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On Sat, 1 Oct 2011, Rob Beard wrote:
On 01/10/11 10:23, paul sutton wrote:When / where can we buy one of these raspberry PI things ?Not sure, I've read that it will be released later this year, possibly around November time. I'm hoping this is the case.
Why wait? Why the hype over yet another ARM based Linux developement system?
(So it runs Ruby, big deal - any Linux system ought to be able to run Ruby - it's just another programing language - some 3G+GPS chips I'm using just now can run Python)
Or maybe you're not aware that there are several other competing products out there?
e.g. the Beagleboard. It's been about for 3 years now. Runs Linux. Large development community. Sadly not as cheap as the RPI but much better featured.
Sheva/Guru/Dream Plug devices? ARM based runs Linux... Mostly round about the £100 mark.
Or the FoxG20? TS-750? and many others.Want something a bit lower level? cheaper? Arduino. (entry level about £15) Program in C/C++ via a Java based IDE (multi platform) or traditional gcc/makefiles. (And there are 32-bit ARM Arduino-compatable variants too).
So while the Raspberry PI is attractive in terms of price, personally I think there's just too much hype surrounding just another low-power (although low-cost) Linux device, and if you really want a low power Linux development system, then there are plenty others out there (including e.g. x86 platforms - AMD Geode for example)
Or just root your android phone if you want yet another ARM platform with lots of features already on-board...
Of-course, while capable of standalone use, you're going to need another PC already running Linux to do any development on the Raspberry PI... So why not just use that instead :)
Still, it's nice to have a choice. Gordon
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