>From [EMAIL PROTECTED] Thu Jul 26 18:28:00 2001
> Rightly so. The Model 100 community is probably the most active user
> group for any Tandy/Radio Shack hardware, these days. As the article
> says, they are greatly valued by journalists and scientists, because
> they're so rugged and simple. This is a _real_ SurvPC. :-)
> Word processing, spreadsheet, terminal program, etc. was all built in,
I've seen an ad. for a 1 Gig semiconductor IDE "hard drive" for use in
systems where severe vibration will trash a regular hard drive. Given the
space available in flash memory these days, you could put the Operating
System (and a lot else, too!) there as well.
How about one block of flash memory for OS and major applications, which
could be physically write-protected by moving a jumper - to eliminate the
possibility of corruption by a virus, etc. You could write changeable
data to another unprotected block, which you could scan before
transferring to the protected block.
Pot the electronics. Maybe use Lexan in the LCD, and you could have a
"bulletproof" laptop you could use to drive nails.
> in ROM in the M100. Storage is 8-24KB of battery-powered RAM, and a
> slot for inserting an additional ROM. Built in 300bps modem - plenty
> fast for text transfers, 16 hours of battery life on AA batteries, and
> a full-sized keyboard - couldn't ask for much more, at the time.
> For folks in the United Kingdom, Cambrige made the "Z88", which was a
> similar, slightly better version of the M100.
> I've been looking for something similar to the Model 100 for a couple
> of years, now. My 8088 laptop is nice, but doesn't quite fit the uses
> I want - primarily in battery lifetime. Processor cycles I don't need
> more of, it's battery life I'm looking for. My usage, to date, has
> been primarily in places where there is no wall outlet handy.
> I've been thinking that perhaps I could scratch-build such a beauty,
> esp. with the easy availability of Flash memory... the power could be
> turned off, further conserving battery power.
Would you consider "wind-up"? Some Brit is making portable radios that
run (maybe 20 minutes per winding?) on a generator powered by winding up a
clockwork mainspring. These radios are intended for use in poor villages
without electricity. A conservation move, this avoids the problems of
buying and then disposing of batteries with nasty elements like mercury or
cadmium.
Unfortunately, mechanical things like clockwork and generators are not as
robust as semiconductors, although they can last for years if not abused.
Boyd Ramsay
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