From: Steven <ste...@sb...> - 2004-10-16 04:20:42
|
-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- Hash: SHA1 I'm thinking of purchasing a Waysmall computer, but before I do so I need to confirm a few things. The Intel PXA255 processor has an onboard LCD controller for the Sharp LM8V31. Is this accessible? And where can I get one of those displays? Nobody sells them in single-unit quantities; all of the distributers sell in bulk. I just need one. Also, what kind of keyboard can I hook up to a serial port? I want to be able to type to the console and eventually an X server, both hooked up to the aforementioned LCD. My purpose here is to have a very small computer which I can carry around in classes for taking notes, and using as a dictionary and such. Thanks for any leads/information/tips, Steven - ------------------ Steven Schlansker "There are 10 types of people in this world: those who understand binary, and those who don't." -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE----- Version: GnuPG v1.2.4 (Darwin) iD8DBQFBcKGRjRUeSe4yhVoRAjWRAJwN0MgL5xWTVUhSocm6bhfgOzC1WACfUteP AP/deEIXVz7r7OjUeCe5AEg= =2s3H -----END PGP SIGNATURE----- |
From: Jean-Philippe V. <jea...@ya...> - 2004-10-16 13:44:09
|
Hi there, > My purpose here is to have a very small computer > which I can carry around in classes ... Gee, if you find a way to connect a portable screen and keyboard to the Gumstix, I'm in. An external USB hard drive would also be a necessity for me (through soon to be USB host port?). My needs are those of a photo journalist / traveller. I want to be able to write simple text using a full keyboard, record sounds, store photos and listen to music, all of that in a very portable device...and I *most* definitely can't afford the 2000$ Oqo. You can always get yourself a Palm III and one of those great little foldable Palm keyboards (ebay). That's actually what I did on my recent trip to India. I had an Archos Gmini 120 for recording/photos/music and my Palm for keeping a journal. It turned out the keyboard/Palm hardware connection was not too good, making the combo almost unusable, and the Palm/PC serial-only connection turned out to be a major inconvenience for downloading my notes to a PC (USB auto detect with no software installation would have been a charm). Does anyone know if it would be possible to convert a Palm keyboard into a USB client for the upcoming USB host enabled Gumstix? Portable BlueTooth keyboards are very expensive I find. jp ===== SVP répondez à: / Please reply to: jpv...@ma... __________________________________________________________ Lèche-vitrine ou lèche-écran ? magasinage.yahoo.ca |
From: Jaapjan T. <ja...@ti...> - 2004-10-16 16:57:07
|
Without wanting to sound odd, but there are plenty of PDA's with a keyboa= rd. Not too big. But a thumboard for example. Check out sharp's pdas for example. the Sharp CL-860...or the coming C3000 are nice looking pda's wi= th keyboards like the OQO. Except they cost the regular PDA price. J. ----- Original Message -----=20 From: "Jean-Philippe Valois" <jea...@ya...> To: <gum...@li...> Sent: Saturday, October 16, 2004 3:43 PM Subject: Re: [Gumstix-users] LCD and Keyboard questions > Hi there, > > > My purpose here is to have a very small computer > > which I can carry around in classes ... > > Gee, if you find a way to connect a portable screen > and keyboard to the Gumstix, I'm in. An external USB > hard drive would also be a necessity for me (through > soon to be USB host port?). > > My needs are those of a photo journalist / traveller. > I want to be able to write simple text using a full > keyboard, record sounds, store photos and listen to > music, all of that in a very portable device...and I > *most* definitely can't afford the 2000$ Oqo. > > You can always get yourself a Palm III and one of > those great little foldable Palm keyboards (ebay). > That's actually what I did on my recent trip to India. > I had an Archos Gmini 120 for recording/photos/music > and my Palm for keeping a journal. It turned out the > keyboard/Palm hardware connection was not too good, > making the combo almost unusable, and the Palm/PC > serial-only connection turned out to be a major > inconvenience for downloading my notes to a PC (USB > auto detect with no software installation would have > been a charm). > > Does anyone know if it would be possible to convert a > Palm keyboard into a USB client for the upcoming USB > host enabled Gumstix? Portable BlueTooth keyboards are > very expensive I find. > > jp > > =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D > SVP r=E9pondez =E0: / Please reply to: jpv...@ma... > > __________________________________________________________ > L=E8che-vitrine ou l=E8che-=E9cran ? > magasinage.yahoo.ca > > > ------------------------------------------------------- > This SF.net email is sponsored by: IT Product Guide on ITManagersJourna= l > Use IT products in your business? Tell us what you think of them. Give = us > Your Opinions, Get Free ThinkGeek Gift Certificates! Click to find out more > http://productguide.itmanagersjournal.com/guidepromo.tmpl > _______________________________________________ > gumstix-users mailing list > gum...@li... > https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/gumstix-users |
From: Roy L. <dad...@co...> - 2004-10-16 17:46:17
|
HP has a bluetooth wireless keyboard and you can find wireless bluetooth mice. Roy Lewis Garland, TX -----Original Message----- From: gum...@li... [mailto:gum...@li...] On Behalf Of Jaapjan Tinbergen Sent: Saturday, October 16, 2004 11:57 AM To: gum...@li... Subject: Re: [Gumstix-users] LCD and Keyboard questions Without wanting to sound odd, but there are plenty of PDA's with a keyboard. Not too big. But a thumboard for example. Check out sharp's pdas for example. the Sharp CL-860...or the coming C3000 are nice looking pda's with keyboards like the OQO. Except they cost the regular PDA price. J. ----- Original Message -----=20 From: "Jean-Philippe Valois" <jea...@ya...> To: <gum...@li...