It wouldn't work out of the 'box' for that, but you could add a MAS3507 (MP3 decoder) and a DAC to get an audio signal. Then just write a little program to send the MP3 bitstream to the decoder.
The CPU is the same one the Palm Pilot uses. It's a great chip for embedded stuff like that. It also needs no cooling, perfect for a car. The LCD drive capability is nice too. Maybe one more chip to control a touchscreen and you've almost got a Pilot.
While I do agree with you, they don't seem to want Toshiba to config the computer "to your exact specifications". They want Toshiba to honor the EULA, which states quite clearly that if you do not agree with the terms of the license you should return the unused software to your vendor for a refund. I am not a lawyer, so I don't know the legalities, but I think you misunderstand the desire of those posting here.
They may just want the option of buying a Laptop without Windows installed. That SHOULD be a choice. They would have LESS work to do since there is no software to install. Just boot a DOS floppy with a burn-in program to make sure the hardware works and box it up. They DO burn them in, I hope. Yes, it changes the assembly line somewhat, and adds what ammounts to another product to thier line. But it wouldn't have to be done much. This would be great for customers, however, I agree it is Toshiba's decision.
Personally, I will not buy a laptop simply because I can't get arround the MS tax and I cannot just buy parts and build one, like I can with my clone desktops. For me, it would be a toy though, my portable needs are well served by my Palm Pilot. That may change in the future though, and if I can't get a new one without the MS tax at the very least, I will buy a used one to offset the cost.
My time is my own, and it's worth spending on something like this if I decide to.
6 layer board: May or may not be needed. 4 may do it. I would guess It would cost about $200-$300 for a one-off. I would have to consult some sources, but I have spoken with a few boardhouses on just such a design.
Assembly: Who cares? I can do that, not for 1k units, but for a single, or even a few boards it's no problem. I *ENJOY* working on circuits.
Parts: Not much. An ARM chipset is about $50, and that's the most expensive part. I probably wouldn't even bother with it for a device strictly for audio. I'd use a smaller CPU and a MAS3507 hardware decoder for the MP3. I would like a full computer in the car though... and the ARM is a good choice. I'd guess about $100-$300 for parts. That's if I can't get samples, which I probably could for a lot of the smaller parts.
Unique hardware: So? It's for me, and I don't care if everyone else likes it or not. I don't need any free help from the community, however, I would open the design specs and let anyone use it. Much like the GPL.
SBC: No, it doesn't have a display. I could get a good LCD display for under $100. (6" square type there) DIN case, boo-hoo. I'll go find a dead car radio and replace the guts. A family member has one I'm sure they would give me if I asked nice;). The drives are a minimal expense. Hell, I could shock mount an IDE changer for under $100 and have a 6 CD changer. That wouldn't fit in the dash, but that's ok with me. I would probably use the laptop CDROM I mentioned earlier though. The software is dead simple, just hack existing code. Power filtering, PLEASE, a DC/DC converter and a good filter cap should level that out for about $30.
I probably wouldn't be able to beat the price, not on a whole unit, but I could do it under $5k. And I would get what I want. Since nobody else seems to be making a CD player for MP3 I may just do this. I would probably use the SBC for mine though, I can get a complete board for $400 and not have to bother with designing a board and soldering all the parts. And that board would fit in a DIN case. Use the parallel port for a keyboard and basic display and all is well.
This discussion is rapidly getting childish. If you're not interested in a CD based product, then fine. Nobody is making you buy one. However, some of us ARE interested. I see no reason to continue this if you don't have anything usefull to add.
Laptop CDROM drives are allready quite shock resistant. I use one on occasion in a car with no problems, even on bumpy roads. Consider also, they don't need to run the CDROM constantly. Put 32M of DRAM in there and buffer the CDROM. That's about 10 songs, plenty of time to compensate for skipping. No to mention, they are using a laptop HD as the data source now. Are you telling me that a HD can take more hits then a CDROM? I doubt it. I tend to stress all my hardware. I know what my parts can handle, and I don't have anything wonderfull. The CDROM is a Toshiba 10x that came with the notebook. I've had 2 HDs die in the same time I've had my notebook.
