Linux on 7" mini netbook ARM-VT8500 ?

[LikeUbun]

Is the picture on the left a 'photo frame' with a strapped-on mainboard? Anyway: cool to see something else than WinCE on this kind of machines

Yes, it looks like a "digital frame", but with touch and android system. I think it should be their test machine. I am trying to get the newest machine, but they do not provide. they said I will get the real 7" MID as the picture No.2 around 20, April. 20 days....so long to wait.

[ericanilaru]

BUT this is the best one! All trhe applications and wifi working straight way! Poland rules

-mikkoj

@mikkoj (or anyone else who's used this)

Does this overwrite the wince installation? - or can you go back to wince by ejecting the SD. The instructions with the .zip tell you how to set up but not how to get back to previous state.

I really don't want to do anything irreversible.

At the moment I'm still trying to work out whether to get the 8505 or 8500 version - and I want to be sure I can get a working (preferably 'live') linux distro to suit the machine before I buy.

Thanx all

[Tazergnome]

Ok, so I'm going to be jumping in on this bandwagon. I have an "EPC" WM8505 ARM. I like the hardware, it's just I'm stuck with Winsuck CE. From what I've read people with the WM8500 can boot Linux from an SD card, but people with my architecture are stuck with what they have for now. From the way I understand it it's because we don't have Linux core that runs correctly on the WM8505. I think it is possible to flash ours once we have something to put onto it. (Please correct me if I'm wrong, I WANT to be wrong here.)

So until there is a solution we need to find a way of using Win CE. First of all, I can't stand the browser. I can't find a way of installing Opera or Mozilla browser though. I would be grateful if someone would direct me to a good Win CE program site. I was hoping http://www.oldversion.com/ might but I can't find them if they do.

So the good news, turns out there might be a way for the WM8505 crowd to put Android on their rig. Since we have the newer ARM chip the company is still using them to make the new units that will have Android. Hopefully we will be able to flash over our Win CE boxes over to that.

Thanks to everyone who has contributed so far, this is such a neat piece of hardware and I hope to see good things happen with it.

Peace,
-TG

[ericanilaru]

@TG

- you may want to take a look at the package Mikkoj tried from Poland, it includes a build for the 8505 ( I think that's what Mikkoj has) see msg #531 for the link, #533 & #534 for susequent comments. But, I'm not sure if you can revert to wince if it isn't what you're after yet... (see above)

- There is another link there somewhere for an 8505 build, but again - no info on recoverability.

Hope this helps
E

[moblo]

@TG

- you may want to take a look at the package Mikkoj tried from Poland, it includes a build for the 8505 ( I think that's what Mikkoj has) see msg #531 for the link, #533 & #534 for susequent comments. But, I'm not sure if you can revert to wince if it isn't what you're after yet... (see above)

- There is another link there somewhere for an 8505 build, but again - no info on recoverability.

Hope this helps
E

All of the packages you mention are on fact windows ce packages. there is as of yet no useable linux for wm8505 machines. You can always recover your smartbook woth an sd card and the script folder from the wm8505 package. (or vt8500 if that is the hardware yiu have).

http://s0.blackmage.co.uk/~nextvolum...arm/index.php?
The above link is to the forum where all info regarding linux on these netbooks will now be. your best net is to keep your eyes on that forum. they are making good progress.

Rumour also has it that wondermedia are making an android port for the wm8505 hardware and so we may see that soon.

[sirius0]

There is a keyboard key with "Z z z" on it, which implys, to me atleast, sleep mode. However, it does nothing. Furthermore, closing the lid does not darken the screen or trigger a sleep or hibernate mode. In fact, in the control panel's Poers section, the sleep and hibernate modes are greyed out. Obviously this machine doesn't support sleep or hibernate mode - possibly due to the missing BIOS and its associated APCI. The keyboard key with "Z z z" is probably generic and intended for a different model, namely one with a BIOS.

I found out that the Zzz key is actually the Windows Key. It has the same functionality of the windows key...Try it out. Zzz key + E opens Windows Explorer.

A thought I had on this is that the Africa in particular is being sold with Linux as OEM. This could mean that the manufactures have pre-anticipated the next big legal issue from the other OS vendors as the windows key has a registered trade mark on it. Therefore such a key would be inappropriate on a native Linux machine.

[LikeUbun]

Good News

WM8505 have Android system....

I take some pictures by mobile phone, not clear, but it is real android system. share to all.

This product comes from here:
http://goldbluesky.en.alibaba.com/pr...ni_laptop.html

[moblo]

Good News

WM8505 have Android system....

I take some pictures by mobile phone, not clear, but it is real android system. share to all.

This product comes from here:
http://goldbluesky.en.alibaba.com/pr...ni_laptop.html

Is the os installed by sd card? Is it possible to get the os image to instal on all of our wm8505 machines that still have wince?

[LikeUbun]

Is the os installed by sd card? Is it possible to get the os image to instal on all of our wm8505 machines that still have wince?

what I get is new machine, I am not sure it can update from wince to this OS. will check later.

[wicknix]

Nice. I just picked up an O-Digital TinyBook that runs a samsung arm11 cpu @ 667mhz with 256mb ram running WinCE6. The internal hardware seems to be identical to the SmartQ7's which can run CE6, Android or ARM Ubuntu. I'm currently trying to figure out the bootloader so i can boot the SmartQ's Android and Ubuntu from SD card.

At any rate, for people with these various netbooks that linux currently isn't working on yet, i packed up a hefty sized (105mb) zip full of software for WinCE5 and 6. Just extract and copy to an SD/USB stick and run the apps from there, or copy what you want to your device.

Download here: http://filefactory.com/file/b40cdc6/...E6freeware.zip

Scroll to bottom of page and choose "download now with file factory basic".
It's all freeware/shareware. Nothing illegal included.

Cheers.