> Sent: Saturday, October 16, 2004 3:43 PM Subject: Re: [Gumstix-users] LCD and Keyboard questions > Hi there, > > > My purpose here is to have a very small computer > > which I can carry around in classes ... > > Gee, if you find a way to connect a portable screen > and keyboard to the Gumstix, I'm in. An external USB > hard drive would also be a necessity for me (through > soon to be USB host port?). > > My needs are those of a photo journalist / traveller. > I want to be able to write simple text using a full > keyboard, record sounds, store photos and listen to > music, all of that in a very portable device...and I > *most* definitely can't afford the 2000$ Oqo. > > You can always get yourself a Palm III and one of > those great little foldable Palm keyboards (ebay). > That's actually what I did on my recent trip to India. > I had an Archos Gmini 120 for recording/photos/music > and my Palm for keeping a journal. It turned out the keyboard/Palm=20 > hardware connection was not too good, making the combo almost=20 > unusable, and the Palm/PC serial-only connection turned out to be a=20 > major inconvenience for downloading my notes to a PC (USB > auto detect with no software installation would have > been a charm). > > Does anyone know if it would be possible to convert a > Palm keyboard into a USB client for the upcoming USB > host enabled Gumstix? Portable BlueTooth keyboards are > very expensive I find. > > jp > > =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D > SVP r=E9pondez =E0: / Please reply to: jpv...@ma... > > __________________________________________________________ > L=E8che-vitrine ou l=E8che-=E9cran ? > magasinage.yahoo.ca > > > ------------------------------------------------------- > This SF.net email is sponsored by: IT Product Guide on=20 > ITManagersJournal Use IT products in your business? Tell us what you=20 > think of them. Give us Your Opinions, Get Free ThinkGeek Gift=20 > Certificates! Click to find out more > http://productguide.itmanagersjournal.com/guidepromo.tmpl > _______________________________________________ > gumstix-users mailing list gum...@li... > https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/gumstix-users ------------------------------------------------------- This SF.net email is sponsored by: IT Product Guide on ITManagersJournal Use IT products in your business? Tell us what you think of them. Give us Your Opinions, Get Free ThinkGeek Gift Certificates! Click to find out more http://productguide.itmanagersjournal.com/guidepromo.tmpl _______________________________________________ gumstix-users mailing list gum...@li... https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/gumstix-users --- Incoming mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 6.0.776 / Virus Database: 523 - Release Date: 10/12/2004 =20 --- Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 6.0.776 / Virus Database: 523 - Release Date: 10/12/2004 =20 |
From: Dan T. <Log...@gm...> - 2004-10-18 14:36:01
|
Regardless of the specific application and whether or not a PDA would be a better option... What information is available on driving the aforementioned display with the gumstix? Has anyone done it? Are there drivers and hardware info available? VB Dan On Sat, 16 Oct 2004 12:44:30 -0500, Roy Lewis <dad...@co...> wrote: > HP has a bluetooth wireless keyboard and you can find wireless bluetooth > mice. >=20 > Roy Lewis > Garland, TX >=20 >=20 > -----Original Message----- > From: gum...@li... > [mailto:gum...@li...] On Behalf Of Jaapjan > Tinbergen > Sent: Saturday, October 16, 2004 11:57 AM > To: gum...@li... > Subject: Re: [Gumstix-users] LCD and Keyboard questions >=20 > Without wanting to sound odd, but there are plenty of PDA's with a > keyboard. Not too big. But a thumboard for example. Check out sharp's > pdas for example. the Sharp CL-860...or the coming C3000 are nice > looking pda's with keyboards like the OQO. Except they cost the regular > PDA price. >=20 > J. >=20 > ----- Original Message ----- > From: "Jean-Philippe Valois" <jea...@ya...> > To: <gum...@li...> > Sent: Saturday, October 16, 2004 3:43 PM > Subject: Re: [Gumstix-users] LCD and Keyboard questions >=20 > > Hi there, > > > > > My purpose here is to have a very small computer > > > which I can carry around in classes ... > > > > Gee, if you find a way to connect a portable screen > > and keyboard to the Gumstix, I'm in. An external USB > > hard drive would also be a necessity for me (through > > soon to be USB host port?). > > > > My needs are those of a photo journalist / traveller. > > I want to be able to write simple text using a full > > keyboard, record sounds, store photos and listen to > > music, all of that in a very portable device...and I > > *most* definitely can't afford the 2000$ Oqo. > > > > You can always get yourself a Palm III and one of > > those great little foldable Palm keyboards (ebay). > > That's actually what I did on my recent trip to India. > > I had an Archos Gmini 120 for recording/photos/music > > and my Palm for keeping a journal. It turned out the keyboard/Palm > > hardware connection was not too good, making the combo almost > > unusable, and the Palm/PC serial-only connection turned out to be a > > major inconvenience for downloading my notes to a PC (USB > > auto detect with no software installation would have > > been a charm). > > > > Does anyone know if it would be possible to convert a > > Palm keyboard into a USB client for the upcoming USB > > host enabled Gumstix? Portable BlueTooth keyboards are > > very expensive I find. > > > > jp > > > > =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D > > SVP r=E9pondez =E0: / Please reply to: jpv...@ma... > > > > __________________________________________________________ > > L=E8che-vitrine ou l=E8che-=E9cran ? > > magasinage.yahoo.ca > > > > > > ------------------------------------------------------- > > This SF.net email is sponsored by: IT Product Guide on > > ITManagersJournal Use IT products in your business? Tell us what you > > think of them. Give us Your Opinions, Get Free ThinkGeek Gift > > Certificates! Click to find out > more > > http://productguide.itmanagersjournal.com/guidepromo.tmpl > > _______________________________________________ > > gumstix-users mailing list gum...@li... > > https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/gumstix-users >=20 > ------------------------------------------------------- > This SF.net email is sponsored by: IT Product Guide on ITManagersJournal > Use IT products in your business? Tell us what you think of them. Give > us Your Opinions, Get Free ThinkGeek Gift Certificates! Click to find > out more http://productguide.itmanagersjournal.com/guidepromo.tmpl > _______________________________________________ > gumstix-users mailing list > gum...