THE MAN BEHIND OPERA ON A STICK

By EspenAO. Tuesday, 13. March 2007, 13:38:18

We've had a chat with the creator of the popular Opera for USB, Markus Obermair.

This is a thank you for all the hard work he has done for Opera.

We're so fortunate to bring you an exclusive interview with My Opera Member Markus Obermair. The man who builds, hosts and provides support for Opera@USB (and now U3) voluntarily. If you want all the great feature of Opera mobile, then look no further. Head over to Opera USB right after you've read this interview. Enjoy

Markus, how how did you become an Opera fan?

I became an Opera fan in 2003. My browser experience started with Netscape 4.3, then IE () But after a virus / worm I got really upset, and searched for an optional mailclient. I bumped into Opera 7 with its integrated Browser . I liked Opera (and its features) from the first click!

What led you to port Opera on USB?

I wanted to use Opera at work, but my IT department didn't allow an installation of it. That was when I searched for a new way to use it. I came over a complicated method, and thought to myself: "There has to be an easier way to get it installed!". I started working on my current project, and I soon discovered that other people was interested in getting a copy of Opera on their flash drives.

In 2005 I offered packages of some changed files with instructions on how to obtain a mobile version of Opera based on the Desktop version. However, many people still craved why I didn't offer the complete mobile version of Opera. In autumn 2005 I created opera-usb.com, with a complete mobile Opera@USB 8.5 version ready for download. I got new visitors per day, and thousands of people started using it.

That's great! But how is USB different from U3?

Opera@U3 and Opera@USB have equal functionalities - The only difference is that Opera@U3 only includes U3 specific data.

What did you do to optimise Opera for U3?

It was quite easy. To get Opera for U3 valid I had to tweak it a bit. A couple of weeks ago I received an email that U3 had tested my version, and had approved it

Are you an active member on My Opera?

Yes! I use the forums, and try to help out other Opera users on a daily basis. In addition I exchange experiences and my expertise regarding using Opera.

What do you think of the new My Opera site?

The Opera Community is really great, and the new My Opera site is brilliant!

Are you working on anything new these days?

Yes. But it's spring, and there should also be a life without computers and Opera

Do you have any last words for the community, and its members?

I want to say thank you to all Opera@USB users! Your support means a lot to me. It helps Opera be the leading product solution for flash drives! Keep it up .

I also want to say thank you to a very special person: My father. He died 1 month ago. He was the person who introduced me to the fantastic world of IT when i was young, and I owe him so much for it.

Our condolences go out to Markus, who recently lost his father.

Fighting the Good FightThe N+ Founders

Comments

great job! opera usb for u3 is on the opera press release

By philry4n, # 13. March 2007, 14:02:03

U3 is a software platform company that has created an innovative technology that transforms USB flash drives from simple storage devices into U3 smart drives. U3 smart drives let consumers carry and run everything they need for a familiar computing experience from the smart drive, including files, software applications, personal preferences, favorites, profiles and bookmarks, as well as the ability to access this information from any PC.
source: http://www.opera.com/pressreleases/en/2007/03/14/

By Eddie_Lopez, # 14. March 2007, 15:35:49

By Tamil, # 14. March 2007, 16:20:17

Just got this. Really superb idea you had, and it came out great. Thanks alot, you've really helped people experience Opera more!

By G-off, # 14. March 2007, 20:58:55

ditto

By Dudley, # 15. March 2007, 02:21:07

Thumbs up!

By Maulkin, # 15. March 2007, 07:40:19

Great work... I love always having Opera in my pocket.

By Words, # 15. March 2007, 07:47:20

Toller Job den du machst!! Respekt!!

By iced_empire, # 16. March 2007, 00:31:17

Great job.

By ALLY_G, # 16. March 2007, 10:43:49

I see,you've been.

By Adamanzheng, # 18. March 2007, 00:56:49

Hello Markus,

I'm sure that your father must be proud of you!
Thank you very much on behalf of all USB U3 drive users!!

Kind regards,

P.

By pk_cruzer13, # 18. March 2007, 18:56:24

Upon first reading the title, I thought they put Jon on a stick.

By dantesoft, # 20. March 2007, 16:36:33

I guess I sort of see the purpose of this for newbies (like Portable FireFox vs. Free The Fox), eventhough I've been running Opera off a CD and a flash disk since 5.12 and 6.05 since they were released in 2002.

By Nomen Nescio, # 24. March 2007, 01:06:56

Thanks you Markus for your dedication for others. I greatly appreciate that your work has been so much helpful for me !

ThanhThuy

By ThanhThuy2007, # 26. March 2007, 23:17:45

Thank you for all your efforts.

By Jadd, # 27. March 2007, 10:31:52

Thanks for your support, Markus !

By huynhtuyenhgl, # 30. March 2007, 08:41:32

Thank you , Markus.
Opear is pretty cute:)

By vvoody, # 2. April 2007, 00:45:52

By betao, # 5. April 2007, 01:34:50

I use Opera mini in my mobile (HTC3300)and is super! Realy thanks for this so exelant programm!

By douroukas, # 10. April 2007, 20:15:10

Very simplistic and easy to set up your page. Thanks for making a great site.

By pedro.baez, # 17. April 2007, 13:43:10

By xuoroux, # 26. April 2007, 01:50:08

yup, opera is the future of blogging. its kindo like myspace, but opera is much better, and more user freindly.
yup, this is a cool site. KEEP ON ROCKIN' OPERA!!! (plays guitar) lolz

By guava_mochi, # 28. April 2007, 13:17:12

Thanks to him, I can carry my bookmarks with me, and not have to use IE at work/school ever again.

By vulphaestion, # 4. May 2007, 12:16:29

Markus.. This is great. I am a tester of free software. Whenever there is a new release of a free mobile software, I always download and try to test it.
It's not just the speed, the creative mind behind the front-end designing is amazing. Thanks. Keep the good work up!

Chandana S. Jayakody, Sri Lanka

By chandana_jayakody, # 23. June 2007, 11:26:15

Thank you Markus!

Keep the working on this awesome portable program.

Greetings from your "official Spanish" translator, s always any help you need, count with my services.

Lima-Perú

By fdisk2k, # 2. July 2007, 17:36:10

I just bought a U3 drive by accident and was pleased to see Opera on the front page of the official download site. At one point a few years ago I helped develop one of those difficult Opera-on-a-stick installations, and I'm glad to see things have progressed to the point where it is worthy of general consumption.

One comment though, the http://www.opera-usb.com/ website has a few spelling and grammatical errors that would be good to correct:

is a private projekt of markus: projekt --> project

Opera@U3 ist the official Version: ist --> is

On this site you found a complete version of Opera@USB you only have to extract it to the USB-Pen and you can use all features of Opera mobile. --> On this site the complete version of Opera@USB is available for download. You only have to extract it to the USB-Pen and you can use all features of Opera mobile.

here you come to Opera Software ASA, Norway --> Click here to visit Opera Software ASA, Norway

how died on: how --> who

By Jarrah, # 26. July 2007, 06:11:26