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Lycoris Announces Desktop/LX Tablet Edition
penguinrenegade writes "Lycoris has announced the release of a new Tablet Edition of their popular Desktop/LX Operating System. There are several screenshots in the tour, and it looks like a really polished system, including some of the things that you'd really need in a Tablet, like the virtual keyboard, actually working. It appears according to one page that there are already Tablets in production by some manufacturer, too. So much for Bill Gates and his vision of only Microsoft on a Tablet, eh?"
Just because Microsoft created the TabletPC does not mean that it needs Linux as the competition. The TabletPC will fail without Linux's help because there is a very small niche for the product.
I've managed to uncover the manufacturer - their web site is here
Rumor has it that there are stylus limitations, however.
Don't you know /. ers require immediate gratification!?!
... of Windows XP Tablet Edition.
Anyone remember that? 2000, I think.
A few months later, the company that won Best of Show for their BeOS-based webpad switched to Windows CE...
BeDoper
There are many tablet PCs without real keyboards built in.
Hard to tell but it sounds like they are supporting only a resistive technology for the touch screen. RF (such as in Wacom tablets) is much better for an interface. You get hover, pressure sensitivity and MUCH higher resolution.
Plus a side switch and eraser.
There was an article a while back about linux on an Acer Tablet PC so I know it can be done.
I don't understand why the 'evolution' of Linux means that it become more and more like Windows. If Windows is the bad (not that I'm saying it is) why do all Linux apps try to emulate it. From OpenOffice.org to Licoris, why are we stuck using Windows Graphic Design and Interfaces. I mean if you really want to copy a GUI why not look to Mac OS X?
Strater
strater.ca
To display the abilities of applications written specifically for Desktop/LX Tablet Edition, Lycoris has created Tablet XGalaga, a customized version of the arcade-inspired open source program. Now you can experience the power at your fingertips!
In related news, Microsoft commented on the perceived threat to their tablet PC platform:
"Even though this is a pretty slick move on their part, our developers are working right now on a new and improved version of TabletMinesweeper. Not only will it feature much bigger buttons, we will also include improved 16-color graphics and at least two different sound effects. That oughtta show them who's boss."
But seriously, if you want to show off the power of your high-tech bleeding edge computing platform, don't use GALAGA, for god's sake!
I asked for a refund - and got my monkey back.
I, for one, am looking forward to the day when I can recline on my couch and surf the web or read an ebook with the same ease I now read a paperback. Yeah, you can do that with a laptop, but it's awkward. You don't always need a keyboard.
Please tell me Lycoris' Tablet supports WACOM pads...
I think a lot of people complain about the way in which many distributions copy Windows XP for their default UI's, but I think it is a great step towards helping the user become accustomed to using Linux.
Besides, there isn't a law that dictates you have to use Lycoris...If you really want a Linux tablet PC I'm sure there are other projects out there, or that it would be pretty easy to customize a distribution to run on a Tablet PC.
It looks like the OS can be downloaded from http://www.lycoris.org. Has anyone here tried it? They've pretty much taken KDE, reskinned it, added a network browser and packaged it "For the whole family".
Javascript + Nintendo DSi = DSiCade
This is not meant as a flame, but take it as you will.
/.ers feel the need to have the herd mentality about products and politics especially? Are that many people coming here to have their opinions spoon-fed to them that they have to have a stamp of approval on products WE think are good (or reject those that WE feel are bad)?
Why do
Whatever happened to reading sources and forming a coherent opinion all your own?
Or am I expecting too much?
"Life is tough but we're tougher. You only get what you give, so give all that you've got." --Tony LaRussa
Free software is not about what you think it is about. It's about freedom for the software itself.
Free software is not about giving away software for free. If you can take free software, and bundle it in such a way that you have an edge, and can make money off it... that's great. Go for it.
Yes, Lindows did do a lot of work to make linux get out there into people's homes. They have a deal with a MAJOR outlet to sell lindows preloaded on pcs. That sounds good to me.
It's not the job of everyone who works with open source to "promote open source". Not everyone is a holy crusader.
Lindows has caused a lot of people to use linux who otherwise wouldn't, becuase of how their products are sold. They abide by the licenses of the software they are given, and found a way to profit from it. That's not something to complain about.. and frankly, all the complaining every time someone makes money off open source while still complying with licenses is what gives open source a bad name.
Do I think lindows is technically a great feat? Hell no, but I don't see anything wrong with what they are doing. If you release something under GPL, you should not be upset when someone takes it, packages it, and sells it. Your license, after all, permitted it.
If the authors did not want people to sell or use their products in this manner, the licenses would refect that fact.
Ehh... may not quite THAT bad, but you're close.
I think a properly done tablet PC would take hold in special markets (such as package delivery), where the devices used now are much more limited than a full-blown PC.
(Look at the wireless slabs carried around by UPS drivers, for example. Sure, they get the job done pretty well - but I bet much more information could be presented to a driver if it was an actual tablet PC. Perhaps, an instant display of package tracking results for the current customer the driver is doing a daily pick-up for?)
Generally though, I agree. Tablet computing is a solution in search of a problem -- and it's got just enough "cool" factor to convince retailers it's worth trying to sell, time and time again.
