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#1
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Tablet running W98 SE?
I wanted a tiny portable computer that didn't cost much. Dell's X50v
qualified till my sight made using it a rediculous task, and it only runs Windows Mobile. A Psion Workabout MX was cheap until a few idiots started demanding a couple of hundred quid each and another idot paid, setting a precedent that Psion themselves must wonder at given that THEY couldn't get that much beyond a few years prior to this! And they only run their own systems with limited graphics and no colour, and they keep lousy time for critical tasks. There are a few DOS handheld machines, but having tried one, never again. Ok for collectors, but not for active use. So it seems I need to use W98, the only system that doesn't make me want to look for something else. I hate laptops, too fragile, too fiddly. PicoITX is an awesome possibility, but extremely expensive and needs too much DIY to make it work as a complete machine. I already do DIY for all my machines, but it's not a basis for any machine I'd be willing to leave under a bush when I go running and want to log the event, or make a GPS for a bike or boat, or use outside on dirty projects that can use a bit of computing help.. So that's the context. Does anyone know of some past machine that might fit? Ideally cheap, no folding parts, a screen that stands up to getting hit, something no laptop can handle. Those Dell X50v's are surprisingly tough, but too small, but something similar, bigger, running W98, would be ideal. The main difficulty seems to be the keyboard, so I might have to find something with a touchscreen and software to make a keybpoard appear on that. Has anyone here tried to solve similar needs, and if so, how? The choices seem endless, IF we give up W98, but that's not an option here, so I might see better answers here than most places. Maybe there was even a commercial tablet attempted in W98's prime, that I never heard of, or some specialised small 'embedded' machine with its own screen... One other possibility is an i386 emulator running on a newer machine, but I suspect this is a bad idea. I know it's been done, but only as a proof that it CAN be done, so far as I know. I need something that does it efficiently, if not natively. ----------------------------------------- One thought I have is that very durable laptop machines have been made. Maybe even in W98's time. They'd have been expensive beyond reason at the time, but maybe not now, if I could identify and find one. I'm out of ideas now. If anyone can come up with more, please do, the more specific, the better. |
#2
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Tablet running W98 SE?
In message ,
Lostgallifreyan writes: [] One thought I have is that very durable laptop machines have been made. Maybe even in W98's time. They'd have been expensive beyond reason at the time, but maybe not now, if I could identify and find one. They still are made, but they're not cheap. The military use them, and also some organisations like (in UK) gas board service engineers. Embedded versions of W98 have existed, I don't know if still: the people who did 98lite (I think they're called litepc now) did/do one (in under 50M IIRR). Have a look at their site. I'm out of ideas now. If anyone can come up with more, please do, the more specific, the better. -- J. P. Gilliver. UMRA: 1960/1985 MB++G.5AL-IS-P--Ch++(p)Ar@T0H+Sh0!:`)DNAf "Bother," said Pooh, when he looked up his name in the dictionary. |
#3
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Tablet running W98 SE?
"J. P. Gilliver (John)" wrote in
: They still are made, but they're not cheap. The military use them, and also some organisations like (in UK) gas board service engineers. Thanks. Any idea who makes them? I was hoping that if they were unable to cope with WXP that might limit the price they get now. Embedded versions of W98 have existed, I don't know if still: the people who did 98lite (I think they're called litepc now) did/do one (in under 50M IIRR). Have a look at their site. That bit I CAN do. Finding hardware is the problem, it has to be common enough for the price to be reasonable, and replacement easy to do. |
#4
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Tablet running W98 SE?
In message ,
Lostgallifreyan writes: "J. P. Gilliver (John)" wrote in : They still are made, but they're not cheap. The military use them, and also some organisations like (in UK) gas board service engineers. Thanks. Any idea who makes them? I was hoping that if they were unable to cope with WXP that might limit the price they get now. I thought I remembered the name toughbook, and putting that into Google suggest that that name belongs to Panasonic. That Google search also throws up the following "Fantastic low prices" on them - £3k8, £1k3, and £900, depending on specification. But ebay shows them down to ("buy it now" prices - i. e. ignoring auctions) £99, which gets you DVD-ROM, MoDem, OS (XP), USB, wifi, 30G, 12.1" widescreen touchscreen (800x600), mobile Pentium 3 800 MHz, 512M - oh, look for yourself: http://goo.gl/XeeDj (they have 6 of them left). I was surprised: for something you can drive over but still runs XP (though a fast trot rather than a run, I would expect, with 512M and 800 MHz - though they do say you can watch DVDs on it), I was expecting a lot more. [] That bit I CAN do. Finding hardware is the problem, it has to be common enough for the price to be reasonable, and replacement easy to do. Well, they say they've sold over 100 of them. -- J. P. Gilliver. UMRA: 1960/1985 MB++G.5AL-IS-P--Ch++(p)Ar@T0H+Sh0!:`)DNAf No, no, you're not thinking, you're just being logical. -Niels Bohr, physicist (1885-1962) |
#5
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Tablet running W98 SE?
