (he doesn't work for us btw). 

So, so long Reddit!, and thanks for all the upboats. See you soon.

Computing is:

Hardware

We think hardware should be affordable. It should work. It should be open. It should look great. It should be easy to fix and easy to upgrade. We're going to do our best to provide you with machines that meet your needs. Tell us what you want and we'll make it happen. 

Software

A computer needs software. We are comitted to open source software. Open source allows for natural evolution. Everything Ohava does will be open source-that is our promise. 

Network

Social, fiber, wireless, people. A network is an incredibly powerful thing. You know this. Our hope is one day all networks are open and free. Let's connect the world and see what happens.

People

People are the single most important part of computing. Software is meant for the users. Hardware is meant for the users. These fantastic little machines have changed how we do just about everything. We are, all together, at the start of an amazing journey into the future. We promise not to forget that computers are for people. Computers for people by people. We will listen to you, we will help you, we will be here for you.

With that said. Hello world-we're Ohava. We think you'll like us.