Re: State of FreeCalypso
Bob Ham wrote: On Tue, 2015-04-21 at 17:11 +, Spacefalcon the Outlaw wrote: It is also a well-known fact that most free software developers derive great personal satisfaction from doing something that benefits a larger community True. However, there's a very big difference between deriving satisfaction from doing worthwhile work and being pathologically dependant on it. I don't know any other free software developers who threaten to murder those who get in the way of their work. Hans Reiser? ;-) ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: [QtMoko] Problem with eMail notify
Thomas Franck wrote: Hello everyone! Recently I installed QtMoko v31 and I'm amazed.. Amazed even by QtEI’s lack of conversation view for SMS? ;) Any pointers welcome.. ;) http://xkcd.com/138/ ;) Maybe “apt-get moo” can point you to 0xDEADBEEF ? ;) -- Sometimes I forget how to do small talk: http://xkcd.com/222/ “If you have to ask why, you’re not a member of the intended audience.” — Bob Zimbinski, http://webpages.mr.net/bobz/ttyquake/ ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: My N900 experience compared to my FR experience
Brolin Empey wrote: I have been using Maemo 5 on my N900 for a few weeks now. So far, my N900 experience is *far* better than my FR experience. That was true about my N900 experience until the end of August, when I accidentally dropped my N900 from my desk at home onto the carpeted floor while the USB cable was connected. :( I had just gotten out of bed and was still sleepy (yes, I still have my computer desk in my bedroom even though I have an entire 1-bedroom apartment to myself and consequently no longer have to have my computer desk in my bedroom, like when I still lived with my family.), but I foolishly decided to pick up my N900 from my desk because the notification light (which is apparently copied from the BlackBerry?) was flashing blue to notify me of a new message. My N900 would have been fine if the USB cable was not connected when I dropped it, but I think my N900 landed on the microUSB plug because one side of the microUSB socket got pushed in (away from the edge of the motherboard). The USB connection still worked but it was intermittent because the physical connection was loose. I disassembled my N900, which is easier than disassembling my FR because only 2 screwdrivers (Philips #0 + T6) + fingers are required for the N900, and discovered the microUSB socket is only surface-mounted, not through-hole mounted, on the motherboard. The microUSB socket is also very close to other parts on the motherboard, which makes replacing the microUSB socket difficult. I bought my N900 from NewEgg.ca because I live in Canada and did not want to import from the USA. Nokia has not released the N900 in Canada so I could not buy from Nokia Canada nor any carrier in Canada. I contacted NewEgg.ca but they told me to contact Nokia because my return period with NewEgg.ca had ended. My N900 was still covered by Nokia USA’s warranty, so I tried using the warranty repair form on the NokiaUSA.com Web site, but I could not use it because it would only return a blank page. I called Nokia Canada’s customer service, only to discover Nokia’s customer service for both Canada + USA is in the Philippines. I do not think English is Nokia’s customer service people there’s first language because I am never certain if they actually understand me or are simply acknowledging me. I gave up trying to express some things to them because we ended up going in circles and they seemed to be working from a script. Anyway, my N900 is covered by Nokia USA’s warranty but this warranty is for the USA only: it is not international, not even for Canada. Nokia USA will provide a UPS return mailing label for me to mail my N900 to their repair centre (/not/ center!) in Huntsville, Alabama (Sweet Phone Alabama? ;)), but I have to mail my N900 from a The UPS Store or Mail Boxes Etc. location which is in the USA and offers the Corporate Retail Services used by Nokia. I asked if I could mail my N900 from Canada if I paid for shipping because there is a The UPS Store location near my home, but was told Nokia USA will not accept devices mailed from outside of the USA because Nokia does not want to be responsible for devices lost during international shipping. Nokia Canada’s repair centre in Newmarket, Ontario apparently will not accept my N900 for warranty repair because it lacks a Canadian warranty. I called them and left a voice message because they had already closed for the day, but I never heard back from them. I considered mailing it to them anyway and paying for the repair myself, but I decided not to because their policy is to hard-reset (reset to factory defaults) the customer’s device before attempting repairs. I realise this may solve many problems caused by software, but my problem is with hardware only. I think it is insane to require hard-resetting a general-purpose mobile Linux (proper Debian-based Linux, not non-standard Android.) computer because it is so much hassle to manually back up and restore everything. I later discovered Nokia Ovi Suite for Windows can back up (appears to work) and restore (not yet tested, so I hope it works!) an N900 running Maemo 5 via USB or Bluetooth, but that was after I already spent at least 7 hours at work on a Saturday to manually back up my N900’s 3 volumes on fixed flash memory: I used GNU tar to archive each of the 3 volumes on fixed flash memory to tarballs on a microSDHC card. It took so long because it is many steps, I kept getting sidetracked by both hardware and software, including by reading program documentation. My dad helped me hotwire my N900 with a variable DC power supply at work because my battery had discharged and I did not have a charger for the N900’s Nokia BL-5J battery. I have since ordered a BL-5J charger on eBay, though. Photo of my hotwired N900: http://www.flickr.com/photos/brolin_empey/4976985044/ Unlike Nokia USA, Nokia Canada’s repair centre probably does not have spare N900s
Re: Contacts lost in QtMoko v26
Rashid wrote: Hi guys, when i updated from v22 to v24 i lost my contacts but they showed up sometimes (when i called someone by number which was added before I flashed the device). New contacts were there. At the first start after flashing all contacts were there. No are all gone. Someone knows a way to fix the problem? Have you continued restarting QtEI to see if your contacts reappear? Have you used another phone or a SIM card reader to verify your contacts are still on your SIM? -- Sometimes I forget how to do small talk: http://xkcd.com/222/ “If you have to ask why, you’re not a member of the intended audience.” — Bob Zimbinski, http://webpages.mr.net/bobz/ttyquake/ ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
My N900 experience compared to my FR experience (was: Re: [QtMoko] handset is (almost) unusable for voice calls with background noise)
Brolin Empey wrote: Anyway, I finally ordered a Nokia N900 from NewEgg.ca on Sunday. I expect the N900 to be more usable as a handset than my FR. Nokia released the N900 without USB Host support to meet deadlines because they could not have it certified for USB Host without fully working USB Host at the time of certification, but on Sunday I learned it is still possible for the N900 to use USB Host: there is a community project to make USB Host usage easy for end users. To be practical, I probably do not need USB Host on my N900 because it has a hardware keyboard and the Wireless LAN probably works easily, unlike my poor and frustrating experience trying to use Wireless LANs with QtMoko. However, lack of USB Host was one of the reasons I did not order an N900 months ago because the FR has USB Host. After I receive my N900, I will follow up to let this list know if my N900 experience is better than my FR experience. I have been using Maemo 5 on my N900 for a few weeks now. So far, my N900 experience is *far* better than my FR experience. Unlike QtMoko, SMS works reliably on my N900. Maemo 5 also has conversation view for SMS, which is far more usable than QtMoko, which displays only one message at a time. Unlike my FR, my N900 is actually a usable handset, even with background noise. I can even talk on my N900 on a public street while being passed by motor vehicles and pedestrians talking. Two people have mentioned how much clearer I sound on my N900 than with QtMoko. As I expected, I can live without USB Host on my N900 because of the hardware keyboard and working Wireless LAN. My N900 works well with our access point at work, which runs DD-WRT on a Linksys WRT54GL v1.1. My N900’s Wireless LAN connection was unreliable with my access point at home, which is a crappy Siemens Gigaset SE567 wireless ADSL gateway provided by Telus, my ADSL provider. I wanted to replace the Gigaset SE567, which is owned by Telus, with a separate single-purpose ADSL modem + gateway running DD-WRT anyway because the Gigaset SE567 does not support WPA2 and traceroute does not work through it. I was going to buy another WRT54GL to install DD-WRT on because I knew this combination worked well at work and I was already familiar with it, but I researched current gateways and ended up buying an Asus RT-N16. My N900 works well with DD-WRT on my Asus RT-N16 at home. I have not even configured USB networking on my N900 because the instructions on the Maemo wiki looked like too much hassle and I do not need a wired connection because I have a reliable wireless LAN connection at both home and work. I know the N900’s kernel is relatively old (2.6.28.x) and the N900 is less open than the FR, but this does not matter to me because it is an acceptable compromise in order to have a far better experience with a more powerful and current device. ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: [QtMoko] handset is (almost) unusable for voice calls with background noise
Russell Hay wrote: ...now this is what I'd like offered as a hardware fix. I've not needed the buzz-fix, but if I could have a usable volume... or at least some info on how to do it.. I'll be a happy bunny! My “solution” was to finally succumb and/or give up and buy a Nokia N900. ;) The N900 solution’s acquisition cost may be out of your budget, though: I paid about 613 CAD including taxes from NewEgg.ca. An iPhone costs a similar amount to buy if it is not subsidised by signing at least a 1-year term contract with a carrier, though. However, the N900 is a far more open device, which makes it far more useful for me. Even if I was willing to sign a term contract, which I am not because I do not need one with my Fido monthly plan and I do not need a data plan, the N900 has not been released in Canada so I would still have to pay full price for it. ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
[QtMoko] handset is (almost) unusable for voice calls with background noise
Hello World, Almost 1 year has passed since I first posted to this list to ask “Is a FreeRunner sufficient for me?” on 2009-06-17. I have definitely had an interesting experience with my FR and have learned a lot, but it has also been a very frustrating experience. I have been living alone in my own apartment since 2010-01. I have a phone line at home but it is used for ADSL only, not for voice calls. Consequently, my FR is my daily phone, but using it as a handset is still very frustrating, even after using it since 2009-08. One of the largest problems I still have is call volumes when there is background noise. I usually use my FR as a handset only, not with speakerphone nor a headset. My FR is (almost) unusable as a handset for voice calls with background noise when I am in public places, such as a street or shopping mall. I either have to find a very quiet place, such as inside my car with the doors and windows closed, or move my SIM card to my old and lame Nokia 6103b, which is still my backup phone. I am not a newbie: I have over 8 months of experience using my FR with multiple distros. I have used QtMoko since 2009-09 or 2009-10. I am currently still using QtMoko v19 with the QtMoko v19 debug kernel because I have not been motivated to upgrade to v22 and v24. I have already experimented with changing values in gsmhandset.state and have a config which is usually usable for handset voice calls in quiet places, such as inside my car, home, and workplace. My FR is still sensitive to how I hold it, though, which is annoying because sometimes I cannot hear people well or they cannot hear me because I slightly moved my FR without noticing. How many other people are in my situation? Is there a practical solution? I do not think having to remember to enable a louder gsmhandset.state before using voice calls with background noise, then enabling the quieter gsmhandset.state when I am in a quiet place again is a practical solution because it is not necessary with my Nokia 6103b. Why do I have so many problems with call volumes on my FR but not on my Nokia 6103b? Is it because the FR lacks Automatic Gain Control (AGC)? Anyway, I finally ordered a Nokia N900 from NewEgg.ca on Sunday. I expect the N900 to be more usable as a handset than my FR. Nokia released the N900 without USB Host support to meet deadlines because they could not have it certified for USB Host without fully working USB Host at the time of certification, but on Sunday I learned it is still possible for the N900 to use USB Host: there is a community project to make USB Host usage easy for end users. To be practical, I probably do not need USB Host on my N900 because it has a hardware keyboard and the Wireless LAN probably works easily, unlike my poor and frustrating experience trying to use Wireless LANs with QtMoko. However, lack of USB Host was one of the reasons I did not order an N900 months ago because the FR has USB Host. After I receive my N900, I will follow up to let this list know if my N900 experience is better than my FR experience. Finally, I do not want to start a thread of complaining about how crappy the FR is: my first post to this list already started one of those threads! ;) I appreciate all the effort and accomplishments of the Openmoko community, but I also think the N900 may be a more practical solution, at least for me, than continuing trying to make my FR as usable as a handset as my Nokia 6103b, which is a very closed device. Brolin -- Sometimes I forget how to do small talk: http://xkcd.com/222/ “If you have to ask why, you’re not a member of the intended audience.” — Bob Zimbinski, http://webpages.mr.net/bobz/ttyquake/ ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
[QtMoko] FR dying unexpectedly?
Hello World, Sometimes (at least once per month?) my FR dies unexpectedly: sometimes it happens when I receive a phone call, even if my FR does not die when the same phone number calls before and after the Call of Death. Other times, my FR is suspended or fully on while charging. I have not noticed a pattern so far. My FR dies both when running on battery on when charging. When I say my FR dies, I mean it shows no user-visible signs of life until I remove and reinstall the battery. Before I do this, I cannot even get my FR to power on again: the display is off and the power button does not appear to do anything. Does this happen to anyone else? Is there a known cause and/or prevention? I am currently using QtMoko v19 with the QtMoko v19 debug kernel (suspend did not work with the QtMoko v19 nodebug kernel) on a buzzfixed GSM 850 MHz GTA02A6. However, my FR has been dying unexpectedly for months, including with previous releases of QtMoko. My FR died again yesterday. I checked /var/log/messages: there is nothing about the death: only normal messages before the death, then 2 hours of no messages during the death, then normal boot messages after the death. Thanks, Brolin -- Sometimes I forget how to do small talk: http://xkcd.com/222/ “If you have to ask why, you’re not a member of the intended audience.” — Bob Zimbinski, http://webpages.mr.net/bobz/ttyquake/ ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: iPhone 4 display for Openmoko?
Raphaël Jacquot wrote: On 06/08/2010 07:54 AM, Dr. H. Nikolaus Schaller wrote: Hi all, with the new iPhone it is for the first time better in display resolution (640x960 on 3''5 = 326 dpi) than the Freerunner (640x480 on 2''8 = 283 dpi) with higher dots per inch. Does anyone know where to get such a display? Who is making them? what I noticed is that a 300ppi resolution is what's written about in Star Trek TNG technical manual ;) What I noticed is that Apple, unlike Nullsoft, did not skip version 4 of their skinnable product. Consequently, a skintone (or yellow) skin could be created for the iPhone 4 to create some iPhone 4 skin IP. ;) Probably for reasons similar to not naming the Macintosh SE/30 the Macintosh SEx (the SE/30 is an eXtended Macintosh SE; the SE/30 is essentially a Macintosh IIx in an SE case), though, Apple decided to market “Bumpers for iPhone 4” instead of iPhone 4 skins. ;) Now where is the news story about the pornographer who is pissed off because the value of his (or her?) (marine (filmed at sea)?) watersports IP has sunk or been flushed down the toilet and berried at sea because it is flooding BitTorrent trackers after being being released (discharged?) without his consent? ;) when do we get replicators warp drive ? Windows 2000 had a Replicator group in 1999 (did Windows NT = 4.0 have a Replicator group too?) and OS/2 Warp 3 could be installed on a warp drive in 1994. ;) I opened the OS/2 article on Wikipedia to verify OS/2 Warp 3 was released in 1994, as I thought, and discovered OS/2 Warp /is/ actually named after Star Trek! See http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=OS/2oldid=366316272#The_.22Warp.22_years. :) -- Sometimes I forget how to do small talk: http://xkcd.com/222/ “If you have to ask why, you’re not a member of the intended audience.” — Bob Zimbinski, http://webpages.mr.net/bobz/ttyquake/ ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: iPhone 4 display for Openmoko?
