End-user perspective on small office tools & technology
I am just such a sucker for little embedded systems platforms. It started with the Soekris Net4501, but I’ve also used the Soekris Net4801, ALIX boards and HP thin clients in appliance-like roles. Most recently I bought a FIT-PC2 to use as a little Astlinux server.
My roots in VoIP are closely intertwined with embedded systems. I really like the idea of small, quiet, lower-power hardware that just runs…and runs…and runs. That’s what drove me to my 2006 article about Astlinux on Soekris hardware and was in part the genesis of this blog. When I saw the original FIT-PC I thought … Continue reading “Inspirational Hardware: The FIT-PC Slim & FIT-PC2”
Here’s a cute new widget from Compulab, makers of my beloved Airtop-PC. A first glance, fit-statUSB looks like a very small USB memory key, but it’s actually a programmable color status LED. Costing just $12 this wee LED looks like a serial port to the host computer. You can send simple commands to the com … Continue reading “A Novel Widget: fit-statUSB from Compulab”
Last week I once again saw a need to share the output of an Android device. As I’ve described previously, this requires the use of an HDMI splitter to feed both a monitor and the HDMI capture card in my vMix PC. The monitor satisfies that HDCP handshake, which allows the PC to see the … Continue reading “Tip: Faking an HDMI Connection”
I can’t really explain it, but fanless, small form-factor computers have always held a lot of appeal. Over the years I’ve twice selected SFF models as my desktop. Compulab, and Israeli company, has consistently offered very interesting SFF platforms, including the Fit-PC and Intense PC Series. I bought an original Fit-PC simply because it was … Continue reading “Compulab Airtop: The strong, silent type of desktop computer”
Prognosticator extraordinaire Dave Michels recently post some observations of things he saw at InfoComm. In so doing I think that he may have coined a new buzz-phrase, “DIY Room Systems.” I must admit that I am smitten with the concept. For those not versed in enterprise video conference jargon a “room system” is a video … Continue reading “Oh, Yeah: DIY Room Systems!”