Filed under: OS Updates, Linux
Splashtop Linux interface coming soon to every Asus motherboard
by Brad Linder May 15th 2008 at 12:00PM
Want an instant-on PC? Good luck with that. But just because it takes 2 minutes to boot up your desktop doesn't mean that you can't start surfing the web within a few seconds of hitting the power button. Last year Asus began adding the Splashtop embedded Linux operating system to some of its high end motherboards. The OS boots almost instantly, and lets you access a handful of applications like Firefox and Skype without waiting for Windows, Ubuntu, or another full desktop environment to load.
Now DeviceVM, the company behind Splashtop, says Asus has committed to adding the software to every Asus motherboard, which means the company will be putting out 1 million motherboards a month with the Splashtop interface. The companies won't be going all out right away. But Asus has already brought its number of motherboard models with Splashtop up to 12 by adding the software to its new P5Q line.
I don't know if this is a labor of love or merely the brainchild of four very gifted games designers, but Level Up is a really weird mash-up of gaming elements that you have probably never seen in a Flash game before.
Let's start with the premise itself: Groundhog Day meets Memento. The game experience revolves around 'days': you explore the world and the clock slowly ticks towards the evening. You bounce around picking up gems and talking to the denizens of 'Level Upland'. Eventually you feel tired and head back to ...
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Iampriteshdesai said 2:10PM on 5-15-2008
Can I have it too? I have XP+Ubuntu
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Xell said 2:48PM on 5-15-2008
well yes, it's os independent.
mtbiker said 3:31PM on 5-15-2008
So does this include the Asus eeePC? Now that would be handy.
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James said 5:13PM on 5-15-2008
Um, I thought the eeePC already had a single-digit-second boot time? No?
Brad Linder said 5:14PM on 5-15-2008
The Eee PC boots in about 25 seconds if you use the Xandros Linux software. With Windows XP it's closer to 45 seconds. And as with any operating system, the more startup programs you install, the slower your boot will be.
James said 5:39PM on 5-15-2008
The Wikipedia entry says it seems to reside on onboard flash -- is it updateable? I mean, especially if you wind up needing e.g. different drivers for your new video card, or you typically use a bluetooth mouse, or.... well, you get the idea. I understand that running from a read-only drive is desirable to counteract malware, but there's some times you want to commit your changes, you know?
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