@li... > https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/gumstix-users >=20 > --- > Incoming mail is certified Virus Free. > Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). > Version: 6.0.776 / Virus Database: 523 - Release Date: 10/12/2004 >=20 > --- > Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. > Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). > Version: 6.0.776 / Virus Database: 523 - Release Date: 10/12/2004 >=20 >=20 >=20 >=20 > ------------------------------------------------------- > This SF.net email is sponsored by: IT Product Guide on ITManagersJournal > Use IT products in your business? Tell us what you think of them. Give us > Your Opinions, Get Free ThinkGeek Gift Certificates! Click to find out mo= re > http://productguide.itmanagersjournal.com/guidepromo.tmpl > _______________________________________________ > gumstix-users mailing list > gum...@li... > https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/gumstix-users >=20 --=20 Dan Taylor Software Development Engineer, JTL Systems Ltd PhD Student, Reading University, UK http://www.logicalgenetics.com |
From: Jon M. <jm...@rm...> - 2004-10-19 08:03:40
|
Dan Taylor wrote: >Regardless of the specific application and whether or not a PDA would >be a better option... > >What information is available on driving the aforementioned display >with the gumstix? Has anyone done it? Are there drivers and hardware >info available? > >VB > >Dan > > > Well the PXA255 manual is an excellent starting place. I have an old 640x200 LCD just laying in my junk bin that, after reviewing the specs, should work with the gumstix. Nobody that I know of has hooked up this particular model to the gumstix, but looking at the kinds of pins the PXA255 has and looking at the Linux kernel source it should be possible. I recommend you compare the specs for the LCD you wish to purchase with the PXA255 manual and the Linux kernel source(drivers/video/pxafb.c). Once you have figured out how to wire it up without buying it, then you can consider trying it out. I haven't seen anyone posting pictures of their gumstix+lcd yet, so this is still all theoretical as far as I'm concerned. TimeLine - http://www.timeline-inc.com/lcd.html - carries the best prices on the lowest-end graphic LCDs EarthLCD - http://www.earthlcd.com/ - carries the widest selection of LCDs that I know of on the net. ps - I'm pretty sure u-boot won't display anything on your LCD. You may or may not want to hack u-boot to at least do some test patterns on the display on boot to save some time diagnosing your LCD else you have to wait for Linux to start booting. -- Jon Mayo <jm...@rm...> |
From: Jaapjan T. <ja...@ti...> - 2004-10-19 08:26:47
|
Almost makes me go buy a 39 dollar PDA LCD, a 200Mhz Gumstix and an old 50 euro palm in an attempt to rebuilt the PDA as a gumstic pda. Jaapjan. > Well the PXA255 manual is an excellent starting place. I have an old > 640x200 LCD just laying in my junk bin that, after reviewing the specs, > should work with the gumstix. Nobody that I know of has hooked up this > particular model to the gumstix, but looking at the kinds of pins the > PXA255 has and looking at the Linux kernel source it should be possible. > > I recommend you compare the specs for the LCD you wish to purchase with > the PXA255 manual and the Linux kernel source(drivers/video/pxafb.c). Once > you have figured out how to wire it up without buying it, then you can > consider trying it out. I haven't seen anyone posting pictures of their > gumstix+lcd yet, so this is still all theoretical as far as I'm concerned. > > TimeLine - http://www.timeline-inc.com/lcd.html - carries the best prices > on the lowest-end graphic LCDs > EarthLCD - http://www.earthlcd.com/ - carries the widest selection of LCDs > that I know of on the net. > > ps - I'm pretty sure u-boot won't display anything on your LCD. You may or > may not want to hack u-boot to at least do some test patterns on the > display on boot to save some time diagnosing your LCD else you have to > wait for Linux to start booting. > > -- > Jon Mayo > <jm...@rm...> > > > > ------------------------------------------------------- > This SF.net email is sponsored by: IT Product Guide on ITManagersJournal > Use IT products in your business? Tell us what you think of them. Give us > Your Opinions, Get Free ThinkGeek Gift Certificates! Click to find out > more > http://productguide.itmanagersjournal.com/guidepromo.tmpl > _______________________________________________ > gumstix-users mailing list > gum...@li... > https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/gumstix-users |
From: Dan T. <Log...@gm...> - 2004-10-19 09:31:36
|
Thankyou all for your helpful comments. Will look into it ASAP! It would be great to see evidence of the Gumstix working with a display - and it'd make a fantastic advert for the gumstix :o) Cheers, Dan On Tue, 19 Oct 2004 10:27:37 +0200, Jaapjan Tinbergen <ja...@ti...> wrote: > > Almost makes me go buy a 39 dollar PDA LCD, a 200Mhz Gumstix and an old 50 > euro palm in an attempt to rebuilt the PDA as a gumstic pda. > > Jaapjan. > > > > > > Well the PXA255 manual is an excellent starting place. I have an old > > 640x200 LCD just laying in my junk bin that, after reviewing the specs, > > should work with the gumstix. Nobody that I know of has hooked up this > > particular model to the gumstix, but looking at the kinds of pins the > > PXA255 has and looking at the Linux kernel source it should be possible. > > > > I recommend you compare the specs for the LCD you wish to purchase with > > the PXA255 manual and the Linux kernel source(drivers/video/pxafb.c). Once > > you have figured out how to wire it up without buying it, then you can > > consider trying it out. I haven't seen anyone posting pictures of their > > gumstix+lcd yet, so this is still all theoretical as far as I'm concerned. > > > > TimeLine - http://www.timeline-inc.com/lcd.html - carries the best prices > > on the lowest-end graphic LCDs > > EarthLCD - http://www.earthlcd.com/ - carries the widest selection of LCDs > > that I know of on the net. > > > > ps - I'm pretty sure u-boot won't display anything on your LCD. You may or > > may not want to hack u-boot to at least do some test patterns on the > > display on boot to save some time diagnosing your LCD else you have to > > wait for Linux to start booting. > > > > -- > > Jon Mayo > > <jm...@rm...