Brolin Empey wrote: Now where is the news story about the pornographer who is pissed off because the value of his (or her?) (marine (filmed at sea)?) watersports IP has sunk or been flushed down the toilet and berried at sea because it is flooding BitTorrent trackers after being being released (discharged?) without his consent? ;) Of course, I meant buried, not berried. I foolishly rushed to send my message; of course, haste makes waste. Or berries. ;) ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: QtMoko - Difficulty trying to mount SD as USB
swoody wrote: Well, I've been trying my darnedest to get the sd card in my phone to mount as a USB drive. [...] I'm nearly at my wits end here. I don't have access to a card reader, and I tried setting up 3 different phones (non-FR's) as USB drives, but each one has it's own unique issue. You can buy SD/MMC USB card readers on eBay for 5 USD with free shipping. You may need a microSD→full-size SD adapter too. I have 2 spare SD/XD/MS/M2/TF(AKA microSD) USB card readers. You can have 1 of them, but it would probably cost more for me to mail them to you than for you to buy an SD/MMC reader with free shipping on eBay. I have the 2 spare readers because the product description on DealExtreme claimed they support CF, which my camera uses, but after I received them I discovered they do not support CF. (fail) My 2 spare readers have separate slots for TF (AKA microSD) and full-size SD, though, so you could use both sizes of SD cards without needing an adapter. ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: [QtMoko] no WLAN support nor USB networking with Windows 7 in QtMoko v18? (FR unusability rant)
As you can probably tell, I was very frustrated and in rant mode when I wrote my original post. My problems were caused by my wrong approach, though. I should have booted QtMoko from SD instead of NAND because SD is far more flexible, especially when troubleshooting. QtMoko v18’s lack of USB networking with Windows 7 was caused by its 2.6.32 kernel config. I have been chatting with radekp (and others) in #openmoko: he tried to help me by providing new kernel images with RNDIS support enabled, but I never got RNDIS working until I switched to QtMoko v19. I know I am a minority Openmoko user because I prefer Windows NT over Linux as a desktop client OS, but I still think the distro maintainers should have a release checklist to prevent releasing a kernel without RNDIS support, for example. RNDIS support is critical for me because I need it for ssh access to my FR. I know I could use a Linux guest in VirtualBox or another virtual machine on my Windows 7 host, but I have been avoiding installing a VM because I fear it will become Yet Another of my countless underestimated projects. Furthermore, I have Ubuntu tower PCs at both home and work. I prefer Cygwin over a Linux guest because Cygwin is better integrated with the host: Cygwin uses the same file system, for example. Anyway, I should not blame distro maintainers for not using a release checklist because I should ask if their new release contains the features and/or support I need before upgrading, especially for a minority case such as RNDIS support. You can read the #openmoko logs on the Web if you are interested in my conversations with radekp (and others). My QtMoko v19 installation in NAND became unusable because my JFFS2 rootfs somehow got partially corrupted while my FR was suspended overnight. I still do not know how that happened, but I learned there is no fsck for JFFS2 only after I needed an fsck to repair my rootfs. I migrated my QtMoko v19 installation from NAND to an 8 GB microSDHC card, which I managed to eventually boot with qi-bootmenu. QtEI restarts when I tell it to “Restart Device” or “Shutdown Device”, though, so I need to try regular Qi instead of qi-bootmenu. My ext3 rootfs on SD got partially corrupted too, though, and apparently I have lost my entire calendar + all of my 400 tasks. :(( I will survive, though: I have tried to spend more effort on progressing than worrying about my non-critical data loss. I should have tried upgrading QtMoko by replacing the kernel image, modules, and /opt/qtmoko/ with the versions from the new release instead of tarring my current installation, starting over with the new release, then trying to copy everything I need from my backup tarball of the previous release. radekp even explicitly mentions this (untested) upgrade path in his recent announcements of QtMoko v20 + v21. radekp’s 2.6.32 kernel apparently now has support for USB Host, but I do not know if it has RNDIS support. Anyway, sorry about my complaining and ranting. Sometimes I allow my actions to be based on my emotions instead of logical reasoning; of course, I lack control over my emotions. I want to help improve my FR experience, including helping radekp make QtMoko the best and most usable FR distro, instead of only complaining without offering constructive criticism. I realise the FR is a community project; I am grateful radekp and others, including Alishams Hassam locally, are willing to help me personally. I know radekp has a wife, 2 children, and a full-time (day) job in addition to his (volunteer) role as QtMoko maintainer. I have a full-time day job too, but it is very flexible and is in a very supportive and understanding environment. I have never been married and have no children, though. I have probably forgotten to mention something important in this message, but I think it will still be sufficient for now. ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: Looking to pick up a FreeRunner
Warren Baird wrote: Hey Woody, Just a word of warning - the FR is a very fun device to play with - but if you expect it to be a fully functioning phone, you will probably be disappointed. I tried to use it as my cell phone for a long time, and found it *very* frustating - regularly missed calls and had to reboot it because it had hung. Which distro were you using? I recommend QtMoko because it is the best and only usable distro I have found. Make sure you use QtMoko v19 or higher, though, because earlier versions miss some incoming SMS messages, including notifications of new voice mail, until QtEI is restarted. I do not recommend QtMoko v18, even though it is newer than v19, because v18’s 2.6.32 kernel lacks support for both RNDIS and USB mode changing. I've been using an N900 for a couple of months now, and am very happy with it - isn't quite as open as the FR, but it is open *enough* for me, and it *works*...Of course if laying out $200 for an FR is a problem, then the N900 is probably out of reach... The N900 lacks USB Host support at the hardware level. I guess this does not matter to you, but I might miss it because I have used USB Host multiple times on my FR. Anyway, I had a disappointing and frustrating experience with my FR too until I discovered QtMoko because all of the distros I tried before QtMoko (Om 2008.x, Om 2009, SHR (misnomer++;)) were unusable. swoody: If you get an FR, please try QtMoko first. That way, if you decide to try other distros later, you can at least compare them to something usable (QtMoko). ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: My surplus FreeRunner score!
I received and unpacked my surplus FreeRunner box weeks ago, but have not tested my surplus FreeRunners until today. Since all my FreeRunners look the same, I labelled my first FreeRunner (the one I (try to) use as my daily phone) 0, then my surplus FRs 1 - 5 inclusive. Note: my surplus FRs were tested with only the AC adapter connected (I used the same AC adapter for all my surplus FRs): no batteries, SIM cards, nor microSD(HC) cards were installed. Here are my test results: FR #1: No end user-visible signs of life. :( FR #2: Will not boot without AUX. Booted U-Boot from NOR, then booted Debian (?) from NAND until it hung with an “Aborted” line after successfully starting avahi-daemon. :( A known-good bootable microSD(HC) card would probably be useful here. FR #3: Will not boot without AUX. Booted U-Boot from NOR, then booted Om 2008 (?) from NAND. Could not get display to come on again after the suspend timeout. :( FR #4: This is the only GSM 900 of my 6 total FRs. Will not boot without AUX. I sense a pattern here: does booting without AUX require a battery? Anyway, booted U-Boot from NOR, then booted SHR from NAND. Hardware appears to work, but many GUI apps hang. Maybe they assume a SIM card is installed? FR #5: Will not boot without AUX. Booted U-Boot from NOR, then started booting some Koolu image (Android?) from NAND, then hung or the boot time exceeded my patience (the Koolu screen never changed.). Conclusion: Not too exciting. :P I will put my surplus FRs away again and return to trying to make QtMoko v18 on FR #0 less unusable. :( The more I (try to) use my FR (#0), the more attractive the N900 looks. ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: Is Neo FreeRunner a phone?
Which version of the Calypso firmware are you using? If it is less than moko11, I suggest upgrading to moko11. Maybe your modem problems have already been fixed. -- Sometimes I forget how to do small talk: http://xkcd.com/222/ “If you have to ask why, you’re not a member of the intended audience.” — Bob Zimbinski, http://webpages.mr.net/bobz/ttyquake/ ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
[QtMoko] no WLAN support nor USB networking with Windows 7 in QtMoko v18? (FR unusability rant)
Hello fans of cute trolls ;), I finally used tar to back up my QtMoko v14 installation in my FR’s onboard NAND, then reflashed QtMoko v18 because, among other annoyances, I was tired of missing incoming SMS messages until I restarted QtEI. Anyway, QtMoko v18 boots and appears to work, but the WLAN interface does not exist and USB networking with Windows 7 does not work at all, even though it partially worked (was intermittent) with QtMoko v14. No Neo Connection is created when I connect my FR to my Windows 7 laptop, so I cannot bridge Neo Connection to Local Area Connection so I cannot ssh from Cygwin on Windows 7 to QtMoko v18. The WLAN interface somehow appeared after I started writing this message, but it is useless because, of course, I cannot connect to my WLAN at home. I tried with both the QtEI GUI and the CLI. I decided to finally try using Bluetooth to network QtMoko v18 with Windows 7, but QtEI says Bluetooth is unavailable when I open Bluetooth from the Main Menu. I tried using “Power on Bluetooth” in the Dev Tools, but, of course, it does not appear to do anything so I cannot even configure Bluetooth on QtMoko v18, so there is no point in continuing trying to configure Bluetooth. I do not want to have to reboot my FR just to get Bluetooth working again in QtMoko v18 because Bluetooth will probably die again after I suspend and resume. So, since the FR’s WLAN is useless, as usual, Bluetooth is broken, and USB networking with Windows 7 is completely broken, I have to (try to) use my wired Ethernet LAN again, even though I think this is how my FR’s USB connector got broken last time. Of course, though, I cannot even enable logical USB host mode on QtMoko v18 (at least electrical USB device mode works, which is surprising because it means something actually works on my FR! (fail)) because the Dev Tool to enable USB host mode appears to do nothing, which makes sense if it uses sysfs because there is no usb_mode file in sysfs. lsmod does not list ohci-hcd, so I guess either the module is not loaded or it is built into the kernel image. I cannot load ohci-hcd because it does not exist in /lib/modules/, which appears to be missing many modules. Why? (fail) Are most modules built into the kernel, or were these modules not built at all because they would be too useful? I need to restore at least my QtEI config and user data from my QtMoko v14 backup tarball, but this is a huge PITA without ssh access to QtMoko v18 because I have to use the tedious onscreen keyboard in qterminal. QtMoko v18 has no Internet access because I cannot connect it to my PC, nor my home (wired) LAN nor WLAN, so I cannot install mc to see if the version in lenny has been upgraded so it is no longer useless because of the regression which prevented me from listing the contents of my QtMoko v11 backup tarball on QtMoko v14, so I have to use tar from the command line, which takes ages to do anything, such as listing archive contents and extracting specific files. I probably use QtMoko as a PDA more than a phone: I rely on it for my personal calendar and had over 400 tasks, including completed tasks. I do not know how anyone considers paper calendars on their wall at home useful because they do not have them with them when they are away from home; I am often away from home when I make appointments. Anyway, I know I have appointments next week (the week starts on Monday, not Sunday, for me. I hate calendars which start on Sunday.), but I cannot access my calendar because I cannot restore my QtMoko v14 backup. I also have at least 2 upcoming events I need to add to my calendar, but I cannot do so, so I have to rely on people to call me to remind me because I will probably forget if I do not have the events in my calendar. I know I should have properly backed up my QtMoko v14 installation by saving a disk (memory) image of the onboard NAND instead of creating a tarball of the files, but I was very foolishly optimistic QtMoko v18 would work better (be less unusable) than v14. (epic fail) I know this message has a very negative tone, but I am currently very frustrated because my FR is still unusable after spending most of my weekend so far trying to upgrade from QtMoko v14 to v18. Alishams Hassam (in To above) asked me how it could take so many hours for me to upgrade QtMoko; now he has a written record of the explanation. As much as I want to make my FR usable, everything always seems to end up being a huge PITA. I think I should really buy an N900 because I want a usable Linux phone (proper, standard, Debian-based Linux, not crappy, non-standard Android Linux) which does not literally take days to upgrade to fix problems which should not have been present in a release in the first place. :(( Brolin -- Sometimes I forget how to do small talk: http://xkcd.com/222/ “If you have to ask why, you’re not a member of the intended audience.” — Bob
Re: Some trickery involved in getting USB Host working on FR?
Timo Juhani Lindfors wrote: Paul Fertserfercer...@gmail.com writes: you need the Y-cable. The best option would be to get a suitable USB hub and modify it accordingly. For more references see [1] and If you don't want to modify anything you can buy http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.13526 which works without any modifications. I have this dual-power USB hub too and recommend it. See my photo on Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/brolin_empey/4209835527/in/pool-openmoko ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: My FreeRunner’s USB port still wo rks for power, but not data?
Paul Fertser wrote: Brolin Empeybro...@brolin.be writes: See the second pin from the left? I assumed it was pin 4 (ID) because of the pinout images on Wikipedia, but I think it may actually be pin 2 (D-). I think it is D- and it is broken, so yes, the only option is to replace the socket it seems... I got someone at work to replace the socket; my FreeRunner’s USB port now works for both power + data again. :) ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: My surplus FreeRunner score!
Brolin Empey wrote: Hello FreeRunners, I just bought the following for 150 USD + UPS Ground shipping to Washington from SDG Systems in Pennsylvania: I do not mean to sound greedy (even if I am ;)), but my original message was intended for bragging, not offering, purposes. ;) I should have made this clear in my original message. I may later decide to sell some of my extra FreeRunners and/or accessories. First, though, I have to receive them, then test them to see how well they work: as far as the person who sold them to me knows, the microphone is the only part not working, but they were sold as-is so they could have other problems. ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: [NEW DISTRIBUTION] Announcing NEOPhysis
djdas wrote: What's next: who knows :P we're hardly working to achieve a stable phone system, there are lots of programs in our OE buildsys but we haven't provided a package manager yet (there is a script to simply install ipk packages in /opt/bin/ipkmgr.sh) Hardly working or working hard? They have opposite meanings. I think you meant working hard because hardly working means barely working. ;) ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: What to do with FreeRunner / Neo 1973?
Jay Vaughan wrote: I'd really like to catch up with you guys that are getting some value out of these devices and what you're doing with them .. so how about telling us old- timers just waking up what the current 'nicest OS' for the Freerunner is? I vote for QtMoko! :) -- Sometimes I forget how to do small talk: http://xkcd.com/222/ “If you have to ask why, you’re not a member of the intended audience.” — Bob Zimbinski, http://webpages.mr.net/bobz/ttyquake/ ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: My surplus FreeRunner score!