Also, I didn't say they should design a CDROM! I said they should buy one from someone else and mount it in the case they allready have. Use the same shock absorbers they have for the HDs! There isn't much NRE here to worry about. The little plastic brackets the HDs are mounted in would need to be changed or removed. Hell, I could probably build something that would hold a Laptop CDROM in there with parts from the hardware store. If I can do it with off the shelf parts, they can too.
At $1K I'm not really interested unless they include schematics and source so I can mod it to include the features I want. Even then, I could probably design my own board and have it prototyped for less then that. Or I could just use an existing SBC. Cheaper and would work just as well.
Oh, I design circuits too, so I do know what I'm talking about. It's all about looking at a soultion rather then re-stating the problem. If they decide not to do it, fine, it's thier product, they can do as they please. But I don't see any reason not to do what they allready know the customers want.
A desktop CDROM, maybe. But a laptop style CDROM would not take a whole lot of space. They are just a little bigger then the CDROM disc itself. About 12mm tall and length and width very close to that of a jewel case. Stack 2 jewel cases and you will be close to the right size. Use a little smaller display so you have space in front for it and lose the HD mounts and you have plenty of space.
I make custom CDs for myself from my music collection. If I were to MP3 compress every one I have I would have space for about 4 more on a disc. That's plenty of music for me. I use a 6 disc changer full of my custom CDs (I have 3 more I can't fit) and I change discs every 2-4 weeks. I just run on Random play. If I could only change one disc I'd be set. Not to mention I would only HAVE one disc for at least the next 6-12 months. I just don't buy all that much music, and I don't pirate MP3s..
United Information Technology Workers
on
Why Work Sucks
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· Score: 1
We need a better name... UITW doesn't exactly roll off the tounge.;)
However, I think something like this is going to be required.. we should learn from the unions though and avoid the problems they caused for themselves if you want to make it work well.
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It wouldn't work out of the 'box' for that, but you could add a MAS3507 (MP3 decoder) and a DAC to get an audio signal. Then just write a little program to send the MP3 bitstream to the decoder.
The CPU is the same one the Palm Pilot uses. It's a great chip for embedded stuff like that. It also needs no cooling, perfect for a car. The LCD drive capability is nice too. Maybe one more chip to control a touchscreen and you've almost got a Pilot.
I seem remember hearing about Rusty & Eddies' getting shut down before this timeframe....
While I do agree with you, they don't seem to want Toshiba to config the computer "to your exact specifications". They want Toshiba to honor the EULA, which states quite clearly that if you do not agree with the terms of the license you should return the unused software to your vendor for a refund. I am not a lawyer, so I don't know the legalities, but I think you misunderstand the desire of those posting here.
They may just want the option of buying a Laptop without Windows installed. That SHOULD be a choice. They would have LESS work to do since there is no software to install. Just boot a DOS floppy with a burn-in program to make sure the hardware works and box it up. They DO burn them in, I hope. Yes, it changes the assembly line somewhat, and adds what ammounts to another product to thier line. But it wouldn't have to be done much. This would be great for customers, however, I agree it is Toshiba's decision.
Personally, I will not buy a laptop simply because I can't get arround the MS tax and I cannot just buy parts and build one, like I can with my clone desktops. For me, it would be a toy though, my portable needs are well served by my Palm Pilot. That may change in the future though, and if I can't get a new one without the MS tax at the very least, I will buy a used one to offset the cost.
My time is my own, and it's worth spending on something like this if I decide to.
;). The drives are a minimal expense. Hell, I could shock mount an IDE changer for under $100 and have a 6 CD changer. That wouldn't fit in the dash, but that's ok with me. I would probably use the laptop CDROM I mentioned earlier though. The software is dead simple, just hack existing code. Power filtering, PLEASE, a DC/DC converter and a good filter cap should level that out for about $30.