> > > > > > > > > ------------------------------------------------------- > > This SF.net email is sponsored by: IT Product Guide on ITManagersJournal > > Use IT products in your business? Tell us what you think of them. Give us > > Your Opinions, Get Free ThinkGeek Gift Certificates! Click to find out > > more > > http://productguide.itmanagersjournal.com/guidepromo.tmpl > > _______________________________________________ > > gumstix-users mailing list > > gum...@li... > > https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/gumstix-users > > ------------------------------------------------------- > This SF.net email is sponsored by: IT Product Guide on ITManagersJournal > Use IT products in your business? Tell us what you think of them. Give us > Your Opinions, Get Free ThinkGeek Gift Certificates! Click to find out more > http://productguide.itmanagersjournal.com/guidepromo.tmpl > _______________________________________________ > gumstix-users mailing list > gum...@li... > https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/gumstix-users > -- Dan Taylor Software Development Engineer, JTL Systems Ltd PhD Student, Reading University, UK http://www.logicalgenetics.com |
From: Craig R H. <cr...@hu...> - 2004-10-19 10:09:41
|
We're working on the software with some prototype sample video buddy boards in the lab at the moment. OF course, we started testing with the one which is least likely to work right w/out fudging things in the driver, so we have no actual progress to report, but hopefully will have more info to provide in the next little while. C Dan Taylor wrote: DT> Thankyou all for your helpful comments. Will look into it ASAP! DT> DT> It would be great to see evidence of the Gumstix working with a DT> display - and it'd make a fantastic advert for the gumstix :o) DT> DT> Cheers, DT> DT> Dan DT> DT> DT> On Tue, 19 Oct 2004 10:27:37 +0200, Jaapjan Tinbergen DT> <ja...@ti...> wrote: DT> > DT> > Almost makes me go buy a 39 dollar PDA LCD, a 200Mhz Gumstix and an old 50 DT> > euro palm in an attempt to rebuilt the PDA as a gumstic pda. DT> > DT> > Jaapjan. DT> > DT> > DT> > DT> > DT> > > Well the PXA255 manual is an excellent starting place. I have an old DT> > > 640x200 LCD just laying in my junk bin that, after reviewing the specs, DT> > > should work with the gumstix. Nobody that I know of has hooked up this DT> > > particular model to the gumstix, but looking at the kinds of pins the DT> > > PXA255 has and looking at the Linux kernel source it should be possible. DT> > > DT> > > I recommend you compare the specs for the LCD you wish to purchase with DT> > > the PXA255 manual and the Linux kernel source(drivers/video/pxafb.c). Once DT> > > you have figured out how to wire it up without buying it, then you can DT> > > consider trying it out. I haven't seen anyone posting pictures of their DT> > > gumstix+lcd yet, so this is still all theoretical as far as I'm concerned. DT> > > DT> > > TimeLine - http://www.timeline-inc.com/lcd.html - carries the best prices DT> > > on the lowest-end graphic LCDs DT> > > EarthLCD - http://www.earthlcd.com/ - carries the widest selection of LCDs DT> > > that I know of on the net. DT> > > DT> > > ps - I'm pretty sure u-boot won't display anything on your LCD. You may or DT> > > may not want to hack u-boot to at least do some test patterns on the DT> > > display on boot to save some time diagnosing your LCD else you have to DT> > > wait for Linux to start booting. DT> > > DT> > > -- DT> > > Jon Mayo DT> > > <jm...@rm...> DT> > > DT> > > DT> > > DT> > > ------------------------------------------------------- DT> > > This SF.net email is sponsored by: IT Product Guide on ITManagersJournal DT> > > Use IT products in your business? Tell us what you think of them. Give us DT> > > Your Opinions, Get Free ThinkGeek Gift Certificates! Click to find out DT> > > more DT> > > http://productguide.itmanagersjournal.com/guidepromo.tmpl DT> > > _______________________________________________ DT> > > gumstix-users mailing list DT> > > gum...@li... DT> > > https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/gumstix-users DT> > DT> > ------------------------------------------------------- DT> > This SF.net email is sponsored by: IT Product Guide on ITManagersJournal DT> > Use IT products in your business? Tell us what you think of them. Give us DT> > Your Opinions, Get Free ThinkGeek Gift Certificates! Click to find out more DT> > http://productguide.itmanagersjournal.com/guidepromo.tmpl DT> > _______________________________________________ DT> > gumstix-users mailing list DT> > gum...@li... DT> > https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/gumstix-users DT> > DT> DT> DT> |
From: <bou...@bl...> - 2004-10-19 10:20:19
|
Hi craig, will there be a standard ethernet (100 mbit) add on card with power over ethernet? Will be interesting using the gum as a regular ethernet device. robert |
From: Craig R H. <cr...@hu...> - 2004-10-19 10:30:03
|
We have 10/100mbit device on the bench right now -- just one port. We're going to get that working, then do a dual-port device, and a POE device. But the first round will have just one port and no POE. No really firm ETA as yet. bou...@bl... wrote: > Hi craig, > > will there be a standard ethernet (100 mbit) add on card with > power over ethernet? > Will be interesting using the gum as a regular ethernet device. |
From: Holly G. <hg...@ei...> - 2004-10-19 20:06:07
|
I have got it working with an 800x600 active matrix E Ink display, but thats sort of a special case for the time being... We are trying to figure out how to make displays (and display controllers) available in small quantities for a reasonable price. Having done a lot of work with the sa1110 and pxa LCD subsystem (though admittedly only in active matrix mode), it is very flexible and the documentation in the developers manual is quite good with clear diagrams for signal timings, etc. It should be pretty straightforward to hook something up to the gumstix, although you will need to make an adapter board to whatever display you are using and figure out the bias voltages if needed. The trick is to get the framebuffer support in the kernel so that you boot up with /dev/fb0 in the size you need, which so far I have only been able to do on gumstix using a patch on an early gumstix release I paid a consultant to develop. Haven't been able to get it going with a fresh checkout of buildroot, but Craig and Gordon have added something recently which I haven't tried out yet which might work. I've never been able to get the LCCR registers all correct in the kernel setup, but its not crucial to get that, just that /dev/fb0 gets set up correctly. Then I typically use a shell script which runs out of linuxrc to pop the right values in LCCR for pixel clock speed and signal timings. -Holly Gates Dan Taylor wrote: >Thankyou all for your helpful comments. Will look into it ASAP! > >It would be great to see evidence of the Gumstix working with a >display - and it'd make a fantastic advert for the gumstix :o) > >Cheers, > >Dan > > >On Tue, 19 Oct 2004 10:27:37 +0200, Jaapjan Tinbergen ><ja...