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From: edjames@ic.Berkeley.EDU.UUCP
Newsgroups: comp.misc
Subject: Re: Flat Displays and Portable Computers
Message-ID: <1266@ucbcad.berkeley.edu>
Date: Tue, 3-Feb-87 19:13:26 EST
Article-I.D.: ucbcad.1266
Posted: Tue Feb  3 19:13:26 1987
Date-Received: Thu, 5-Feb-87 03:56:24 EST
References: <52@cerebus.UUCP> <546@harlie.UUCP>
Sender: news@ucbcad.berkeley.edu
Reply-To: edjames@ic.Berkeley.EDU (Ed James)
Organization: University of California, Berkeley
Lines: 26

In article <546@harlie.UUCP> carl@harlie.UUCP (Carl Greenberg) writes:
>	Now what if all the keys on the keyboard (assume something
>quiet with a feel like that of the IBM PC/AT's) had little LCD caps,
>capable of displaying symbols?  

This is a cute idea, but how useful is it for the major keys?  How often
do you want to switch between qwert and dvorak?  A line of label-able
function keys would be nice, but it could be a handicap.  There is no
standard for function keys on terminals, and since we all want this toy to
be 'compatible' with other terminals/hosts, hosers could write software
that *depended* upon the existence of function keys.  Bad move.

Speaking of software, it would be cool if I could write software, burn it
into a rom cartridge and pop the applications in and out as needed.
Of course, one could just (heaven forbid!) buy the software at your
local ripoff computer store, but I would rather pick up freeware off the net 
and cross-compile it.

I don't know how carried away we can get OS-wise.  Multi-tasking, rom
based, megs-o-memory, shared libraries, power-of-a-cray-in-the-heel-of-
your-shoe kind of stuff.  What is necessary?  Note that this thing will 
need a base station that has battery chargers, printer interface,
disks etc.  It probably won't be the case that someone will use this as
his sole connection to the computer world, just as a link to it while
out in the sunshine.  Maybe it doesn't need to be all *that* powerful.
								--ed