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Micro ATX and Linux?
Chasuk asks: "I work at a large computer retailer in a college town, and I've finally convinced the powers-that-be to sell PCs with Linux pre-installed. The catch is, it will only be installed on Micro ATX machines, which require half-height everything, and we can't find a source of half-height Linux compatible PCI modems. Even those universal, generic half-height replacement hangers/brackets would be acceptable, but I can't find those, either. Can anyone on Slashdot help? "
Just on a whim I did some searching to find an internal PCI modem for my PC. What I saw was rather dismaying. Very few PCI modems aren't Winmodems nowadays, and the ones that aren't are upwards of $50. Not the kind of price you want to add to a pre-built machine.
Band Saw
Ha, ha! Nobody ever says Italy.
external USB modems?
Also I once saw a thing that converts a PCI slot on a desktop machine into a PCMCIA slot. You could get a half-height one of those and put a laptop modem in it.
Or just use micro-atx motherboards that have builtin modems.
The GeekNights podcast is going strong. Listen!
Micro ATX does not require everything to be half-height. That may be the case (pun not intended) with some Mini-ITX cases, but there are quite a few Micro ATX small tower cases that support full-height, half-length PCI and AGP cards, smaller ATX power supplies and standard drives (be it 5.25" or 3.5").
The main difference between standard ATX and Micro ATX is the "length" of the board, which determines the number of slots, usually PCI. ATX gives you a maximum of 7 slots to occupy (be it 0-1 AGP + 1-6 PCI) where as Micro ATX can have at most 3 slots to occupy. Check out formfactors.org for more information.
Why does it have to be installed on Micro ATX? I personally dont see you selling a lot of these, since (even if you dont want to hear this) the average Joe User is not going to be very receptive to a machine with Linux pre-installed. Make a cheap EXPANDABLE machine with Linux pre-installed, and you are going to appeal to a much larger base of users.
My user number is prime. Is yours?
Seriously, external serial modems are ALWAYS Linux compatible, easier to deal with, and usually of high quality.
Lex orandi, lex credendi.
I work at a large computer retailer in a college town, and I've finally convinced the powers-that-be to sell PCs with Linux pre-installed. The catch is, it will only be installed on Micro ATX machines, which require half-height everything, and we can't find a source of half-height Linux compatible PCI modems.
This sounds like a Dilbert comic. Marketing getting way ahead of research/development.
On a related note, I've convinced my local pizza joint to buy pizza boxes from me that keep the pie warm. I just have to invent it.
College town, not college campus. Not everyone in a college town is a student, and not all students live on campus.
Goto http://linmodems.org/ and find a "Winmodem" that meets your specs.
at http://start.at/modem lists severak Taicom low profile PCI modems as "Winmodem chipset with Linux driver that must be purchased. "
There are lots of real PCMCIA modems too, so the PCMCIA adapter would work too.
Assembly is the reverse of disassembly.
It's more important to have an option of buying a box without any operating system pre-loaded and offer a discount to do so. i.e.
- Windows XP Home
- Windows XP Pro
- Linux (RedHat Whatever)
- None -- THIS IS WHAT WE NEED!!!
I doubt many average computer users would know what to do with Linux if they got it. I also doubt many of those who want it want it preloaded with whatever distribution you decide to load.
Offer some REAL modems that don't require software to run. i.e. a modem with an actual chip that does the work!
The only reason WinModems are successful is because they work (on Windows) and they cost slightly less. This is no big deal for a few machines, but it really adds up when you sell hundreds of thousands as DELL does monthly.
With broadband, modems are becoming more and more obsolete anyway. Sure there are many who still use them but not nearly as many as there once were. I personally haven't used a modem in years... I honestly haven't needed to.
What is really driving Broadband among those who would not have used it before is VPN and companies who are allowing their employee's to VPN into the network. I would say that most of the corporate users who don't have a computer at home except for their work laptop, are actually buying cable and DSL connections just so they can work at home.
It was just rolled out where I work recently, and there have been hundreds of users all getting signed up for broadband services. More and more they hear by word of mouth from coworkers on how great it is and they call us to get it setup. Most of them don't own a personal computer, they use only their work computer. Those that do own computers have very old computers. Few have up-to-date computers and few have broadband but tell them they can work at home just about as fast as it is in the office (faster for some WAN users) and they buy it on the spot!
Add wireless into the mix, i.e. they can work on a comfortable couch without wires and keep a broadband connection to work going and they freak out and want to do it right away!
Corporate America will soon be accelerating Work At Home as soon as the numbers of employee's able to do it reaches critical mass. They can save a fortune on office space. Heck, I could be doing my job from home if they would just get me a VoIP phone that connects to the company PBX.