On 5 Sep 2008, at 11:55, Dilwyn Jones wrote:
Not really - individuals may buy one if it fulfils a particular need
for them, but I don't really think there's a market for them unless
someone can convince us that a hard-disk-less computer running a
(older?) form of linux with WINE and QPC2 is worth the effort. One
or two people seemed to be happy with an Asus Eeepc (well, got QPC
runing on it anyway), and I happened to see the article in
Computeractive about a sub-100 pounds notebook which Richard seems
even less happy than Computeractive about (The Elonex One).
When new things like this come out, we should look at them since the
combined cost of a Eeepc, WINE and QPC2 is a cheaper QL compatible
(with benefit of Linux for those who like or use Linux) than any
future QL compatible hardware is likely to be.
You don't need WINE; Acer's Aspire One 120GB, Asus Eee 900/1000 series
and others like the Dell Mini 9 all support or ship with Windows XP.
It's possibly, albeit cramped, to run Windows XP on an Eee 701.
What would be interesting, to me at least, would be a "native" QL OS
for this platform. Something that uses a cut-down Linux kernel for I/O
but is essentially a QL when you power it up. It would be fast,
efficient and interesting.
The lack of a hard disc is not an issue for many people. 8GB is
plenty, 4GB is tolerable. Remember when your main desktop computer
only had 40MB of HD space.
The Eee and Aspire One are leading the marketplace with good value
products; these should definitely be looked at - the Eee 701 is now
£150 ex. VAT.
Richard
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