The Gumstix Portable PC Thread That Won't Die

[JoeStrout]

I've recently been so cheesed off at Nokia for failing to put any game buttons on their Nokia 770 (almost as bad as Sony failing to add a pen or allow homebrew development on their PSP), that I've put up a page describing the machine I really want to have:

http://www.strout.net/info/ideas/dreammachine/

Ben, I know this isn't your usual fare, but you've got the skills that almost nobody else has — if anybody could pull this off, you could!

(I certainly can't; I'm just a software engineer. At most I could take the working hardware and write some nice software for it.)

So, now that you have your Atari 800 laptop wrapped up, how about making us Linux geeks our dream palmtop internet tablet thingy?

Thanks,
- Joe

[totokan]

How do you think Ben could do something like this?

[G-force]

Ben just modifies the existing hardware. Not remake the entire system.

What you have in mind looks a lot like the GP2X.

[totokan]

on the page, it says

Some devices like the Nokia 770 and the GP2X come close, but they all fall short in important ways.

[daleighan]

That is staggeringly like a Tapwave Zodiac. Seems like that's the machine for you. Get one on ebay for about $150. The zodiac has almost all the features that you want. Even 3d acceleration! It just runs on Palm OS instead of Linux.

[JoeStrout]

How do you think Ben could do something like this?

I think he would buy a Gumstix computer board, a screen (with either integrated touch functionality, or also buy an add-on touch sensor), some battery clips, etc., and get them working on his workbench. Then he'd get out his CNC machines and skills and make a cool case for it, add buttons, etc., and put it all together.

In short, he'd do all the same magic that he's done here repeatedly, but with the core CPU being a Gumstix (or something similar) rather than the hacked guts of an old gaming console. He'd probably find this much easier to work with, as it's modern hardware, robust, doesn't take much power, and able to drive an LCD display out of the box.

Why do you think he couldn't do it? And if he couldn't, who could?

[Skyone]

I dunno, seems like a large request. Maybe a fee would be in order?

If you really want it done, email him with some plans. And if not, make it yourself.

[marshallh]

Well, it would depend on how much Ben likes that idea. If he does go with it, expect to pay somwhere around a grand. If that sounds unreasonable, do it yourself. Then you'll discover whyit would cost so much.

If you paid part in MGD maybe he'd warm up to offer Don't know though.

[JoeStrout]

Ben just modifies the existing hardware. Not remake the entire system.

That's why I said that it's not his usual fare. But he certainly has the skills to do this. Making a decent case and hooking up controls are among the hardest parts, and he's done a super job of that many times.

What you have in mind looks a lot like the GP2X.

Yes, but the GP2X lacks both a pen and WiFi, making it utterly useless for both PDA functions and for accessing the web (or doing email, etc.). Basically, the GP2X can ONLY play games, just like the Nokia 770 can ONLY do web and PDA stuff. I want one machine that's good at all three functions.

[daleighan]

as I said before, Buy a Zodiac. It does everything you want.

[JoeStrout]

I dunno, seems like a large request. Maybe a fee would be in order?

If you really want it done, email him with some plans. And if not, make it yourself.

Of course I'd be willing to pay for it (up to the $300-$400 range), as would lots of other people, I think.

And you're right, if I don't really want it done, then I should plan on making it myself! I haven't the hardware skills, nor the time to acquire them, so if it's all up to me, it'll never happen. (Where does Ben get all that time anyway?)

As for emailing him the plans, I already posted them here under the assumption that he reads these forums — is that not the case?

Best,
- Joe

[teraflop122]

The 99 dollar screen you recommended would most likely fail to be of any use to you. Being a passive STN LCD, the response time would be HORRENDOUSLY slow...or at least a HECK of a lot slower than all Active Matrix LCD's.

The concept is extremely interesting, however. I even went and saved it to my favorites! I'm actually planning to design and market a PCp sometime in the future. I've found supplies for all of the essential parts, minus the control buttons

[Harshboy]

Yeah, i would buy a Zodiac.....and maybe port linux onto it....that would be perfect for your needs I think there is a release of linux for the Zodiac........or maybe that was the gp32 linux....idk, im pretty sure there is a linux port for Zodiac( Note: Also, there are like two versions of the Zodiac, get the best one there is so you will get faster speeds on emulators and linux

[JoeStrout]

That is staggeringly like a Tapwave Zodiac. Seems like that's the machine for you. Get one on ebay for about $150. The zodiac has almost all the features that you want. Even 3d acceleration! It just runs on Palm OS instead of Linux.

Thank you, I just googled a review of it and you're right, with a WiFi card that is pretty darn close to what I was looking for. And though PalmOS is no Linux, it is at least an open system (I'm assuming that this continues to be true for Tapwave development, even though it's not your typical Palm).

But have these guys gone out of business? Tapwave.com doesn't seem to be answering, and Amazon.com says the Tapwave Zodiac 2 is unavailable. If they've gone under, that's certainly a drawback — I'd almost rather a homebrew machine than a discontinued one, since with the former I can always bug the guy who built it!

Thanks,
- Joe

[demonofaj]

The vertical transformation for long games, would take a LOT of programming.