#Paperspace jump desktop upgrade

They also saw that it may make sense for developers or those in need of multiple operating systems, who may today run things like Parallels, Fusion or Bootcamp. This includes students, hobbyists, as well as creative professionals in need of running simulations, rendering, 3D CAD, or doing photo and video editing, for example. Initially, the idea was to target the “prosumer” audience with Paperspace – that is, anyone who needs additional processing power on demand in an easy-to-use interface. “ is accessible to big enterprise companies and really technical people – but everyone else is left out,” Erb notes. He says that he and Kobran were comfortable with the process of using the solutions available today, which involved going to the command line at times, but most people are not. “And then we started exploring how we could make it much easier to use because it’s really difficult to get going.”

“We started looking into cloud computing because it was becoming big in the scientific computing world,” explains Erb.

In order to run some simulations they needed to buy an expensive, “beast” of a computer – and even then, the simulations took days to run. Paperspace is different because it’s aiming to wrap up a similar service in terms of accessing a remote, cloud computer, but offering it through an easy-to-use console where everyday consumers can just click a button to log into their upgraded, more powerful remote machine.Ĭo-founders Dillon Thompson Erb and Dan Kobran say they came up with the idea for Paperspace while developing technology applications and deployments in the architecture industry while at the University of Michigan. Today, there are number of solutions for accessing computing power via the cloud thanks to companies like Amazon and others, but these services require users to be more technical in order to get started. The device is considered a “zero client,” because unlike thin client technology, there’s only a small microprocessor on the inside – all the processing is taking place on the cloud. Similar, to some extent, to enterprise-grade solutions like VMWare, Citrix or Amazon Workspaces, but aimed also at a consumer or “prosumer” audience, the company is selling a small hardware device that plugs into any older desktop or laptop in order to provide you with the computing power you need on demand.Ĭalled Paperweight, this low-cost hardware device connects you with your own remote machine on Paperspace’s servers, where you can choose from either a “basic” or “pro” option based on your computing needs. That’s the vision behind Y Combinator-backed Paperspace, a new company launching today, which is building a full, personal computer that lives in the cloud, which you access from any web browser.

#Paperspace jump desktop upgrade

Imagine never having to buy new and expensive hardware to upgrade your personal computer with more speed and storage space.