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Smartphone Suggestions for Text SSH Use?
BinLadenMyHero asks: "The company I work for, administrating their Linux email server, wants to buy me a GSM device so I can access the server 24/7 in case of any trouble. I usually work with a text terminal session over SSH (mutt, vi, bash, screen, etc..). The Nokia 9500 looks the best for the job (640 pixels wide, and a qwerty keyboard), but is a bit large to carry everywhere. Sony Ericsson 910 is smaller, but that small screen size and keyboard can make it less useful. Treo and iPaq was also considered. Any advice on which device to buy?"
I have a ericsson P900 (basically same as P910 without thumb keyboard) and putty is a pita without the flipdown keyboard that is on the 910, although the text is legible (just). The main prob is that the on screen keyboard always overlaps the display.
All the flips on these P series phones are vulnerable (although now much better than P800 ones) The nokia looks to be the better bet as it is more robust and the display would be great, and you will be less likely to leave it somewhere accidentally (no one used to lose their motorola 8500 bricks did they?)
Humorous signatures are over-rated.
Not a phone per se.
Just slip the card into a laptop and you have a full connection. Yes, a laptop is required, but in an emergency, have the full capabilities of a laptop is better than a phone in my opinion.
I've been carrying the laptop in my trunk or backpack for the past year and it's worked great.
My employer is footing the bill, so it's nice to have free internet access wherever I go.
Yep, I never spell check.
More incorrect spellings can be found he
NO Question - Blackberry
I use a TMobile 7230 - they are pretty inexpensive now. Combine with Idokorro Mobile SSH is extremely handy. Much more so than any of the TREO, Ipq etc I have used for remote admin. What sets the BlackBerry apart is the keyboard and special character handling. I have found it simply much easier to enter text into the BB. It really seems as though the Blackberry devices were designed as remote admin tools.
Prior to the BB I used an Ipaq 4550 (the one with a keyboard) with bluetooth and a seperate phone. This worked ok, and was convenient, but it seems that WinCe was designed solely for GUI use. There is no concept of an "escape" key, which limits terminal applications.
To be fail the Treo I used was the old BW model when they first came out with the keyboard. It was actually not too bad, but sill nothing compared to the BB. Compared to the newer Treo's the 7230 lacks the multimedia features, and linux syncronization. I cannot believe there is not more Linux software for this neat little machine, but I fully expect it to come eventually).
The killer features for me are the keyboard, durability (I have dropped in 3-4 feet onto concrete without damage - I dare you to try that with a $500 Treo), battery life (I go 2+ days with out charging. In short i have found this device to be great, I definately see how they earned the nickname crackberry.
-MS2k
While we're on the topic of portable SSH devices, what sort of experiences have people had with the different wireless providers out there? T-mobile, for instance, has an exclusive on the Sidekick II, but their coverage in the northeast is complete crap now. Any one have an opinion about data coverage from Verizon? Sprint? Cingular?
I can only recommend the Nokia 9300 - almost identical to the 9500 in spec, except without wi-fi and a camera. In exchange for these features it is far smaller and much more friendly to carry - it is not much bigger than the Nokia 6310, but a bit chunkier and heavier.
There is an excellent implementation of PuTTY for the phone, and I use it daily. As long as you feel that most connections will be over GRPS instead of needing wi-fi there is no reason to go for the excessive bulk of the Nokia 9500.
-- Pete.
Monochrome - Probably the UK's largest internet BBS
I'd go with a PocketPC Mobile phone and PUTTY, a PD SSH implmenenation.