"J. P. Gilliver (John)" wrote in
: I thought I remembered the name toughbook, and putting that into Google suggest that that name belongs to Panasonic. That Google search also throws up the following "Fantastic low prices" on them - £3k8, £1k3, and £900, depending on specification. But ebay shows them down to ("buy it now" prices - i. e. ignoring auctions) £99, which gets you DVD-ROM, MoDem, OS (XP), USB, wifi, 30G, 12.1" widescreen touchscreen (800x600), mobile Pentium 3 800 MHz, 512M - oh, look for yourself: http://goo.gl/XeeDj (they have 6 of them left). I was surprised: for something you can drive over but still runs XP (though a fast trot rather than a run, I would expect, with 512M and 800 MHz - though they do say you can watch DVDs on it), I was expecting a lot more. Looks interesting. I think I heard of the name 'Toughbook' before too, but years ago at least. Maybe not so portable though, for real light travel. I think in the end PicoITX might end up being the best way, IF it ever becomes cheap. About the 98-Lite based embedded thing, I couldn't get a response to emails when I tried about 3 months ago, or at any tiem previously. I have no idea what it takes to get a response. I get the impression that sounding like I have about ten grand of government or company money is a minimum threshold, and I haven't seen any sign of new developments for a long time on any site related to the Lite-PC embedded systems either. This is why I decided to do my own W98 reduction to the extremes I'm taking it to on X98, to build back up from there. It became totally clear to me that if I didn't, it would happen for me. Maybe it might for someone else, but NOT for me. Lite-PC don't build hardware either, which is why I'm still trying to figure out some ideal small portable W98 hardware support. One of the main weaknesses in any choice is limiting to non-standard screen and keyboard. PicoITX has to be the best in all detail but cost, I think. It allows anything that can be connected to standard keyboard, monitor and mouse ports. But I find it hard to beleive that a tablet PC running W98 efficiently and natively demands that I build my own. Were tablet PC's really so unheard of in W98's time, that NONE existed at all? |
#6
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Tablet running W98 SE?
"Lostgallifreyan" wrote in message . .. "J. P. Gilliver (John)" wrote in : I thought I remembered the name toughbook, and putting that into Google suggest that that name belongs to Panasonic. That Google search also throws up the following "Fantastic low prices" on them - £3k8, £1k3, and £900, depending on specification. But ebay shows them down to ("buy it now" prices - i. e. ignoring auctions) £99, which gets you DVD-ROM, MoDem, OS (XP), USB, wifi, 30G, 12.1" widescreen touchscreen (800x600), mobile Pentium 3 800 MHz, 512M - oh, look for yourself: http://goo.gl/XeeDj (they have 6 of them left). I was surprised: for something you can drive over but still runs XP (though a fast trot rather than a run, I would expect, with 512M and 800 MHz - though they do say you can watch DVDs on it), I was expecting a lot more. Looks interesting. I think I heard of the name 'Toughbook' before too, but years ago at least. Maybe not so portable though, for real light travel. I think in the end PicoITX might end up being the best way, IF it ever becomes cheap. About the 98-Lite based embedded thing, I couldn't get a response to emails when I tried about 3 months ago, or at any tiem previously. I have no idea what it takes to get a response. I get the impression that sounding like I have about ten grand of government or company money is a minimum threshold, and I haven't seen any sign of new developments for a long time on any site related to the Lite-PC embedded systems either. This is why I decided to do my own W98 reduction to the extremes I'm taking it to on X98, to build back up from there. It became totally clear to me that if I didn't, it would happen for me. Maybe it might for someone else, but NOT for me. Lite-PC don't build hardware either, which is why I'm still trying to figure out some ideal small portable W98 hardware support. One of the main weaknesses in any choice is limiting to non-standard screen and keyboard. PicoITX has to be the best in all detail but cost, I think. It allows anything that can be connected to standard keyboard, monitor and mouse ports. But I find it hard to beleive that a tablet PC running W98 efficiently and natively demands that I build my own. Were tablet PC's really so unheard of in W98's time, that NONE existed at all? You a nymphs, for Young grasshoppers are referred to as nymphs, Mr. Lostgallifreyan Reminder for you, New Technique, Always have New Methods of doing Things, it the same with Computer Hardware and Software ... -- http://mynews.ath.cx |
#7
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Tablet running W98 SE?
