Slashdot Mirror
Palmtop Nirvana?
cakefool asks: "There seems to be a Slashdot article every day about a new palmtop/subnotebook/digitalwhoojerammy, and without fail people complain it doesn't have what they want. Let's do this the other way around - what do you need in a handheld computing device, seriously? I ummed and ahhed for ages before finally ordering a Psion 5mx, and it does everything I need it to, other than play Doom(1), and is a hell of a lot cheaper than the JVC micronotebook, and smaller than a budget laptop, with a much longer battery life than both." What features do you look for in a handheld/palmtop computing device?
Yeah and they're all ads for handtops.com from CaptainJam. Check out his profile. He's had three handtop submissions accepted in the last two weeks. The Captain has authored all the articles on the main page of handtops.com as well. It's clear to me that handtops.com belongs to the recently registered (UID 802805 and his first post came the day after his first submission.) CaptainJam of Slashdot.org and that his submissions are a way to drive traffic to his new site. Come clean CaptainJam.
Support the First Amendment. Read at -1
No really. If you need a PDA, and you're a Linux geek like me, get one of these.
Yes, the default half-translated rom sucks. It'll at least let you boot the system and see the beautiful 640x480 screen though. An amazing sight to behold at over 200dpi. After you're done drooling, go get pdaXrom, follow the instructions, and get yourself a real desktop. Here's what mine looks like, using ROX as the desktop manager (with a nice .hack//SIGN wallpaper I found someplace). You have a number of choices, but I use (prepackaged) gvim as my editor, and sylpheed for mail (pretty much the same as my actual desktop!). You can use FireFox and Thunderbird for web/email if you really want (check the screenshots for more drooling material). I use the little Dillo browser personally, because it's ultra fast, but the choice is yours.
No, it doesn't have builtin wifi. It does have a CF slot so you can stick your own card in there, and doing so hasn't annoyed me yet. The biggest benefit (besides the amazing screen, keyboard, ability to use X, and general design) is the battery lasts quite awhile. I charged it last Friday (before PAX... where were you?), and it's only just down to 50% with "regular use". (On my old 5500, I'd have to charge it every day or so with the same use, and that's without wifi.)
This makes a killer PDA. It does most things a small Linux laptop would, and it fits in your pocket. If that's what you need, this delivers.
Don't think of it as a flame---it's more like an argument that does 3d6 fire damage