Pandora news on TheRegister


Not sure where they got the figure of 1000 from. Would've thought that milestone might have been mentioned in the official channels.


Also not too sure what they are getting at in the final paragraph about 'being destroyed by official patent holders' anyone got any idea as to which patents they might be referring to?


Nice to see a bit of interest in the project from one of the finest tech sites on the web. The Register could be a great friend to Pandora, reckon that a fairly large proportion of its readership would be interested in the Pandora project.

Not sure how Craig will react to being called a "Geordie geek" though....

Reckon he's been called a lot worse. ;)
 
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Also not too sure what they are getting at in the final paragraph about 'being destroyed by official patent holders' anyone got any idea as to which patents they might be referring to?

probably none specifically, but i'm sure if the pandora suddenly sold about a million units, some big company would jump in there to stop it, sure sony/nintendo/etc would have something to say about the emulation capabilities etc
 
I wonder if I had a hand in getting TheReg to actually do the write-up on the Pandora. I had sent a mail shot to them on 26th May to announce the first shippings when Craig was grumbling that we were not getting coverage from the home country. Maybe they've been keeping an eye on it since then ;)


On second thoughts, none of their info reflects what I wrote though so maybe not, although I DID give them the relevant links where to get more info!
 
I read that today and thought bloody hell, The Pandora on El Reg. Things are looking up....until I read it.


It makes it sound as if the first batch of 1000 was all sold out and they are now working on the second batch for the Xmas rush. Sadly, it's nothing of the sort.


Still, it's good to get a mention.
 
Seems fine, free press coverage that plays up some of the Pandora's strengths is a great thing and could help batch 2 to sell as well as batch 1 did.


Oh, and the 1000 number is likely from the email about batch 2 sales starting a few days ago.
 
probably none specifically, but i'm sure if the pandora suddenly sold about a million units, some big company would jump in there to stop it, sure sony/nintendo/etc would have something to say about the emulation capabilities etc
Then they better stop producing PCs, Macs, Smartphones, PDAs, PSPs, Dingoos, Wiz, Caanoo etc because of the "emulation capabilities" of all of those too.
 
Then they better stop producing PCs, Macs, Smartphones, PDAs, PSPs, Dingoos, Wiz, Caanoo etc because of the "emulation capabilities" of all of those too.
They have said things about the "emulation capabilities" of at least PCs, Macs, and some smartphones. The problem is that Intel, Microsoft, Apple, etc, are all too big to actually fight: if they challenged them on it, it would stick in court for a long time and no one would actually win.


Little guys suddenly becoming big news but still lacking the funds to properly defend themselves? Sounds like a perfect target to make an example of.
 
Emulation is *not* illegal. Distribution of copyrighted ROMS is all they could go for, and as far as I know, the OPT aren't doing that .. so there's nothing to worry about whatsoever.
 
They have said things about the "emulation capabilities" of at least PCs, Macs, and some smartphones. The problem is that Intel, Microsoft, Apple, etc, are all too big to actually fight: if they challenged them on it, it would stick in court for a long time and no one would actually win.


Little guys suddenly becoming big news but still lacking the funds to properly defend themselves? Sounds like a perfect target to make an example of.
Unfortunately you're right in your last paragraph. But still, I can't see how "emulation capabilities" could be a target here, because the Pandora doesn't have specific, specially-made emulation capabilities. They're all covered just by being a general computer, that's the definition of a general programmable computer (as laid out by the forefathers of computing): You can program it to do what you want. So if anyone wants to go to sue for "emulation capabilities" they would have to sue for being a "generally programmable computer", and if they won against the small vendor then suddenly they would be in a position to sue every computing device vendor in existence.
 
Unfortunately you're right in your last paragraph. But still, I can't see how "emulation capabilities" could be a target here, because the Pandora doesn't have specific, specially-made emulation capabilities. They're all covered just by being a general computer, that's the definition of a general programmable computer (as laid out by the forefathers of computing): You can program it to do what you want. So if anyone wants to go to sue for "emulation capabilities" they would have to sue for being a "generally programmable computer", and if they won against the small vendor then suddenly they would be in a position to sue every computing device vendor in existence.

You are correct, but emulation isn't the only thing OPT could be targeted for. But thankfully the team thought about the patent issues well before Pandora design was even finalised. Custom nubs, keymat, battery, etc, Widely used screen, heck even the A/V jack is custom. The wording on the OP website markets the Pandora as "a mixture between a PC and a gaming console.". I really do not think the OPT have anything to worry about, it's just another case of a journalist being well, a journalist.
 
