August 2007 - WLUG - wlug.mailman3.com

Re: [Wlug] Anybody want a really cheap computer?

by Brian J. Conway

On Sun, 5 Aug 2007 14:41:35 -0400 (EDT) Jamie Guinan <guinan(a)bluebutton.com> wrote: > On Fri, 27 Jul 2007, Andy Stewart wrote: > > > -----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- > > Hash: SHA1 > > > > > > HI everybody, > > > > Check this link: > > http://www.dataevolution.com/dectop%20info%202.htm > > > > This company bought the assets to the AMD PIC (personal internet > > computer). They're selling it for $99, or three for $299. > > > > Yes, it runs Linux. Here is one person's experience: > > http://jsco.org/dectop/ > > > > I wonder if this machine would make a good LTSP thin client...hummmmm. > > Perhaps a topic for a future WLUG meeting? > > > > See ya later, > > > > Andy > > I remember reading about this when it came out a few years ago. It was > intended for the same market that OLPC is now aiming for. Hence the > rugged "big mac" case. :) Of course it lacks a monitor. > > A few others to consider, > > Nicer form factor, but slower CPU (166MHz), no HD: > http://linuxdevices.com/news/NS6828123924.html > http://www.norhtec.com/products/mcjr/index.html > > USB 2.0, but pricier (price listed in Euros): > http://www.linutop.com/ > > Consumer variant of OLPC XO1, whenever it comes out. > > http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ASUS_Eee_PC > > Not to discourage you - the PIC looks like a fun little box! > > -Jamie Here's a couple more that looked like fun toys: http://www.linuxdevices.com/news/NS5551137361.html http://www.linuxdevices.com/news/NS2862783342.html (fee-based) The first one's a little pricey, but would make a great router/firewall with two onboard ethernet ports. Brian J. Conway

Aug. 6, 2007

Re: [Wlug] Anybody want a really cheap computer?

by Jamie Guinan

On Fri, 27 Jul 2007, Andy Stewart wrote: > -----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- > Hash: SHA1 > > > HI everybody, > > Check this link: > http://www.dataevolution.com/dectop%20info%202.htm > > This company bought the assets to the AMD PIC (personal internet > computer). They're selling it for $99, or three for $299. > > Yes, it runs Linux. Here is one person's experience: > http://jsco.org/dectop/ > > I wonder if this machine would make a good LTSP thin client...hummmmm. > Perhaps a topic for a future WLUG meeting? > > See ya later, > > Andy I remember reading about this when it came out a few years ago. It was intended for the same market that OLPC is now aiming for. Hence the rugged "big mac" case. :) Of course it lacks a monitor. A few others to consider, Nicer form factor, but slower CPU (166MHz), no HD: http://linuxdevices.com/news/NS6828123924.html http://www.norhtec.com/products/mcjr/index.html USB 2.0, but pricier (price listed in Euros): http://www.linutop.com/ Consumer variant of OLPC XO1, whenever it comes out. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ASUS_Eee_PC Not to discourage you - the PIC looks like a fun little box! -Jamie

Aug. 5, 2007

Re: [Wlug] Anybody want a really cheap computer?