I've been working with the Compaq TC1000 TabletPC for a while. We got in several for the office and I got one for me to look at. At first it just seems to be a small notebook...but once you use it for its intended purpose you'll see it has advantages. The longer battery life is nice. The Compaq screen can detach from the keyboard to make it smaller and lighter. I normally carry it like a legal pad. The handwriting recognition is EXCELLENT and I can't write worth a damn. It's much better than any PDA I've used, and this is without even using any special type of writing. It's also comfy to sit back on the couch and read your favorite sites with a small device.
Give me a good 16 hours of battery life and I'll be real happy. The only real downside I've found is the screen. Since it is a touch screen it is not as clear as a normal LCD monitor. But, at least on the Compaq, it never gets fingerprints on it like most PDAs.
Because all I've been waiting for is a crappy on-screen keyboard that takes up 60% of my 10 inches of screen real-estate. Long gone will be the days of handwriting recognition that is unthinkably accurate (after a week of training).... Now I can switch to Linux and peck at 2mm buttons with a stylus that is accurate to half of that at best. Way to go!
Seriously, I'm afraid that this falls into the category of products that make "Joe User" think that Linux (+GNU) is a cheap knock-off of Windows. I mean, the functionality is truely useful but it really doesn't warrant the creation of a separate product. To do so only puts its shortcomings in the spotlight.
>>a) Bullshit. The average laptop is only worth about $250 in parts bought in bulk. Tablets are only slightly more expensive due to the touchscreen. But the form factor reduces the cost.
You can barely even get an LCD monitor for $250 retail (lowest LCD price on pricewatch is $196 for a 14"), let alone the motherboard, processor, hard drive, battery, CD/DVD drive, keyboard, trackpad, case, power adaptor, and RAM. I know things are a lot cheaper in bulk, but I don't see them becoming cheap enough to justify your $250.
>>b) Companies exisiting for profit is the worst approach. They should exist for the customer. We should be their masters, not the other way around.
Then move into a commune.
>>c) Because people have no choice but to pay more than $400. If a company got wise and decided to make a laptop for $300, they'd make a killing because everybody and his brother would buy one. Even if the quality wasn't as high. Smart people are more concerned with cost than anything else. The sheep who pay too much for a status symbol are just idiots. Sounds like you just might be an idiot.
IF such a company would make a killing, I'm sure that you could start it. We'll see how you do. You sell $250 worth of stuff at $300 and we'll see if you sell enough to make it worth your time and the risk.
I checked the site, and I couldn't find any mention of handwriting recognition. Does anyone have any idea what the quality of the Lycoris' (or another Linux distro for tablet PCs) handwriting recognition quality is?
Also, where could I buy this, and what would it cost?
Sigs are like bumper stickers.
The ability to play with the UI using just a pen does not equal a Tablet PC.
Actually, it would prove rather difficult.
In fact, the Linux ACPI development project has declared it impossible.
I couldn't find the direct quote, but this sums up the situation.
Basically, the framework for notifying each device driver that the system is sleeping/waking up is not possible with 2.4. There were major changes in 2.5 to add support for this.
There is a WineX add-on for games.
You can download a copy at LinuxISO.org.
I'd have to say that I've tried Lycoris and I'm rather impressed with it. It seems to be somewhat picky about what hardware it works with, but otherwise it is a fast, no-nonsense desktop. There is one well-chosen app for each task you could need, and the menu layout is simple and straightforward. I think they were even using Mozilla as the default browser before RedHat was. Everything is designed to look and work like, say, Windows 98; so it is an easy transition for almost anyone. The install is also very quick and easy; this is the one that lets you play solitare while it's copying files. There aren't really any installation options; you get the default install, but it will all fit on a 1gb disk.
The only thing I can't really gauge is whether it would be as easy to upgrade/modify as a distro like Lindows that is based on Debian. Lycoris originally didn't offer development tools for download, but I think their new version has them. I would be somewhat worried, though, about the long-term financial viability of some of these smaller desktop distributions.
I also used to think their productivity pack was something like AbiWord and Gnumeric because of the goofy pictures on their site, but I read somewhere that it is a modified version of OpenOffice.org.
"I assumed blithely that there were no elves out there in the darkness"
They are not pulling a Robertson and keeping their tools closed-source. Aside from Iris, their easy-install software gallery, they have released source on everything that makes Lycoris Lycoris. I would rather give an absolute beginner Lycoris than, say, Mandrake. You can get lost in Mandrake if you are a newbie.
I worry about the future of Lycoris because of this hideous, screwed-up SCO mess. I worry because what Joseph and his buddies have put together is really, really good, and they had the "it just works" thing down even before Mandrake got the hang of it. Yeah, Lycoris is designed to be Windows-refugee friendly. It doesn't mean what they are doing doesn't have value.
If you want to see the real face of Lycoris, stop in at http://www.lycoris.org/ and check out the community behind it. There's some good people there. And nobody will tell you to "man man" there.
Knowledge is power. Knowledge shared is power multiplied.
It was me who modbombed you, because you disabled comments in your journal entry! No go back and enable them before I rape your comments further!
(and befriend me, too. I have no friends and it depresses me so much)