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Re: If you could design a $300 homecomputer today, what would you choose?

Ralf Quint <Ralf_Quint@hot_mail.com> wrote in message > >As OS? (Linux is a
dead giveaway, but there also other OS's out there)

> FreeDOS?? It's getting closer to be usable everyday....
> Linux for a home user, no way, not in this decade AFAIAC... ;-)))
> >Build in programming language? (please choose anything but Basic!)
> What's wrong with BASIC? It's easy to be "build in", as it is an
> interpreter and there are a lot of BASIC variations out there that
> would stand any comparison for ease of use and performance....
> Or you you suggest something more academic like Smalltalk, Lisp or
> Java???
The reason is that Basic will being a good language for beginners isn't the
best language to learn the art of programming (structure, modules etc..) .
I'm not up to date up to date on recent Basic dialects but I believe the
same problem still applies. Once you get to the higher programming languages
this becomes evident and you have to 'unlearn' before you can start again.

Don't  get me wrong. Basic was a good beginners language but these days I
think Python is far more suited for newbies and novices.



> >Amount of memory? (RAM and ROM)
> Not as much a question of cost (128MB SDRAM is less than $10 these
> days), as of a combination of the above specs...
> >Graphic and Sound?
> VGA style graphics with 4MB RAM and at least 800x600, 16bit colors is
> not a problem these days either..
> And SB compatible sound probably not...
> >Network capabilities? (internet capable)
> an onboard solution with a Realtek chip and TP 10/100 RJ-45
> connector...
> >Plug in capabilities (remember you're making it as cheap as possible so
> >modems, CD-Roms, HD's are all extras)
> >Video (TV? or Monitor?)
> Well, a monitor is probably the most expensive part. As for the
> possible graphics capabilities, a TV (if it's not a fancy digital HDTV
> one) is far below the capablities of the graphics chips...
> >The real costs should below $200 or even below the $150 level. You may
> >presume that a million units would be manufactured so take volume
discounts
> >for components into account
> If you buy a million pieces of ANY component, you get FAR below the
> usual retail prices. a quick look on pricewatch reveals
> CPU: AMD Duron 700Mhz $24 (Celeron 700MHz $42, VIA Cyrix 700 $37)
> Memory: 128MB PC133 $9
> Mobo: Intel 810 $38 (build-in video!, USB, keyboard,...)
> case w/ p/s $25 (ATX desktop)
>
> Ok, that is a pretty mix, bu assuming large quantities as you
> mentioned, this is less than $100 for the major parts. Add a few $10
> for network and sound and smaller stuff, no problem...
>
I forgot to mention that you would have to include labor and manufacturing
costs and the basic essentials (special casing (not just a standard box),
cooling, cables etc...). These things eat into margins.

Cheers,

Thomas van Kooten