13 posts tagged “linux”
Whilst perusing what the local bricks-n-mortar stores have before I head out to them (I need to get my sister a portable external HDD) I stumbled across this interesting looking device at Maplin (they're kinda like the UK-equivalent of RadioShack)
It's £169 and in stock online. Is it any good or value for money? I have no idea about the former and TBH haven't taken the time to study the deets to come toa conclusion on the other (I'm typing this up when I'm actually meant to be on my way somewhere!)
Slightly misleading title as my trial 3 Mobile Broadband dongle hasn't gone back just yet. However, it will in the next day or two. Although I never got the thing working with my Eee PC (I used it with a Vista laptop instead) and, even though things weren't always 100% hunky dory, I still decided I needed to look into getting one for myself.
So, tomorrow I should be having delivered a Huawei E220. I'll be getting up to 5 gig a month for £6.91 and the dongle thrown in. Looking around, I think that's got to be the best mobile broadband deal in the UK at the moment. And using 5 gig on mobile broadband can actually be more difficult than you'd imagine (I know from experience!*)
Anyone interested in the deal should check HotUKDeals out. It's the site where I found this - oh, and by the way, you'll need Quidco. If you've got a Linux flavoured Eee PC (or perhaps another non-Windows subnotebook) you *have* to go for the E220. That's the only one that works out-of-the-box. The direct link to the offer is for a different Huawei dongle but thanks to some resourceful folk on the deal's comments page you'll be able to select the E220 without any problems.
*Keep away from 720p video podcasts on Miro and you'll be fine!
...and reading listening between the lines.
Excuse the pun but I think Ewan at SMStextnews has done a stirling job covering 3's pre-pre-Xmas preview (all handsets and devices are out a good while before Santa has made final judgement '08 stylie) If anyone wants the run down on what's coming up, I recommend going there. I didn't Qik anything or take photos (I was going to ask nicely but forgot!)
Usually I'm useless at the smaller things, the minor details, that kinda thing but having a good read through of the press pack and remembering (another thing I'm not all that good at!) what was said yesterday I can think of a bunch of things that I don't think I've seen reported anywhere else or, if they are, I can add a bit more info to:
- In the Autumn, 3 will start transcoding websites for all handsets - making them look like they normally look on a PC. How will this work exactly? I'm not quite sure - there's a variety of different ways this can be achieved. Many of us are doing something similar at the moment... using the excellent Opera Mini.
- Mobile push-email will be on all 3's handsets in future - It'll simultaneously work with numerous email accounts, won't be a huge battery drain (due to some amazing trickery, well I was impressed!) and is unlimited on any internet package (they start at £2.50 p/m)
- Email attachments will be downloadable, won't come out of the user's internet allowance - I presume there'll be some fair-use thing in the small print, otherwise I'll be having mp3 mixes emailed to myself!
- 3 really like their Nokia E71 - I can't stress that enough. They're happy to have RIM on board with their BlackBerry Bold and everything, but they're smitten with their exclusive white paint-job E71. It's kinda weird as my love is for the Bold, not the E71.
- Bold, 3 in one device?* Yes, the BlackBerry Bold has all the usual fruitiness plus some 3 on top. It won't, however, clean and condition your smalls. The one on display was a vanilla Bold, the 3-ified version isn't ready yet. The Bold will be, if I understand correctly, a unique effort for 3 due to the way RIM's devices work (most stuff going in and out of a Blackberry is via RIM's servers**)
- Upcoming USB modems will not be Linux-friendly - I got the impression that 3 understand the ever-increasing importance of Linux sub-notebooks (note the Mini-Note) but that Huawei don't. Whatever the case may be it's a huge oversight in my opinion as the smaller and cheaper the laptop, the more important cheap mobile internet is ...and laptops are cheaper without Windows!
- Nice new UI for dongles on Windows - Connection, account and usage all there in dashboard-stylie, nice and clear and now looking fit for the 21st Century
- HSDPA router on display - they've not decided whether to go with it or not. The one I saw doesn't actually have 3G built-in, it accepts a USB dongle instead. It's also mains powered, so no WiFi hotspot on the go.
- The new Skypephone is noticeably heavier than it's predecessor and... my own view is that it doesn't look or feel as good. The screen is bigger and better, I liked the menus and they did a good job with Facebook but... those keys and the shiny back. Horrible. That's more personal taste than fact, of course. The keys however, might pose a problem for anyone that likes Skype chatting or texting lots. Only available in black. White not gonna happen, people didn't like the original in white. They weren't 100% certain but they believed it would be usable in the US (as a normal phone, the Skype part will, like the original, only work in countries where 3 have sister networks.)
- There was talk of pink devices in the future - I don't know any female that likes pink consumer electronics, I don't know any blokes that like (or will admit to liking) 'em either. And the Skypephone wasn't well received in white. What are 3 considering bringing out in pink? Damned if I can remember (this is what happens when I don't do Brain Training everyday!)
- They're happy to get Samsung on board at last! - Not touched on this yet so throwing it at the end.
Thanks to the folk at 3 and Sam at 3mobilebuzz for the invite. They treat bloggers, both big and small, the same as they treat the mainstream journos. Which is nice.