by kstratton＠fastmail.us

On Sun, 05 Aug 2007 09:50:11 -0400, "Andy Stewart" <andystewart(a)comcast.net> said: > -----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- > Hash: SHA1 > > kstratton(a)fastmail.us wrote: > > My understanding is that playing flash movies is still at the alpha > > stage (gnash project http://www.gnu.org/software/gnash) For that > > reason alone, I would not give something like that to my mother. Is > > there a movie playing technology that is stable enough for general > > purpose consumption? > > > > One negative of the decTOP that is not obvious is that the decTop does > > not have an integrated network adaptor (based on a web page), instead it > > comes with a USB to network adaptor. If anyone has any suggestions, > > please let me know. I am willing to consider ARM or MIPS boards. > > decTOP likes: > > 1) low power usage (if I believe web pages, 8W) > > 2) standard memory and hard drive interface > > 3) video interface provided as well as mouse and keyboard > > 4) low price > > I still have to do some reading up on the TCP/IP protocol before > > actually deciding to buy something. > > Another thing that I like about the decTOP is that it takes a 12Vdc > input. That lends itself very well to ham radio related operations, > where most equipment takes 12Vdc (think: car battery). Also, a good > percentage of the 8W is to run the hard drive. I can imagine swapping > that out for a flash card and saving lots of power, which would be > important in some applications. > > If it weren't for the $40 shipping, I'd probably have bought one of > these by now. Shipping for four of these was $45 (I think), so if three > other people are interested, I'll split shipping with you. Just let me > know. > > Later, > > Andy > > - -- > Andy Stewart, Founder > Worcester Linux Users' Group (http://www.wlug.org) > Chelmsford Linux Meetup Group (http://linux.meetup.com/393) > Amateur Radio: KB1OIQ > -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE----- > Version: GnuPG v1.4.2 (GNU/Linux) > Comment: Using GnuPG with SUSE - http://enigmail.mozdev.org > > iD8DBQFGtdWTHl0iXDssISsRAlWYAJ0WhxA3RLXdi93qeepwscSzgVh2gwCfeiiG > mx807TDl2mRou4IUN8okVW4= > =djEY > -----END PGP SIGNATURE----- > _______________________________________________ > Wlug mailing list > Wlug(a)mail.wlug.org > http://mail.wlug.org/mailman/listinfo/wlug Even though nobody said to do this, I personally would be careful using the decTOP directly wired to the car battery. I have seen car batteries under charge with 15 volts or more at the terminals. This is outside the range of the ATX power suply standard for the 12V output (+-5%) acording to: http://www.formfactors.org/developer\specs\ATX12V PSDG2.01.pdf. My greatest concern is for the 3.5" hard drive and possibly the DC to DC converter that converts the 12V to a logic level voltages. I was considering managing the power with some kind of script using hdparm to bring the hard drive in and out of sleep, but there are more than a few technical details to be worked out. -- kstratton(a)fastmail.us

Aug. 5, 2007

Re: [Wlug] Anybody want a really cheap computer?

by Andy Stewart

-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- Hash: SHA1 kstratton(a)fastmail.us wrote: > My understanding is that playing flash movies is still at the alpha > stage (gnash project http://www.gnu.org/software/gnash) For that > reason alone, I would not give something like that to my mother. Is > there a movie playing technology that is stable enough for general > purpose consumption? > > One negative of the decTOP that is not obvious is that the decTop does > not have an integrated network adaptor (based on a web page), instead it > comes with a USB to network adaptor. If anyone has any suggestions, > please let me know. I am willing to consider ARM or MIPS boards. > decTOP likes: > 1) low power usage (if I believe web pages, 8W) > 2) standard memory and hard drive interface > 3) video interface provided as well as mouse and keyboard > 4) low price > I still have to do some reading up on the TCP/IP protocol before > actually deciding to buy something. Another thing that I like about the decTOP is that it takes a 12Vdc input. That lends itself very well to ham radio related operations, where most equipment takes 12Vdc (think: car battery). Also, a good percentage of the 8W is to run the hard drive. I can imagine swapping that out for a flash card and saving lots of power, which would be important in some applications. If it weren't for the $40 shipping, I'd probably have bought one of these by now. Shipping for four of these was $45 (I think), so if three other people are interested, I'll split shipping with you. Just let me know. Later, Andy - -- Andy Stewart, Founder Worcester Linux Users' Group (http://www.wlug.org) Chelmsford Linux Meetup Group (http://linux.meetup.com/393) Amateur Radio: KB1OIQ -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE----- Version: GnuPG v1.4.2 (GNU/Linux) Comment: Using GnuPG with SUSE - http://enigmail.mozdev.org iD8DBQFGtdWTHl0iXDssISsRAlWYAJ0WhxA3RLXdi93qeepwscSzgVh2gwCfeiiG mx807TDl2mRou4IUN8okVW4= =djEY -----END PGP SIGNATURE-----

