Pandora Questions And Answers

[enigma85]

hello! i'm pretty new to linux. don't get me wrong i have a pc running suse and have messed with linux all the time. got gentoox on my xbox1. anyways i figured out how to get things running and my way around lots of distros.i just have never compiled a distro all on my own. nor have i tried programing for it. i went to vo-tech and learned c++, cobol(don't know why), j++, visual c and touched on a few others.

what language do i use to program?where is the sdl(if there is one)?

i really want a gentoo distro for it but have no idea how to start compiling for an arm processer.

just in general where do i start and how should i go about it. would love to get my pandora and already have a gentoo os and few apps to run on it

 

[Yamara]

NAT, regarding guarantee/warranty, devs have stated that by law there is a one year warranty. It's come up a few times but isn't in the FAQ. I'll add it. Here are some references: 1 2 3

 

[sinoth]

In this context, I think saying "I want Gentoo on my Pandora" is the same as saying "I want the Portage package manager on my Pandora". Seeing as we'll have our own package manager with programs specifically tailored for us, I don't see a lot of benefit in porting Gentoo. Is there any other reason you're wanting Gentoo specifically?

If you want to start game programming, you should probably look into SDL. Since you already know C++, I'd recommend sticking to that and writing some simple games in SDL for Windows (or Linux) since what you learn will easily carry over to Pandora. Best thing you can do now is practice! We only have two months, better hop to it

Some SDL tutorials here: http://www.libsdl.org/tutorials.php

 

[Kyo]

It will most likely cost the exact same

 

[Nathaniel607]

O.K thanks, that's good to know!

And I guess I'll just have to be carefull what I put on it to make sure it doesn't crash.

 

[Creature XL]

The next batch will be problematic for the dev-guys
They could be pretty sure that the first 3000 will sell out in the next days if they haven't already.
However, howmany will buy after this? could the 300 who didn't have the money this time (like me) or haven't too much confidence and wanted to read/hear experiences from the first-batch-owners.

Therfore, it COULD be that the next batch will be more expensive if they will only build 1000 units. I think

I just hope the next batch is deliverd in EARLY 2009.

 

[Balzac2m]

Naah, I guess much more will buy after it. Pandora is the first time I bought something in that pricerange without having one review at hand. There are very much people out there who just don't want to buy a device they haven't even seen on a photo.
I got three friends who are very interested but wait until they see my unit (hee hee) and I surely am not the only one with tech-savvy friends.
Wait until some big sites do reviews, when they are positive i bet pandora sales will go through the roof.
Regardless, I hope the next batch will be bought without preordering and just plain old ordering. People like to get something in return for their money.

 

[Zoppe]

i would like to know if the next batch has a specified date.

 

[kevcal]

Yeah, I personally would think there are more people waiting to order an actual unit, than preorder many weeks in advance.
Online reviews and probably linux/retro-gaming magazine reviews will create more interest once pandoras (pandorae?) are in the hands of users.
If they want to go mainstream however, they will need _easy_ ways of installing software; most normal(?) people would want a more elegant solution than what we currently have on the gp2x; maybe auto-update manager running on a windows pc with the pandora connected to it via usb (or bt)?

 

[Kyo]

They will have to build at least 3000 for the next batch. It's the manufacturing minimum

 

[x68000]

One of the GBAX team told me that the next batch would most likely be larger than this one.

Since it looks as if they have already sold over 3000, that would seem like a good move!

 

[Kyo]

It's hard to tell. The pandora, though being such a success, still has a relatively small market. What if everyone who wants one will already have one, and they will sell only a couple more?

Though, if you think about it, I sincerely doubt that will happen. These are preorders for two months in the future. I know many people who want to see reviews first or don't have money yet.

 

[telegramguy]

One of the GBAX team told me that the next batch would most likely be larger than this one.

Since it looks as if they have already sold over 3000, that would seem like a good move!

I read that 6000 were sold the evening of October 2nd US time (Thursday). I wonder how many more they sold before the cutoff today on Sunday afternoon GMT.

 

[gaterooze]

Yeah, I personally would think there are more people waiting to order an actual unit, than preorder many weeks in advance.

Absolutely. When videos appear of real Pandoras playing, barring any debacle in construction, a lot more people will become interested. The same will hold true once software starts appearing post-release.

 

[ultm8]

i want to know when will i be able to order from the next batch?
hopefully January-February.

 

[TaG]

i want to know when will i be able to order from the next batch?
hopefully January-February.

I can't answer specifically, and I don't think you're going to get a precise answer yet, but craigix mentioned March 2009.

The next batch is likely to go to the distributors. So they will place orders based on what their customers say, feedback here and elsewhere. Who knows, there might even be a type of pre-order for the next batch but probably not a cash up front type.

 

[gbouilland]

i want to know when will i be able to order from the next batch?
hopefully January-February.

On http://openpandora.org/worldmap.html, you can see the following announcement :

"The first batch of the Pandora is now sold out.

We will be taking orders for the next batch at the end of December - if you want to be told when they are ready please join the mailing list."

This page is accessible on the official main site 's Latest news from September/October

 

[Qwertyuiop]

Hmm, that's odd because on http://gbax.com/pandorax.html , it still says you can pre order the pandora. I'm guessing that you can't still pre-order, and they just forgot to update the page.

 

[Azure]

i want to know when will i be able to order from the next batch?
hopefully January-February.

I can't answer specifically, and I don't think you're going to get a precise answer yet, but craigix mentioned March 2009.

The next batch is likely to go to the distributors. So they will place orders based on what their customers say, feedback here and elsewhere. Who knows, there might even be a type of pre-order for the next batch but probably not a cash up front type.

March 2009 was in reference to when second-batch orders would possibly ship:

Note that if we do take orders then they still won't ship until March 2009.

 

[MiniSinisterMinister]

I am working on my Pandora blog and have some questions. I need to know more about the handheld's TV-Out capabilities in order to be able to recommend software when it is available.

1. The TV-Out mode must be implemented into each application individually like any other screen mode. Does it put a significant additional strain on CPU, GPU or RAM? For example, if you run an application which really challenges the hardware like a Videoplayer or an N64 Emu will it be difficult to implement TV-Out mode in this app.?

2. My national gp store does not ship S-Video cables for Pandora to the EU because the cable does not comply with the CE-Norm. Will the US shop ship it to the EU? Are there any other online stores like Lik-Sang which will sell it to me?