jean2 wrote: > I'm sorry, but this does not make sense on multiple levels. The > processor has most likely a serial and JTAG insterface, however the > hardware guys did not put a RS232 console or JTAG connector on the back. > With the cost and leadtime of industrial design, the decision to add a > hole in the plastic for the USB connector and a USB connector on the > motherboard was not a trivial one, definitely not an afterthought. > What also does not make sense is that after deciding to put the USB on > the back, there was still plenty of time to upgrade the memory chip for > larger one, it's not like the software had no experience about the > server requirements. So, there may be some truth that the HW and SW team > were quite uncoordinated on that feature. > > Regards, > > Jean
I know from talking to some of the people involved that the Touch hardware was not designed to run a server, I think the original thinking was that since the USB and SD card interface were available in the processor they would put the connectors on the box, with the idea that they would be used to store images for use with a "photo frame" screensaver. The whole idea of putting a server on it came after the initial hardware was up and running and they found that about half the cpu cycles and half the memory was not being used. It was a "lets see if we can figure out what to do with those resources thing". Sort of like the people that try and run PacMan on a camera LCD screen. Then marketing heard it was running, and low and behold it was now a "feature" that had to work! As to why the hardware was not modified to run the server better once it became a feature, that I don't know. Probably along the lines of, "the design is done, no way are we sinking any more money into this thing". I don't think having a USB port was part of the original concept of the device, I think it came about when the designers were looking at the processor and saying "there is a USB port on this , would it be useful to have a jack for it on the box? Then the management bought in to having it there for photo frame use. I think it was an afterthought in the sense that it was not part of the original concept for the design, but got added later on in the design process. John S. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ JohnSwenson's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=5974 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=82070 _______________________________________________ Touch mailing list [email protected] http://lists.slimdevices.com/mailman/listinfo/touch