*I tried but failed to come up with a Bold 3-in-1 pun that would make sense, that was the best I could do!
**I won't pretend to be an expert on BlackBerrys. Hell, I've only just learnt that the second 'B' in the name is capitalised and that the plural of BlackBerry isn't BlackBerries - it's BlackBerrys.
fring is now available for Linux and on presumably every mobile that runs J2ME. So, that should include the 3 Skypephone and quite possibly the (Linux flavoured) Eee PC.
If you have no idea of what fring is then I recommend reading the blurb on their site. They've probably put a tonne of effort into explaining it - which is more than I can offer here. I'll summarise though... it's an application that offers calling through VoIP (including Skype) as well as a bunch of messaging options (MSN, ICQ, AIM etc)
Eee's and 3G mobile broadband should be a match made in heaven. In theory, one perfectly compliments the other. The only sticking point is out-of-the-box compatibility. Some of these dongles do work with ease - you plug them in, go through a short wizard and wham, bam, thank you ma'am, you're in business. But other dongles don't play nice.
The trouble is not knowing which ones work and which ones don't when purchasing one. 3 UK's website doesn't differentiate between the different modems they provide. And, though I've yet to try, I doubt the staff in the High St mobile or PC stores would know either (actually I'd put money on no one knowing in my local PC World yet pretending they do!)
It makes you wonder how many of these get returned to the shops because the user with an Eee (remember those e's stand for easy this, that and the other) couldn't get them to work and has given up with frustration. I can also imagine some poor soul ringing up 333's tech support guys in Mumbai and being told to take the battery out! ;o)
I've given up trying to get my trial one working with my Eee PC 900. I'm taking the SIM out and using it in my phone instead, that can then be connected to the laptop. I'll be putting my phone's SIM in one of my trial Skypephones and see how well I fare using one of those as my main phone for the next few days.
To see how popular 3G internet is with Eee users one only needs to go to the EeeUser forums. There´s 90 threads with mention of 3 alone, hundreds about HSDPA and probably quite a few about Voda as well.
According to DigiTimes the latest Eee PC, the 901, will be coming out on the 3rd of June. It'll be priced at $650 (£325) or below - but where? I seriously doubt it'll be that price in the UK. With the added features/benefits (including Atom processor and Bluetooth) I'd imagine a premium on the 900 (which retails at around £330 in the UK)
The DigiTimes article also mentions that the Linux version will have more software applications added to it. Hopefully the likes of Miro and Google Earth as they are two of my favourites and really showcase how competent the previous Eees are.
Just back from a day in London. Came back with a new bundle of joy and it was unplanned... the Eee PC 900! £315 on Tottenham Court Road (it's the "electronics district"). There's loads available, by the way.
When asked whether I wanted the Linux or Windows XP version, I didn't hesitate - Linux! Had to be Linux!
Why? Well after a week with my parents new Vista laptop and nearly 5 years experience of my XP desktop, I wanted a laptop that didn't have constant security alerts, updates, patches and all that nonsense. I didn't want hundreds of different ways to do the same thing. I didn't want a whole bunch of crap preloaded. I just wanted my old Eee PC experience back...
...Once it's charged up they'll be lots of work to be done as, although it may seem to go against what I've just said, I need to put it in "Advance Mode" and do a bunch of tweaking. I'll also have to get my trial 3 Mobile Broadband dongle working which will probably mean a bit of Googling as Linux (in all it's flavours) isn't officially supported.
Another reason to go for the Linux version... way more storage built in for the same price. Ironic really, as XP probably needs it more!
To bring across a sense of realism, to contrast the coldness of technology and the warmth of paper, whilst ironically using 'cold' technology to bring this warmth - I used a camera phone to snap it. Actually it was because it was quicker and more convenient! ;-)
I absolutely love Google Earth. Words alone can't begin to describe my unnatural infatuation with it. It's pretty darn good on my PC but that isn't the size and weight of a hardback book. Fortunately my Eee is and fortunately my Eee works with my mobile 3G connection. And surprisingly it works well with a 3G connection! Of course the Eee is able to use WiFi without much effort but unlike WiFi I can use my 3G practically anywhere I would want to use it.
I won't give you a description of Google Earth itself as most people using the interwebs will be aware of what it is and what it does. So, just enjoy these screen grabs of the app at work...
London's infamous gigantic teepee (also known as the O2 Arena) in glorious 3D.
Isn't that typical? First time I decide to take some screengrabs of Google Earth at work I get this error (one I've never had before) cropping up. Next, some flying from Heathrow...
Freebirth is:
...a free software bass synthesizer / step sequencer / sample player similar to Rebirth.
It's pretty straightforward to use - I didn't need to consult any instructions, learning just by playing around with it. My 12 year-old nephew was also able to use it despite never using professional audio equipment (or emulators) before.
Like many apps, Freebirth doesn't fit nicely on the Eee PC's screen - scrolling is required and can be quite a pain. I should also point out (and you'll notice this in the screenshots) that the crazy font used makes it difficult to make out the labelling of the dials.
The above is a picture of all three windows related to Freebirth. As you can see the resolution of the Eee makes for a cramped working space. The Eee can be plugged into most external monitors and some HDTVs at a much higher resolution. Plenty of room then!
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