We're in the same boat. My boss decided to get me and the other folks at my department Nokia 9500s so that we could come to rescue when it's needed, anytime, anywhere (almost). Well I agree that Nokia 9500 is a huge brick. But the boss already ordered the phones. Luckily the nice manager of sales department was in need of a new 9500 too, so I gave mine to him and he ordered a Nokia 9300 for me. What a sweet deal it was! It's basically the same thing as 9500. It runs the same OS minus the WiFi (have no need) and camera (have even less need! Besides the 9500 camera is utter crap anyway) bits. All software is compatible. But it's so much smaller and slimmer! About the size of a regular GSM phone from 4-5 years ago. You can happily carry that in shirt pocket (not a chance with 9500). Due to its compact size, the keyboard is slightly smaller than the one in 9500, but that's not a problem for me at least. The display is also a bit smaller, but the resolution is the same as in 9500. No problems reading mail with mutt etc. in Putty session. Highly recommended device. Especially if you find Nokia 9500 suitable if it only was smaller. Namely this thing is exactly that! Maybe missing WiFi is a show stopper for some people, but if you can handle that, then there's no excuse not to get a Nokia 9300 to handle this kind of job.
IMHO a smartphone is a bad choice. At my work IT complains about the smartphones they have tried. I've had a smart phone, got rid of it, and went with this combo.
Try this instead,
- Sony Ericsson T637 - (bluetooth enabled cell)
- Palm (some sort with bluetooth) - Example - Tungsten Tseries
- PSSH - http://www.sealiesoftware.com/pssh/ (free open source ssh client)
Reason behind this:
1) You get the clarity of a real cell phone. Some smart phones have really bad static on the 'cell phone' side of them.
2) Easy to access when your on the phone with tech support for your servers (IBM, Sun, etc). You don't need to 'hold on.. i'll try that and call you back'.
3) Palm has software for your addresses / phone / internet / email.
Anyways... that's just a thought.
I have one, and it is *not* too large to carry round with you, unless you habitually work in a bikini. A full suite of sysadmin-level tools are available third party, and you're rocking.
The 9300 is smaller, true, but not that much smaller, and while losing the camera is no great shakes, the Wi-Fi is mandatory. Having the higher bandwidth available in a coffeeshop, or just around work or site, for that matter, is something you'd miss if you didn't have it.
These things aren't called communicators for nothing, and don't forget you get a PDA and Office-type apps, too.
I've been a loyal fan of the genre for years, and can't get on with anything that doesn't have a keyboard for fat fingers like mine. I don't do handwriting recognition, either.
It's the *only* choice, my friend, and lucky for you, it is a *damn* good one.
I use a T-Mobile sidekick, and it's saved my bacon.
My cable modem connection at home went down while I was working on the last few stages of what I needed to do remotely. I used the Sidekick's SSH (it's an option but only $10) to SSH to my server and I was able to do everything I needed, even use emacs. My boss was very impressed that I was able to finalize the project using my phone!
Having the flip display/keyboard is really the best design because it enables you to use a large keyboard and have a display big enough to use. I was quite comfortable using emacs on it. Compared to a Blackberry, the keyboard is bigger and the display is bigger, which enormously improves usability.
Web browser support is excellent except that JavaScript is not supported. On the Blackberry, it is, so you might be able to view more sites on the Blackberry. However, JavaScript support on the Blackberry is outstandingly slow so unless you need it bad, I think the Sidekick wins as a web browsing device with the larger screen and keyboard.
Web form support is excellent, especially compared to the somewhat messy implementation on a Palm.
All Smartphone cameras I've seen are miserable, which is a real pity because I would love to be able to use them for casual photography. Not even worth it for that; keep your regular digital camera or buy something like a Canon Digital Elph that easily fits in your pocket.
T-Mobile service is highly variable. Check out a T-Mobile phone in all areas where you are often and make sure it works OK.
Overall, I think the Sidekick wins with the Blackberry an honorable second place. I'd use the Blackberry if you had reception problems with the Sidekick.
For any serious applications, I think having the laptop card as well as a smartphone is an excellent idea. However, laptop batteries run down pretty fast and often it's too awkward to get the laptop out of its case and work on it. I've found that for taking random notes the smartphone is extremely useful for this reason.
Unfortunately, I've never seen the 9500/9300, so I can't compare them.
Hope this helps.
D
Of course you have already asked how much extra they will compensate you for being connected 24/7?
You have haven't you?
I am Slashdot. Are you Slashdot as well?
I have a Treo650, and previously i had a Treo180. I have used both for ssh.