Vinzenz Hersche wrote: i'm interessted in maybe 2 of them.. is 850 also possible for europe? Yes, it may still work, but 900 is better for outside North America, including Europe. really not shure.. and are you able to send them to switzerland? Probably. It would be the first time I have physically mailed anything to Switzerland! :) ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
My surplus FreeRunner score!
Hello FreeRunners, I just bought the following for 150 USD + UPS Ground shipping to Washington from SDG Systems in Pennsylvania: * 5x GTA02A6 (4 GSM 850, 1 GSM 900) with buzzfix * 5x earphones * 5x travel cases * 5x batteries * 2x or 3x chargers No MicroSD cards, though, but those are cheap. The catch? The FreeRunners were returned by customers because the microphones do not work. I still think 30 USD each for handheld (Debian) Linux computers is an excellent deal, though: how else can I buy a handheld Linux computer with so much functionality for only 30 USD? I can still try using a wired or wireless (Bluetooth) headset instead of the handset too. Brolin -- Sometimes I forget how to do small talk: http://xkcd.com/222/ “If you have to ask why, you’re not a member of the intended audience.” — Bob Zimbinski, http://webpages.mr.net/bobz/ttyquake/ ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: My surplus FreeRunner score!
jeremy jozwik wrote: On Thu, Mar 4, 2010 at 11:22 AM, Brolin Empeybro...@brolin.be wrote: Hello FreeRunners, I just bought the following for 150 USD + UPS Ground shipping to Washington from SDG Systems in Pennsylvania: * 5x batteries feel like parting with some of those batteries? No, I need a battery for each of my FreeRunners. ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: My FreeRunner’s USB port still wo rks for power, but not data?
Timo Juhani Lindfors wrote: Brolin Empeybro...@brolin.be writes: I have fully reassembled my FreeRunner; it still works, except for USB data. However, now I really think this is a hardware problem because Just a check: can you see internal bluetooth chip if you power it up and run lsusb on the phone? My QtMoko installation lacks lsusb and I cannot install it because my FreeRunner does not have Internet access. However, /proc/bus/usb/devices /does/ list the internal Bluetooth chip: ID 0a12:0001 Cambridge Silicon Radio, Ltd Bluetooth Dongle (I Googled for “0a12:0001” and found a HOWTO [1] from which I copied the line of lsusb output for that USB ID.) [1] http://www.klabs.be/~fpiat/linux/bluetooth/bluetooth_HOWTO.html ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: My FreeRunner???s USB port still works for power, but not data?
Matthias Apitz wrote: I have had the same problem some weeks ago and it was just a broken USB cable (the one this comes with the FR), it works with any other USB cable. The USB cable is not the cause of my problem because even USB cables which work fine with other devices do not work with my FreeRunner. ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: My FreeRunner’s USB port still works for power, but not data?
William Kenworthy wrote: Not using a hub (same ports on the same laptop) - some cables work, some dont, only the cable differs :( I am not using a USB hub either. I have USB cables which work fine for both power + data with other devices, such as a 2.5 HDD enclosure, but do not work with my FreeRunner. :( Is it possible my USB port problem is caused by pin 4 (ID) of the mini USB connector(s)? See the “USB 1.x/2.0 Miniplug/Microplug” table on http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Universal_Serial_Busoldid=347473693#Cables. ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: My FreeRunner’s USB port still works for power, but not data?
Al Johnson wrote: On Thursday 04 March 2010, Brolin Empey wrote: Is it possible my USB port problem is caused by pin 4 (ID) of the mini USB connector(s)? See the “USB 1.x/2.0 Miniplug/Microplug” table on http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Universal_Serial_Busoldid=34747 3693#Cables. Pin 4 is not normally connected in usb cables, so that shouldn't be it. If you have a problem with pin 4 the most likely issue would be not recognising the mains charger as a high current device. I disassembled my FreeRunner again and used a digital multimeter to verify the continuity between the ends of the pins in the USB socket and the USB socket’s leads connected to the PCB. All pins are connected, but only if the contact in the plug on the USB cable contacts the pin in the socket. I tried to take a clear photo of my FreeRunner’s USB socket without using a microscope or other magnifying device other than my camera’s lens, but I could not get a completely satisfactory (completely clear) photo. Now I need to recharge my camera’s battery after I am home tonight, but I cannot add a task in QtMoko to remind me because my FreeRunner is still disassembled. :( I moved my active SIM card to my crappy Nokia 6103b so I still have a phone until my FreeRunner is fixed. Anyway, here is a cropped version of one of the best photos I managed to take: http://brolin.be/graphics/FreeRunner_Mini_USB_F_5-pin.jpg See the second pin from the left? I assumed it was pin 4 (ID) because of the pinout images on Wikipedia, but I think it may actually be pin 2 (D-). This would explain why Windows claims my FreeRunner has malfunctioned: because only one of the data lines is connected. In any case, there are at least 2 strange things about that exceptional pin: 1. Why does it not have black plastic above it like the other 4 pins? 2. Why does it not go up to contact the contacts in the plug on the USB cable like the other pins? Did I somehow end up bending it like that? I need to have someone at work replace the entire USB socket (assuming we have a spare). ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: [QtMoko] intermittent USB networking + non-working WLAN = must use wired LAN = USB port hardware problem
Radek Polak wrote: On Monday 01 March 2010 04:16:22 Brolin Empey wrote: Does anyone use USB networking with their FreeRunner with Windows Vista or Windows 7? I had it working with XP. That does not matter to me because I do not use Windows XP any more. But now i switched all my machines (even at work) to linux. I think i left preinstalled win 7 on my notebook so i can try at home. Did you try USB networking on Windows 7? that does not even matter any more until I fix the USB port hardware problem. You can try besides wifi also bluetooth networking. It should not be hard to set it up It should not be hard to connect to my WLAN either, but of course it is. :P The USB networking with Windows 7 should work reliably instead of intermittently too. (but doing it all with onscreen keyboard could require some patience). But there can be problem that bluetooth is sometimes gone after suspend/resume. I thought that was fixed in 2.6.3x kernels? ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: How to get the QtMoko onscreen keyboard
Stefan Monnier wrote: I just installed QtMoko (v18) on a uSD to try it out, and while it looks OK, it never shows me any keyboard, which makes a lot of its functionality unusable. Is it supposed to popup automatically? If it doesn't, is there some way to force it? I do see a little Aa icon at the top of the screen when I'm in a text field, but it doesn't seem to be do anything. The “Aa” icon means the input method is set to Phone Keys, but of course the FreeRunner lacks a physical keypad. You need to press the white triangle, which points down, to the right of the “Aa” icon to choose one of the keyboard-based input methods. I prefer the Docked Keyboard. In QtMoko v14, the input method reverts to Phone Keys every time Qt Extended Improved (QtEI) is restarted, so you always need to change it back to a keyboard-based input method. AFAIK, this bug has still not been fixed, so QtMoko v18 probably still behaves the same as v14. -- Sometimes I forget how to do small talk: http://xkcd.com/222/ “If you have to ask why, you’re not a member of the intended audience.” — Bob Zimbinski, http://webpages.mr.net/bobz/ttyquake/ ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
My FreeRunner’s USB port still works for power, but not data?
Brolin Empey wrote: Now my FreeRunner’s USB port works for power, so I can still charge the battery, but not for communications, so I think a solder connection must have come undone. I need to try disassembling my FreeRunner to check the connections for the USB connector so I can ask someone at work to fix (resolder) the connection, but I have not yet done so. It must be a hardware problem because QtMoko can still charge, but nothing happens when I connect USB devices to my FreeRunner: no kernel modules are automatically loaded, there are no kernel messages. Manually loading the kernel modules (e.g., dm9601 for my USB→Ethernet adapter) for the USB device does not help. It is not because of the electrical/logical USB host/device setting because I checked that; I know how to use sysfs to change it. Update: I disassembled my FreeRunner; everything looks OK. I did not try using a digital multimeter to test the continuity between the data pins in the USB socket and the connections between the USB socket and the PCB, though. I noticed pin 4 (ID) of the 5-pin mini USB F connector (socket) does not appear to contact pin 4 on the male connector (the plug on the cable). Is this normal? I have fully reassembled my FreeRunner; it still works, except for USB data. However, now I really think this is a hardware problem because the behaviour is the same when my FreeRunner is running U-Boot from NOR, U-Boot from NAND, or QtMoko from NAND. When I connect my FreeRunner to my Windows 7 laptop, Windows 7 displays a balloon notification saying “USB Device Not Recognized: One of the USB devices attached to this computer has malfunctioned, and Windows does not recognize it.”. When I connect my FreeRunner to a tower PC running Ubuntu v8.10 Desktop Edition i386, Linux detects a new full-speed USB device, but does not specifically detect a FreeRunner. lsusb lists no connected devices. This is normal because this PC is headless, but it should still list the FreeRunner if Linux detects the FreeRunner specifically instead of detecting only a generic full-speed USB device. I called SDG Systems in Pennsylvania since I bought my FreeRunner from them in July or August 2009, but they told me my FreeRunner is not covered by warranty because the manufacturer’s warranty is only 2 weeks (!). They do not even sell FreeRunners anymore unless a customer wants to order 10 or more because the FreeRunner was not profitable for them. :( Does anyone have any more ideas? Should I ask on the Openmoko hardware list? ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
[QtMoko] intermittent USB networking + non-working WLAN = must use wired LAN = USB port hardware problem
Hello FreeRunners, I am still using QtMoko v14 in onboard NAND on my US GTA02A6. I know v16 is old by now, but I am not upgrading because it is a huge hassle. I already upgraded from v11 to v14 months ago; I do not want to repeat that hassle. I will have even more to do after upgrading from v14 than from v11 because I have many customisations to restore and packages to reinstall. Anyway, when I was still living in my parents’s house, I had the USB networking working with Windows Vista Ultimate Edition SP1 32-bit on optiplex960. My QtMoko had reliable Internet access via the network bridge (Local Area Connection + Neo Connection). I upgraded from Windows Vista SP1 to SP2 because I wanted full support for RealTimeIsUniversal=1. I do not remember testing the USB networking after upgrading to SP2, so maybe it broke with SP2. I finally chose a model of laptop, ordered it, and received it. brolin-V13 (my laptop) runs Windows 7 Professional 32-bit. The USB networking is intermittent with Windows 7: I can ssh to QtMoko from Cygwin on brolin-V13, but QtMoko can only partially access the Internet. Name resolution works sometimes, but most of the time I get “destination host unreachable” when pinging hosts on my LAN or on the Internet. Sometimes, though, the pings start working, but I do not know why and I cannot reliably reproduce the behaviour. I tried USB networking with optiplex960 again since it used to work there, but QtMoko cannot access the Internet because I get “destination host unreachable” when pinging hosts on my LAN or on the Internet. Actually, I do not fully remember what happened because it was weeks ago and I did not keep a log. I know I should have asked for help on this list then, but I was trying to be practical and avoid sidetracking by using what works and not bothering asking for help with what I cannot get working (USB networking with Windows Vista + Windows 7). I cannot connect my QtMoko to my WLAN because the QtEI WLAN GUI does not work properly and using the command line is too much hassle: sometimes it works, other times it does not, but I do not even know what is different between when it works and does not work. So, other than using sneakernet to transfer files to my FreeRunner, the only reliable network connection is my USB→Ethernet adapter. I had a miniUSB M→USB AF adapter connected directly to my FreeRunner (not using a long cable, which I should have done as I discovered later, after it was too late), then my dual-power USB hub, then my USB→Ethernet adapter, then an Ethernet cable to my USB→Ethernet adapter. This worked for a day or so, but I think it was a mistake because there was too much weight on the miniUSB M→USB AF adapter while I was holding my FreeRunner to use it for voice calls. Now my FreeRunner’s USB port works for power, so I can still charge the battery, but not for communications, so I think a solder connection must have come undone. I need to try disassembling my FreeRunner to check the connections for the USB connector so I can ask someone at work to fix (resolder) the connection, but I have not yet done so. It must be a hardware problem because QtMoko can still charge, but nothing happens when I connect USB devices to my FreeRunner: no kernel modules are automatically loaded, there are no kernel messages. Manually loading the kernel modules (e.g., dm9601 for my USB→Ethernet adapter) for the USB device does not help. It is not because of the electrical/logical USB host/device setting because I checked that; I know how to use sysfs to change it. Does anyone use USB networking with their FreeRunner with Windows Vista or Windows 7? I do not want to uninstall Windows Vista SP2 on optiplex960 because I want full support for RealTimeIsUniversal=1. There is nothing I can do with Windows 7 because no service pack has even been released. I have Ubuntu v8.04 LTS on k7t266 at home, but even if I could get USB networking working with k7t266, that does not help when I am at work because k7t266 (+ optiplex960) stay(s) on my desk at home. I want reliable USB networking with Windows 7 on brolin-V13, but that does not even matter any more until I fix the USB port hardware problem. I am not running Linux or any other OS on brolin-V13 because I highly prefer Windows Vista or Windows 7 over Linux (Ubuntu) as a desktop client OS. I do not want to debate this preference. Oh well, at least I think I finally have satisfactory earpiece volume on my QtMoko, at least when there is no or little background noise. I can live with using the Docked Keyboard in qterminal, but now I cannot even ssh to QtMoko, never mind reflash nor access the Internet from QtMoko. :( Brolin -- Sometimes I forget how to do small talk: http://xkcd.com/222/ “If you have to ask why, you’re not a member of the intended audience.” — Bob Zimbinski, http://webpages.mr.net/bobz/ttyquake/
Re: QtMoko predictive keyboard weirdness
I know this reply is 2 months late, but better late than never, right? Anyway, have you tried using the Docked Keyboard? I use it; it suggests completions based on the letters of a word entered so far. I do not know if this is what you meant by “predictive keyboard”, but it is sufficient for me. I am still using QtMoko v14 but, AFAIK, the Docked Keyboard’s behaviour has not changed since I started using QtMoko at v11. ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: dynamically generating ringtones based on the calling phone number
Timo Juhani Lindfors wrote: Brolin Empeybro...@brolin.be writes: PS: How many Openmoko users make their own ringtones? http://iki.fi/lindi/openmoko/ringtone/ is how I made my ringtone as loud as possible. If you know how to make it even louder, I am interested :-) Cool! I had never heard of the ABC music notation format before today. abc2midi looks useful for non-interactively building MIDI files and/or input to feed to timidity. I used wget to leech your ringtone/ directory: $ time wget -rkKp -nd -np http://lindi.iki.fi/lindi/openmoko/ringtone/ I used to use wget a lot for jobs like this, but for the past few years I have mostly used it simply to download single files. It was fun to “get back into” mirroring with wget! I was considering writing 2 SIDs from Black Mail’s famous 1991 C64 demo “Dutch Breeze” as .wav files so I could use them as ringtones: in the HVSC under C64Music\Ouwehand_Reyn: Dutch_Breeze_FLI_Scroll.sid Dutch_Breeze_Flip_the_Flop.sid I still have not done so, though, so I am still using Random Voice - Monday as my ringtone. I love these oldskool chiptunes so much, even if I was only 4 when they were released! :P ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: OT: Where can I meet a female companion with similar interests and personality /in person/?