Aug. 5, 2007

Re: [Wlug] Anybody want a really cheap computer?

by kstratton＠fastmail.us

My understanding is that playing flash movies is still at the alpha stage (gnash project http://www.gnu.org/software/gnash) For that reason alone, I would not give something like that to my mother. Is there a movie playing technology that is stable enough for general purpose consumption? One negative of the decTOP that is not obvious is that the decTop does not have an integrated network adaptor (based on a web page), instead it comes with a USB to network adaptor. If anyone has any suggestions, please let me know. I am willing to consider ARM or MIPS boards. decTOP likes: 1) low power usage (if I believe web pages, 8W) 2) standard memory and hard drive interface 3) video interface provided as well as mouse and keyboard 4) low price I still have to do some reading up on the TCP/IP protocol before actually deciding to buy something. On Wed, 1 Aug 2007 08:36:11 -0400, "Klein, Richard" <Richard.Klein(a)cytyc.com> said: > > kstratton(a)fastmail.us wrote: > > > The decPIC does look interesting at the advertised price > > point, but I > > > think the price is high when shipping is added. > > The kicker for me is video. I thought this would be just the thing to > send to my sister in Georgia, because all she really needs is email and > web access (and maybe basic word processing). You wouldn't initially > think video performance would really matter there, but then I think of > all the times people email links to videos and whatnot, and it would be > really irritating to not be able to see what the person's linking to. > > One of the end-user reviews I found on the web said that the PIC is > really too slow for video, managing only single-digit frames per second. > > The USB 1.1 is also a bit of a downer, but not as much of a deal-breaker > for me. > > -- > Rich > > _______________________________________________ > Wlug mailing list > Wlug(a)mail.wlug.org > http://mail.wlug.org/mailman/listinfo/wlug -- kstratton(a)fastmail.us

Aug. 5, 2007

Re: [Wlug] core 2 duo extremely slow (solved, i think)

by brad

Hi all, It seems that a BIOS downgrade solved the problem. I tried a few different BIOS revisions, the newer the revision the worse the machine functioned, strange. thanks, - brad On Fri, 3 Aug 2007 07:22:54 -0400, Aaron Haviland <orion(a)parsed.net> wrote: > brad wrote, on Aug 02, 2007 at 21:54 EDT: >> >> Hi All, >> I recently got in a nice new 2.4GHz core 2 duo with a bunch of memory, > 8GB. >> I installed kubuntu i386 on it. To get use of the 8GB of memory i >> recompiled the kernel to enable high memory support, a.k.a PAE. When i >> booted the new kernel it saw all my memory, but it took 10-15 minutes to >> boot. i checked dmesg and it didn't seem to report anything out of the >> ordinary. >> >> Then, I thought that perhaps the 64bit version of kubuntu might be a > better >> option. I installed kubuntu 64bit. The install took two days because > every >> step was extremely slow. Once the install finished, i rebooted and it > took >> 10-15 to boot. I was seeing the same symptoms of the 64bit install as i > was >> with the 32bit install with PAE. >> >> I tried downloading the current kubuntu 64bit release as well as the > beta >> of the next release. I'm also trying Fedora Core 7 64bit as i type, but >> that install is going just as slow. I hunted through the BIOS for any >> suspicious settings. I removed all the hardware except for the CD-ROM > (to >> boot a live CD). I did searching through the interweb. All with no luck > to >> solving this problem. >> >> If anyone has any suggestions, they will be much appreciated. >> >> keep cool, >> - brad > > A couple (possibly) good leads in this thread: > http://groups.google.com/group/linux.gentoo.user/browse_frm/thread/830f835c… > > -- > Aaron Haviland > 34 Wayne Ave, Dudley, MA home: [508] 943 - 7974

