[02:41] <kwadroke> party time?
[02:46] <az7> chat night !
[02:46] <TommyT1> I finally made it
[02:46] <TommyT1> had to remember the GHOST command
[02:47] <az7> ah
[02:47] <TommyT1> oops it says I'm TommyT1 -- I should be TommyT. I'm going to try again...
[02:48] <TommyT> OK I'm back
[02:48] <az7> welcome back
[02:49] <kwadroke> what's happenin?
[02:49] <TommyT> I haven't been here much in months... I think I was here a week or two ago when kwadroke and I were the only ones
[02:49] <kwadroke> I think it was a couple weeks ago
[02:50] <kwadroke> when you were telling me about those $35 PCs
[02:50] <TommyT> did you talk to them at Luyet?
[02:50] <kwadroke> which I got a few of them
[02:50] <kwadroke> yes
[02:50] <TommyT> my only complaint was they were picky about RAM
[02:51] <TommyT> it took a couple of tries before I found sticks that would take them to 1GB
[02:52] <kwadroke> I don't need much for what I'm doing
[02:52] <TommyT> I probably don't need much but nowadays 1GB seems like the minimum if you're running much recent software
[02:53] <kwadroke> yeah
[02:53] <Num83rGuy> Are these old PCs?
[02:53] <kwadroke> I'd like to get a GB in each
[02:53] <TommyT> The one I bought was Dell Optiplex something... I think it was made in 2003 or 2004
[02:54] <kwadroke> I think these are GX-250's
[02:54] <Num83rGuy> Ah, just making sure you didn't find something like the Pi but with upgradeable RAM.
[02:55] <kwadroke> that would be cool
[02:56] <kwadroke> like to get some when they become available again
[02:56] <Num83rGuy> I used to get PCs out of the trash and refurb them and give them to kids but, I haven't found one in years.
[02:59] <TommyT> I ordered a couple of sticks from a vendor off of Amazon, and found that each worked individually, but when I put both in, the machine only saw one of them. (Declared one "bad.")
[02:59] <TommyT> SO I found a vendor on eBay who listed some as being compatible... "Dell Optiplex GX240 Dell 4300s 1GB KIT PC133 SDRAM LOW-DENSITY NON-ECC MEMORY
[02:59] <TommyT> and these worked.
[03:00] <TommyT> the "low density" is apparently the key
[03:01] <kwadroke> will have to remember that
[03:02] <TommyT> I read the wikipedia page about RAM to try to understand the "low density" thing and am not completely sure
[03:02] <TommyT> apparently most cheapo ram is "high density"
[03:02] <kwadroke> not really sure of the difference
[03:02] <kwadroke> it's been too long
[03:07] <kwadroke> any one get any of the Raspberry Pis?
[03:07] <TommyT> I bought the cheapo machine hoping to use it to convert some old VHS tapes to video files, either for burning to DVD or memory sticks or whatever.
[03:08] <TommyT> I read something about the Pi but not much
[03:10] <TommyT> I just checked the web site and there's a posting about "high demand." The web store is down...
[03:10] <TommyT> is there a US source or are they all shipped from the UK?
[03:11] <kwadroke> there's suposed to be 2 sources
[03:11] <kwadroke> in the US
[03:14] <TommyT> I really like the idea of the Pi -- I am curious how well it works in practice.
[03:14] <kwadroke> it's only 700mhz
[03:15] <kwadroke> with 512mb ram max
[03:15] <kwadroke> or 256mb
[03:19] <TommyT> I used to think 700mhz was plenty... but since it has hdmi on it you wonder if it has the throughput to do decent video
[03:20] <TommyT> it would certainly run basic applications
[03:21] <a_unix_geek> Raspberry PI?
[03:22] <kwadroke> http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cts=1331695335991&ved=0CFUQFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.raspberrypi.org%2F&ei=5g5gT4-0BsTsgge_pryjCA&usg=AFQjCNEBMoebclm0Gk0LCZIStJbF04U1cQ&sig2=NXCUBq59QG1a8WuoPklrCQ
[03:22] <kwadroke> http://www.raspberrypi.org/
[03:22] <kwadroke> better link
[03:23] <kwadroke> $35 arm computer
[03:23] <TommyT> I was just looking in their forum... apparently the orders have completely overwhelmed their vendor
[03:23] <kwadroke> yeah
[03:23] <kwadroke> took down their servers
[03:24] <a_unix_geek> oh, I was on a waiting list but will have to wait until I get back from Denver.  I think I want to replace the big sled server with that.
