New Linux PDA Announced At CES Today

It looks like the Royal Linux-PDA project has borne fruit. Bill Kendrick writes: "Linux Devices reports that Royal (makers of the DaVinci PDA) have announced yet another Linux-based PDA, called 'Lin@x' (how do you pronounce that!?). Unlike the DaVinci (and the Agenda VR3 -- Agenda Computing is owned by the same company as Royal), this PDA sports a 206MHz StrongARM, a color screen, and a CompactFlash slot. Planned price is about US$300." According to the PR, it will come bundled with software for Linux desktops as well as for Windows, which would be a nice touch.

Releasing whole Desktop with it

[Bo Vandenberg]

I have desktop machines at work that are less useful than my palm. A better link between PDA and Desktop could make an average PDA great.

PDA friendly desktop apps, with a linux standard could be a really good thing :).

bo

OpenSSH and the Internet. All I really need

[Grax]

All I really need is OpenSSH or another SSH2 client and a wireless internet connection (either directly or through my cell phone). Does this do that easily? Is there another PDA or PDA-like device that does it better?

The Nokia Communicator looks like my ideal device but I don't know that there is an SSH2 client for it and they can't sell it in the USA anyway.

Re:Point missed

[josh crawley]

Thanks for the link, but Boo's to MS because the data sheet is non-existant and the download isn't there (after registering bogus passport crap). Don't know if it's me. I just get thier bloated 404 file not found.

Josh Crawley

btw: I had to get MS out of Hosts cause of the link :-P Back in it goes....

Re:Hmm...

[Chris Canfield]

Compatibility? You mean like trying to buy a keyboard to fit a Clie? (if you find one, please pick me up a copy).

I would argue that PDA's do best as organizers, and that a large portion of Palm's success in the low-cost organizer market is staying focused and realizing that a personal assistant doesn't need to play Quake. Certainly, mapping software, mail updates, spreadsheet programs, and word processors are all needed on a PDA, all of which wouldn't be hard to port to the portable. But those are really above and beyond what you need a Palm for - staying organized. Likewise, any software that was critical to your business would be much easier (and cheaper) to port to an open (or mostly open) linux platform than to try and code on a closed proprietary box. All of the intriguing point-of-sale and data gathering uses for PDA's would be best served on this platform.

I'm not convinced that most people download or buy very many applications for their handhelds. Many seem to buy it as one complete package. Does anyone have any hard data on this?

Re:Okay, what's the goal for Linux use?

[Anonymous Coward]

Cost-factor? It doesn't cost the developer anything to put a Linux os on the PDA, whereas you need to buy a license if you go with Windows. On the end-user side, most people don't care what OS is on it, so long as they can sync it with their data on Win9x.