Petite MP3 Player Boots PCs Into Linux

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Petite MP3 Player Boots PCs Into Linux

Posted by timothy on Thursday October 14, 2004 @11:41PM from the now-that's-a-good-idea dept.

An anonymous reader submits "A French company has created a teensy MP3 player that also boots PCs into Linux. The 1.7-inch diameter, half-ounce Medaillon (way smaller than an iPod) has been around for a while, but 128MB and 256MB models of the Z2 version are now supplied with Shinux, an embedded Linux distribution that includes lots of cool open source applications." The list of included apps, from AbiWord to Xchat, is pretty impressive for a device intended primarily as a music player.

9 of 215 comments (clear)

New? by catbertscousin · 2004-10-14 23:42 · Score: 5, Interesting

So... it's like a jump drive you can boot from?

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No good deed goes unpunished. - Avon, Blake's 7
1. Re:New? by maxwell+demon · 2004-10-15 00:10 · Score: 5, Funny
  
  Apache ?
  Who needs this on a key ???
  
  The Apache is there to protect the key: If anyone who isn't allowed to tries to get the key, he'll be shot down with arrows, then scalped.
  
  --
  The Tao of math: The numbers you can count are not the real numbers.
This is player is made by Korean EraTech by i4u · 2004-10-14 23:50 · Score: 5, Informative

See this Coin-Sized MP3 Player

It also has been OEMed by Virgin Electronics and is available at Target. The only funky thing with this french OEM is that it has a Linux on it.
Re:Recursive MP3 player by OblongPlatypus · 2004-10-14 23:58 · Score: 5, Informative

And the answer is: Yes, it does. From the list of apps:
...
# tightVNC remote access
# XMMS multimedia player
# xterm X console

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-- If no truths are spoken then no lies can hide --
Re:The ultimate hacker tool by blowdart · 2004-10-15 00:01 · Score: 5, Insightful

Err. Right. Any smart admin has disabled access without a password, so you can only shut it down by the pulling the power, any smart admin has passworded the BIOS and told it to boot off the hard drive, and any smart admin has disabled the USB ports on a server anyway.
Other than that though it's not a hacker tool, there's no blue LED.
Re:The ultimate hacker tool by Errtu76 · 2004-10-15 00:06 · Score: 5, Insightful

Any smart net admin would lock the door to the server room so none of this is possible.
Re:MP3? by piquadratCH · 2004-10-15 00:47 · Score: 5, Insightful

With Linux installed, why is it using proprietary mp3 and not ogg?
The player itself probably has only a dirt cheap mp3 decoder chip onboard. The ability to boot Linux (or some other OS) has nothing to do with the player's abilities. Every USB mass-storage device can boot an OS (but not every PC can boot from a USB device).
Re:Interesting idea by andrewweb · 2004-10-15 01:07 · Score: 5, Insightful

"Bear in mind that the French percieve the USA as bullies, who throw their weight around and fight dirty when they can't get their own way"

Actually, I think you'll find it's not just the French who think that....
Re:Way smaller? by frodo+from+middle+ea · 2004-10-15 01:14 · Score: 5, Interesting

How about this MP3 player.
It is actully smaller than iPod, comes in 20GB and 40GB versions, and comes with std battery life of 14 hrs and an extended one comes with battery life of 35 HOURs.
It shows up as a USB mass storage on your PC, so can be used in windows, linux , OSX natively (any OS that supports USB mass storage). Doesn't need a stupid s/w to organize your MP3 collection, works by scanning the harddisk.
And it plays MP3, WMAs, Flac, and most of all Oggs.
Much more sturdier than iPod. Has FM tuner and can record from FM or buil-in or in-line Microphone.
The only thing it doesn't have is a interface with an online music store, But that's not a problem for someone like me , who already has more that 400 CDs.
P.S. I am not a spokesman for the company, just a satisfied customer.

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for the last time people, I am "frodo from middle eaRTH", not "middle eaST".