I have been living alone in my apartment for 2 weeks. I used Google Earth’s ruler feature to determine my apartment is only 480 m (direct distance; road or walking distance is farther.) from my parents’s house. I have actually gone grocery shopping alone and need to go again tomorrow (on Sunday). I should have gone today (on Saturday), but I procrastinated. (fail) It is still hard for me to go to bed early enough to be well rested at work the next day, but I am improving. I think this is the 8th time I have moved in the almost 23 years since I was born. This is the first time I have lived away from my parents and the first time I have lived alone, though. I still have no female companion, but I wonder how much I really want one: if I really wanted one, why do I not try harder to find one? For example, I could actually attend the meetups in Vancouver for the dating/singles groups I joined on Meetup.com months ago, but I still have not attended any of them because I always make other tasks a higher priority. I know priorities are everything: if I do not make finding a female companion a high priority, it will probably not happen. Then again, though, only 3 years ago, I did not think I would ever fall in love, nor have a girlfriend, nor have sex, but all 3 things finally happened in 2007. :) Having sex is notable because I am not desperate enough to pay for sex and because living with my parents makes sexual relationships very awkward. These things may not seem very notable to some people, but they are very notable to people who know me well because I am usually too shy and self-conscious to try talking to my female peers. I also isolate myself from face-to-face/human contact with new people so much. I know there are many offline events for dating and shared interests, but I have to actually make attending these events a higher priority than tasks involving being alone at home. There are always things I want to do with my computers which I have to wait until I have sufficient free time on the weekend to do, but if I want to make new offline friends, I have to make attending these events a higher priority than my solitary tasks. My actions/choices seem to say I do not want to make new friends because I do not even try. It is not as if attending these events is so difficult for me: I own my own car, I can drive alone, I can legally use my GPS navigator in my car again (see below). As long as I can find parking, this makes travelling much easier than relying on others, including public transit, for transportation. However, participating in Internet communities from home is still much easier than travelling in the physical world. And yes, I realise this is probably because I am more comfortable with participating in Internet communities because I have so much more experience with this form of communication. I know we learn by doing, not saying, so I should attend many physical/offline events, even if I do not think they will interest me, to practise travelling in the physical world, but I still choose to stick with what I know best, which means isolating myself at home. I already have more experience than my closest friend I know offline, Andrew Williamson: I can drive a car with a manual transmission, I have kissed girls, I have been on dates with female peers, I have had sex, I have industrial work experience, even if I do work for my parents’s company, and now I am finally living alone and away from my parents. Of course, it would be satisfying and pleasing to have a girlfriend/lover who understands me well and can relate to me, who shares my passion for my computing interests, who is both physically and emotionally close to me and who wants to share her body with me to satisfy both of our (or at least my) desire for intimacy. Of course I have sexual desire/lust for girls, but I do not even have anyone with whom to share my desire for non-sexual affection, such as cuddling/snuggling, kissing, or even simply holding hands and/or staring into each other’s eyes. Again, these things may not seem so notable or hard to get for some people, but they are very notable for me because I am so shy and quiet/reserved. I was very close to my birth/biological mom Judy Patricia Reimer, but she died from breast cancer on 2002-10-03, when I was only 15. :(( That was the most difficult thing to ever happen to me. It still saddens me: I am literally crying for the first time in months because writing about her reminds me of how much I missed her after she died. :( However, I still manage without these things: they may be required for long-term happiness and satisfaction in life, but are not required for me to function in society. I received my Dell Vostro V13 laptop: I am using Mozilla Thunderbird v3.0.1 on Windows 7 Professional 32-bit on brolin-V13 (my Vostro V13’s hostname) to write this message. :) I love this laptop
posting to a blog vs. this list (was: Re: OT: Where can I meet a female companion with similar interests and personality /in person/?)
Fabian Schölzel wrote: On Sunday 24. January 2010 13:38:27, Stefano Cavallari Cavallari wrote: Why does your reply template include the quoted author’s last name twice instead of only once? Also, you should include the time zone/UTC offset because the quoted time of day is still in the future in the Pacific time zone (-08:00). :) What about opening a free blog and write your thoughts/happenings there? I think that's a good idea! I actually already have both a Facebook [1] and LiveJournal [2] account. I stopped posting to LiveJournal because I received almost no feedback except when I sent the URL of my posts to people via e-mail, IM, or IRC. I thought I could get more feedback by posting notes (not status updates because the length limit of those is too small) on Facebook, but I receive no feedback at all except when I send the URL of my posts to people. I have largely lost interest in Facebook because I lack an active (as opposed to passive) audience. [1] http://www.facebook.com/brolin.empey [2] http://brolin-empey.livejournal.com/ ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: [QtMoko] Call volumes
Vinzenz Hersche wrote: Brolin: could you send me/us the state-file with a little description, where it is and which value must be set? :) The state file is: /usr/share/openmoko/scenarios/gsmhandset.state I use vim to edit the state file on my FreeRunner. “control.48” is the mic gain. Set the value to 3 (the maximum). After I changed this single value, people could hear me better, even when I hold the mouthpiece relatively far from my mouth. Note: I am still using QtMoko v14, so I do not know if the state file(s) have changed in subsequent releases. Please try this change and report your observed results. I used this post to learn which control to change: http://lists.openmoko.org/pipermail/community/2009-October/057319.html ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: [QtMoko] Call volumes
Denis Johnson wrote: On Tue, Jan 19, 2010 at 12:43 AM, Radek Polakpson...@seznam.cz wrote: You can install qalsamixer under settings-software packages if it helps. I dont have buzzfix so cant help more. Thanks, I installed that however it is difficult to tie together all those sliders to the various control numbers in the state file. I vaguely remember a thread here some time back discussing those controls and values and that the wiki instructions were not correct. I might try and search teh archive and make some sense of it I think you mean this post: http://lists.openmoko.org/pipermail/community/2009-October/057319.html Please see my reply to Vinzenz Hersche’s post in this thread. ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
OT: gender-neutral English usage (was Re: OT: Where can I meet a female companion with similar interests and personality /in person/?)
Juan Lucas Dominguez Rubio wrote:
No we dont have a neutral gender in Spanish, but the Spanish for 'his'
and 'her' is the same ('su') so we don't have that problem:
'his/her Freerunner' == 'su Freerunner'
Spanish is still patriarchal, though: plural nouns are masculine unless
all the members are female.
AFAIK, German has a neutral gender in addition to masculine and
feminine, but I know even less about German than Spanish.
As for English, I prefer 'their' rather than 'his/her'.
I prefer to preserve distinction between singular and plural forms,
which means using “he/his/him or she/hers/her” for singular and
“they/theirs/them” for plural.
I wonder how
this issue was solved in the past. Such a usual problem must have been
solved centuries ago in the English literature, no?
It was “solved” in a patriarchal style by using masculine terms as
gender-neutral terms, which I think is wrong even though I am male. See
http://people.mills.edu/spertus/Gender/pap/pap.html.
And yes, this is totally off-topic,
Hence the “OT: ” prefix in the Subject. Why would anyone complain about
off-topic subjects in a thread clearly marked as off-topic? (fail) If
you do not want to read off-topic discussions, avoid reading threads
clearly marked as such!
and the where-can-I-meet-a-female
topic is totally ridiculous and bad taste
Why? Please support your claim. My question was not simply “Where can
I meet a female?”, but “Where can I meet a female *companion with
similar interests and personality /in person/?*” Did you even read my
original post in this thread? Please understand I do not intend to be
harsh and/or belligerent. However, I find your reasoning/logic faulty.
and I think the list
administrator (if there is one) should do something about it.
Such as? Are you suggesting censorship of a list about a project to
free the cellular/mobile phone? If yes, I find that highly ironic.
Even if the list administrator changed or removed this thread, it would
be too late because this thread has already been copied to many
unofficial archives and members’s mailboxes.
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Re: [QtMoko] Call volumes
Denis Johnson wrote:
On Tue, Jan 19, 2010 at 9:23 AM, Brolin Empeybro...@brolin.be wrote:
I think you mean this post:
http://lists.openmoko.org/pipermail/community/2009-October/057319.html
Indeed that is the one I was referring to, thanks. I also found this one
http://lists.openmoko.org/pipermail/community/2009-December/058189.html
Interesting, but I use only QtMoko, not SHR.
Please see my reply to Vinzenz Hersche’s post in this thread.
Yes thanks, although your suggestion of putting control 48 to max of 3
seems to contradict
48. The advice on the wiki is bad, and likely to lead to
distortion. Keep 48
low unless you have 12 and 5 near maximum.
I /do/ have 12 and 5 near maximum:
control.12 {
comment.access 'read write'
comment.type INTEGER
comment.count 1
comment.range '0 - 7'
iface MIXER
name 'Mono Sidetone Playback Volume'
value 6
}
control.5 {
comment.access 'read write'
comment.type INTEGER
comment.count 1
comment.range '0 - 127'
iface MIXER
name 'Mono Playback Volume'
value 110
}
do you happen to know if we need to restart QTExtended or will changes
to the state file take immediate effect.
IIRC, QtEI must be restarted.
I also wonder how the QTMoko settings, call options, call volume
interacts with these state files as it does not modify them if you
change one or both sliders.
I do not know.
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Re: [QtMoko] Call volumes
Denis Johnson wrote: I have switched to using QTMoko, currently running V16b and I cannot seem to get the call volumes right. Caller is not loud enough and caller struggles to hear me. do I need to fiddle with teh gsmhandset.state file manually or is there a better way ? I have a GTA02 A05 with buzzfix. Anyone have a same setup and would care to share their state file(s) I use QtMoko v14 on a buzz-fixed US GTA02 rev A6. I needed to increase the mic gain in gsmhandset.state and learn to hold my FreeRunner so the mouthpiece is close enough to my mouth for people to be able to hear me well and the earpiece is close enough to my ear for me to be able to hear them well. It took months of frustration of me not being able to hear people and/or them not being able to hear me, but I seem to finally be used to holding my FreeRunner in the ideal position. Troubleshooting call volumes seems to be very difficult because there are so many variables: volume settings on phones, the way people hold their phones, different form factors of phones (I did not have these problems with my Nokia 6103b, which is a clamshell phone, but the FreeRunner is a bar phone, so call volumes are more sensitive to the phone position), handset versus speakerphone versus headset, etc. For example, when I call some call centres, such as Volkswagen Canada, both parties sound quiet to the other, but when I access my Fido voice mail, the voice menus are so loud they sound like I am using speakerphone when I am only using the handset. To conclude, I suggest increasing the mic gain (I can find the details if you need them.), then calling someone and asking them how well they can hear you when you hold your FreeRunner differently until you find the ideal position, then try to always hold it that way. Of course, if there is a better way to get satisfactory and consistent call volumes on QtMoko, please tell me! :) ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: Quick e-mail poll: Still using your FreeRunner?
Risto H. Kurppa wrote: Do you use FR as your daily/primary phone? Yes. Do you use FR as your primary PDA? Yes. What distribution you run most of the time? I use only QtMoko. -- Sometimes I forget how to do small talk: http://xkcd.com/222/ “If you have to ask why, you’re not a member of the intended audience.” — Bob Zimbinski, http://webpages.mr.net/bobz/ttyquake/ ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: OT: Where can I meet a female companion with similar interests and personality /in person/?
Ben Cadieux wrote: Hi Brolin, Just a few things to remember: 1. This list is public; these posts will remain available through search engines for quite some time. Yes, I realise this. I explicated this realisation in my original post: “Can anyone relate to me? What should I do? I know I have volunteered a lot of personal information in this post, but much of it is already publicly accessible for those who know my real/legal name and know how to use tools such as Google Search. I have been considering writing a post like this for months (maybe already 1 year), but I ended up stopping writing early because I felt uncomfortable about volunteering so much personal information. What do I have to lose, though? I need to stop being so self-conscious.” You have posted many details that may cause you trouble or embarrassment in the future. Can you provide some specific examples, other than saying I want to fuck Tamara, which should not surprise her since she already knew that? I know some people think I should not have mentioned her (full) name in such a context, but it is too late now. I do not think I have posted anything (very) embarrassing. I also do not think members of this list want to embarrass me. Most of the members who have replied appear to want to help me, not embarrass me. I guess you were probably referring to details which could cause embarrassment if read by someone who found them via a search engine. However, I am not concerned about embarrassment because I believe I have nothing to lose by volunteering the personal information in my previous posts. For example, I would not have met Alishams if I never posted my original message in this thread. 2. Think about what others need to know, or would like to know, before writing. Brevity both in writing and speech is important. You don't want to annoy or bore others with irrelevant information, nor seem boring by giving away all your thoughts. Brolin’s verbose mode is always on! ;) All the best to you and your endeavours :) Best Regards, Ben Cadieux I finally realised why your name seems familiar: you are the author of WDe. I e-mailed you about WDe in 2006. :) ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: OT: Where can I meet a female companion with similar interests and personality /in person/?
omcomali@porcupinefactory.org wrote: On Wed, 6 Jan 2010 23:00:19 +0100 Fabian Schölzelfabian.schoel...@googlemail.com wrote: ---snip--- You also said, that he could run into trouble because of the things he writes here. Well, that may be. Myself i think, only people, that are not able to deal with that amount of info and openness, would generate trouble out of this writings. I don't really see, where one can be too open and honest about himself. Is that really possible? We are all human beings, why would we want to hide parts of our existence? Why would we want to let taboos about what to say and what not to say stay? If someone don't want to read some specific stuff, then he should go on and do not read it. If someone (in 10 years for example) will make decisions or estimations on the basis of Brolins writings here and now - well, as i said, that may happen. Often people say imagine they google you and don't give you a job. I would say: Gladly, Brolin don't have to work and talk with people, who are just lost in the age of information. I approach this in a slightly differrent manner. I believe that one should not be completely open to strangers and should leave some knowledge about him/her only to people he/she cares about. Being able to know someone more than others do is a gift you could give your colleagues (they know more then a stranger), your friends (you know some of your thoughts), your relatives (they know your daily life) and so on. I personally find it nice if someone shows that I'm important to her/him by sharing more of that knowledge with me. That are also a few other reasons to not talk about oneself that I won't share with Google's caches as Google is not someone I know ;) I do not think your approach makes sense because even my closest friends were once strangers. If I had never talked to Andrew Williamson in elementary school in 1995, we would probably not have become friends. One of us must have initially approached the other for the first time, though, and we are still closest friends 15 years later because one of us decided to approach someone who was a stranger at the time. Granted, we were 8 at the time: I guess children are less afraid of their peers than adults are afraid of their peers. I am now almost 23, but I am still too afraid and/or shy to talk to many strangers because I know nothing about them. I think online/virtual communities are a good way to learn about people before meeting them in person. This is how I met Alishams: if he had not written his long reply to my original message in this thread, I probably would have been less comfortable if I met him in person because I would not have known anything about him other than his sex, estimated age, and physical appearance. ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: OT: Where can I meet a female companion with similar interests and personality /in person/?