6 layer board: May or may not be needed. 4 may do it. I would guess It would cost about $200-$300 for a one-off. I would have to consult some sources, but I have spoken with a few boardhouses on just such a design.
Assembly: Who cares? I can do that, not for 1k units, but for a single, or even a few boards it's no problem. I *ENJOY* working on circuits.
Parts: Not much. An ARM chipset is about $50, and that's the most expensive part. I probably wouldn't even bother with it for a device strictly for audio. I'd use a smaller CPU and a MAS3507 hardware decoder for the MP3. I would like a full computer in the car though... and the ARM is a good choice. I'd guess about $100-$300 for parts. That's if I can't get samples, which I probably could for a lot of the smaller parts.
Unique hardware: So? It's for me, and I don't care if everyone else likes it or not. I don't need any free help from the community, however, I would open the design specs and let anyone use it. Much like the GPL.
SBC: No, it doesn't have a display. I could get a good LCD display for under $100. (6" square type there) DIN case, boo-hoo. I'll go find a dead car radio and replace the guts. A family member has one I'm sure they would give me if I asked nice
I probably wouldn't be able to beat the price, not on a whole unit, but I could do it under $5k. And I would get what I want. Since nobody else seems to be making a CD player for MP3 I may just do this. I would probably use the SBC for mine though, I can get a complete board for $400 and not have to bother with designing a board and soldering all the parts. And that board would fit in a DIN case. Use the parallel port for a keyboard and basic display and all is well.
This discussion is rapidly getting childish. If you're not interested in a CD based product, then fine. Nobody is making you buy one. However, some of us ARE interested. I see no reason to continue this if you don't have anything usefull to add.
Yes, I read the WWW site.
Laptop CDROM drives are allready quite shock resistant. I use one on occasion in a car with no problems, even on bumpy roads. Consider also, they don't need to run the CDROM constantly. Put 32M of DRAM in there and buffer the CDROM. That's about 10 songs, plenty of time to compensate for skipping. No to mention, they are using a laptop HD as the data source now. Are you telling me that a HD can take more hits then a CDROM? I doubt it. I tend to stress all my hardware. I know what my parts can handle, and I don't have anything wonderfull. The CDROM is a Toshiba 10x that came with the notebook. I've had 2 HDs die in the same time I've had my notebook.
Also, I didn't say they should design a CDROM! I said they should buy one from someone else and mount it in the case they allready have. Use the same shock absorbers they have for the HDs! There isn't much NRE here to worry about. The little plastic brackets the HDs are mounted in would need to be changed or removed. Hell, I could probably build something that would hold a Laptop CDROM in there with parts from the hardware store. If I can do it with off the shelf parts, they can too.
At $1K I'm not really interested unless they include schematics and source so I can mod it to include the features I want. Even then, I could probably design my own board and have it prototyped for less then that. Or I could just use an existing SBC. Cheaper and would work just as well.
Oh, I design circuits too, so I do know what I'm talking about. It's all about looking at a soultion rather then re-stating the problem. If they decide not to do it, fine, it's thier product, they can do as they please. But I don't see any reason not to do what they allready know the customers want.
A desktop CDROM, maybe. But a laptop style CDROM would not take a whole lot of space. They are just a little bigger then the CDROM disc itself. About 12mm tall and length and width very close to that of a jewel case. Stack 2 jewel cases and you will be close to the right size. Use a little smaller display so you have space in front for it and lose the HD mounts and you have plenty of space.
I make custom CDs for myself from my music collection. If I were to MP3 compress every one I have I would have space for about 4 more on a disc. That's plenty of music for me. I use a 6 disc changer full of my custom CDs (I have 3 more I can't fit) and I change discs every 2-4 weeks. I just run on Random play. If I could only change one disc I'd be set. Not to mention I would only HAVE one disc for at least the next 6-12 months. I just don't buy all that much music, and I don't pirate MP3s..
We need a better name... UITW doesn't exactly roll off the tounge. ;)
However, I think something like this is going to be required.. we should learn from the unions though and avoid the problems they caused for themselves if you want to make it work well.
Travis