Open Pandora Emulator?

[EssoAir]

Hi everyone!


I had an idea. Would it be possible to make an Open Pandora emulator? I was thinking about it as a way to attract new customers. Someone looks online at the site and sees the Pandora. They think its cool, but they're skeptical of the price to value ratio. Wouldn't it be cool if they could download an emulator to their computer (likely written in Java for cross compatability) and see what all the Pandora can do? Then, once they see how awesome it is, they can say "I'd love to play this with the intended controls and keys" and they might actually buy one.


Is this a possability?


Also, could it be compiled for ARM as well as x86?

 

[TrashyMG]

It's possible to run the OS in Qemu on a PC.. but nubs would need to be reassigned  and the Keyboard layout would need to be modified for a real keyboard.. There used to be an qemu image long ago of a pre-beta version of the OS, but we're talking before the Pandora was even a prototype.

So yes with work it could happen.

 

[EssoAir]

It's possible to run the OS in Qemu on a PC.. but nubs would need to be reassigned and the Keyboard layout would need to be modified for a real keyboard.. There used to be an qemu image long ago of a pre-beta version of the OS, but we're talking before the Pandora was even a prototype.


So yes with work it could happen.

How much work would be involved? I don't have want to waste anyone's time, but I personally dont have the knowledge to do this. So while I would love to volunteer, someone else would need to pull it off.

 

[TrashyMG]

Someone who is very familiar with setting up Qemu would need to be involved as it's a bit of a complex emulator.. That person isn't me unfortunately..

I'm not 100% sure the graphics acceleration would work either..

 

[mcobit]

I still don't get whats the practical usecase for this...


Ogles and all the Hardwarescalermodes of the modified sdl won't work either unless you pull off some really good tricks.

 

[Neelix]

It could happen but honestly I can't see it being a big draw...  Yeah you could sample the software library, but most of it is available on any Gnu/Linux based system, and would perform better natively.  With a few exceptions the software isn't really what makes the Pandora unique, rather it's the feature set and form factor that does that, and you just can't emulate the experience of actually using it.

- Neelix

 

[Franko]

^ I would tend to agree with Neelix (and others) on this one.  What makes the Pandora unique and fun to use isn't necessarily the Angstrom/Linux OS - it's the actual physical device and controls.  I just don't see how emulating it on a home computer would be any fun.  Just about the only practical purpose (that I can envision) would be to code (or port) for the Pandora system itself on a home PC.  I'm pretty sure that has already been done by some devs that were waiting for their Pandoras...

 

[_wb_]

A Pandora emulator wouldn't help at all to make you understand what it's like to play NubNub on the train

If you want to dev for the Pandora on another device, you don't need an emulator for that.

Also, it will probably be hard to emulate a Pandora full-speed.

 

[kingoddball]

Just make a hell of a lot more official videos!

Emu's, games and system!

I was constantly watching while I was deciding to order - Not polished videos, just real time vids.

Pandora hack vids!

 

[lingenfr]

I asked about the same time. I intended to use it to familiarize myself with the P and to checkout some apps on the repo. The other use I see of it is to run apps like organizers or similar that are used on the P, but don't have a compatible app on a PC or Mac. It might also encourage some developers who don't own a P to develop for the platform.

 

[ekianjo]

I asked about the same time. I intended to use it to familiarize myself with the P and to checkout some apps on the repo. The other use I see of it is to run apps like organizers or similar that are used on the P, but don't have a compatible app on a PC or Mac. It might also encourage some developers who don't own a P to develop for the platform.

Ha. Sure, since its such a huge market to tap into.

 

[_wb_]

You don't need an emulator to develop Pandora software without having a Pandora. Just use any GNU/Linux system, make your software, and when you're done, cross-compile it or compile it natively on a Pandora. You just have to take into account what hardware will be available: don't hardcode 1024x768 or rely on OpenGL with a fast GPU or something like that. You'll preferably have to check whether everything works as expected on a real Pandora anyway: it's not feasible to make a Pandora emulator that corresponds completely to reality (e.g. speed and caching behavior).

