Dick Tracy's New Linux Box? (Slashdot)

Posted Jun 30, 2006 16:16 UTC (Fri) by Duncan (guest, #6647) [Link]

As in one of the /. comment threads, what's this "turns on only when you
look at it" stuff? That seems a bit far fetched.

... After having read the article, and the pdf it links to, (300KB, 4 pg,
quite interesting but obvious PR with the expected puff of same, a couple
of the pix are cool, tho), the "only when you look at it" is apparently
the /. submitter's or editor's words. The release actually makes a much
more reasonable claim that it's on only when you are using it.

It looks rather reasonable. I want one! <g> In addition to the "on only
when using" feature, it has WiFi networking, and apparently can be
outfitted with a number of external sensors. I didn't see any cost
quotes, unfortunately. =8^(

Suggested uses include remotely tracked personal radiation monitoring (the
pdf says current personal-sized detectors must be monitored by the
individual wearing them, this would allow remote tracking and logging on a
company-wide scale), hazardous fume monitoring for emergency response
teams, inventory tracking, etc. IOW, at this point it doesn't look quite
as general purpose or low-cost as I'd like, but if it gets popular, 3-4
years from now...

Duncan