Day: Form facor for ATX mobo is normally said to be:
"full ATX" motherboards have a maximum size of 12" by 9.6" (304mm by 243mm), "Mini ATX" boards have maximum dimensions of 11.2" by 8.2" (284mm by 208mm), "extended ATX" form factor, also sometimes called "EATX". This form factor is essentially the same as ATX, except that the board can be up to 12" by 13" (304mm by 330mm). FlexATX mainboard size is 9.05" by 7.08" (230mm by 180mm). The Mini-ITX is more than 33% smaller than the FlexATX mainboard at 6.69" by 6.69" (170mm by 170mm). The newest VIA mobo form factor is "Nano-itx" at 4.72" by 4.72 (120mm by 120mm). Which VIA claims is "the world's smallest and most highly integrated mainboard for the emerging generation of smart digital entertainment devices." http://www.pcworld.com/news/article/0,aid,115286,00.asp "... The Nano-ITX motherboard is based on Via's CN400 chipset and works with Via's Eden-N processor running at speeds up to 1 GHz, the company says in a statement. The Eden-N does not require a cooling fan and measures .6 inches by .6 inches, smaller than any other x86 processor, Via says. The CN400 chipset, which was also launched this week, offers an integrated graphics core, hardware acceleration for MPEG2 and MPEG4 video, and supports up to 1GB of DDR DRAM, the company says. In addition to the Eden-N, the CN400 also supports Via's Eden, C3, and Antaur processors running at speeds up to 1.4 GHz, it says. Petite PC The first PC based on the Nano-ITX motherboard is expected to start shipping within the next three months. Called Nanode, the PC measures 3.7 inches by 5.9 inches by 6.3 inches, making it one of the smallest fully-configured desktop computers ever produced. U.K. firm Hoojum Design designed the device, which Mini-ITX.com will sell online. Nanode pricing has not been finalized, Mini-ITX.com says. <http://www.mini-itx.com> The Nanode will be available in two versions. The PC version will ship with a CD-ROM drive, a 20GB or 40GB hard drive, and optional 802.11b wireless networking. The second version is a thin client without a CD-ROM drive and hard drive." Pricing for the Nano-ITX motherboard and the Eden-N processor was not disclosed. Thus we should not only consider the power requirement, but include the mobo form factor size when attempting to up date a SurvPC installation. John O Day Brown wrote: > John Oram wrote: > >> Day: >> >> Below I'll address only one item in your lengthy reinvention of x86 >> DOS FIDOnet. >> >> Suggest you take a look at >> http://www.silentpcreview.com/article17-page2.html >> for real world comparison of power requirements of readily available >> low power motherboards. >> >> The VIA Epia M9000 Mini-ITX Motherboard _with_ CPU costs less than >> $100 and is significantly more powerful than your 80486 reference >> system. These units are industry standard x86 off the shelf mobo >> which are available at many local computer parts stores and over the >> Internet by simply doing a search. >> >> I know of several locations which use this approach for solar >> powered/battery powered systems which run 24/7/365. > > > Oh, BTW, thanx for the link. That much functionality in 30-50 watts aint > too bad. > But I got one on the bench behind me, ordinary ATX, with the VIA C3 and > 128meg dram with an older IDE/SVGA controllers that runs on 55 watts. > > I think the question here is, what the minimum would be in order to do > email. You dont need G4 or 20 gigs. And we are all familiar with the > idea of a home server, so that whatever any of the desktops crash, it > dont close down the access for everyone else. Lotsa SURVPCs could do > that pretty well. And the onlyother factor is battery backup time, or if > solar, what the panel cost is. which has been about 5$/watt. So the > minimum from the article would need a $250 panel to do a couple hours of > run time per day. > > I know several crafts people, some already online, who see they can make > money off the net. But they dont make *much* money. It's the price you > pay to live way the hell out in the boonies. They dont waste much time > with computer games, much less G4. And while they'd like snapshots of > their product, they aint interested in full motion real time video. All > they need is email access to take orders, and like business people > everywhere else, dont see any future in risking that *critical app* on > the joys of multimedia operating systems. > >