If you want to familiarize yourself with the Pandora, just install any GNU/Linux distribution, set your window manager to xfce or OpenBox, set your screen resolution to 800x480, and install whatever you want - most of what is on the repo are just standard GNU/Linux applications, and if you can find some nice GNU/Linux application that is not on the repo yet, it's typically only a matter of asking someone to package it as a PND. The Pandora-specific stuff on the repo wouldn't run well in an emulator anyway, because that stuff tends to use specific things like the nubs and key bindings that would be really strange on a regular keyboard.

 

[ekianjo]

If you want to familiarize yourself with the Pandora, just install any GNU/Linux distribution, set your window manager to xfce or OpenBox, set your screen resolution to 800x480, and install whatever you want - most of what is on the repo are just standard GNU/Linux applications, and if you can find some nice GNU/Linux application that is not on the repo yet, it's typically only a matter of asking someone to package it as a PND.

Exactly. Why would you need an emulator? SOme people really misunderstand here that the Pandora IS a GNU/Linux PC.

 

[lingenfr]

I asked about the same time. I intended to use it to familiarize myself with the P and to checkout some apps on the repo. The other use I see of it is to run apps like organizers or similar that are used on the P, but don't have a compatible app on a PC or Mac. It might also encourage some developers who don't own a P to develop for the platform.

Ha. Sure, since its such a huge market to tap into.

Actually, that is precisely why it needs to be cheap and easy to develop for. I understand _wb_'s point, but you still don't get a chance to see what it will look like on the P and you don't get the emulation of the unique keys, nubs, etc. I've fooled with the emulators for most of the similar devices I've owned, so it is surprising it is a controversial topic.

 

[FBnil]

hmm... usb openpandora game controller... good idea lingenfr...

 

[TrashyMG]

99% of what the Pandora is running is open source software that is already available on the desktop version of Linux... that's why it's silly to have an emulator. the only thing you gain is experience in dealing with PNDs.. outside of that you could just install any flavor of Linux with the XFCE4 desktop, set the resolution of your X display to 800x480 and pretend you're using an over-sized Pandora. 

Also developing for the Pandora isn't really any bit more difficult than developing on a desktop PC.. The only caveats is if it's 3D code for OpenGLES instead of  straight up OpenGL and make sure your code is portable to other platforms(which all opensource develops should do).

 

[origimbo]

You don't need an emulator to develop Pandora software without having a Pandora. Just use any GNU/Linux system, make your software, and when you're done, cross-compile it or compile it natively on a Pandora. You just have to take into account what hardware will be available: don't hardcode 1024x768 or rely on OpenGL with a fast GPU or something like that. You'll preferably have to check whether everything works as expected on a real Pandora anyway: it's not feasible to make a Pandora emulator that corresponds completely to reality (e.g. speed and caching behavior).

Isn't even "any GNU/Linux system" overspecifying things a bit? Can't you crosscompile on anything which will support the gnu binary toolchain?

 

[EssoAir]

My origional idea behind this was, "hey dude, check this out, it called the open pandora www.openpandora.org" "dude this is so cool, can I try it out at best buy" "no they dont carry it, but you can download the emulator to get a feel for the software" "wow this is awesome, imma order one now"


The point was to gear it toward simplicity. While someone is capable of recreating an 800x400 XFCE4 desktop, they may not want to just to see how a device works. The simpler it is for someone to try out the pandora, the more likely they will buy one.


I really dont get why thats too dificult for people *cough*_wb_*cough* to understand

 

[Franko]

^ I think I understand what you're going for - but I still must reiterate what I said.  The emulation of a Pandora without the actual controls is almost self-defeating.  The average person's main "PC" will have a larger screen and a bigger keyboard...and will undoubtedly be more powerful and will run more CPU-intensive programs.  I say again that the Pandora IS an emulation machine and a physical computer that can only be fully appreciated and understood by envisioning THAT or trying one out for yourself.  It'd be great if we can have a bigger presence in certain computer Expos/events...not just gaming ones.  We need to market the device stressing other aspects of it.

 

[Franko]

I really do think that the Youtube videos help - a LOT.  That's free advertising...and effective.  Ingoreis is really good at that....so is P'titSeb, _wb_ and so many other talented developers.  They create great code, or port needed software that still needs necessary tweaks and maintenance...and advertise their works by making videos for the average layman to appreciate.  That's where we'll get the interest of new potential Pandora consumers.  Use the inherent "power" of the internet to advertise what we have for the world.