Fabian Schölzel wrote: Hi rhn, i understand your point of view. Everybody should do as he wish. But i think if somebody wants to give that gift to everybody, he should be allowed to do so, while others are free to say no thanks, i don't want to know. For my self, i think it is some kind of different to your way, but in the end, it comes out the same. The people that know me most, are the people i like most. That is so, because i spend more time with people i like, therefore i talk more with them than others. That is why they know more (or/and deeper). I would tell others the same stories and infos about me, in the same deepness - if they are interested. The topic and the deepness will change with the people and they're interests, of course. But then again, teh interwebs is different. One can be as verbose as he likes, and others can read what they like. I agree with you, Fabian. However, I think you should use “he or she” instead of using masculine pronouns as if they were sex/gender-neutral. This subject is covered in Ellen Spertus’s 1991 paper titled “Why are There so Few Female Computer Scientists?”: http://people.mills.edu/spertus/Gender/pap/pap.html ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
incorrect message dates (was Re: New project openmokontrol)
Gennady, Your clock is set to 2010-10 instead of 2010-01. Please correct your clock. Thanks, Brolin -- Sometimes I forget how to do small talk: http://xkcd.com/222/ “If you have to ask why, you’re not a member of the intended audience.” — Bob Zimbinski, http://webpages.mr.net/bobz/ttyquake/ ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: OT: Where can I meet a female companion with similar interests and personality /in person/?
Fabian Schölzel wrote: On Thursday 14. January 2010 22:15:16, Brolin Empey Empey wrote: I agree with you, Fabian. However, I think you should use “he or she” instead of using masculine pronouns as if they were sex/gender-neutral. I had a bad feeling when writing this. :) My mother tongue is german, so i think this is translated badly. In Germany, we have a phrase Jeder wie er mag., wich would be Everybody how he likes. in word-for-word translation. Would One should do as one likes. be better? Yes, or “One should do as he or she likes.”. ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: OT: Where can I meet a female companion with similar interests and personality /in person/?
2009/11/30 Brolin Empey bro...@brolin.be: 2009/11/12 Brolin Empey bro...@brolin.be Hello list, I am writing a follow-up/update to my original post just over 2 months later. What has changed since my original post? Another update. What has changed since my last update? I finally chose and ordered a laptop (a Dell Vostro V13) so I can use the same PC at home and work. Of course, I am already regretting my choice, but at least I chose something. I always seem to regret my computer purchases. I have started moving most of the crap I am packratting to my new apartment. I have to wait until Sat, 2010-01-09 to move my furniture because that is when I planned to have my sister and friend help me. I am afraid I am going to be even lonelier living alone instead of with my parents, but at least I will have more privacy. I am also afraid I am going to starve because I dislike having to stop what I am doing to buy food, prepare meals, clean up after meals, etc. Food preparation does not interest me because the results seem so extremely ephemeral. I am an intellectual and emotional animal (person) who wants to understand himself by self-study and communication without having to (what seems like) always worry about eating because my mind is embodied in the body of an animal, which I do not understand. I really wish I did not have to eat because it would make my life so much easier. I do not know how to describe my mental state properly, but I always seem to be seeking an answer which cannot be found. I know, this sounds like Neo in The Matrix. :P I wonder if my mental processes are really so unusual because they usually seem strange to me. I am still lonely because I have no female companion, but at least I have my male friends, even if I rarely meet them in person. I know I have to try new things (go to unfamiliar events and/or places) to meet girls, but I have been isolating myself more again because that is how I am. I do not know what is wrong with me, but I end up making myself so lonely because I am so inclined to isolate myself. My parents and teachers have noticed my lack of (face-to-face/in person) peer interaction and have been concerned about it since elementary/primary school. I do not understand how non-autistic people can seem to function so much better than me and easily have more close friendships than me. ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: [QtMoko] NeronGPS no worky
Update: the NeronGPS I installed from the QtMoko feed segfaults at startup, so I uninstalled it and installed NeronGPS from tvuillaume’s feed. NeronGPS from tvuillaume’s feed appears to work, but I do not want to go outside to acquire satellites because it is too cold outside at night and I am lazy. :P ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: OT: Which MicroUSB adapters/cables do I need to buy?
I answered my own question: Both eBay [1] and Digi-Key [2] have the needed cables. I ordered 2 from eBay, but will not receive them until I have returned to work in January. I did not order from Digi-Key because the part was out of stock and was estimated to not ship until January. I should have thought to try an electronic components distributor, such as Digi-Key, but I did not because I have not needed parts I cannot buy from a regular store before. Oh well, live and learn! [1] http://cgi.ebay.ca/Micro-male-to-USB-female-cable-adaptor-converter-plug-a_W0QQitemZ260516960685QQcmdZViewItemQQptZPDA_Accessories?hash=item3ca80559ad [2] http://search.digikey.com/scripts/DkSearch/dksus.dll?Detailname=H11576-ND ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: Where can I buy miniUSB-m → USB-A-f adapters i n Canada?
I finally got the hardware needed to charge my FreeRunner while using it as a USB host from DealExtreme. Digi-Key has at least some of the USB parts I needed too, including the microUSB-m→USB-A-f cables I asked about in another thread. I photographedhttp://www.flickr.com/photos/brolin_empey/4209835527/my desk after using Cygwin on my Windows Vista PC to ssh to QtMoko v14 on my FreeRunner via a USB→Ethernet adapter connected to my FreeRunner via a dual-power USB hub, which is powered by a USB charger (AC→DC over USB) with 3 colours of cool but pointless flashing LEDs. This is *so* cool! I set a root password on QtMoko because I do not want anyone on my LAN (not that there is even currently anyone else home! :P) to be able to get root access to my FreeRunner. I used the on-screen keyboard in qterminal on QtMoko to configure the USB logical host mode, electrical host mode, and networking until I could ssh from my PC to QtMoko via Ethernet. I also (re)learned more about my digicam (a Canon PowerShot G6) while trying to get a relatively decent photo of my setup. ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
[QtMoko] NeronGPS no worky (was Re: [QtMoko] GPS navigation apps for QtMoko)
2009/12/16 Tony McKeehan mck...@rpi.edu Yeah, NeronGPS is in the QtMoko feeds and all you need to install it is a recent version of QtMoko and an internet connection. Is QtMoko v14 sufficiently recent? It's native to the Qt framework that QtMoko uses and doesn't need an X server. It has a slightly different interface from Navit and tango, but it's pretty easy to get used to. It also does not even run on my FreeRunner: every time I try running it from the QtEI Applications list, I get a dialog saying: *Application terminated* *NeronGPS* was terminated due to application error. Any ideas? ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: QTMoko predictive keyboard weirdness
I do not have an answer for you, except to tell you I am a native English speaker too and already use QtMoko (still using v14) as my primary (cellular) phone. However, I am curious: are you related to Evangelene Alaraj (nee Weatherill)? I noticed you used the Canadian/UK spelling of “behaviour”, so I thought you may live in Canada too. I live in Delta, British Columbia. ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: Least-hassle method of getting a usable Web browser + telephony support while GPRS is enabled?
2009/12/16 Al Johnson openm...@mazikeen.demon.co.uk On Thursday 17 December 2009, Brolin Empey wrote: Hello list, I am using QtMoko v14. AFAIK, QtMoko does not support GSM multiplexing, which means even if I had a working and usable Web browser for QtMoko, I could not use telephony functionality, such as making and receiving phone calls, while GPRS is enabled. If I wanted to have Internet access on my FreeRunner, what is the least-hassle method of getting a usable Web browser + telephony and SMS support while GPRS is enabled? Am I better off finding a usable proprietary phone? Since you've already got the phone you may as well give the other firmware options a try. We keep finding people have different definitions of 'usable' so you'll have to see what suits you. SHR should be easy to try, and is supposed to do everything you want. There's a GUI for the GPRS config. It has multiplexing so GPRS, SMS and telephony should work together (I say should as I haven't tried GPRS recently.) Midori might be a suitable browser, although there is a problematic interaction between the illume keyboard and midori's address autocompletion at the moment. I have already tried the Om2008.8 (?) which was preinstalled on my FreeRunner, Om2009 (completely unusable because the GUI kept becoming unresponsive), SHR-U (version 080808 or 090808? I can find out which version I tried when I am home tonight. It was less unusable than Om2009 but still unusable because I could not set the clock to the correct date and time, all of my SMS messages had the same incorrect date and time, the text input did not work reliably, it used crappy Busybox instead of GNU userland (I know I could probably replace Busybox with GNU userland, but doing so requires a usable ssh connection.), and I could not even get a usable ssh connection to SHR-U because I could not get bridging nor routing working on Ubuntu and the ssh session from Cygwin on Windows Vista was very slow and kept disconnecting. I had the base or tiny version of SHR (I forgot what it was called, but I can find out when I am at home tonight.), which had very few apps, but I could not upgrade to the full version because I did not have a usable ssh connection.), and finally QtMoko, which still has issues but is by far the most usable distro I have tried. I could try SHR again, but my first impression of SHR was very poor because I do not understand how they could release such a broken image. If I try another distro, it has to be able to install to and run from a MicroSD(HC) card because I need to keep my working QtMoko installation in my onboard NAND. I want to be able to connect my FreeRunner directly to an Ethernet LAN instead of having to use bridging and/or routing on a PC. I already have a USB → Ethernet adapter, but I am still waiting for my DealExtreme orders to arrive (it is taking weeks. :/) so I can use my FreeRunner as a USB Host instead of only as a USB Device. If I could connect my FreeRunner directly to my Ethernet LAN, then it does not matter if I cannot get a usable ssh connection to SHR-U via USB networking, but such a connection should still work because it works fine with QtMoko. ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: Least-hassle method of getting a usable Web browser + telephony support while GPRS is enabled?
2009/12/17 Al Johnson openm...@mazikeen.demon.co.uk On Thursday 17 December 2009, Brolin Empey wrote: 2009/12/16 Al Johnson openm...@mazikeen.demon.co.uk On Thursday 17 December 2009, Brolin Empey wrote: FreeRunner, Om2009 (completely unusable because the GUI kept becoming unresponsive), SHR-U (version 080808 or 090808? I can find out which version I tried when I am home tonight. That's a long way out of date! It was the current release when I tried it in 2009-08, soon after I got my FreeRunner. I had the base or tiny version of SHR (I forgot what it was called, but I can find out when I am at home tonight.), which had very few apps, but I could not upgrade to the full version because I did not have a usable ssh connection.), and finally QtMoko, which still has issues but is by far the most usable distro I have tried. I could try SHR again, but my first impression of SHR was very poor because I do not understand how they could release such a broken image. shr-unstable is just that, and breakages happen. The images are just nightly builds that have nominally succeeded, not a release that's supposed to be bug- free. The recently released shr-testing is intended to avoid the sort of failures you can get in unstable, but it takes a little while for bug fixes to trickle down from unstable. I was expecting SHR-unstable to be like Debian Linux unstable, which is actually not unstable in the sense of having lots of breakage. I thought the image I tried was recommended because it was supposed to work well (had been tested), but I could be wrong. I should have asked if there was a better (less broken) image I could have tried. If I try another distro, it has to be able to install to and run from a MicroSD(HC) card because I need to keep my working QtMoko installation in my onboard NAND. I'm running shr-u (among others) from uSD. Just make an ext3 filesystem on a spare partition and untar the tar.gz image to it. I assume you know how to multiboot already... I have not multibooted my FreeRunner because so far I have run only 1 distro at a time from the onboard NAND, but I can probably figure out how to multiboot because I have multibooted PCs + my iPod + maybe some other devices I am forgetting. :) ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
[QtMoko] GPS navigation apps for QtMoko
Hello list, Are there any GPS navigation apps for QtMoko, i.e., any usable without an X server? I cannot use QX because every time I try, I end up having to remove the battery from my FreeRunner because my FreeRunner locks up and is unusable. I wanted to use Navit, but it requires a working X server. Alternately, is there any way to get a working (non-QX) X server on QtMoko, or use QtMoko with an X server (maybe on plain Debian)? Months ago, I asked for recommendations of MicroSDHC cards to buy to install plain Debian on. I still have not even found a place to buy any of the recommended cards because I have not made doing so a sufficiently high priority for it to ever be done. My parents gave me a Garmin nûvi GPS navigator (I do not remember which model, but I can find out if you want) as an early Christmas gift, so I at least have a working GPS navigation solution, but it would be better if I could use my FreeRunner as a GPS navigator. I never use cell phones while driving because doing so is a recipe for disaster for me: I always pull over and stop before using a cell phone. I am mentioning this because I wonder if it simplifies finding a GPS navigation app because I do not use cell phones while driving, so I do not have to answer nor make calls while the GPS navigation app is running. I still need to log missed calls and receive SMS messages, though. I also do not want messages about missed calls or received SMS messages blocking my view of the GPS navigation app on the screen while I am driving because I may not even be able to safely pull over to use my FreeRunner. I am using QtMoko v14, but will see if v15 looks like it is worth upgrading to. Thanks, Brolin -- Sometimes I forget how to do small talk: http://xkcd.com/222/ “If you have to ask why, you’re not a member of the intended audience.” — Bob Zimbinski, http://webpages.mr.net/bobz/ttyquake/ ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Least-hassle method of getting a usable Web browser + telephony support while GPRS is enabled?