[03:25] <a_unix_geek> It only has one ethernet jack, correct?
[03:26] <TommyT> I may be wrong but I think one model has ethernet one just has usb?
[03:26] <kwadroke> yes
[03:26] <TommyT> or do both have ethernet?
[03:26] <kwadroke> one has ethernet & 1 just has USB
[03:26] <a_unix_geek> I'd need two ethernet,
[03:26] <TommyT> yeah I don't think you'll make a router out of it unless you use usb-->ethernet
[03:27] <TommyT> the FAQ says they can't do gigabit ethernet because of the bandwidth of the USB
[03:27] <kwadroke> you could get the ethernet version and add a usb ethernet
[03:28] <TommyT> I think the forums are funny because folks are getting excited about getting XP running using "double QEMU" ... which sounds like hell squared
[03:28] <a_unix_geek> Yea, but then what about storage?  I use the crap out of my 2650 for temp file storage.  Also, some sshtunnel stuff going on there, but I think that wouldn't take much space.  I'd have to find a very reliable USB hub for ethernet dongle and USB hdd
[03:29] <kwadroke> at least a powered one
[03:29] <TommyT> yeah only a pretty small drive can be powered off the thing at 5v
[03:29] <a_unix_geek> I bet Firmz could machine a baseplate and housing.
[03:30] <TommyT> is Firmz like Boltz ?
[03:30] <TommyT> a local shop?
[03:31] <a_unix_geek> Do you think I could DD my current 2650 drive over to a RasPI drive and it still boot.  It took two weekends to get that router/firewall set back up.
[03:31] <a_unix_geek> Firmwarez, a mutual friend of mine and Kwad
[03:31] <kwadroke> Firmz is a person
[03:31] <TommyT> Ah
[03:42] <TommyT> a few days ago I was reading a biography of Sir Clive Sinclair, and it pointed out how much more popular his little computers were in the UK than they were in the US
[03:42] <TommyT> There's a huge market there for little machines to tinker with
[03:42] <kwadroke> much more popular. I had a couple of Timex Sinclairs
[03:42] <TommyT> My family had one, but really quickly I started pointing out how well the case would make a doorstop
[03:43] <TommyT> it didn't get used much
[03:43] <TommyT> For some reason my father thought his IBM PC Jr. was a worthy successor
[03:44] <TommyT> He actually used that one quite a bit
[03:45] <TommyT> I built a bunch of the Sinclair watches in the 1970s, and had one of the first calculators ... I ordered the kit and they sent a built one
[03:45] <TommyT> I probably still have it...
[03:46] <TommyT> I remember explaining RPN to folks... then the TI-30 came out.
[03:47] <TommyT> although it was HUGE compared to the Sinclair it had more buttons and was algebraic
[03:47] <TommyT> or whatever you call it when you use an = button
[03:47] <kwadroke> my sinclairs had membrane keyboards
[03:47] <kwadroke> was a pain to type on
[03:48] <TommyT> yes the TI/Sinclair had those awful buttons
[03:48] <TommyT> I used to sell Atari 400s which was only slightly better
[03:48] <TommyT> the Atari had raised areas around each button
[03:49] <TommyT> The worst part about the Sinclair was the memory expansion pack that would lose connection easily
[03:49] <TommyT> like when you were typing in a long program
[03:49] <kwadroke> I had that problem too
[03:50] <kwadroke> think I taped & zip tied mine
[03:52] <TommyT> I figured I was cursed ... the first time I touched any computer it crashed
[03:52] <TommyT> starting with a TRS-80 in 1977
[03:53] <TommyT> Whoever had written the "lunar lander" game didn't do any range checking
[03:56] <kwadroke> lol
[03:57] <a_unix_geek> ok gents, off to bed - g'night
[03:57] <TommyT> gnite
[04:00] <kwadroke> about that time for me too
[04:01] <TommyT> I'm still pretending to work on my taxes
[04:01] <TommyT> but I oughta go in a bit
[04:18] <kwadroke> I'm out. Cyas later
[05:14] <Num83rGuy> I guess I;m a night owl.
[05:15] <Num83rGuy> *I'm
[05:15] <TommyT> apparently I am too... still pretending to work on taxes
[05:15] <TommyT> but it's hard to keep my mind on it
[05:50] <TommyT> that's it for me
[05:51] <TommyT> no more night owl
[20:10] <module000> anyone linux-admins in the little rock area looking for a full time gig?