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How to create a handheld Linux terminal

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71–80 of 94 posts

Re: How to create a handheld Linux terminal

#71

Step 1: Get an N900 Joking aside, this is really cool, and I'm glad there are still people out there who recognize the value (and want it this badly) of a handheld Linux terminal. Meanwhile, the batteries on my N900 keep getting shorter and shorter charge cycles . . .

the battery is cheap to replace. I stay with my N900. I did not see anything better.

Re: How to create a handheld Linux terminal

#72
A Raspberry Pi accessory similar to this would probably sell pretty well. It might make sense to use the Raspberry Pi "Compute Module": http://www.raspberrypi.org/raspberry-pi-compute-module-new-p... It would be cool if Adafruit made a PiTFT that just accepted a Compute Module directly.

I put together a Motorola Atrix Lapdock Raspberry Pi, like this, but it's pretty bulky: http://www.instructables.com/id/The-Raspberry-Pi-Lapdock-Con...

Re: How to create a handheld Linux terminal

#73

This is truly one of the coolest things I've seen in a while. I can't help but think of the little Atari Portfolio John Connor has in Terminator 2.

I finally understand that funny feeling every time I carry a computer in my backpack. That exact scene. Thanks a lot.

Re: How to create a handheld Linux terminal

#74
post #35
post #23

I think the key point to efficient mobile linuxing is neither the hardware nor the basic software but the language input. I feel touchpads and mobile keyboards are both not handy to communicate with bash/vim in the subway. We need a better mobile keyboard for that. Does anybody know who's working on something in that direction?

How about a chording keyboard? Having one strapped to your thigh would be the wearables pioneer approach. The Twiddler3 is a modern one-handed keyboard product. There are also projected laser keyboards with a traditional layout; the projected keyboard takes up a fair amount of space and really needs a flat stable surface (not good for use on public transportation or while queueing) but the hardware is quite small. ht…

The default layout for the twiddler is pretty awful. If anyone wants to try one of these, check out the TabSpace layout.

https://github.com/cswetenham/tabspace2.1

http://rhodesmill.org/brandon/projects/tabspace-guide.pdf

It's much better.

If anyone's interested, there's a typing tutor for it and I have files to modify it for use with TabSpace (I'd have to find them though)

http://wearables.cc.gatech.edu/projects/twidor/download.html

Re: How to create a handheld Linux terminal

#75
post #60
post #35

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How about a chording keyboard? Having one strapped to your thigh would be the wearables pioneer approach. The Twiddler3 is a modern one-handed keyboard product. There are also projected laser keyboards with a traditional layout; the projected keyboard takes up a fair amount of space and really needs a flat stable surface (not good for use on public transportation or while queueing) but the hardware is quite small. ht…

The Twiddler looks interesting, but I think that I'd need to radically rebind emacs in order to make it usable. Maybe not though.

Macros can be mapped to specific chords.

Re: How to create a handheld Linux terminal

#77
post #23

I think the key point to efficient mobile linuxing is neither the hardware nor the basic software but the language input. I feel touchpads and mobile keyboards are both not handy to communicate with bash/vim in the subway. We need a better mobile keyboard for that. Does anybody know who's working on something in that direction?

My main computer now is a 7" Samsung Galaxy Tab 4 (Android) tablet. To work I use Juice SSH (Android app) to connect to a server (actually a Beaglebone Black in another state usually, sometimes my Linode). I use bash and vim in the ssh terminal.

I also have Debian Wheezy installed on this tablet through the GNURoot app so I can use vim and bash on here also. Although I really need to root it and use Linux Deploy or something because the new version of GNURoot has a lot of permission issues. Anyway ssh works great. I also have an X Server Android app if I want to run graphical Linux apps.

If I need to I can use an Android VNC client to connect to my Linode, but I don't usually need that.

As far as the keyboard, it works great. Its a little bluetooth keyboard plus folio case combo that I got for $20 from Walmart. Its my favorite keyboard ever. I am using it right now. I use vim all the time with this thing.

Re: How to create a handheld Linux terminal

#78
post #23

I think the key point to efficient mobile linuxing is neither the hardware nor the basic software but the language input. I feel touchpads and mobile keyboards are both not handy to communicate with bash/vim in the subway. We need a better mobile keyboard for that. Does anybody know who's working on something in that direction?

I was trying to find a small Blackberry-like keyboard for a side project I was working on about a year ago. Doesn't exist, at least not in a form-factor that is easy to integrate (USB, Bluetooth, etc). The best I could find is a USB wireless keyboard that they sell on Adafruit that really, really, really sucked and was still way too big.

I've got this SMK-LINK keyboard [1] for my HTPC, and it has worked out well so far.

If I wanted a portable Linux computer (besides my phone), I guess I could design a bracket to hold a small tablet or similar.

[1] http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16823158...

Re: How to create a handheld Linux terminal

#79
post #48

This is truly one of the coolest things I've seen in a while. I can't help but think of the little Atari Portfolio John Connor has in Terminator 2.

> I can't help but think of the little Atari Portfolio John Connor has in Terminator 2. Late eighties/early nineties seemed like an interesting period for these sort of handheld computers. Another great example is the HP LX series, eg 95LX or 200LX http://i.imgur.com/pHa8YWD.jpg

Also this little sony thing from late 90s:

http://www.apj.co.uk/technology/apple_sony_clie.htm

Re: How to create a handheld Linux terminal

#80
post #17
post #10

I think this is pretty neat, and I would have loved this 10 years ago. I now already have a handheld Linux terminal, it's called an Android smartphone.

Yes; and "terminalIDE" includes busybox to fill in the missing commands, vim, tmux, git, javac and gcc. It's fun, usable, but limited: you have to work around a few things. Wintel is making a push, with extra cheap quad-core Atoms and Windows 8. I wonder if this might be easier to get full linux on? BTW: The big problem with proper linux distributions on ARM/Atom is not not getting them to run, but power management.

There is also GNU Root and Linux Deploy/a few other ways to get full linux on Android devices after they are rooted.
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