What's missing if I just launch it in the browser?

[tbaumann]

I would love to surprise my wife with her own digital assistant. But she uses a Chromebook, running software locally is a bit weird on those.

How reasonable would it be of I just launch the npm app in my homelab and let her use the whole thing in the browser?

What would be missing? Local voice perhaps?

[talentsache]

Lovely gift idea. Yes, totally doable. Two approaches:

Web Interface feature: Skales has a built-in local web server you can enable in Settings → Remote & Web. Set a PIN, and Skales is reachable at http://your-homelab-ip:PORT from any device on the same network (Chromebook, phone, tablet). She just opens the URL in her Chromebook browser and uses Skales like a normal web app.
Tailscale: If you want remote access outside the homelab network, install Tailscale on both the homelab machine and her Chromebook. Then she can reach Skales from anywhere via the Tailscale IP.

What won't work in browser mode: local voice (STT/TTS needing native audio capture), Desktop Buddy (Electron-only), computer-use tools (screenshots, automation). But chat, planner, memory, email integration, web search, skills, Telegram, and most of what you'd want for a daily assistant — all works fine in browser.
Pro tip: run Ollama on the homelab alongside Skales for fully local, private inference with no API costs.

And sorry for the late reply - GitHub Discussions don't notify me reliably and this one slipped past.