@ti...> wrote: > > >>Almost makes me go buy a 39 dollar PDA LCD, a 200Mhz Gumstix and an old 50 >>euro palm in an attempt to rebuilt the PDA as a gumstic pda. >> >>Jaapjan. >> >> >> >> >> >> >>>Well the PXA255 manual is an excellent starting place. I have an old >>>640x200 LCD just laying in my junk bin that, after reviewing the specs, >>>should work with the gumstix. Nobody that I know of has hooked up this >>>particular model to the gumstix, but looking at the kinds of pins the >>>PXA255 has and looking at the Linux kernel source it should be possible. >>> >>>I recommend you compare the specs for the LCD you wish to purchase with >>>the PXA255 manual and the Linux kernel source(drivers/video/pxafb.c). Once >>>you have figured out how to wire it up without buying it, then you can >>>consider trying it out. I haven't seen anyone posting pictures of their >>>gumstix+lcd yet, so this is still all theoretical as far as I'm concerned. >>> >>>TimeLine - http://www.timeline-inc.com/lcd.html - carries the best prices >>>on the lowest-end graphic LCDs >>>EarthLCD - http://www.earthlcd.com/ - carries the widest selection of LCDs >>>that I know of on the net. >>> >>>ps - I'm pretty sure u-boot won't display anything on your LCD. You may or >>>may not want to hack u-boot to at least do some test patterns on the >>>display on boot to save some time diagnosing your LCD else you have to >>>wait for Linux to start booting. >>> >>>-- >>>Jon Mayo >>><jm...@rm...> >>> >>> >>> >>>------------------------------------------------------- >>>This SF.net email is sponsored by: IT Product Guide on ITManagersJournal >>>Use IT products in your business? Tell us what you think of them. Give us >>>Your Opinions, Get Free ThinkGeek Gift Certificates! Click to find out >>>more >>>http://productguide.itmanagersjournal.com/guidepromo.tmpl >>>_______________________________________________ >>>gumstix-users mailing list >>>gum...@li... >>>https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/gumstix-users >>> >>> >>------------------------------------------------------- >>This SF.net email is sponsored by: IT Product Guide on ITManagersJournal >>Use IT products in your business? Tell us what you think of them. Give us >>Your Opinions, Get Free ThinkGeek Gift Certificates! Click to find out more >>http://productguide.itmanagersjournal.com/guidepromo.tmpl >>_______________________________________________ >>gumstix-users mailing list >>gum...@li... >>https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/gumstix-users >> >> >> > > > > |
From: Craig H. <cr...@hu...> - 2004-10-19 20:35:31
|
Holly, haven't merged your patch you sent a while ago yet -- but we are actively working on getting the FB stuff in the kernel working for a couple of LCD panels Gordon had lying around in his garage. Well, gordon's more active on it than I am right now; I'm bogged down with some other hardware drivers which people will probably be somewhat excited to see. C On Oct 19, 2004, at 6:17 AM, Holly Gates wrote: > The trick is to get the framebuffer support in the kernel so that you > boot up with /dev/fb0 in the size you need, which so far I have only > been able to do on gumstix using a patch on an early gumstix release I > paid a consultant to develop. Haven't been able to get it going with a > fresh checkout of buildroot, but Craig and Gordon have added something > recently which I haven't tried out yet which might work. I've never > been able to get the LCCR registers all correct in the kernel setup, > but its not crucial to get that, just that /dev/fb0 gets set up > correctly. Then I typically use a shell script which runs out of > linuxrc to pop the right values in LCCR for pixel clock speed and > signal timings. |
From: Benjamin H. <be...@ho...> - 2004-10-20 04:12:05
|
Holly Gates wrote: > I have got it working with an 800x600 active matrix E Ink display, but > thats sort of a special case for the time being... We are trying to > figure out how to make displays (and display controllers) available in > small quantities for a reasonable price. Wow, that would rock my face off! Particularly if they were E-Ink screens, I think. Personally, those and/or a (potentially backlit) 256 color greyscale would be particularly nice. Please do keep us updated! > Having done a lot of work with the sa1110 and pxa LCD subsystem (though > admittedly only in active matrix mode), it is very flexible and the > documentation in the developers manual is quite good with clear diagrams > for signal timings, etc. It should be pretty straightforward to hook > something up to the gumstix, although you will need to make an adapter > board to whatever display you are using and figure out the bias voltages > if needed. > > The trick is to get the framebuffer support in the kernel so that you > boot up with /dev/fb0 in the size you need, which so far I have only > been able to do on gumstix using a patch on an early gumstix release I > paid a consultant to develop. Haven't been able to get it going with a > fresh checkout of buildroot, but Craig and Gordon have added something > recently which I haven't tried out yet which might work. I've never been > able to get the LCCR registers all correct in the kernel setup, but its > not crucial to get that, just that /dev/fb0 gets set up correctly. Then > I typically use a shell script which runs out of linuxrc to pop the > right values in LCCR for pixel clock speed and signal timings. > > -Holly Gates > |
From: Jon M. <jm...@rm...> - 2004-10-19 16:56:19
|