Hello list, I am using QtMoko v14. AFAIK, QtMoko does not support GSM multiplexing, which means even if I had a working and usable Web browser for QtMoko, I could not use telephony functionality, such as making and receiving phone calls, while GPRS is enabled. If I wanted to have Internet access on my FreeRunner, what is the least-hassle method of getting a usable Web browser + telephony and SMS support while GPRS is enabled? Am I better off finding a usable proprietary phone? Please do not suggest the iPhone because until the iPhone 3GS was released, Apple refused to accept my money even though I wanted their product: the only way to buy a new iPhone in Canada from a store was to sign a 3-year term contract with Rogers or Fido. That is illogical. If I want Apple’s product, Apple should sell it to me. I do not want to sign a 3-year term contract. I have no term contract with my Fido monthly plan. With Rogers, I would have had to sign at least a 1-year term contract, pay a 1-time activation fee plus a System Access Fee every month. I still had to pay a 1-time activation fee with Fido, but I do not pay any System Access Fee nor did I have to sign a term contract. Anyway, I decided I am not buying an iPhone because I do not want to encourage Apple to not sell their products to consumers, such as me, who can afford them but do not want to sign a 3-year term contract. Why would I want to develop an application for a device (the iPhone) no one in Canada can buy new from a store without signing a 3-year service agreement? My users would have to jailbreak their iPhone just to use my app because Apple wants control over their platform. I do not want an iPod Touch because then I still need a separate phone. I already used to have a separate phone and PDA. I want less devices to always carry with me, not more. Anyway, I know this post has turned into a rant about the iPhone. I think if I had to choose a proprietary phone, I would be limited to non-Android Linux phones because I want the same OS on my phone as on my PCs, which run Ubuntu and Windows NT (Vista, but it is still Windows NT, not Windows.), not iPhone OS, Symbian OS, Windows CE/Windows Mobile/Pocket PC/whatever it is called now because Microsoft loves renaming things, BlackBerry stains, or some other crappy, ephemeral, and proprietary OS used on only 1 type of computer (cell phones and/or PDAs). Windows NT does not run on ARM even though modern embedded computers are more powerful than the desktop computers Windows NT originally ran on. Ubuntu is based on Debian, which runs on the FreeRunner, so QtMoko/plain Debian it is. I do not want to start an Android rant, but let’s just say I am avoiding Android because it is non-standard, proprietary, uses Java (I hate Java because it is gross.) and is hyped by the same people who hype Java: non-programmers who do not even use it. Thanks, Brolin -- Sometimes I forget how to do small talk: http://xkcd.com/222/ “If you have to ask why, you’re not a member of the intended audience.” — Bob Zimbinski, http://webpages.mr.net/bobz/ttyquake/ ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
OT: Which MicroUSB adapters/cables do I need to buy?
Hello World, My colleague has a Freescale dev board with a MicroUSB receptacle. He wants to connect a USB hub to the dev board and also connect the dev board to his PC (1 at a time, not both at once!). Can anyone please tell me which specific adapters and/or cables I need to buy in order to accomplish these goals? I mean can you provide links to products in a Web store, such as DealExtreme or another store you think is a good choice for shipping to Canada? I live and work in Delta, British Columbia, Canada. I have checked some local and Canadian stores (A-Power, NCIX, ACP Marketing, TigerDirect.ca), but none have what I need. The only store that appears to have what I need is DealExtreme: I can buy a cable with a full-size A plug to a Micro A/B (I do not remember which one.) plug, but then I still need a full-size A gender changer to connect a USB hub to the dev board, but then I need 2 cables + a gender changer or 1 cable, 1 gender changer, and 1 full-size A plug to B plug adapter (the size depends on the receptacle on the USB hub) just to connect a USB hub. I have already spent hours searching for adapters and/or cables, but I am more confused than when I started. Are there adapters with a Micro A/B plug and a full-size A receptacle for connecting USB hubs to Micro receptacles? I know this is off-topic because the FreeRunner uses Mini, not Micro, USB connectors, but I thought someone here could help me. Thanks, Brolin -- Sometimes I forget how to do small talk: http://xkcd.com/222/ “If you have to ask why, you’re not a member of the intended audience.” — Bob Zimbinski, http://webpages.mr.net/bobz/ttyquake/ ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: OT: Where can I meet a female companion with similar interests and personality /in person/?
2009/11/12 Brolin Empey bro...@brolin.be Hello list, I am writing a follow-up/update to my original post just over 2 months later. What has changed since my original post? Another update. What has changed since my last update? 1. I stopped hiring Dave McCormick because I did not want to spend so much money when I did not even know what to have him help me with. 2. I signed a tenancy agreement to rent a 1-bedroom apartment in Ladner Village: my tenancy begins on 2010-01-01. Of course, I am already having regrets because I am afraid the apartment is too small, it has electric heating, it is on the 3rd floor but there is no elevator, I do not know where I will store my bicycle even though I almost never use it any more, ... Oh well, at least I chose something. It could be much worse. 3. I finally upgraded my FreeRunner from QtMoko v11 to v14. That was a huge hassle (because I had to manually back up my QtMoko v11 installation, reflash QtMoko v14, then restore everything I needed from my backup) and took at least 8 hours over 1 weekend, but it was worth it because the video is much more responsive with QtMoko v14 than v11. QX still does not seem to work, though: I still always end up having to remove my FreeRunner’s battery after trying to use QX because my FreeRunner becomes unusable. (fail) Debian needs to update the version of mc in lenny/stable because their current version has a regression which prevents mc from listing the contents of some tar archives, including the one I made to back up my QtMoko v11 installation. (fail) 4. I still have not bought a MicroSDHC card so I still cannot install plain Debian so I still do not have a working X server so I still cannot run Navit, but my parents gave me a Garmin nuvi 755T road navigiation system (commonly and very imprecisely called “a GPS”), so I at least have a working road navigation system for now. I used the nuvi 755T to drive to work today: it seems to work OK, but the text-to-speech (TTS) engine is poor: it sounds very mechanical and would probably never be mistaken for a real human voice. I have heard much better TTS voices, but I cannot remember their names so I cannot cite any examples. 5. I have actually used Xubuntu 9.10 at work (it is *so* stable: it has unexpectedly locked up only once so far! :P), but still not Ubuntu 9.10 nor Kubuntu 9.10. Of course, making Xorg use 16-bit colour depth instead of the default 24-bit so the 4 MiB video card can drive a 17 LCD monitor at its native 1280x1024 mode was a huge hassle involving hours of playing (experimenting) with *xorg.conf*, checking *Xorg.0.log*, comparing and copying from *xorg.conf*s on other PCs with the same model of LCD monitor, ... 6. I actually messaged one of the people (Janet) from the Ubuntu Vancouver LoCo, but she still has not replied and I have not met her since I messaged her. 7. I bought a used Canon PowerShot G6 for about 275 CAD including shipping via an eBay auction because I did not want to spend 550 CAD on a new PowerShot G11 (the current model), which will be worth less than half that in 5 years or less. Of course, I am already having regrets, but I probably would have regretted buying a G11 too because the G6 is sufficient. I am still constantly overthinking, obsessing, overwhelmed with ambivalence, indecision, and too much information. I still have no female companion. I have no close friends in Ladner other than maybe Miles Husoy, but I have not even seen him for months. I am not surprised, though, because I continue to isolate myself. I always feel like I have too much crap to do but I still lay in my bed at home and inevitably fall alseep because I am tired of overthinking and obsessing and am too ambivalent to do some of the endless things I should be doing. Now I have to prepare for my Class 5 passenger vehicle road test on 2010-01-22 because there is a new and incredibly illogical law in British Columbia starting on 2010-01-01 that drivers with a Class 7 passenger vehicle driver’s licence, such as me, cannot use electronic devices, including road navigation systems, while driving because they are “too distracting”. Reality check: which is more distracting: looking away from driving to read a paper map or driving directions, or not looking away from driving because the road navigation system speaks to me so I do not need to look at its display? I do not use cell phones while driving because I know I cannot focus sufficiently on driving if I am trying to have a conversation with someone else in my car, so how could I have a conversation with someone via a cell phone while driving? I always pull over and stop before using a cell phone. Brolin -- Sometimes I forget how to do small talk: http://xkcd.com/222/ “If you have to ask why, you’re not a member of the intended audience.” — Bob Zimbinski, http
[QtMoko] triangle icon on shelf (top bar)
Hello World, I am using QtMoko v14 on a US FreeRunner (rev A6). Ever since I switched from Speak Out Wireless to Fido, QtEI shows a triangle icon on the shelf (top bar). This triangle icon did not appear when I used Speak Out Wireless. I Googled for “qtopia phone triangle icon” and found an IRC loghttp://logs.nslu2-linux.org/livelogs/qtopia/qtopia.20080809.txt(search for “triangle”) claiming the triangle icon means roaming. Is this true? If yes, how can I be roaming when I am (AFAIK) in my home area? I live and work in Delta, British Columbia, Canada. Thanks, Brolin -- Sometimes I forget how to do small talk: http://xkcd.com/222/ “If you have to ask why, you’re not a member of the intended audience.” — Bob Zimbinski, http://webpages.mr.net/bobz/ttyquake/ ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: Where can I buy miniUSB-m → USB-A-f adapters i n Canada?
2009/9/15 Boris Wong lists.bo...@bshed.com Brolin Empey wrote: Where can I buy such an adapter or cable in Canada? Try www.dealextreme.com They have free shipping (although order and shipping takes 3 weeks total) and their prices are phenomenally low. Thanks for the recommendation! DealExtreme is amazing, even if they are not in Canada. I ordered 4 of these: http://dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.26783 (2 for me, 2 for my colleague) I have 2 questions, though: 1. Can the FreeRunner charge while in USB Host mode? 2. If yes, how can I simultaneously connect a USB hub + power supply/source to the FreeRunner? ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: OT: Where can I meet a female companion with similar interests and personality /in person/?
Hello list, I am writing a follow-up/update to my original post just over 2 months later. What has changed since my original post? 1. I hired Dave McCormick to help me overcome some of my indefinitely-deferred tasks. 2. I have actually overcome my priority inversion and started trying to find my own home, partly with Dave’s help. I had my first housing offer for a 2-bedroom basement suite in East Ladner, but declined because of the crappy laundry situation. I visited another basement suite and an apartment with Dave and applied for both, but did not end up getting either suite. I wanted to live with Andrew Williamson because he has been my closest friend I know in person since we meet at Kingsford-Smith Elementary School in East Vancouver in 1995, but Andrew still does not have a job that pays money. He has been given 2 laptops and an iPod as payment for his current job, but he does not want to live with me unless he can contribute to the rent, which requires income of money instead of used electronics. Anyway, I have to call the Resident Manager of an apartment complex in Ladner (the same complex as I visited, but a different apartment) later today to see if my application has been accepted. If it has, I can probably get either a 1- or 3-bedroom apartment. I want the 3-bedroom so Andrew can live with me, but I want to split the rent with at least 1 (probably only 1) roommate, so I will probably ask for roommates on Craigslist and/or Kijiji if I get the 3-bedroom apartment. I decided I was going to apply for a mortgage to see if I was even approved, but I never did. (fail) I talked to a lender at my credit union about getting a mortgage and said I would apply, but never did. (fail) “When all is said and done, (far) more is said than done.” is so true. I have not even contacted a realtor about buying a home either. I know I will never own my own home if I am renting, but this is the path I have chosen. Writing of choices, I have recently been overwhelmed with ambivalence: I know there are endless things I could learn and tasks I could complete, but I choose to lay in my bed and inevitably end up falling asleep. I lay in my bed because I want to fantasise/dream about having a female companion and because I am tired of driving myself insane with overthinking and speculating about what I could be doing instead of actually doing something physical/observable to someone else. 3. I registered for OkCupid, mostly completed my profile, messaged at least 4 of my female peers. Not surprisingly, none replied. I lost interest in OkCupid and have not used it much for weeks. I even found a thread in OkCupid’s bulletin boards/forums about other users (OkCupidians)’s similar experience, so at least I know it is not just me who is ignored. 4. I met Alishams Hassam at one of the Vancouver Hackspace (VHS)’s Open Nights. I got extremely frustrated while driving there because I got lost in Vancouver. I have only a paper roadmap, but I often turn the wrong way because I do not know which direction I am going. That reminds me: I completely forgot about buying a better compass for my car. I wanted to install plain Debian on a MicroSDHC card so I could use Navit on my FreeRunner. I got recommendations of MicroSDHC cards to buy from this list, but I have not yet made finding a place to buy the recommended cards in Canada a sufficiently high priority for it to actually be done. Oh well, at least I may eventually be able to navigate Vancouver without a GPS navigation system if I get lost enough times, but I hate being lost. We learn by doing, though: I wanted to give up multiple times while I was learning to drive because I was constantly stalling and could not even change lanes in traffic, but now I feel confident enough to drive even in busy traffic in Vancouver; I have not stalled for months either. I used to hate my car’s manual transmission, but now I love it because it is fun to drive; I think driving an automatic would be very boring. Anyway, to get back on topic: I enjoyed meeting similarly geeky people in person at VHS. It is novel for me to discuss technical subjects in person because normally I discuss them only textually. I hoped to make some new friends I could meet in person outside of the events where I met them, but so far I have not except for Alishams, whom I have met in person only twice but have at least communicated with via telephone (we both use Fido monthly plans on our US FreeRunners. :)). 5. I registered for the Ubuntu Vancouver LoCo’s Meetup.com group + some dating groups on Meetup.com, but I have not even attended any of the dating groups’s meetups. (fail) Many of the meetups are in Vancouver on weeknights, which does not work well for me because if they are like the VHS
Re: Can my FreeRunner remind me to shut it down if it is still running at 22:00?
I never ended up configuring my FreeRunner to do anything automatically before I go to bed because there is no reason to do so: no one calls me during the night, and even if they did, I would probably sleep through it because I sleep through the cordless phone in my room ringing. Shutting down my Nokia 6103b before going to bed is practical because it boots in about 5 seconds, but I try to always keep my FreeRunner charged because it takes so much longer to boot (using QtMoko v11 installed in the onboard NAND). While I am at home, I leave my FreeRunner connected to my PC via USB to charge, so it is easier to leave my FreeRunner suspended while I sleep than shut it down before going to bed and boot it again after I get up, which is usually still in the morning during the week, but often after noon on the weekend. ;) Incidentally, I noticed Alishams Hassam (Ali) replied in this thread before I was introduced to him by his reply to my thread “OT: Where can I meet a female companion with similar interests and personality /in person/?”, which I started on 2009-09-10. I have met Alishams twice in Vancouver and chatted with him on the phone (on our US FreeRunners. We both even use the same carrier: Fido.); I like him so far. I hope we can become closer friends. :) ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
[QtMoko] [Debian] Which MicroSDHC card should I buy to install Debian onto?
