Archive for December, 2007
Linux is about to take over the low end of PCs.
by Ken on Dec.09, 2007, under Linux, Tech
Opinion — Sometimes, several unrelated changes come to a head at the same time, with a result no one could have predicted. The PC market is at such a tipping point right now and the result will be millions of Linux-powered PCs in users’ hands.
The first change was the continued maturation of desktop Linux. Today, no one can argue with a straight face that people can’t get their work done on Linux-powered PCs. Ubuntu, PCLinuxOS, MEPIS, OpenSUSE, Xandros, Linspire Mint, the list goes on and on of desktop Linuxes that PC owner can use without knowing a thing about Linux’s technical side. People can argue that Vista or Mac OS X is better, but when Michael Dell runs Ubuntu Linux on one of his own home systems, it can’t be said that Linux isn’t a real choice for anyone’s desktop.
Another change occurred when Nicholas Negroponte proposed the so-called $100-laptop, the OLPC (One Laptop Per Child) machine. He couldn’t get them built for quite that price — they cost about $200 — but that’s still remarkably cheap and they’re available today.
Zonbu notebook-style computing appliance runs Linux
by Ken on Dec.08, 2007, under Linux, Tech
Zonbu has started shipping a laptop version of its Linux-based computing appliance for home users. The Zonbu Notebook or “Zonbook 1″ is based on a power-efficient Via processor, runs Gentoo Linux and 20 open source applications, and sells for $280 with a managed service plan.
Linux-powered Asus Eee PC mini laptop arrives
by Ken on Dec.08, 2007, under Linux, Tech
The tiny Asus Eee PC 4G, running Xandros Linux (with a KDE desktop), is now available. The device has a 7-inch LCD screen and is powered by a 900MHz Intel Celeron M processor. It includes a 4GB flash drive, 3 USB ports, 100Mbps Ethernet, built-in WiFi, and VGA video out.
RIP Linux “Greenphone”
by Ken on Dec.08, 2007, under Linux, Tech
I was sad to find this over at LinuxDevices’ Website.
http://www.linuxdevices.com/news/NS6964769377.html
Trolltech has discontinued its Linux-based “Greenphone” development platform. Touted upon its introduction as the first Linux-based mobile phone with user-modifiable firmware, the device will be superseded by various third-party products, including not only open phones, but also portable media players, navigation devices, and home automation equipment, the company says.
Trolltech made a big splash with the Greenphone at LinuxWorld 2006. As the first Linux-based mobile phone with user-modifiable firmware, the phone was designed to provide wireless carriers and third-party application developers real-world target hardware. The phone enabled Trolltech to quickly pull together its Greensuite ecosystem of phone software providers.
Since the Greenphone’s debut, however, another open phone has appeared on the market — FIC’s Neo1973. Trolltech subsequently adopted the Neo1973 (aka FIC GTA01) as supported development hardware.
Trolltech’s CTO, Benoit Schilling, told LinuxDevices that developers are “very happy with the Neo1973 hardware,” adding, “Trolltech is not really a hardware company, and we have a great relationship with FIC.”
Schilling said Trolltech will continue to support the Greenphone and Neo1973, while extending its family of supported development hardware platforms to encompass a variety of device types. He hinted that a WiFi-enabled hardware design of some kind might be next in line — no surprise given Trolltech’s success with VoIP phones. He noted that “the Neo1973 does not have WiFi, and that has been a major criticism.”
Beyond that, Trolltech hopes to establish supported, open hardware platforms for portable media players (PMPs), in-car navigation devices, and home automation devices, among others. Schilling said, “The Greenphone program has been a huge success. The key is to do partnerships at this stage.”
Schilling added, “This is something that is very valuable for device manufacturers that want to build a community of active open source developers around their product.”
Trolltech’s Greenphone was announced in August of 2006, and shipped a month later. The first Linux-based GSM/GPRS phone to feature an open, user-modifiable OS, the $600 Greenphone was positioned by the company it as a development target rather than an end-user device.
Trolltech used the phone to quickly pull together a third-party mobile phone software ecosystem. Additionally, the Greenphone served as a convenient hardware target for developers customizing or building software applications for Trolltech’s Qtopia Phone Edition (QPE)
Originally a PDA stack, Qtopia is today marketed as a development framework for a wide range of devices. Trolltech announced on Sept. 18 that in “late October” it will release the entire QPE application stack under the open source GPL software license.
