I tested ‘Survival Computer’ which has all the offline utilities you need, including AI

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ZDNET Highlights

• Project NOMAD is an offline information database and AI tool.
• This platform can be useful to you if you cannot go online.
• It can be installed on any Debian-based Linux distro.

Imagine you’ve been transported to some kind of post-apocalyptic, dystopian future. In that future, it will not necessarily be the strong who will survive, but rather those who have access to information.

Information can become the most sought-after commodity, the difference between survival and, well, survival.

But how do you get access to the information? You may not have a network connection, which means no internet. And that means no search engines or AI.

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What do you do?

If you’ve already set up Project NOMAD, which stands for Node for Offline Media, Archives and Data, and is a self-contained, offline “survival computer”, there’s no need to worry. The tag line of this project is “Knowledge that is never offline.”

Thanks to this tool, you have access to a knowledge base and offline AI that can keep you informed and empowered.

Sounds pretty useful, doesn’t it?

NOMAD isn’t just for possible future dystopias. Imagine you have to travel to unknown parts, where internet connection is difficult, but information is essential. With Project NOMAD up and running, we have everything you need to keep you informed.

How does Project NOMAD work?

First, you need to install Project NOMAD, which can be done on any Debian-based Linux distribution with the command:

sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install -y curl && curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Crosstalk-Solutions/project-nomad/refs/heads/main/install/install_nomad.sh -o install_nomad.sh && sudo bash install_nomad.sh

Once the package is installed, you can start, stop, and update NOMAD with the commands:

• sudo bash /opt/project-nomad/start_nomad.sh
• sudo bash /opt/project-nomad/stop_nomad.sh
• sudo bash /opt/project-nomad/update_nomad.sh

This backend service works with the help of Docker containers. After spinning up Project NOMAD on Sparky Linux (which is Debian-based), I became curious to see what was behind the scenes, which is how I discovered it used Docker containers. After running the install command, I checked to see if the Docker containers were running with:

docker ps-a

I was immediately greeted with a Permission Denied error (more on this in a bit). I added again sudo into the mix and was rewarded with a list of currently running containers, which were:

• project-nomad:latest
• redis:7-alpine
• MySQL:8.0
• amir20/dozzle:v10.0
• project-nomad-disk-collector:latest
• project-nomad-sidecar-updater:latest

Thanks to those 6 containers, Project NOMAD is able to deliver all its information from one convenient website. Open up a browser and point it to http://localhost:8080, and you’re ready to educate yourself on whatever you need.

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The first thing that caught my attention was the apps feature. After clicking that button, I was taken to the Apps “Store,” where I could install some useful apps, like Information Library, Education Platform, AI Assistant, Notes, and Data Tools.

Out of curiosity, I installed the AI ​​platform. When he was done, I realized it wasn’t working. OK, time to troubleshoot. I went back to the home page and clicked on Easy Setup. Here, NOMAD made it clear that some capabilities were installed, but not enabled.

I tried to select the AI ​​assistant, but it refused. I can select other options fine, but not the AI. Curiosity sent me to the command line to see if Olama was installed. It was, but that was because I had it installed for a previous review.

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Hmm….

I went back to apps and ran a force reinstall. No luck.

I decided to try another NOMAD installation, this time on Kubuntu. I thought maybe the previous Olama installation was causing problems. Good news: it worked. Now I can run easy setup for all the features I need.

During that setup, I had to select a map area (you can select as many areas as you want), and select content like AI Models, Wikipedia, Medical, Survival & Preparedness, Education & Reference, DIY & Repair, Agriculture & Food, and Computing & Technology. Be careful with this section, as each information package you add takes up space. You don’t want to run out of internal storage.

With everything installed, I started to see the real benefit of Project NOMAD, imagine that some of the tools you normally use are available even when you’re offline, with a network connection.

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I ran AI queries, looked up medical information, and much more.

This project is genius, and I hope I never have to use it. If I do that… I’ll definitely be glad it’s there. I will say that some of the information was a little unexpected (such as “Diagnosis of the Tongue in Chinese Medicine” and “Wilderness Medicine Course”), but those booklets may also be useful to some.

Overall, Project Nomad impressed me. I certainly hope that the project continues to develop, as it could become quite important in the coming years (read whatever you want).

Find out more at Project’s GitHub page.