Hello list, I have a buzz-fixed rev A6 US FreeRunner (FR). I am currently using QtMoko v11, which is installed in my FR’s onboard NAND. I need a MicroSDHC card on which to install Debian. I do not want to run out of disk space, so I probably need at least an 8 GB card. The Openmoko wiki claims “The Neo FreeRunner supports up to 16GB microSDHC cards.”. [1] Is this true? What is the fastest and highest-capacity MicroSDHC card known to fully work with Debian on the FR? I am currently using U-Boot, but can try Qi if necessary (as long as I can boot both QtMoko from the onboard NAND and Debian from the MicroSDHC card.). I live in Delta, British Columbia, Canada, so Canadian sources are preferred. Thanks, Brolin [1] http://wiki.openmoko.org/index.php?title=Supported_microSD_cardsoldid=76325 -- Sometimes I forget how to do small talk: http://xkcd.com/222/ “If you have to ask why, you’re not a member of the intended audience.” — Bob Zimbinski, http://webpages.mr.net/bobz/ttyquake/ ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
[QtMoko] Re: OT: SIM contact limitations; GSM vs. CDMA
2009/9/25 Dr. H. Nikolaus Schaller h...@computer.org Am 26.09.2009 um 01:46 schrieb Brolin Empey: Why do I have to store contacts in the phone instead of on the SIM to do anything useful? Because you have much more memory and more flexible data formats. But you can't simply remove the SIM and place it in a historical phone like let's say a SIEMENS S4. I have been wanting to reply to this message for weeks, but have been too busy. :/ Anyway, I have been using QtMoko v11 on my FreeRunner (FR) since late September. I thought QtMoko (well, actually Qt Extended Improved (QtEI)) must be storing the contacts I added on my FR instead of on my SIM because I could have multiple phone numbers, each with its own type, per contact. However, I discovered something cool after I moved my SIM back to my Nokia 6103b: QtMoko/QtEI actually stored the contacts I added on my SIM, but it works around the 1-typeless-phone-number-per-contact SIM limitation by appending an optional space, a ‘/’, then two letters to indicate the type of the phone number, e.g., “Brolin Empey /hm” for my home mobile phone number (“personal mobile” would probably make more sense because I almost always have my cell phone with me, even when I am at work.), “Brolin Empey /hp” for my “home phone” number (‘p’ = generic type, which I use for landlines), “Brolin Empey /bp” for “business phone”, “Brolin Empey /bm” for “business mobile”, and so on. I used QtMoko/QtEI’s convention when naming the contacts I added to my SIM while using my SIM in my Nokia 6103b, then moved my SIM back to my FR: QtMoko/QtEI groups the separate SIM contacts as a single contact with multiple phone numbers! I was very impressed when I discovered this because I thought it was a clever workaround of the SIM contact limitations. The length of the name of SIM contacts is still limited to 18 characters, though, which means relatively long contact names still get truncated, but I can live with that if it means I can keep all of my contacts on my SIM! I have never (been unfortunate enough to have?) had a CDMA phone (actually, I did not get a cell phone until 2008, so both my cell phones are GSM. I have not had any non-GSM cell phones.), but CDMA seems very lame and/or crappy compared to GSM because all the subscriber’s information is stored in the phone instead of on a removable device like a SIM. Of course, both the Apple iPhone and the FR are GSM-only (unless there is a CDMA version I do not know about?). AFAIK, there are also GSM phones that can use at least 2 SIMs at once, but I guess there is no equivalent for CDMA? Some CDMA phones probably have a flash memory card slot, but is there a standard/common format for storing e.g., contacts and SMSes on a flash memory card instead of in the phone? ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
OT: SIM contact limitations
Hello list, I am marking this message as OT because it is not specific to Openmoko, but I thought someone here may know because I think most members of this list are relatively technical. Anyway, why are SIM contacts (contacts stored on a SIM) so limited? 1. Cannot have multiple phone numbers per contact. 2. Cannot change the type (home, work, mobile, etc.) of the phone number. 3. Names are truncated to 18 chars. Why do I have to store contacts in the phone instead of on the SIM to do anything useful? Thanks, Brolin -- Sometimes I forget how to do small talk: http://xkcd.com/222/ “If you have to ask why, you’re not a member of the intended audience.” — Bob Zimbinski, http://webpages.mr.net/bobz/ttyquake/ ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
FreeRunner case + stylus holder (was Re: New case)
Dead thread resurrection time! :) 2009/6/19 David Ford da...@blue-labs.org to whomever does this, please put a small stylus into a recess in the new case :) I have been wondering why the FreeRunner has a resistive touch screen, which I prefer because I like the greater precision of a stylus than my finger, but lacks a stylus holder. My FreeRunner, which I ordered from SDG Systems, included a stylus, but I have to keep the stylus separate in my pants pocket because the FreeRunner lacks a stylus holder! I bought my FreeRunner to replace my Nokia 6103b cell phone, which has no touch screen, and my Palm Z22 PDA, which has a resistive touch screen and nice stylus holder but is not a phone. Because of my Palm Z22, I expected all devices with a resistive touch screen intended for use with a stylus to include a stylus holder, but the FreeRunner has no stylus holder! Why? PS: Instead of buying my Palm Z22 PDA, I now know it would have made more sense to buy a GSM phone to use as a PDA without cellular service so I could continue using a single device if I needed cellular service, but I did not think I needed cellular service when I bought my Palm Z22. I was actually not even sure if I would use the Palm Z22 as a PDA because I completed elementary/primary + high/secondary school with paper organisers, but I found a PDA far better than a paper organiser! :) And yes, I know it is strange how computers have been my primary interest and how I have spent most of my free time with computers since about grade 7 (or earlier), yet I did not use a PDA nor have a cell phone until after high school. :) I also loved playing driving games since I was 11 or younger, but did not get a driver’s licence nor learn to drive a real car until I was almost 19. I live in Canada, so I could have got a driver’s licence when I turned 16! (I assume the age to get a driver’s licence is the same in all of Canada? It is 16 in British Columbia, where I live.) Anyway, enough rambling. :P ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: Where can I buy miniUSB-m → USB-A-f adapters i n Canada?
2009/9/12 Robin Paulson robin.paul...@gmail.com also, if you're after a usb ethernet device, i got one from ledshoppe for next to nothing http://ledshoppe.com/Product/com/CA3005.htm Bright idea ;), but I got the same product for even closer to nothing: http://cgi.ebay.ca/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItemitem=150368985447 :) ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Where can I buy miniUSB-m → USB-A-f adapters in Ca nada?
Hello list, A few days ago, I was chatting with DocScrutinizer in #openmoko on FreeNode about using a USB → Ethernet adapter to connect my FreeRunner directly to my Ethernet LAN. DocScrutinizer told me I need a miniUSB-m → USB-A-f adapter or a cable like this: http://www.conrad.de/goto.php?artikel=971535 Where can I buy such an adapter or cable in Canada? I live in the Lower Mainland of British Columbia, Canada. I already checked some local computer stores (NCIX, A-Power) and a distributor (ACP Marketing), but none appear to have what I need. I know there is at least one other list member who lives in the Lower Mainland, and there must be other Canadian members even if they live elsewhere in Canada. Thanks, Brolin -- Sometimes I forget how to do small talk: http://xkcd.com/222/ “If you have to ask why, you’re not a member of the intended audience.” — Bob Zimbinski, http://webpages.mr.net/bobz/ttyquake/ ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
OT: Where can I meet a female companion with similar interests and personality /in person/?
Hello list, Like most of the members of this list (AFAICT from the first names I recognise as sex/gender-specific), I am male. I am 22 and still live with my parents. I have never lived away from my parents. I am planning to hire a support worker to help me live away from my parents (I have another meeting later today) because I continue to indefinitely defer trying to live away from my parents. I named my form of procrastination “priority inversion” because what is, in practical terms, my lowest priority, becomes my highest priority. For example, I choose to spend my free time playing with my computers, including my FreeRunner, instead of learning about human biology and/or nutrition, which will affect me every day of my life, and at least trying to live away from my parents. When I say I play with my computers, I do not mean gaming: I almost never play games anymore. Even when I decide I want to play a game again, I spend all of my time reading about games, viewing screenshots and videos, and trying to decide which of the endless games I should play (or rather, obtain if I do not already have a copy and make work on my PC) instead of actually playing a game. I feel like I am always overwhelmed and/or overloaded with information and stimulation in the Too Much Information Age. I always feel like the NET Effect is that there is Never Enough Time because time flies faster than ever because I am always overthinking, overwhelmed with overchoice, etc. I recognise my mind is a word and pattern recognition engine, which is constantly adding new stimulations/experiences to its database. I have Asperger’s Syndrome, but can function much better, at least in terms of interacting with people in person, than when I was in high school, for example. I used to often feel like I had social anxiety disorder because I would get so anxious and/or worried even when calling someone on the phone (on my parents’s landline because I did not have a cell phone until 2008) that I could not speak clearly enough for the person on the other end to understand me, so I would always have to repeat myself at least once for every turn of the conversation. I am a purist and have been called the most pedantic person in the world by Jamie Zawinski, of Lucid Emacs/XEmacs and Netscape/Mozilla fame. :) Imprecise usage and redundancy bothers me even if know what is meant from the context. For example, I am bothered by people mentioning a “standard” transmission in a vehicle (it is a manual transmission. Standard depends on the vehicle. Automatic is standard for some vehicles.), calling an LCD monitor (a flat *panel*) a “flat screen” (high-end CRTs have flat glass too!), common redundancies, such as PIN number, ATM machine, LCD display, people who assume all cars use crappy gasoline engines and use fuel-specific terms, such as gas station (it is a service station), gas tank (it is a fuel tank), gas pedal (it is an accellerator), gas pump (I have used a diesel pump at Shell that told me to “select octane” instead of “select ctane” (sp?) or “select fuel grade”. My car has a diesel, not gasoline, engine. I have been highly influenced by my father, Brian Empey. Brian is a Professional Engineer (Electrical Engineering). He founded Technical Solutions Inc. (Techsol) in 1996 with his second wife (my step-mom), Karen Empey (nee Schellenberg). Techsol is an embedded computer hardware company specialising in Linux on ARM architecture. I am very fortunate to be able to work at Techsol. I am a Linux + Windows System Administrator/Web master/IT person/general computer person. I think my responsibiles are more important than my title(s). I know I am very dependent on my parents, but at least I own my own car (which I bought from my dad), have a Class 7 driver’s licence (the Novice stage of the Graduated Licensing Program in British Columbia, Canada. I live in the Lower Mainland of British Columbia, Canada), my own credit union account, debit (Interac) card, MasterCard credit card, personal cheques (*not*checks!), which I almost never use (I think I have written a total of 3 cheques in my life), cell phones (Nokia 6103b + FreeRunner), PayPal account, domain names (brolin.be + others), Virtual Private Server (VPS), which hosts my personal Web site, PCs and peripherals, far too many original/boxed PC games, which I almost never play anymore, bicycle, ... I am definitely a relatively rich/wealthy person in Canada and extremely wealthy compared to less fortunate people in both developed and developing countries. I know I should not complain because I am very fortunate; I know my life could always be *much* worse, even if I lack much first-hand experience of how much worse it could be. Anyway, enough rambling. I need to finally address the Subject of this message (I hope at least 1 person actually read this far!). How/where can I meet a female companion *in person* with similar interests and personality? Someone who can appreciate my
How to hold my FreeRunner so the other end can hear me clearly?
Hello, My old cell phone is a Rogers-branded Nokia 6103b, which is a clamshell phone. You can see a photo of a T-Mobile-branded Nokia 6103 on Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Nokia_6103oldid=242201832 When open, my Nokia 6103b is long enough (longer than the FreeRunner) that I can have the speaker near my ear and the microphone near my mouth. People can hear me clearly with my Nokia 6103b, but sometimes I have to move the speaker so I can hear them better. However, because the FreeRunner is so much shorter, I have to hold it like this so people can hear me clearly: http://brolin.be/graphics/FreeRunner_practical_position.jpg This seems strange to me because the speaker is so far from my ear, so other people can hear both me and the other person on the phone. However, maybe this is normal for bar phones? The only other cell phone I have had is my Nokia 6103b, so maybe I am too used to clamshell phones? This is how I want to hold my FreeRunner: http://brolin.be/graphics/FreeRunner_ideal_position.jpg Is there any way to make this position practical, other than using a headset? Thanks, Brolin PS: I almost forgot to mention: I am using SHR-U on a rev A6 US FreeRunner. My carrier is Speak Out Wireless. I live in the Lower Mainland of British Columbia, Canada. -- Sometimes I forget how to do small talk: http://xkcd.com/222/ “If you have to ask why, you’re not a member of the intended audience.” — Bob Zimbinski, http://webpages.mr.net/bobz/ttyquake/ ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: Can my FreeRunner remind me to shut it down if it is still running at 22:00?
2009/7/27 Ben Wong lists.openmoko@wongs.net On Fri, Jul 24, 2009 at 3:44 PM, Brolin Empeybro...@brolin.be wrote: I prefer to shut down my cell phone before going to bed, but I frequently forget to do so. That could be interpreted as meaning I frequently forget to go to bed too. ;) Hmmm... I think the solution depends on why you're shutting down your cell phone at night. To prevent calls from waking you? No, the phones I have do not wake me. Try a cron job that changes your default ring style to silent (and resets it in the morning). A phone that literally *rings* (i.e., has a real bell instead of an electronic tone) may wake me, though. :) To save electricity, and thus the earth from global climate change? I was thinking more of “to save the battery runtime for when I am awake and can actually use the phone”, but I guess it could be considered to be preventing (or at least reducing) climate change too. I already have 2 tower PCs running almost all the time at home, but at least they both have 80plus PSUs. My tower PC at work is running almost all the time too, but it needs to be running at night for the backup system. It has an 80plus PSU too. I'd use a cron job that calls shutdown, but that first checks if your phone is off the hook (well, I guess we already know the Freerunner is off the hook). I'd probably also check if there had been any recent screen input. In this case you literally meant off the hook, but at first I thought you meant “no longer responsible for”. :) To save the battery in case you forgot to plug it in? Yes, this is what I was thinking of. I am afraid to leave battery-powered devices plugged in (line-powered) all the time, though, because doing so seems to kill laptop batteries. A cron job would work to shut it down, but you could add a couple lines in the script to skip it if the battery is already charging. Or if I am using the phone. ;) ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Can my FreeRunner remind me to shut it down if it is still running at 22:00?
Hello list, I still have not received my FreeRunner, but UPS says the package is scheduled to be delivered on Tuesday. Anyway, I have found Yet Another limitation of my Nokia 6103b. I am almost certain the FreeRunner will be able to do what I need, but I wanted to ask how. I prefer to shut down my cell phone before going to bed, but I frequently forget to do so. I used to have an alarm in my Palm Z22 (which is a PDA only, not a phone) that sounded every day at 22:00 to remind me to shut down my cell phone. I no longer have that alarm because I had to stop using my Palm Z22 because its touch screen no longer works except when it is cold (see my previous message to this list about the reliability of resistive touch screens). I thought it would make more sense to have my cell phone remind me to shut it down instead of having another device remind me to shut down my cell phone, but the best I can do with my Nokia 6103b is have an alarm that sounds every day at 22:00 even if I have already shut down the Nokia 6103b by then. It is obviously pointless to have the Nokia 6103b remind me to shut it down when it has already been shut down, but I asked Nokia if the Nokia 6103b could do what I wanted and they answered no. So, how can I do this with my FreeRunner? :) Thanks, Brolin -- Sometimes I forget how to do small talk: http://xkcd.com/222/ “What if there were no hypothetical questions?” — George Carlin ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: Can my FreeRunner remind me to shut it down if it is still running at 22:00?
