Using pandora as a regular Ubuntu computer.

[AquaAnalogue]

Which device from the 1990's are referring to?

This one.


I was mistaken-- they -started- making it in the 90's. I'm unsure of exactly when it ceased production, but I know it is no longer made, even in any of its derivative forms. I'd most likely kill a man to get one.


Closest thing they have these days is a watered down WinCE version. I mean, sure, it's DOS, but the 200LX ran a real PC operating system.

 

[froggyman]

This one.


I was mistaken-- they -started- making it in the 90's. I'm unsure of exactly when it ceased production, but I know it is no longer made, even in any of its derivative forms. I'd most likely kill a man to get one.


Closest thing they have these days is a watered down WinCE version. I mean, sure, it's DOS, but the 200LX ran a real PC operating system.

Well there are plenty of x86 UMPC, that are about the same size as the pandora and can run Microsoft Windows. But none of those have a 10 hour battery life, or gaming controls

 

[Yannick]

Well there are plenty of x86 UMPC, that are about the same size as the pandora and can run Microsoft Windows. But none of those have a 10 hour battery life, or gaming controls

runs for about 30-40 hours on two size AA alkaline or Ni-Cd rechargeable cells <= wikipedia about the 200XL


it's an x86 UMPC alright, but i doubt it runs windows (1.0 maybe)

 

[froggyman]

runs for about 30-40 hours on two size AA alkaline or Ni-Cd rechargeable cells <= wikipedia about the 200XL


it's an x86 UMPC alright, but i doubt it runs windows (1.0 maybe)

I was referring to the one he posted. I meant that on the market you can currently buy an UMPC that is x86 and will run windows vista/7/XP ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ultra-Mobile_PC )

 

[AquaAnalogue]

it's an x86 UMPC alright, but i doubt it runs windows (1.0 maybe)

It has the capability to run Windows 3.0 just fine, but you can't do anything too extensive. Notably, though, you can get the early versions of Word and Excel to work on it without a problem.


I found a site where I can buy one refurbished and most likely when I get my "stipend" (hah) for next quarter I'll consider purchasing one. It's just the type of thing I've wanted since my first notebook lost the ability to function as a normal machine. (it was made by a company called Magitronic in 1994, i got it supposedly DOA from my aunt and had it running in 10 minutes. It's not completely dead and I still use it to dial the occasional BBS with my old-fashioned faxmodem ).


I imagine sitting in class with not one, but TWO awesome palmtop machines, alternating betwixt taking quick notes on the 200LX and playing games/chatting with friends on Pandora, perhaps networking the two together somehow and uploading my notes to my VPS via the Pandora. This is my (admittedly rather irresponsible) dream. Or how about interfacing my graphing calculator to one of them and downloading games for it, so I could play on three consoles at once? Hehehehe.


It saddens me to say this, but I'll bet anyone one of those 24-packs of AA batteries I get the 200LX first


Oh, and Froggyman, i'm sure those are great (for someone who wants to pay), but nothing could beat 30-40 hours on one charge. It makes one think-- what keeps us from doing that today? Answer: speed wasted on unnecessary tasks (drawing pretty graphics, realtime this-and-that, etc), more memory wasted on unnecessary storage (pretty graphics, waveform sound, etc). We don't realise it but were we all put back in time without our MP3s, our browser-based replacements for real software, fancy compositing desktops and our hi-res movies, WE WOULD LIVE It's kinda like, "Why didn't we have 2TB hard drives way back when?" Answer: you couldn't have filled it in a lifetime!!!

 

[Link]

Didn't even know 80186s were made.

 

[Yannick]

I started my C programming with "1000 ways to lock up DOS"


I have to say that 200LX is impressive


My mistake about windows 1-3 I was under the impression windows 3 required a 286 (something with memory management)


I'd still prefer a pandora running CLI linux these days

 

[AquaAnalogue]

My mistake about windows 1-3 I was under the impression windows 3 required a 286 (something with memory management)

Easy mistake to make, as most major hardware dependency changes occur on major version numbers, not minors. Windows 3.1 requires a 286; 3.0 doesn't

 

[ashdjones]

Yeah, I have a 200LX too. As sexy, vintage and useful as it is... the lack of a backlight meant I ended up not using the thing.


The keyboard is strangely easy to type on, and I've written a few thousand words on the it before my palms ache.


Oh yeah, and ignore Internet claims about battery life. I made a simple program in Qbasic with an infinite loop and a timestamp every 15 minutes - on fully charged 3500 Nihm batteries it lasted 15 hours.

 

[AquaAnalogue]

A backlight can be installed.


What kind of condition is it in, how much RAM, is a DoubleSpeed upgrade installed, and would you be in the position to sell it to me?


Also, correct me if I'm wrong, but doesn't an infinite loop usually result in a lot of "busy-waiting"? That is, a loop instruction is still an instruction and if there's one every cycle it's still using 100%?


I nearly failed Computer Organisation first time around, gotta retake it, so I may be wrong

 

[Wintersdark]

i tried unity, its pretty good, although feels rather pointless if you don't have a touchscreen or a screen bigger than 10 inches.

I really like Unity. It's not perfect yet, but it's very good. Given a couple more iterations, it'll be wonderful. As you note, it's largely useless on a desktop, but for it's purpose - smaller touch screens - it's brilliant.


I'd love to run Unity on the Pandora.

 

[ashdjones]

A backlight can be installed.


What kind of condition is it in, how much RAM, is a DoubleSpeed upgrade installed, and would you be in the position to sell it to me?


Also, correct me if I'm wrong, but doesn't an infinite loop usually result in a lot of "busy-waiting"? That is, a loop instruction is still an instruction and if there's one every cycle it's still using 100%?


I nearly failed Computer Organisation first time around, gotta retake it, so I may be wrong

I sent you a PM, but to answer your questions:


It's in good condition, but I seem to have misplaced the little red peice of plastic that covers the IR port and lithium battery. It'll be somewhere in my flat, so I can go digging for that.


It's not Doublespeed and has the standard amount of RAM it came with (How much do they come with again?).


Yes, I can sell it to you. I never use the thing anymore, and I own way too many handhelds!


Backlight: Yeah, some Japanese guy installed one, but it wasn't a walk in the park. I don't think any others have attempted it.


Loop: Well it was running some sort of code to keep the CPU busy. Some kind of maths routine? I forget. Actually, the batteries were only 2700, so maybe it's possible to get 20 hours with better ones? It suspends for as long as you want... a month probably?

 

[mmielke]

A backlight can be installed.


What kind of condition is it in, how much RAM, is a DoubleSpeed upgrade installed, and would you be in the position to sell it to me?


Also, correct me if I'm wrong, but doesn't an infinite loop usually result in a lot of "busy-waiting"? That is, a loop instruction is still an instruction and if there's one every cycle it's still using 100%?


I nearly failed Computer Organisation first time around, gotta retake it, so I may be wrong

The 200LX seems to me like it was quite a useful device back then. Actually, I miss older, sturdier devices. Most household objects were built to withstand explosives back then, but now most objects are cheaply made and mass produced.


I'm attempting to connect my Tiger GameCom to the internet. I have the internet cartridge and cable, plus I bought an old fax modem to hook it up to, but the final requirement may be the death of my project. To make matters worse, my wall-jack doesn't work either. It only runs text-based internet access, and I'm not sure if any providers can accomodate that request. If I manage to access the net, would it shut down due to graphical interfaces?