Hi everyone !
I know that it's easy to one make suggestions when the person itself does not know how to implement it, but nonetheless I'll make this one.
When we at HE community have tools like Hubitat Package Manager (HPM) available, it makes everybodys life easier - I think there's no question about that.
However, there are some solutions like local WebCore server, Alexa TTS, VPN, local e-mail client (some that I can think of now, and certainly there are much more), that requires a Raspberry PI to run. I have, myself, plans to develop some apps that would require a web server and a Raspberry PI is the logical place to put it.
Talking about the obvious, using a Raspberry PI to host some solutions locally is on par with one of the main advantages of HE: local processing!
That being said, what I'd like to suggest is:
a) creation/definition of a basic Raspberry PI software configuration (name it RPI4HE maybe?)
b) for each app/package/solution that a developer wants to add to such basic configuration, the developer woud create a script where all software components necessary for the developer app/package/solution to work would be installed, configured, etc
c) if any app/package/solution needs user specific files (e.g. configuration options), the installation script could ask the user during its run where to find such files (could be at GitHub or - even better: local files on HE !)
d) copying the brilliant idea used at the implementation of Hubitat Package Manager (HPM), the developer should register its installation script in a centralized repository, from where it would be easy for an user to select the apps/packages/solutions that the user wants to install on the user RPI
e) at the RPI, a HPM like script would handle the selection and execution of the developer scripts desired by the user; this same RPI script could, also, handle usual maintenance tasks, such as making RPI backups, updating/removing apps/packages/solutions, updating RPI software packages and so on
Please note that the ideas above are here for the sole purpose of testing the interest of the community in such solution. Of course new suggestions are expected and would be very welcome - after all, it would be a community project.
For me, someone that barely can use Unix vi to edit a file this solution would be a blessing - and I'm sure that for a lot of users on our community it would be too.
Trying to stir the community interest, imagine a RPI solution that, at scheduled times, makes a local backup of HE, encrypt it and, using an e-mail client, send it to your e-mail. Wouldn't it be nice?
Again, it is easy to propose ideas where other people would do the hard work. However, my very limited knowledge of the Unix enviroment - being honest, kind of almost none ... - it would be impossible to do it myself.
Well, I hope this proposal gets some attention from the community.
Thanks for the attention.
Best regards,
Marco