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New Sharp 3D Notebook Available with Linux

Posted by timothy on from the 3D-is-so-conventional-physics dept.

Anonymous Writer writes "Earlier this month, Sharp released the Actius AL3DU, the second generation laptop in its line of autostereo display products. EmperorLinux, Inc. is distributing it with Linux pre-installed, dubbing it the Molecule."

17 of 163 comments (clear)

  1. I think this is the start of something new by Dancin_Santa · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I was going to say "Bah, what's the use", but this is actually really cool.

    Put aside that it's running Linux for a minute. Who cares what software is running it? Not important.

    What is important is that we are finally moving away, on a hardware level, from flat, 2 dimensional displays. While the "Help me Obi-one Kenobi" 3D displays are still a long way off (or disappeared a long, long time ago), this is an immense step forward.

    1. Re:I think this is the start of something new by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny
      While the "Help me Obi-one Kenobi" 3D displays are still a long way off (or disappeared a long, long time ago), this is an immense step forward.
      Ah yes but EmperorLinux, Inc. is the distributor. May the dark side of the force be with you.
    2. Re:I think this is the start of something new by CaymanIslandCarpedie · · Score: 4, Funny

      Me too! I'm always skeptical of new claims of 3D, but then I looked at the Sharp marketing materials! Did you see the way the dolphins are coming right out of the screen!!!

      I love dolphins!!!! I'm going to buy one of these right now!

      --
      "reality has a well-known liberal bias" - Steven Colbert
  2. 3d post by MarkoNo5 · · Score: 4, Funny

    Sorry, couldn't resist :)

  3. Drop Windows Add $500???!?! by TheLoneCabbage · · Score: 5, Interesting


    How exactly does Emporer Linux justify chargin $500 more for a computer without a licencsed OS?

    I'm not great fan of Windows, but why should I pay $500 so that some screw up can spend 15min installing a version of Linux I don't like (vs one I do like)?

    I think I've just stoped wondering why linux as a desktop OS has never taken off.

    --
    I would rather be ashes than dust!
    1. Re:Drop Windows Add $500???!?! by Mjlner · · Score: 5, Interesting
      How exactly does Emporer Linux justify chargin $500 more for a computer without a licencsed OS?

      They justify it by doing stuff to it. Whatever stuff is and whatever pricetag they choose to put on stuff is their business. Your business is to decide whether or not you want to pay for stuff.


      Their version of linux is just an option. You don't need to buy from them. Some people do want to pay for a pre-installed OS. And don't forget the PHB's who don't linke the sound of "cheap software/freeware". (Yes, I know the difference between freeware and free software.)

      --
      Lemon curry???
    2. Re:Drop Windows Add $500???!?! by FauxPasIII · · Score: 5, Informative

      > I'm not great fan of Windows, but why should I pay $500 so that some screw up can spend 15min installing
      > a version of Linux I don't like (vs one I do like)?

      Somebody didn't rtfa (yeah yeah, I must be new here). First, we install all the major distros standard, and will do any
      distro you like for an additional fee. I'm the maintainer of our Debian and Ubuntu installers, for instance. And, we
      "justify" our markup because we put hundreds of hours of work into building a custom kernel for the machine that
      supports everything on it. That's winmodems, wireless, all the power management features, etc. When necessary,
      we write the code ourselves (and submit it upstream.)

      We also provide technical support to all our customers, and frankly I suspect that's why most of them keep coming
      back to us.

      --
      25% Funny, 25% Insightful, 25% Informative, 25% Troll
  4. what software is positioned to take advantage? by harlemjoe · · Score: 4, Interesting

    can anyone detail software optmized to take advantage of the 3D display technology

    I've never heard of any software (CAD/CAM included) that is optimized for 3D glasses -- what utility does the A3CLU add to the computing experience?

    And what linux apps are optimized for this? It would seem a bit of a waste if the only 3D tools were, say, KDE Widgets...

    Besides the cool factor that is...

    --
    shooting is not too good for my enemies
    1. Re:what software is positioned to take advantage? by delire · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Alot of medical imaging, chemistry software for Linux exists, and also alot of proprietary animation/modelling software, like Maya, which can exploit stereo imaging. The freely available Blender can also exploit it, as part of the render chain:

      http://ltc2.smm.org/visualize/node/64

      The real question is not what Linux software uses it, but why and when you'd want to use it in the first place. I remember a few years ago a man tried to sell me a pair of USB stereoscopic glasses at a game development conference. He just couldn't believe it when I told him that immersion doesn't necessarily have anything to do with being inside the medium.