What would be cool is if/when the CompactFlash version of the Gumstix comes out is if someone makes a board that fits in a PDA case and has an LCD and some buttons on the back and room for some nicad or NiMH AA cells. And MMC and CF slots on the sides. Sort of a do-it-yourself PDA. You could do it without CF, or do the board in such a way that you could plug in the current version of the gumstix in it or a future version. The hard part of such a project is seeing how many people would actually buy them and at what price, because it would require ordering plastics, pcbs and lcd in enough quantities to get a reasonable price. Mostly I think it's a pipe-dream to turn gumstix into a pda. I would certainly buy such a thing, but I don't see it likely that anyone would put up the money on such a risky venture. Especially since you can just buy an iPaq or something for under $300, I suspect a "kit" like this would be more expensive than that. I think the only way to make a viable gumstix pda would be to offer something nobody else has. Like maybe make it a palmtop identical to the Psion Revo/Diamond Mako? Nobody does a cheap palmtop anymore. Palmtop would fit with Linux much better than a PDA would anyways. Jaapjan Tinbergen wrote: > > Almost makes me go buy a 39 dollar PDA LCD, a 200Mhz Gumstix and an > old 50 euro palm in an attempt to rebuilt the PDA as a gumstic pda. > > Jaapjan. > > > >> Well the PXA255 manual is an excellent starting place. I have an old >> 640x200 LCD just laying in my junk bin that, after reviewing the >> specs, should work with the gumstix. Nobody that I know of has hooked >> up this particular model to the gumstix, but looking at the kinds of >> pins the PXA255 has and looking at the Linux kernel source it should >> be possible. >> >> I recommend you compare the specs for the LCD you wish to purchase >> with the PXA255 manual and the Linux kernel >> source(drivers/video/pxafb.c). Once you have figured out how to wire >> it up without buying it, then you can consider trying it out. I >> haven't seen anyone posting pictures of their gumstix+lcd yet, so >> this is still all theoretical as far as I'm concerned. >> >> TimeLine - http://www.timeline-inc.com/lcd.html - carries the best >> prices on the lowest-end graphic LCDs >> EarthLCD - http://www.earthlcd.com/ - carries the widest selection of >> LCDs that I know of on the net. >> >> ps - I'm pretty sure u-boot won't display anything on your LCD. You >> may or may not want to hack u-boot to at least do some test patterns >> on the display on boot to save some time diagnosing your LCD else you >> have to wait for Linux to start booting. >> >> -- >> Jon Mayo >> <jm...@rm...> >> >> >> >> ------------------------------------------------------- >> This SF.net email is sponsored by: IT Product Guide on ITManagersJournal >> Use IT products in your business? Tell us what you think of them. >> Give us >> Your Opinions, Get Free ThinkGeek Gift Certificates! Click to find >> out more >> http://productguide.itmanagersjournal.com/guidepromo.tmpl >> _______________________________________________ >> gumstix-users mailing list >> gum...@li... >> https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/gumstix-users > > > > > ------------------------------------------------------- > This SF.net email is sponsored by: IT Product Guide on ITManagersJournal > Use IT products in your business? Tell us what you think of them. Give us > Your Opinions, Get Free ThinkGeek Gift Certificates! Click to find out > more > http://productguide.itmanagersjournal.com/guidepromo.tmpl > _______________________________________________ > gumstix-users mailing list > gum...@li... > https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/gumstix-users > -- Jon Mayo <jm...@rm...> |
From: Cedric B. <ced...@fr...> - 2004-10-19 21:02:12
|
> Mostly I think it's a pipe-dream to turn gumstix into a pda. I would > certainly buy such a thing, but I don't see it likely that anyone would > put up the money on such a risky venture. Especially since you can just > buy an iPaq or something for under $300, I suspect a "kit" like this > would be more expensive than that. I think the only way to make a viable > gumstix pda would be to offer something nobody else has. Like maybe make > it a palmtop identical to the Psion Revo/Diamond Mako? Nobody does a > cheap palmtop anymore. Palmtop would fit with Linux much better than a > PDA would anyways. I see an other opportunitie for such a kit, creating a low cost ultra-light laptop. I mean, add a real keyboard, network connection (I prefer wireless, but ethernet would be fine for a beginning) and a big CF or a micro-drive, plus some sound interface, a USB host (mouse, ...) and that it. A big plus for this laptop, no need to pay a Windows licence :-) Cedric |
From: Benjamin H. <be...@ho...> - 2004-10-20 04:14:22
|
Cedric BAIL wrote: > > I see an other opportunitie for such a kit, creating a low cost ultra-light > laptop. I mean, add a real keyboard, network connection (I prefer wireless, > but ethernet would be fine for a beginning) and a big CF or a micro-drive, > plus some sound interface, a USB host (mouse, ...) and that it. > A big plus for this laptop, no need to pay a Windows licence :-) > > Cedric That's exactly what I plan/hope to do, my friend. :) I'd likely strap on a sizeable battery (12+ hours w/ WiFi), and put it in a Panasonic Toughbook-style briefcase, and off I'd go. |
From: Jon M. <jm...@rm...> - 2004-10-20 06:31:21
|
Well that's almost what the Psion Revo was. It was a clamshell palmtop with qwerty keyboard. The keys were actually large for it's size and you could do a sort of 3 fingers on each hand touch-type on it. The display was somewhat unusual, very wide and very short. It also was a touch screen and came with a stylus. But a majority of the input was with the keyboard. They keys weren't funny little calculator keys like on the HP palmtops. And at the time it was pretty speedy, I think a 60Mhz ARM The Psion Revo's biggest problems were: * it had no external slots for memory or peripherals. All you had was a funny docking port for rs232 and an IR serial port. If it had a CF slot it would have been perfect. * display didn't have a backlight. so using it on low light conditions suck. but it worked amazingly well compared to other lcds even in extremely sunny weather. * rechargeable battery was not replaceable * display was grayscale/monochrome (color would have been nice because there were a few graphing/plotting programs for it) * had no flash. when you booted linux if you accidentally told linux to shutdown, the Revo would reboot and wipe out RAM throwing you back into EPOC OS. Then you'd have to upload the 6mb linux image file over rs232 again. * the OS was EPOC32/Symbian. And it had this annoying C++ API that wasn't much fun to program You can get small MIPS and ARM based "laptops" in Japan. NEC makes a few WinCE "laptops". The US seems to only have a market for laptops with 17" displays :) The gumstix would be able to grab