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New Linux PDA Announced At CES Today
It looks like the Royal Linux-PDA project has borne fruit. Bill Kendrick writes: "Linux Devices reports that Royal (makers of the DaVinci PDA) have announced yet another Linux-based PDA, called 'Lin@x' (how do you
pronounce that!?). Unlike the DaVinci (and the Agenda VR3 -- Agenda Computing is owned by the same company as Royal), this PDA sports a 206MHz StrongARM, a color screen, and a CompactFlash slot. Planned price is about US$300." According to the PR, it will come bundled with software for Linux desktops as well as for Windows, which would be a nice touch.
Yo Yo Yo!
Shout out to the JR5!
Oh yeah, fp!!!
this pda... can you get a first post with it?
second post, that's what I said biz-iz-niz-natch
"All your base belong to us.
Unless you have more weapons.
Then Don't Shoot!
We come is peace"
When are they going to make a Linux-based toilet? I need EVERYTHING in my house to be based on Linux.
All your PDAs belongs to us.
Tuesday January 8, 5:44 pm Eastern Time
Wendy's Founder Dave Thomas Dies
Dave Thomas, Folksy Founder of Wendy's Hamburger Chain, Dies of Cancer at 69
By KATE ROBERTS
Associated Press Writer
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) -- Dave Thomas built Wendy's Old-Fashioned
Hamburgers into the world's third-largest fast-food chain, but his
real fame came from the more than 800 television ads he made over
the years that featured his folksy, sometimes self-effacing humor.
Wendy's lost its founder and premier pitchman when Thomas, 69,
died of liver cancer early Tuesday at his home in Fort Lauderdale,
Fla. He had been undergoing kidney dialysis for nearly a year and
had quadruple heart bypass surgery in 1996.
``He was the heart and soul of our company,'' said Jack
Schuessler, chairman and chief executive of Wendy's, which is based
in the Columbus suburb of Dublin. ``He had a passion for great
tasting hamburgers, and devoted his life to serving customers great
food and helping those less fortunate in his community.''
The senior chairman of Wendy's International became a household
face when he began pitching his burgers and fries in television
commercials in 1989. The smiling Thomas, always wearing a white
short-sleeved shirt and red tie, touted the virtues of fast food in
humorous ads, often featuring big-name stars such as bluesman B.B.
King and soap opera queen Susan Lucci.
``Golly, what a sweet man,'' said former NASCAR driver Darrell
Waltrip, who filmed two commercials with Thomas. ``We finished one
commercial last fall and I could tell he wasn't feeling well but he
was out there like a trouper. He was out there doing the best he
could.''
The 12-year campaign resonated with customers.
``He was kind of like my grandfather,'' said 43-year-old Stan
Thompson, who bought lunch at a Columbus Wendy's on Tuesday. ``He
was somebody you could trust.''
Though he was a multimillionaire, Thomas' favorite meal never
changed: a Wendy's Single with cheese, mustard, pickles and onion;
fries, a bowl of chili, a Frosty and a diet Coke.
``My general impression was, he was a good guy who really
represented American values. He wasn't some elitist in the business
establishment. He had worked his way up and created this major
corporation,'' said Matt Mecklenborg of Westerville, Ohio, who was
at Wendy's on his lunch break.
Thomas, born July 2, 1932, got his first restaurant job at age
12 as a counterman in Knoxville, Tenn.
While working at a barbecue restaurant in Fort Wayne, Ind., he
met KFC founder Col. Harland Sanders, who became a major influence
in his life.
Thomas came to Columbus in 1962 to take over four failing KFC
restaurants for his boss, who promised him a 45 percent stake in
them if he turned them around. Thomas sold the restaurants back to
KFC for $1.5 million in 1968, making him a millionaire at 35.
He opened his first Wendy's Old Fashioned Hamburgers in Columbus
a year later, naming it after his 8-year-old daughter Melinda Lou --
nicknamed Wendy by her siblings. Thomas said the burgers were
square because Wendy's didn't cut corners.
The company now has 6,000 restaurants worldwide and more than
2,000 Tim Hortons, a Canadian-based coffee and baked-goods chain
acquired in 1996. The two chains have combined sales of more than
$8 billion.
Wendy's got a big boost when Thomas started making commercials.
``People could identify with him. He looks like America -- jolly,
happy and slightly overweight,'' said Al Ries, marketing strategist
at Ries & Ries in Roswell, Ga. ``Fast food isn't serious food.
Serious food is white tablecloths. Fast food is fun food, and Dave
Thomas portrayed that.''
In 1996, Thomas filmed his 500th commercial. The company staged
a lookalike contest that attracted 1,600 entrants vying for the
grand prize: a chance to appear in a commercial with him.
Thomas, who was adopted as an infant, created the Dave Thomas
Foundation for Adoption, an organization focused on raising public
awareness of adoption. The profits from his books, ``Well Done!''
and ``Dave's Way,'' go to the foundation.
He once testified before a congressional committee about the
importance of creating incentives for adoption.
``I know firsthand how important it is for every child to have a
home and loving family,'' he said. ``Without a family, I would not
be where I am today.''
Thomas is survived by his wife, Lorraine, five children and 16
grandchildren. His funeral is scheduled for Friday in Columbus, and
a memorial service is scheduled for Jan. 18 in Fort Lauderdale.
On the Net:
http://www.wendys.com