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But still, I can't see how "emulation capabilities" could be a target here, because the Pandora doesn't have specific, specially-made emulation capabilities.
It doesn't need them. If they can argue that it is known almost exclusively as a device that encourages piracy, that's all they need to start building a case. A regular PC is capable of running emulators, but a large percentage of them aren't purchased for that purpose. The number of PCs with emulators on them is probably actually quite low compared to the total number of PCs in the world. I would be willing to bet that a significant number of Pandoras have emulators on them, on the other hand. Does OPT encourage the use of emulators for piracy? A clever lawyer could come up with enough evidence to suggest that they might, just enough for a judge to hear the case.

if they won against the small vendor then suddenly they would be in a position to sue every computing device vendor in existence.
Oh they wouldn't win the lawsuit, but they wouldn't have to. Just file the suit, throw a couple of lawyers at the case, get a temporary injunction, and let it drag out for a few months until OPT finally collapses under the legal weight, forfeits, and the suing company gets the remaining assets.


And it's not just about emulation here. There's enough stuff inside the Pandora that some patent troll could be sitting and waiting for some little fish to grow big enough to make it worth gobbling down.
 
And it's not just about emulation here. There's enough stuff inside the Pandora that some patent troll could be sitting and waiting for some little fish to grow big enough to make it worth gobbling down.

a patent application for a surface mount resistor, mounted in the correct position as to increase wifi performance anyone? :D
 
Well, inside it's quite similar (not layout-wise, but components/functional-wise) to a Beagleboard.


In any case I for one purchased the Pandora as a general portable computer, not an emulation device. It's a replacement for the conceptually very similar Nokia N800. What the Panda has in addition (except for the upgraded CPU and memory) is a keyboard (and that's a generic thing), the nubs, and the shoulder buttons. The N800 already has a D-pad. So, the nubs and shoulder buttons would be what would then mark it as an 'emulation device'. I'm still not paranoid enough to think that would be sufficient to avoid getting a case like that thrown out of court. But I'm not a lawyer.
 
Wizard could be right but I hope and doubt anyone would bother, as yes the Pandora is a mini computer.


The gaming controls? Currently by default, are alternative controls to other PC functions and serve those purposes well.


Hell there isn´t even dual shoulder buttons, unless you get a dremel and some solder out to void your warranty. So its hardly a designed emulation device for average Joe, "Your Honour"...ptthh... I reject that phrase to an actor in a wig!


It´s a PC, with few apps at present, thats all. If the Debian extend magic stuff of hackery goes official, in an easy to install way, then its a PC goldmine of computing apps, with enough free apps to make Job´s ponder his own apples! Thats a crime?


Sure a user can develop a nuclear bomb and lay down his plans for it upon it, or some awful poetry about that plan! So what? Sure he can run some roms for various systems on it, lookup hentai loli for a lol coffee spit, or crack peoples wifi once he can get his own peripherals supported. So what?


Sure he can do anything with an unlocked device in his pocket, even rob a liquor store! A banana also works btw


It´s a basic machine, a tool.


Only what its used for by the end user counts.


I´ve needed lots of string, a balaclava, glue to keep it on, false ID´s whilst wearing them and a whole lot of polishing products to begin my scheme and if I added lube, nakedness and dusting to the equation, I could falsely claim a cover story for having my head in a Pandora!


As it is I will get back to my database project of a logical tattooing generation program for test subjects, linked to their health records and all other internet recoverable, or torture extracted information, or that willingly offered to the corporate state, via shopping incentive schemes as is available.


For this I will use Gnumeric and MtPaint (*ahem* colours hopefully soon *ahem*), as my old IBM punchcard system has gotten dusty and the little yellow or pink stars are no longer printing clearly and IBM´s digital angel upgrade services are more gold than I stashed.


Surely a poster requesting which Mame romset is required is more iilegal? The answer is none. Simply only use the roms you have ripped or downloaded from arcade pcb´s yourself, that match your personal collection!


Game recommendation threads? Arrest them all !


Oh wait! Pandora has an email client! We are all banned from visiting America, as Obama doesn´t like being called a prick in drunken electronic outbursts by teenagers from the UK.


What a prick! Obama I mean.


Good Job I´m only twelfty and 3 score and sober. ;)
 
Surely a poster requesting which Mame romset is required is more iilegal? The answer is none. Simply only use the roms you have ripped or downloaded from arcade pcb´s yourself, that match your personal collection!
Just some clarification: the romset doesn't contain any actual roms or illegal data; it's basically just a list of games that work and how the roms which you have dumped yourself from arcade pcbs you own are to be used. You can't play any games regardless of how you acquired the rom without this romset list, and due to political reasons I will never understand, this romset is changed radically seemingly every new release. Ie, if you dump the rom from a cabinet you own to match the current romset, if you then go and update mame, you will not be able to play that game anymore without either redumping it against the new romset or running it through some kind of tool that will convert the rom to the new romset.


That's why asking which romset is used is not an unexpected question, and is in no way illegal.
 
Thankyou Wizard,


I shall stand in the corner well corrected in a pointy hat!


Any chance I could borrow one? ;)
No need. Most of your other points hopefully hold true, I just didn't want the confusion on that one to remain :)


It's all academic anyway. OPT would have to sell hundreds of thousands if not millions of units before gaining any attention from the big guys and by then, who knows, they might have the funds to properly defend themselves.
 
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