that tiny market share in the US, Canada and Possibly Europe that wants a tiny laptop. I myself would kill for a modern-day version of a Tandy Model 100. It was the best for doing word processing on the road. http://www.old-computers.com/museum/computer.asp?c=233 What sort of constraints would we want to place on a gumstix micro-laptop? (you can probably only pick 3 or 4 of these) * battery life * keyboard size (full size?) * nightime display * cost * expandability/configurable * fits in pocket vs. fits in carry on luggage A kit with professional plastics would be nice. then it's less likely that i would be forced to disassemble it at the airport to prove it's not some kind of bomb. Cedric BAIL wrote: >>Mostly I think it's a pipe-dream to turn gumstix into a pda. I would >>certainly buy such a thing, but I don't see it likely that anyone would >>put up the money on such a risky venture. Especially since you can just >>buy an iPaq or something for under $300, I suspect a "kit" like this >>would be more expensive than that. I think the only way to make a viable >>gumstix pda would be to offer something nobody else has. Like maybe make >>it a palmtop identical to the Psion Revo/Diamond Mako? Nobody does a >>cheap palmtop anymore. Palmtop would fit with Linux much better than a >>PDA would anyways. >> >> > >I see an other opportunitie for such a kit, creating a low cost ultra-light >laptop. I mean, add a real keyboard, network connection (I prefer wireless, >but ethernet would be fine for a beginning) and a big CF or a micro-drive, >plus some sound interface, a USB host (mouse, ...) and that it. > A big plus for this laptop, no need to pay a Windows licence :-) > >Cedric > > >------------------------------------------------------- >This SF.net email is sponsored by: IT Product Guide on ITManagersJournal >Use IT products in your business? Tell us what you think of them. Give us >Your Opinions, Get Free ThinkGeek Gift Certificates! Click to find out more >http://productguide.itmanagersjournal.com/guidepromo.tmpl >_______________________________________________ >gumstix-users mailing list >gum...@li... >https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/gumstix-users > > > |
From: Benjamin H. <be...@ho...> - 2004-10-20 07:43:40
|
Jon Mayo wrote: > Well that's almost what the Psion Revo was. It was a clamshell palmtop > with qwerty keyboard. The keys were actually large for it's size and you > could do a sort of 3 fingers on each hand touch-type on it. The display > was somewhat unusual, very wide and very short. It also was a touch > screen and came with a stylus. But a majority of the input was with the > keyboard. They keys weren't funny little calculator keys like on the HP > palmtops. And at the time it was pretty speedy, I think a 60Mhz ARM > > The Psion Revo's biggest problems were: > * it had no external slots for memory or peripherals. All you had was a > funny docking port for rs232 and an IR serial port. If it had a CF slot > it would have been perfect. > * display didn't have a backlight. so using it on low light conditions > suck. but it worked amazingly well compared to other lcds even in > extremely sunny weather. > * rechargeable battery was not replaceable > * display was grayscale/monochrome (color would have been nice because > there were a few graphing/plotting programs for it) > * had no flash. when you booted linux if you accidentally told linux to > shutdown, the Revo would reboot and wipe out RAM throwing you back into > EPOC OS. Then you'd have to upload the 6mb linux image file over rs232 > again. > * the OS was EPOC32/Symbian. And it had this annoying C++ API that > wasn't much fun to program I've got a Psion Revo (or rather, a Diamond Mako, which was the same device, but rebranded). They were indeed fairly cute/nice, and had a decent keyboard for the form factor - but the keyboard is too damned small. It isn't much larget than a TI-35 when closed, ffs. :) The problem is, the keyboard isn't practical for anything much more than quick search and entry of small details (such as an address book) if you've got hands larger than a small woman's. I can rival the speed I'd achieve on the Mako/Revo on the thumbpad on my Zaurus 5500, and that's not practical at all. > I myself would kill for a modern-day version of a Tandy Model 100. It > was the best for doing word processing on the road. > http://www.old-computers.com/museum/computer.asp?c=233 You might want to check out the AlphaSmart products, then. Quite durable, roughly the size of that Tandy (maybe .5 - 1 cm larger), modern features are available (WiFi, SD/MMC, PalmOS 4+, printer USB interfacing, etc.), and (from what I recall when I looked into it) cost under $300 for their top-of-the-line model. Quite impressive, but I'm looking for something that I can code on, personally, so I'd like a slightly larger display. > What sort of constraints would we want to place on a gumstix > micro-laptop? (you can probably only pick 3 or 4 of these) > * battery life > * keyboard size (full size?) > * nightime display > * cost > * expandability/configurable > * fits in pocket vs. fits in carry on luggage The only real conflict I see there is the "fits in pocket vs. fits in carry-on luggage", as they're diametrically opposed. Given the size/cost of the gumstix itself, I don't think that battery life, cost, keyboard, or really anything else (aside from the cost of the battery - likely not more than the $100 that your average laptop battery costs) would have to be compromised - I feel certain that something rugged with a 10+ hour battery, expandability, and a backlit display could be made (and possibly sold commercially) for under $500. Consider that the original Palm Pilot Pros could run for at least 5 hours with the backlight on on two AAA batteries, or that the original gameboy will run for days of use on dead batteries (flashlight -> gameboy -> days of Zelda loving). The main drain on power would be a backlit -color- display. Modern laptops use the majority of their battery power to power the energy-hungry color backlit displays in them. Using a display similar to the greyscale palms would be quite energy efficient, and not in the least bit impossible, when you consider that the Fujitsu Lifebook P1000 (sadly discontinued) had 8 hours of battery life with a default battery, and it has an 800x600 color display. > A kit with professional plastics would be nice. then it's less likely > that i would be forced to disassemble it at the airport to prove it's > not some kind of bomb. > I'm thinking "original gameboy-style" pressure molded plastic ceramic, myself. :) That shit is -tough-. I've got one that was run over by an F450 - not once, but twice, and still looks/works fine. |
