Re: A86: Re: TI-UX

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Re: A86: Re: TI-UX


My question to anyone wanting to do TI-UX is WHY?  Why do you need Unix on
your calculator?  I know I'm not a big Unix buff, but let's look at the
basic things a Unix-type OS does for you:

* provide an interface to run and manage programs and files
* provide security for multiple users
* provide software for networking, including over the internet

1) The TI-OS is perfectly capable of running and managing your variables.
If need/want something even easier "Asm(program" or 2nd-Mem, then use one of
the many shells available.

2) Multiple are not going to be using a single calc, so security is not much
of an issue.  If you are worried about others deleting or reseting your
calc, then there are plenty of programs (including Rascall) that will
password protect your calc and/or protect the memory.

3) I don't seem much networking going on with graphing calculators.  The
only kind of networking that would need something like this is what Justin
mentioned, and in that case all that would be needed would be a good
terminal program.


--
David Phillips <david@acz.org>
http://www.acz.org/

----- Original Message -----
From: David Thomas <david_hd@yahoo.com>
To: <assembly-86@lists.ticalc.org>
Sent: Tuesday, January 19, 1999 10:59 AM
Subject: Re: A86: Re: TI-UX


>
>While that would be really great, I don't see why it is a reason not
>to do a TI-UX as well. While the full unix OS is surly too much for
>the calculator to handle, there are certainly peices that we should be
>able to implement quite nicely on the calc, and it should be a good
>challenge to do so.
>
>> The calculator is really not the best piece of hardware to be
>running unix
>> on.  Just use it as a telnet terminal instead.  Boot linux on your
>PC and
>> set it up a dialup server.  Get an external modem and term86 and log
>into
>> your home computer with it's 8 gigs (instead of 128k) while
>processing at
>> the speed of 400mhz (rather than 6mhz).
>>
>> The external modem/cell phone combo can be very costly and slightly
>bulky
>> depending on the modem used.  The USR's are huge!  Addonics has a
>56k modem
>> the size of a half-inch thick credit card but costs a pricy $150
>(yes it is
>> an EXTERNAL modem and not a card modem).
>>
>> Why doesn't someone make a radio link or TI-modem ?  Not only would
>this
>> task probably be much easier than making a unix OS, but it would be
>much
>> more worthwhile since accessing your computer also means possible
>internet
>> access.
>>
>> Someone made an IR link, so I'm sure there's more electronic buffs
>out there
>> to do this one.  I say we need two parts:
>>
>> 1) Box to connect to the TI linkport
>> 2) Box to connect to a standard RS-232 serial port (com port) on a
>computer.
>>
>> So you'd plug one of these pieces into the computer and the other
>one into
>> the calc.  They would simple bridge the connection.  If the program
>on the
>> calc sends a byte out the linkport, then the radio link will send
>this to
>> the link on the computer.
>>
>> By building a device like this, you can have the unix OS on your
>calc by
>> dialing into a unix dialup server (just run Linux at home and set it
>up to
>> do so).  This way, your calc-unix will be exactly like Linux because
>it IS
>> Linux.  It will also process extremely fast since it's processing
>off of
>> your host PC.  The internet part is a nice bonus also.  At school
>you could
>> connect the comport piece of the device set to a computer at your
>school's
>> library and then as long as you remain on campus (to be in range)
>you'd have
>> internet access also!  Chat with your friends in other classes or do
>> research on a project without having to ask to go to the library =).
>>
>> *note*: when linking with a school computer, you'd have to run some
>> server/client program (which i'd be totally willing to make if someone
>> designed a radio link like this) that would contact your home PC to
>give
>> linux to your calc even if the school PC is windows.  so, yes, you
>can get
>> unix on your calc with a school computer as a host.
>>
>> Possible questions arise:
>>
>> 1) How big of a range would this device be able to work in?  If you
>lived 2
>> miles from school, would you be able to use your home PC to give you
>unix at
>> school or is that out of the question?
>>
>> 2) How fast could the device transfer data?  The 9600bps limit has
>already
>> been reached by the most recent TI terminal programs so the question
>is how
>> fast will the device go?
>>
>> 3) How much will it cost to make?
>>
>>
>> Anyways, I think that it'd be much easier to make a radio link (and
>by far
>> more worthwhile because of internet access) than an entire unix on
>the calc.
>> You may complain about having to be in range, etc, which is the only
>real
>> argument for the calc-unix.  But I'd stay close to home if it meant
>I could
>> control FTP downloads to my home computer using a TI in a
>restaurant. =)
>>
>> -Justin Karneges [Infiniti]
>
>
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