PDA help. Looking for a good PDA for Linux.
 

I know virtually nothing about PDA's,
And although i dont really NEED one, id love to have one ;)

Questions...

I know some come pre-installed with Linux, but could i install a Linux PDA distro onto any PDA ? for example one pre-installed with windows ?

Could i compile my own software for them ?
For example, could i put Kopete instant messenger on a Linux PDA ?

Could i install GCC on a PDA ?

could someone name some good PDA's which fully work with linux, have blueTooth and Wireless Internet, and compatable with a wide variaty of software.

Somthing with will function as a PC in my pocket, rather than a glorified alarm clock / personal organiser.

Im completely new to this, so any good information will be greatfully recieved. Thankyou !

Probably the most well known line of PDA's with native linux support is the Zaurus lineup. They are expensive! I am personally lusting after an SL-C3100.

http://www.figlabs.com/catalog/index.php

I haven't been a good boy but maybe Santa will come see me anyway. Seriously, size and functionallity of the device are much more important than the OS anyway.

A website with PDA links:
http://www.linux.org/hardware/pda.html

I don't own a PDA but I've played with them a little. I'm so unorganized that an electronic gadget wil not help anyway :)

In Browsing through linuxdevices.com webstite there does appear to be several units that have bluetooth. I did see a couple that were more of a pocket PC instead of a just an organizer.

However, in general PDAs are embedded devices i.e. scaled down PCs that have limited IO capability. Most probably do not use x86 based or equiv processor, smaller amounts of RAM and no hard drive. IMHO a PDA has to many limitations and would not make a good device to develop code yet.

I am not familar with all the different types of procesors used in PDAs so I can not say that you could install linux on any PDA.

On non x86 based PDAs you can not use gcc straight out out of the box. You need a crosscompiler developed for the processer in the desired PDA. So yes you can use your own software but it will not be easy without the proper software development tools.

Ok great thanks...

So whats the differance between PDA and PocketPC ?
I was under the impression that they were just different aliases for the same thing ?

PocketPCs ARE PDAs... They just run the WinCE OS (if you can call it an OS).

Many IPAQs can be re-flashed to run the Familiar Linux distribution, as can teh Sharp Zaurus, and other machines.

The Zaurus SL-C3100 is kind of prohibitively priced,... about $800 US Dollars. A much more affordable machine with amazing capabilities is the new Palm LiveDrive. It, like the Zaurus has a 4 GB HardDrive and it also has WiFi and Bluetooth capability. It doesn't yet run Linux, but there is an effort afoot to port Familiar over to it (currently the problem is getting the Linux kernel to boot).

I have a LiveDrive and it's a very nice machine. At $500 US, it's nearly half the price of a Zaurus SL-C3100.

Cool..could i asked how long the port for LiveDrive is going to take.. or would i i be better off asking when kernel 3.0 will be relased, LOL.

Thanks for all the info.

The LiveDrive can already boot a linux kernel using a bootloader program (no GUI), but there is still a lot of work to be done. Since I'm not a computer person, I couldn't tell you how long it will take... nor do I know how many people are working on it. What I DO know is that the hardware for the LiveDrive was originally designed for PalmSource's Linux/Palm OS (Palm 7???) before PalmOne opted to give into the temptation of Darth Gates and the Empire, and put WinCE on the new line of Treos... Now PalmOne claims they will focus ONLY on the Palm OS and WinCE OS...

But the LifeDrive is a nice machine. It connects fairly well through WiFi, has ample sorage space, is fast, a bright screen, and is relatively small and thin despite it's specs (think about as thick as an M100 series palm, and only slightly longer).

as perverse as it may sound, there's a project running to get linux on to the ipaq pda series - it's been pretty successful so far, too. i'm just waiting for them to get up to speed with my acer pda, so i can do away with that blasted winCE rubbish; i'm sure that my pda could run much, much faster with a tidier OS on it.

The Familiar distro is the preferred one for handhelds (including Ipaq). As for LifeDrive... it's what I'm using to write this.

show off. :p
does it work on acers, that's what i want to know...

Check here for supported PDAs:

http://familiar.handhelds.org/

If you follow the links to the FAQ, the Acer N10 and n30 are supported... but not ready for use yet...

Plus there are screenshots of the gnome and kde type window managers that the distro can run...

thanking you :D