Re: NetBook Pro

On 2/7/06, Valeriy E. Ushakov <[email protected]> wrote:
> [Please, don't start new topic with a reply to a random message.
> Threading mail readers collate the message into an unrealted thread.]

I realized that immediately after sending it. GMail doesn't make the
subject field editable until you click a link. Just me not paying
attention :) Sorry all!

> What system ASIC do they use.  The one in Psion7 was proprietary, with
> no documentation available publicly.  They had an arrangement with the
> Linux folks to make the docs available to them.  If NetBook Pro uses
> the same ASIC, we need the docs made available.

I'm not positive of this, but I'm sure the P7 was the old ARM7 255MHz
processor, where the nBPro is an XScale PXA-255. I'm almost positive
that these use different North and South bridges, so it would
necessarily be a different ASIC. The one thing I do know is that this
unit has something called BooSt, which appears to be a command line
environment for the Flash ROM.

> It is in the cvs.  It was not installed into the release dir untill
> recently.  You can get it from:
>
> http://cvsweb.netbsd.org/bsdweb.cgi/src/sys/arch/hpc/stand/binary/ARM/hpcboot.exe.uue?rev=1.5&content-type=text/x-cvsweb-markup
>
> and uudecode.

Thanks!

> It's a nice machine (I used to have Psion7 and the design and general
> feel of the machine was *very* nice, and NetBook Pro has the same
> design).  But it's 900 quids excluding VAT (1055 with VAT) from
> eXpansys - which is kinda prohibitive pricing for a hobby use. :)
>
> It would be nice to support it, but we need someone with 1) hardware,
> 2) willing to hack on it.  (And then there's may be that documentation
> problem).

I agree on all counts. I was lucky to receive mine as a press kit. The
one thing is that I am very, VERY tired of Windows CE .NET 4.2. It is
slow, incompatible, and there is little software available since
Microsoft nigh abandoned it. The sooner I can get NetBSD on it, the
happier I will be. To that end, I'd be pleased to offer up my netBook
Pro to the hacking gods.

Tyler