Aug. 3, 2007

Re: [Wlug] core 2 duo extremely slow

by Aaron Haviland

brad wrote, on Aug 02, 2007 at 21:54 EDT: > > Hi All, > I recently got in a nice new 2.4GHz core 2 duo with a bunch of memory, 8GB. > I installed kubuntu i386 on it. To get use of the 8GB of memory i > recompiled the kernel to enable high memory support, a.k.a PAE. When i > booted the new kernel it saw all my memory, but it took 10-15 minutes to > boot. i checked dmesg and it didn't seem to report anything out of the > ordinary. > > Then, I thought that perhaps the 64bit version of kubuntu might be a better > option. I installed kubuntu 64bit. The install took two days because every > step was extremely slow. Once the install finished, i rebooted and it took > 10-15 to boot. I was seeing the same symptoms of the 64bit install as i was > with the 32bit install with PAE. > > I tried downloading the current kubuntu 64bit release as well as the beta > of the next release. I'm also trying Fedora Core 7 64bit as i type, but > that install is going just as slow. I hunted through the BIOS for any > suspicious settings. I removed all the hardware except for the CD-ROM (to > boot a live CD). I did searching through the interweb. All with no luck to > solving this problem. > > If anyone has any suggestions, they will be much appreciated. > > keep cool, > - brad A couple (possibly) good leads in this thread: http://groups.google.com/group/linux.gentoo.user/browse_frm/thread/830f835c… -- Aaron Haviland 34 Wayne Ave, Dudley, MA home: [508] 943 - 7974

Aug. 3, 2007

Re: [Wlug] Detecting power failure

by John Stoffel

Tal> I have a question about detecting power failures in Linux. I have Tal> an Intel server sitting in a datacenter. It is running Crux 2.1 Tal> (a 2.6 kernel). It is a 2U server with 2 power supplies. Does Tal> anyone know if I can detect when 1 of the power supplies fails? Depending on your server hardware and what the BIOS has configured, take a look at acpid(8) daemon man page. Or the apmd(8) man page. One of them should work for you. As a simple test, pull one power plug and watch the output of /var/log/messages and/or /var/log/dmesg to see what shows up. I'm on a debian setup, but I found some more docs in /usr/share/doc/acpid/README and I'm sure there are a bunch of docs if you google for them. Good luck! John

Aug. 3, 2007

core 2 duo extremely slow

by brad

Hi All, I recently got in a nice new 2.4GHz core 2 duo with a bunch of memory, 8GB. I installed kubuntu i386 on it. To get use of the 8GB of memory i recompiled the kernel to enable high memory support, a.k.a PAE. When i booted the new kernel it saw all my memory, but it took 10-15 minutes to boot. i checked dmesg and it didn't seem to report anything out of the ordinary. Then, I thought that perhaps the 64bit version of kubuntu might be a better option. I installed kubuntu 64bit. The install took two days because every step was extremely slow. Once the install finished, i rebooted and it took 10-15 to boot. I was seeing the same symptoms of the 64bit install as i was with the 32bit install with PAE. I tried downloading the current kubuntu 64bit release as well as the beta of the next release. I'm also trying Fedora Core 7 64bit as i type, but that install is going just as slow. I hunted through the BIOS for any suspicious settings. I removed all the hardware except for the CD-ROM (to boot a live CD). I did searching through the interweb. All with no luck to solving this problem. If anyone has any suggestions, they will be much appreciated. keep cool, - brad

Aug. 3, 2007

Detecting power failure

by Tal Cohen

Hi Guys, I have a question about detecting power failures in Linux. I have an Intel server sitting in a datacenter. It is running Crux 2.1 (a 2.6 kernel). It is a 2U server with 2 power supplies. Does anyone know if I can detect when 1 of the power supplies fails? Thanks, Tal

Aug. 2, 2007