      I see this laptop will be marketed at imaging professionals needing a mobile presentation device that serves a larger audience than the standard LCD; Polarisation/blacking distortion is annoying when you're trying to sell your good-looking wares.

  5. Re:Good choice of distros by 0x461FAB0BD7D2 · · Score: 3, Informative

    Except they do have to. The difference in price between the Molecule and the Actius AL3DU is approximately $500. For a Linux install.

    It's not appealing to anyone.

  6. Win-modems by szlevente · · Score: 4, Informative

    The software win-modems on the Kiwi, Raven, Toucan, SilverComet, and Rhino series systems are fully supported in Linux with win-modem drivers.
    They just forgot to add that there is no free Linux driver for software win-modems with Conexant chipsets. The best I could find was at http://www.linuxant.com/drivers/, with a free version limited to 14.4 kbps. Add $14.95 to the price, if you want your modem to work.

  7. Supposed high-end laptop without a wireless card? by expro · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Quite a hefty price for a laptop without a wireless card. Putting good wireless service into a Linux laptop would be a bigger step forward.

  8. Re:Problem is... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Informative

    that's because there is no discount.

    first off. Nobody is fucking stupid enough to pay the full $300 for Windows. Only end-users get charged that. OEM's like Dell and other manufacturers have contracts and pay around 30-34 dollars per copy.

    Second off, Emperor Linux doesn't get the Sharp without Windows. They buy it from the company with Windows installed just like you and I do, and just install Linux over it and sell it as a 'linux notebook'. If you look closely you'd notice that dual boot doesn't cost extra (or shouldn't)

    It's not a Linux notebook per say, like HP's Linux notebook, it's a Windows notebook that has been formatted with Linux install.

    Saves you the trouble of getting everything working, but that is about it.

    The peripherals? Same as anything else.

  9. Gah price! by allanc · · Score: 5, Interesting

    You know, I want to support Linux vendors, but the model with Linux costs *$500* more than the version with Windows direct from Sharp. That seems a little pricey for a free OS, eh?

    (And I have to assume the sort of person who'd spend $3500 on a laptop to run Linux on either knows how to install Linux themselves or has people paid to do it for them)

    1. Re:Gah price! by FauxPasIII · · Score: 3, Informative

      > You know, I want to support Linux vendors, but the model with Linux costs *$500* more than the version with
      > Windows direct from Sharp. That seems a little pricey for a free OS, eh?

      I responded to this above, but briefly:

      o) All our laptops work out of the box with Linux. Wireless, power management, winmodems, etc. all work. Most
      of our customers don't have time to spend half a week getting their laptops up and running, but they do need
      Linux for a variety of reasons.

      o) We provide Linux tech support to our customers.

      --
      25% Funny, 25% Insightful, 25% Informative, 25% Troll
  10. Saw this at LinuxWorld by tweakt · · Score: 4, Informative

    The guys at Emperor Linux had one on display at LinuxWorld in Boston last month. It was creating a mob scene of people wanting to check it out. It's actally quite slick. The only thing is, it is very viewer-position dependent. Meaning, you have to be sitting right in the sweet spot to get the full effect. If you're a little off, you can still see it, but it's not as pronounced and you start to see some funkiness with the colors. The 3D mode can be switched on and off and in 2D mode, it looked usable (but 2D res looked pretty low to me, I'll stick with my SXGA+ thinkpad thanks).

  11. EmperorLinux puts out a good product by defile · · Score: 3, Interesting

    I got the smallest of the small Sharp Actius laptops and they pre-loaded it with Debian Linux at my request. They don't just slap a Linux distro on and push it out the door, they make sure everything works as advertised, customizing whatever they need to to make sure it does. The modem works! Software suspend works!

    The model I got comes with a really small battery, and I bought an optional larger battery that has more life, but has a big buldge in it. The unit itself has no removeable disk drives -- everything is attached via USB. It comes with a docking station which allows the laptop to be used as a USB hard drive while it's powered off. Way cool.

    EmperorLinux provides a detailed manual on making the most of your laptop through the Linux environment. But enough about the geek stuff.

    The most important thing of all: when I pull this baby out at Starbucks, the chicks all turn their heads. A Dell doesn't do that. A Titanium Powerbook doesn't do that (anymore).

    Score!