From: Craig H. <cr...@hu...> - 2004-10-20 17:06:07
|
Check out my buddies at AlphaSmart http://www.alphasmart.com/ Basically a recording keyboard with a small LCD character screen on it. Looks almost exactly like the Tandy 100, except it weighs a lot less and it's not 3 inches thick. I haven't looked at their range recently, but I think they're in the $50-100 range. When you get back to the office you plug in the keyboard, fire up Word or whatever, and hit "play" and it replays your keystrokes. C On Oct 19, 2004, at 3:29 PM, Jon Mayo wrote: > I myself would kill for a modern-day version of a Tandy Model 100. It > was the best for doing word processing on the road. > http://www.old-computers.com/museum/computer.asp?c=233 |
From: linuxg33k <lin...@sh...> - 2004-10-20 03:32:52
|
I would second Jon's post and put my money where my mouth is ... i'll buy a few kits when available. Jon, don't forget you can't do jack shit with an IPAQ really. It's closed platform and reverse engineering is not really worthwhile because the next model is out in a few months after you get some good results anyway. The most you can do is load up wince apps on it, or if you are lucky, hack Linux onto it, a dubious idea at best (despite some wonderfull work done in this area). One of the key issues with pda's/palmtops is flexibility and openness. Everyone that walks down to a local electronics store looks at the dozens of models available and none of them are either 'accessible' on an os/hardware level beyond pure hackery. My bet is that the market is a bit more open than you suggest, and although you won't hit the mass market (mostly because I don't think a mass market actually exists ... I think the market demographics are far more diverse than anticapated as you can see by some of the latest pda makers pulling out of north america), you will hit specialized verticals. For example, I need one of these runing pretty much stock Debian: http://www.techtree.com/techtree/jsp/showstory.jsp?storyid=54166. But guess what? Closed platform, only sold in Japan, and oh yeah, Sharp did a "customer survey" that told them not many people used java so they didn't include it. Obviously sharp is interested in the mass market versus building a platform and an ecosystem around it to address the wide variety of needs. I'm a consultant and I would use something like that for everything from running crm software, data gathering (think attaching a bar code reader when doing inventory) to testing networks, etc., because even the lowest powered laptop is too powerfull and too large. One could also envision custom configurations depending of job/need from something like that all the way down to a gumstix based device so you could build an ecosystem around the platform/s to suit different verticals. As a side note, you guys may be interested in this link: http://www.applieddata.net/landing_linux.asp Those guys basically have an ipaq based board that can do all of that PLUS it runs native debian, they support debian, and you can get a development kit for $2k with debian preinstalled (or wince if you so desire). Note: I am in no way affiliated with the company, only bringing up the link as I found them in my search for kit as Jon describes it, and found these guys. The gumstix dev's may be interested to see what these guys doing and how. - Rob Jon Mayo wrote: > What would be cool is if/when the CompactFlash version of the Gumstix > comes out is if someone makes a board that fits in a PDA case and has > an LCD and some buttons on the back and room for some nicad or NiMH AA > cells. And MMC and CF slots on the sides. Sort of a do-it-yourself > PDA. You could do it without CF, or do the board in such a way that > you could plug in the current version of the gumstix in it or a future > version. The hard part of such a project is seeing how many people > would actually buy them and at what price, because it would require > ordering plastics, pcbs and lcd in enough quantities to get a > reasonable price. > > Mostly I think it's a pipe-dream to turn gumstix into a pda. I would > certainly buy such a thing, but I don't see it likely that anyone > would put up the money on such a risky venture. Especially since you > can just buy an iPaq or something for under $300, I suspect a "kit" > like this would be more expensive than that. I think the only way to > make a viable gumstix pda would be to offer something nobody else has. > Like maybe make it a palmtop identical to the Psion Revo/Diamond Mako? > Nobody does a cheap palmtop anymore. Palmtop would fit with Linux much > better than a PDA would anyways. > > Jaapjan Tinbergen wrote: > |
From: linuxg33k <lin...@sh...> - 2004-10-20 08:34:23
|
I agree with this. The majour strenght of a kit would be customization. The one feature that I have ALWAYS wanted in higher end pdas is a monochrome lcd for the battery longetivity, yet none of the manufacturers offered that option. Benjamin Hodgens wrote: > > > The only real conflict I see there is the "fits in pocket vs. fits in > carry-on luggage", as they're diametrically opposed. Given the > size/cost of the gumstix itself, I don't think that battery life, > cost, keyboard, or really anything else (aside from the cost of the > battery - likely not more than the $100 that your average laptop > battery costs) would have to be compromised - I feel certain that > something rugged with a 10+ hour battery, expandability, and a > backlit display could be made (and possibly sold commercially) for > under $500. Consider that the original Palm Pilot Pros could run for > at least 5 hours with the backlight on on two AAA batteries, or that > the original gameboy will run for days of use on dead batteries > (flashlight -> gameboy -> days of Zelda loving). The main drain on > power would be a backlit -color- display. Modern laptops use the > majority of their battery power to power the energy-hungry color > backlit displays in them. Using a display similar to the greyscale > palms would be quite energy efficient, and not in the least bit > impossible, when you consider that the Fujitsu Lifebook P1000 (sadly > discontinued) had 8 hours of battery life with a default battery, and > it has an 800x600 color display. > > > |