Last weekend, I bought the new Sharp Zaurus, a PDA that runs an embedded
Linux from Lineo and the Qtopia desktop from Trolltech, based on the QT toolkit.
The Zaurus has exceeded my expectations in every way.
I am runing my personal Python programs from the Bash shell command line
on the Zaurus. This is very cool.
The other great feature of the Zaurus is the thumb-keyboard. The botton of
the Zaurus slides out to reveal a sturdily built keyboard that is perfect
for using the thumbs. Don't laugh. I am almost as fast with this keyboad
as I am with a real keyboard, and maybe more accurate!
The combination of the keyboard and the Linux command line makes this a great
tool and toy. I am already dreaming up several new Python programming projects
just for the Zaurus, and I am also learning QT programming for GUI work.
The Zaurus has a color screen, full PIM apps, and even games. There is a
lively online community and already many new programs are being released
on the web.
So, now with Linux on my desktop and on my (first ever owned) PDA, I am happy
with my Linux hobby.
More to come...
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