... If you want, there is even a portable keyboard for the treo 650.
The keyboard and screen is clearly not as good as a real computer, but i can manage. Even to type pipe, esc,
Otterbox made something that can protect your device, i use that when i ride my horse.
I go 3-5 days on my treo650, depending on how much i call. But one thing that REALLY bugs me, is that i can not use SSH while i am talking to a client. This is really annoying. Activating SSH drops the call. This is bad, so have this in mind. I dont know if other phones does this. Maybe other SSH applications does not have this problem.
If you can carry a small bag, get a real small laptop with a 8" or 10" display. Maybe a widescreen, because then it is not so big on one side, and may more easily fit a pocket in a jacket.
I wanted bluetooth, so getting the Nokia 9x00 was not an option. I also have a stereo headset which makes it much easier to hear people in noisy places.
If you want quick access without using ssh, just run your company's email server off the Nokia 9500. It looks big enough!
My previous boss got me a Treo 650 and I loved it. The only fault I could find with it was sometimes Sprint's service was slow and the keyboard was almost too small. But I had a good freeware SSH client for it and used it for emergency server repair on more than one occasion.
My current boss bought me a Blackberry 7520. At first I didn't like it as much because the treo's screen is a bit better/brighter and the Treo could do more because it was Palm OS based. However, after carrying the blackberry for a month now, I've got to say that I do like it better. The SSH client I've got for it is as good or better and the service is almost always better than the Treo's. (Faster, more coverage and more stable) The keyboard is much easier to use. In fact the only 2 things I miss from my Treo are the camera and Verichat. (But I don't chat as much as I used to so that's really no great loss)
So if you've got to pick between the two...go Blackberry.
=C=
If you wanted me to agree with you, you shouldn't have given me Mod points.
I wanted to be able to go online anytime 24/7 from anywhere using a small device. In the US, the CDMA providers (Verizon, Sprint) won't sell you a device that can do 802.11[b|g] like the Nokia 9500. I go places where there's no GSM, and I wanted to use wifi where it is available, so no cell provider had a solution for me.
I already have a Verizon CDMA phone that does 1x data (LG 4500) over USB to my Linux laptop - I just wanted something smaller. So I got a Sharp Zaurus 3000. This is a Linux PDA sold only in Japan. It is a flip-open device with a 4G HDD. After much jacking around, this device does what I want. It supports CF expansion cards so I can do wifi and wired ethernet. It has a USB port so I can connect to the Verizon 1x data network. I just took a 4 day vacation and carried only this device, a wifi card, and my cell phone. I ran SSH, used a web browser, read email, etc.
Obviously, buying a $625 device from Japan isn't for everyone, but it worked for me, for now.
I've been using this phone since February and it's the best gadget I've bought in a long time. Not to mention absolutely essential for me, a sysadmin team (of one person) providing 24x7 support for our Linux servers.
Previously I had a Palm T3 and a bluetooth phone: too bulky to carry everywhere, no keyboard, too small screen and no multitasking. This last point's the killer when you're logged into an SSH session and have just SSH'ed to somewhere else and need to refer to a web page or whatever for a moment but switching away from ssh would close the connections.
What's so good about the 9300?
Basically it's the dog's danglies for mobile system administration. And quite a bit smaller than the Nokia 9500 - who needs Wi-Fi and a camera anyway.
It has a few small problems: no vibrate, a bit slow, can't copy and paste in PuTTY, not so many third-party apps as Palm or Series 60 ..... but that's about it.
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The benefit of the Treo IMO is its commonality as a platform; there are multiple options for Palm SSH clients. I currently use TuSSH, which is SSH2 compliant, supports identity files, and special characters, and has display modes up to 40x12.
Terrorists can attack freedom, but only Congress can destroy it.
I use it so much with a BT enabled phone (GPRS/3G). Remote Desktop is standard installed; connect to your desktop and have _all_ software at hand, always. SSH client also available for direct access without remote desktopping.
I use a Treo 650 with the free "pssh". Works great. Has a 320px wide screen and fits comfortably in a front pocket.