Slashdot Mirror

This is not all that new, but I didn't see it here yet so... Agenda Computing has fired its CEO, Bradley LaRonde for unspecified reasons. For those who don't know, Mr. LaRonde was directly responsible for the first linux-from-scratch PDA, the Agenda VR3 as well as Linux-VR which is at the heart of the VR3. He still continues to develop for the platform AFAIK, but wasn't ever told why he was fired. Sad news for the linux PDA community.

hopefully we'll have a Linux PDA soon too.

• Linux VR includes support for Vadem Clio, Casio, and more.
• Linux MIPS Pages includes info on the Casio E-10 and E-100, Compaq Aero, Everex Freestyle, and Vadem Clio

There's a project going on now to port Linux to the MIPS processor, with complete emphasis on the mini, till now CE type devices. The Clio is the big one, in fact. The folks on the project actually have a Linux Kernel running in ROM on a Clio, I believe!

(Cooler people than me have the details here)

The depressing hang-ups at this point are really:

• Power sucks- the Clio isn't exactly long life (look ma, I'm on topic :)
• The fact that Linux isn't really built for living in in such cramped quarters (except maybe now it is- any word on Mobile Linux from our fearless leader?)
• The lack of little, artsy apps in a light framework to run on the thing (except I hear Squeak is going well for you Dynabooky types, and then there's always the Gimp, if it could be pared down... And its only a matter of time till somebody smart builds a Flash editor, now that the format is open...And some professional music sequencing software is coming out here, too, some of it has to be smallish...And then there's film editing stuff..never mind)
• umm.. did I mention power?

The Clio's design may be copyrighted (You'll have to ask Vadem about that...)

> I think it would be sooo awesome to have COLOR x on my portable palmtop! any ideas / suggestions?

Well, it won't do you much good if you have a palm pilot, but:

http://www.linuxce.org

has information about porting Linux to CE devices, and

http://www.ltc.com/linux-mips/

has some really good info about the MIPS port, specifically (seems like most of the devices use MIPS, and it seems to be the furthest along of the ports).

There are working kernels (with shell and networking!), and they are working on getting the GUI running (it seems to be already running on at least one of the developers' machines).

No, you can't rate a system on raw power, but you can't rate it purely on the OS, either. Palms have a great OS, great software (if you can call 2-color GUI software at 160x160 great), but nowhere to go due to lack of hardware capabilities.

PsPC's have hardware thats literally orders of magnitude better in respect, great software (much of which simply isn't doable on Palms), but a mediocre OS (note that Linux is in the process of being ported). And they're not that heavy. The E-100 is 9 oz. while the Palm VII is 6.7 oz.

Plus there are PsPC's with screens that are easy to view in sunlight, e.g. the Compaq Aero 2150 and the HP Jornada 430se.

Anyway for my money the Casio E-100 was a clear winner.

Yes, this FreePad is DECT - but GPRS is truly mobile. I didn't say that the FreePad used GPRS. If it did, it would be a lot more interesting, but then GPRS isn't in use yet except at one BSC (Base Station Controller) at T-Mobil in Germany, I think.



I'd prefer a real notebook though. Those Vadem Clio WinCE boxes they recently ported Linux to will be nice, too, at least when they get an X server running on it.


%japh = (
'name' => 'Niklas Nordebo', 'mail' => 'niklas@nordebo.com',
'work' => 'www.pipe-dd.com', 'phone' => '+46-708-444705'