Cross-posted:[CCI] Palm Linux (fwd)

["N.A. Prakash" <prakash@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Anyone has any info on Linux 'thin clients' (mentioned in msg below)?
- -- prakash

- ---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Thu, 17 Jun 1999 23:34:55 +0530
From: Vickram Crishna <vickram.big@xxxxxxxxxx>
To: CYBERCOM@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [CCI] Palm Linux

News item from CNET:

Compaq develops Linux handheld
By Stephen Shankland
Staff Writer, CNET News.com
June 14, 1999, 6:00 p.m. PT
Compaq Computer researchers have developed a Linux-based handheld computer
called the Itsy, the company said today.

Researchers in the computing giant's Palo Alto, California, lab modified the
open source operating system for use in a device that's slightly smaller
than a PalmPilot, according to Compaq spokesman Gary Frazier.

The product is intended "to explore futuristic ideas in handheld and
wearable computing,"
Frazier said. About 75 prototypes exist.

But Compaq doesn't intend to market the Itsy at retail. "This research could
influence future products, but there are no plans to bring this to market,"
Frazier said.

Nonetheless, Linux's presence in the teeny Itsy computer can be seen as a
proof point for the Unix-like software. Linux may not be as good as
operating systems designed from the ground up to run handheld devices, but
does provide a workable alternative--royalty free.

Of late, Linux has been cropping up in smaller and smaller computing
devices. Examples include "thin client" systems--computers tied to a central
server--and forthcoming TV set-top boxes. Even America Online is working on
a Linux-based system designed to connect to its network with a minimum of
fuss, according to sources.

Itsy is described at a Compaq Web site. The device has a touch screen and a
few buttons. Not only does it run personal digital assistant software such
as email, but also it plays the popular video game Doom, with the player
navigating through the video game universe by tilting the Itsy forward and
back. Compaq calls the system "rock 'n' scroll."

The machine uses a 200-MHz StrongARM processor and has a 320-by-200 pixel
screen. It also comes with a microphone, speaker, and infrared port.

Some conference-goers attending Sun Microsystems' JavaOne conference may be
able to take a closer gander, said Transvirtual chief executive Tim
Wilkinson. The Berkeley, California, start-up focuses on cloning Sun's Java
technology, but its software also powers the Itsy's graphical environment,
Wilkinson said.

Compaq says the kernel for Itsy is freely available. Linux is an open-source
operating system, meaning that anyone may see and modify the software, but
that those modifications must be released back to the open source community

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