2009/7/24 Sebastian Krzyszkowiak seba.d...@gmail.com Simply. Use at, or cron... Or write python or even bash script... You can also do automatic change profile to silend instead of shutting down... That's Linux box which fits in your pocket. You can do everything. If I create a cron job that runs every day at 22:00, will the cron job run even if I have already shut down my FreeRunner by 22:00? I guess not, but I wanted to ask to be certain. Also, what is the best program to use for this reminder as the command in the crontab entry? Does the FreeRunner even have an “off” state like a desktop computer, or does the power button (I assume it has a power button, or a button that functions as a power button, like the End Call button on my Nokia 6103b and I think on most other Nokia cell phones?) put it in a sleep state like my Palm Z22, where all alarms still work? I quoted “off” because I know a modern IBM PC-compatible computer, for example, is never truly/completely off because the real-time clock, for example, is always running. On an ATX motherboard, the +5V standby is still on even when the soft power switch on the front of the case says the PC is off. AFAIK, when a user says their modern PC is “off”, they really mean it is in ACPI state 5. Is that right? I do not remember the details about the ACPI states. Would it be better to use a task/todo list application or some type of scheduling application that is always running (as a daemon, for example) to remind me to shut down my FreeRunner? I know there are many ways of using Linux to accomplish my goal, but I do not know what the best way is because I have not needed to do this with a Linux computer before. ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: This stupid phone is unbelievable COOL!!!! 8)
2009/7/22 li...@kitepilot.com So I do: kitepi...@beechjet:~$ ssh -fCX r...@192.168.0.202 /usr/bin/midori And I have the browser running in my desktop monitor. Only *TRUE* geeks can appreciate that! ;-) That reminds me of when I used my dad’s Eee PC (701? The original model, with 4 GB of NAND flash memory) to use OpenSSH’s X11 forwarding to run Quake III: Arena (Q3A) on my desktop PC running Gentoo Linux (I have since switched to Ubuntu because Gentoo was far more hassle than it was worth) and display and control Q3A from the Eee PC, which was on the second floor of my house and wirelessly connected to the Internet gateway, which has a wired Ethernet connection to my desktop PC on the ground floor! :D I can also do pointless but amusing things like ssh to k7t266 (my Ubuntu PC at home) from my cannon (my Ubuntu PC at work), then use the Hamachi VPN client to connect to my employer’s Hamachi network, ssh to Repository (our Debian Linux file server at work), then finally ssh back to cannon. :D Of course, if you have to ask why, you are not part of the intended audience! :) ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: Can my FreeRunner remind me to shut it down if it is still running at 22:00?
2009/7/24 Robin Paulson robin.paul...@gmail.com 2009/7/25 Brolin Empey bro...@brolin.be: I prefer to shut down my cell phone before going to bed, but I frequently it may be easier to schedule a cron job which shuts the phone down for you. sounding an alarm to remind you to do something the phone can do, sounds like it's missing the point I may be using the phone at 22:00, though, in which case I do not want it to automatically shut down. :) ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: ZimReader for Openmoko
2009/7/20 Marc Bantle openm...@rcie.de Hi all, sorry for responding to my own messages. You do not need to apologise because there is no alternative, unlike a Web forum, where registered users can edit their posts. I frequently (at least once per month) reply to my own messages. ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
reliability of resistive touch screens
Hello list, I have ordered a buzz-fixed rev A6 FreeRunner from SDG Systems. I chose the A6 instead of A7 because I could get an A6 FreeRunner + DBoard for the price of only an A7 FreeRunner. I hope I do not regret knowingly buying an old hardware revision, though. Anyway, I am concerned about the reliability of the FreeRunner’s resistive touch screen after a poor experience with my Palm Z22’s resistive touch screen. I bought my Palm Z22 in 2006-08 from London Drugs (a retail department store in Canada) in Delta, British Columbia, Canada. The manufacturer’s warranty was only 1 year. London Drugs offered me a 3-year extended warranty, but I declined because I never seem to use these extended warranties when I have previously bought them. Anyway, my Palm Z22’s touch screen first stopped working in 2009-06. I queried Google Search and found forum threads from other Palm PDA (not Palm phone) users whose touch screens stopped working too. I managed to make the touch screen work again by pushing down on and bending the screen, but it stopped working again and has not worked since 2009-06. This is one of the few times I could have actually used the retailer’s extended warranty. Yesterday (Saturday), I bought a T5 miniature Torx screwdriver so I could open my Palm Z22. Neither I nor my dad, who is an Electrical Engineer and a Professional Engineer, could make the touch screen work again. My dad suggested wrapping my disassembled Palm Z22 in a plastic bag to protect it from frost and leaving it in the freezer. I tried this: the touch screen worked again while it was still cold, but stopped working again after it warmed up. Anyway, is this same thing going to happen with my FreeRunner’s resistive touch screen before I have even had it for 3 years? :( How old is the oldest FreeRunner (or any other consumer device with a resistive touch screen) with a touch screen that still works? Thanks, Brolin -- Sometimes I forget how to do small talk: http://xkcd.com/222/ “What if there were no hypothetical questions?” — George Carlin ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: using a FreeRunner without cellular service
2009/7/17 Paul Fertser fercer...@gmail.com Brolin Empey bro...@brolin.be writes: 2. It lacks flight mode. Are you often getting complains because of that? Or why else do you care? I thought I could use flight mode to disable the GSM modem to improve the battery runtime when I do not need cellular service but still want to use the non-phone features, such as the Organiser, but then I discovered my phone lacks flight mode. This might not be significant if I could use my phone without a SIM installed, but I cannot do that either. Anyway, it does not really matter because the battery runtime is already good enough even with the GSM modem on all the time during which the phone is on. I receive so few calls that I often forget I have my phone with me, such as during meetings when I should turn off my phone. ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
best way for a Canadian to buy a FreeRunner?
Hello list, I have decided to finally try a FreeRunner after tiring of my Nokia 6103b’s limitations. I have even started using a paper todo list again for personal tasks because my Nokia 6103b is limited to 40 tasks, but I would rather have todo lists in a handheld computer, such as a FreeRunner. Anyway, what is the best way for me to buy a FreeRunner? I want a buzz-fixed version. I live in Delta, British Columbia, Canada. I guess I can either buy from the Canadian Openmoko distributor or import a FreeRunner from the USA. I live close to Washington state. My parents have a PO box (probably not the most precise term) in Blaine, WA, so I could probably get a FreeRunner shipped there and ask my parents to pick up my FreeRunner for me the next time they go to Blaine. Thanks, Brolin -- Sometimes I forget how to do small talk: http://xkcd.com/222/ “What if there were no hypothetical questions?” — George Carlin ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
using a FreeRunner without cellular service
Hello list, I am planning on buying a FreeRunner. I need to check with my carrier (Speak Out Wireless in Canada) about cellular usage outside of my home area, but I may want to use my FreeRunner without cellular service. Is this possible? Does it work well? Do I have to remove my SIM or can I disable the cellular service without removing the SIM? I do not have a data plan. I guess the FreeRunner should work fine without cellular service since it is more of a handheld computer with phone functionality than only a cell phone, but I have never used any Openmoko phone so I do not know. My Nokia 6103b is actually my first and only cell phone because I have had a cell phone only since 2008, so I am relatively new to cell phones. I am young (0x16, which my dad says means I can drive in Silicon Valley. ;)) and am a computer enthusiast, though, so I can easily learn new computer-related things. Thanks, Brolin -- Sometimes I forget how to do small talk: http://xkcd.com/222/ “What if there were no hypothetical questions?” — George Carlin ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: Is a FreeRunner sufficient for me?
2009/6/19 Ben Wong lists.openmoko@wongs.net The one thing that jumps out at me in your request, Brolin, is keeping your SMS messages on the microSD card instead of the SIM. I know that the SHR distribution, which I'm using, stores everything on the SIM by default. Perhaps David Ford's improved SMS app will do what you want? Alternatively, if you are happy with simply archiving your SMS to a text file, David Ford sent out a one line script to do so about a month ago. (I can dig it up if you need.) I thought the SMS messages were stored on the phone instead of the SIM. My dad gave me the Nokia 6103b I am currently using after he upgraded to a newer Samsung phone. The Nokia 6103b still contained my dad’s SMS messages even though I was using the phone with my SIM. Maybe some phones store the SMS messages on the phone while others store them on the SIM? 2009/6/17 David Murrell dmurr...@waikato.ac.nz Fundamentally, at this point, my Openmoko Freerunner fails the Not Interested in Technology - Significant Other Acceptance Procedure, otherwise known NIT-SOAP. That is not a problem for me because I am single. :) P.S. You may not be single for long. One little known feature of the Freerunner is that it is an Ultra-Powerful Magnet for Attractive People. They will sidle up to you and exclaim, OMG! Is that a Debian box in your pocket?! ;-) “Is that some fscking hardware in your pants, or are you just happy to see me?!” “Can you (touch|finger|mount|grep|unzip|fsck) me with that hardware in your pants?” :D I wish. :P [image: Close] Read moreOptions [image: Visit Answers.com] http://www.answers.com?initiator=FFANS ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: Is a FreeRunner sufficient for me?
2009/6/17 David Murrell dmurr...@waikato.ac.nz Hi Brolin, Fundamentally, at this point, my Openmoko Freerunner fails the Not Interested in Technology - Significant Other Acceptance Procedure, otherwise known NIT-SOAP. That is not a problem for me because I am single. :) If you want a phone that is going to Just Work, get a Nokia. I already have a Nokia, but it lacks many of the features I used on my Palm Z22. My Nokia is Series 40, though, not Series 60. I have never used Series 60. I asked Nokia whether they have a GSM phone with all of the specific features I listed in my original post. They said they do not, but they did not mention which features they lack. If you want a Linux smart phone to hack about on, an Openmoko Freerunner fits the bill quite nicely, except for the animation speed on the screen, which is markedly slow. I should probably be specific here - the phone is almost certainly going to need flashing when you get it, and that's going to require a command line. You're probably going to want to change something to get something working, and that's going to require running ssh to connect to the phone on the command line, and changing something, somewhere. That is also not a problem: I work as a Webmaster and Linux + Windows sysadmin for Techsol, which is an embedded computer hardware company that specialises in Linux on ARM technology. Our SA2410 Medallion CPU Module uses the Samsung S3C2410AL. See http://medallionsystem.com/. This site has multiple usability issues, though. I am almost done the redesign, which is more focused on products and features only 1 product per page. Anyway, I have experience with flashing firmware and using the CLI via SSH. For example, I installed and configured DD-WRT on a Linksys WRT54GL v1.1 a few months ago. I use the CLI on Debian Linux or Ubuntu almost every day. I use gvim to edit the XML source for Techsol’s Web sites. I love Vim because I can do everything with only the keyboard. ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: Is a FreeRunner sufficient for me?
2009/6/18 arne anka openm...@ginguppin.de I never need to use suspend on my Nokia 6103b. I do not think it even has a suspend mode — at least not one the user can activate. that's the difference. the nokia is nothing but a phone -- and as such it's mostly suspended (or standby). I disagree. My Nokia is much more of an embedded computer than only a phone. It supports multiple predefined tasks in addition to plain phone functions, such as recording video, audio, photos, games, SMS, alarm clock, countdown timer, stopwatch, calendar for appointments, todo lists, and so on. I might agree with you if we were discussing a much earlier (1990s or even 1980s) phone, but a Series 40 Nokia phone is much more than just a phone. I do not have any specific examples of earlier phones because my Nokia 6103b is my first cell phone: I started using it in 2008. However, I suppose it is kind of like comparing a basic, touch-tone, corded phone to a modern, consumer corded or cordless phone: the basic phone truly is nothing but a phone. It has no display, no redial, no hold, no speakerphone, no volume control, no speed dial, etc. The older ones even have a real, mechanical bell instead of an electronic “ringtone”, which is not a ring in the original sense of a mechanical bell. OTOH, the modern consumer corded or cordless phone has a display with the date and time, caller ID, received call history, speed dial, phone book, redial, hold, speakerphone, volume control, etc. Some can even use different ringtones for different callers. the fr otoh is a full fledged computer, offering phone functionality. you probably don't want your computer to go into standby after a few secs, won't you? I agree that the FreeRunner is more of a general-purpose computer than a Nokia phone, especially since the user can reimage the FreeRunner, use a CLI, etc. However, even if my Nokia enters standby mode after a few seconds of inactivity, this does not bother me because it is invisible to the user: the phone is instantly usable in its previous state, even after hours of inactivity. This is much different than standby mode on a desktop computer with at least 1 GiB of main memory, where there is a noticeable delay when leaving standby mode. if suspended the battery lasts about 48 hrs, maybe more. it's not that great, though, but work is still going on to extend that. Can I still receive phone calls while the FreeRunner is suspended? but with the most common scenario, ie having access to a power source every few hours or constantly (office), you can recharge when necessary. To be practical, this battery life is acceptable because I fit this most common scenario. However, (what I have been told about) the FreeRunner’s battery life still seems poor compared to my Nokia, for example. ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: Is a FreeRunner sufficient for me?
1. Are there applications with all of the specific features I listed, though? My Nokia 6103b has some basic organiser applications, such as for calender and task lists, but it does not have all of the features I listed. I can live without PC sync as long as my information is safe in my FreeRunner (stored in non-volatile memory in case the battery dies). I do not even have my Nokia 6103b synced with my PC because I cannot get Nokia PC Suite to connect to my phone via Bluetooth. I have to use Bluetooth because I do not have a data cable for my phone. I could buy a cable, but I am not very motiviated to do so because I do not need PC sync. 2. Is the FreeRunner’s display readable without a backlight? My Nokia 6103b’s display has a backlight, but the backlight turns off after a few seconds of inactivity. However, this is OK because I can still read the display without the backlight. However, I have seen some cell phones, such as my dad’s Samsung, where both the display and backlight turn off after a few seconds of inactivity. This is not very usable for me, especially since I am a relatively slow reader to start with. 3. I leave my Nokia 6103b on for about 16 hours or less per day. I do not use it for most of that time. When I do use it, it is usually for SMS or organiser applications, not for voice calls. Will the FreeRunner’s battery life be OK for my usage? ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
Re: Is a FreeRunner sufficient for me?
2009/6/17 jeremy jozwik jerjoz.for...@gmail.com 3. I leave my Nokia 6103b on for about 16 hours or less per day. I do not use it for most of that time. When I do use it, it is usually for SMS or organiser applications, not for voice calls. Will the FreeRunner’s battery life be OK for my usage? if you poweroff WIFI and GPS you might get 6-8 hours depending on screen brightness. Do you mean 6-8 hours with the screen on or off? If off, that is very poor compared to my Nokia 6103b: I can leave my Nokia 6103b on for days before the battery meter reaches ¼ (the battery meter uses 1-4 bars). there are also suspend functions which expand battery life. i cant say how much because im on an older OS version and my suspend is non-functional :) I never need to use suspend on my Nokia 6103b. I do not think it even has a suspend mode — at least not one the user can activate. basically with my computer usb cable at work and my car charger i have battery all day With my Nokia 6103b, I can have battery for multiple days (more days if it is only for 16 hours or less per day) without recharging. ___ Openmoko community mailing list community@lists.openmoko.org http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