Lostgallifreyan wrote:
But I find it hard to beleive that a tablet PC running W98 efficiently and natively demands that I build my own. Were tablet PC's really so unheard of in W98's time, that NONE existed at all? Well I own a Toshiba T200 tablet from around 1994. Not sure it would do for your purposes, it runs the pen computing modified version of Windows 3.1 as standard but running Windows 95 has been done by others. However 98 SE is definitely too much for a 40MHz 486. Tablets came about in the late eighties and grew fairly well in the early nineties, that there was a slump in the late nineties seems unlikely, however I don't actually know of a Windows 98 tablet edition so one couldn't rule out a poorly remembered tablet sales tragedy. Taking the T200 as an example of tablets from the time, it does indeed seem sturdy (not to mention weighty), but how a machine with its screen open to the world could be more appealing in terms of durability than a laptop isn't really apparent to me. A final note in respect to buying an early tablet if there is one which suits. I've found that NiCad or NiMH batteries of this age are usually capable of powering their computer for about a second at most, if possible I'd look for a Lithium Ion option unless you want to try and replace the innards of the old battery yourself. -- __ __ #_ |\| | _# |
#8
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Tablet running W98 SE?
"Hot-text" wrote in -
privat.org: You a nymphs, for Young grasshoppers are referred to as nymphs, Mr. Lostgallifreyan Reminder for you, New Technique, Always have New Methods of doing Things, it the same with Computer Hardware and Software ... *plonk* You stopped being funny when you started repeating the same inanity. |
#9
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Tablet running W98 SE?
Computer Nerd Kev wrote in
: Lostgallifreyan wrote: But I find it hard to beleive that a tablet PC running W98 efficiently and natively demands that I build my own. Were tablet PC's really so unheard of in W98's time, that NONE existed at all? Well I own a Toshiba T200 tablet from around 1994. Not sure it would do for your purposes, it runs the pen computing modified version of Windows 3.1 as standard but running Windows 95 has been done by others. However 98 SE is definitely too much for a 40MHz 486. I will look at it though. Thanks. If they are very cheap now it might be worth doing. Tablets came about in the late eighties and grew fairly well in the early nineties, that there was a slump in the late nineties seems unlikely, however I don't actually know of a Windows 98 tablet edition so one couldn't rule out a poorly remembered tablet sales tragedy. I guess laptops took hold so much they tended to eclipse all else. For handhelds, durability was a problem. For a long time, and even now, the old Psion XP is preferred on aircraft carriers, and Amazon explorers, etc, because for all its limits, it has strengths not matched by anything else for twenty five years. It's also extremely cheap now, on eBay. For me, it's still the only serious pocket computer in existence, I just have a hard time beleiving there is no better one. I thought the Dell X50V was until cost, fraility, and other problems became apparent with time and real-world use. Taking the T200 as an example of tablets from the time, it does indeed seem sturdy (not to mention weighty), but how a machine with its screen open to the world could be more appealing in terms of durability than a laptop isn't really apparent to me. Agreed, though that changed. Well, maybe.. The best touchscreen I know of is an ELO surface wave acoustic sensor, but it's not capable of the extremely high resolution of the type used on X50V's. Maybe it could be if a higher frequency was used. These screens have low light loss, and are so strong they can take impacts from moderately heavy steel objects. They have no film overlay so are also very scratch resistant. This method can make a screen that is as invulnerablt to attack as a glazed ceramic tile. If supported by a strong frame it would be the toughest part of the machine, not the weakest. I guess the iPad is based on this notion, though I don't want one. Expensive, and no W98. A final note in respect to buying an early tablet if there is one which suits. I've found that NiCad or NiMH batteries of this age are usually capable of powering their computer for about a second at most, if possible I'd look for a Lithium Ion option unless you want to try and replace the innards of the old battery yourself. I'd find a way. Batteries are one of the easier things to solve, if the cavity that holds them has enough space. The main problem with older gear is lower efficiency, unless it is as limited as the Psion Organiser XP in what it can do. It's not an easy compromise at all. I hope that there is an ARM chipped device that can run W98 natively, but I suspect not, as ARM became popular only after W98 was widely considered dead. |
#10
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Tablet running W98 SE?
"Lostgallifreyan" wrote in message . .. "Hot-text" wrote in - privat.org: You a nymphs, for Young grasshoppers are referred to as nymphs, Mr. Lostgallifreyan Reminder for you, New Technique, Always have New Methods of doing Things, it the same with Computer Hardware and Software ... *plonk* You stopped being funny when you started repeating the same inanity. It stop being funny when you started with you started the name calling! -- http://hot-text.ath.cx |
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