On Tue, Nov 29, 2011 at 8:39 AM, suraj Suraj <[email protected]> wrote:
> My requirements / problem-statements are: > > 1. No fans, no excessive cooling requirements - overall be low on power > consumption > 2. super small form factor (preferably the ITX line); should be portable in > bulk. (should be able to transport 15 of these in a car) > 3. gigabit network support > 4. no local storage (ie., no HDD / CD-ROM / etc., bulky/noisy/power-hungry > stuff) > 5. USB / SD / CF types external storage support I am using Digilite's DL425 Intel Atom board (mini-ITX FF). It does have a fan for the CPU; the noise is almost not perceptible. For the case you can use iBall "Netbook" cabinet; it does come with a small fan but does not create much noise. You can see the cabinet at iBall web site. You can visit panache.co.in for smaller and more glamorous cabinets but expect to pay around Rs. 3K. It is your choice. Mumbai price estimate would be around Rs. 5500 for the board+memory+cabinet (iBall). TN cost would be in the same ball park. You can PXE boot it or use a thin client firmware. I have done some eval with Thinstation.net but not quite happy with resolution of the fonts and icons. > 6. preferably works out-of-the-box with edubuntu / LTSP (ie., i'd rather be > doing business than flashing ROMs or hand-configuring PXE) Then be ready to pay extra bucks for some one else to do it for you; be it a thin client vendor or a consultant who can do your setup with off the shelf hardware (see above). > >From what I've looked around, there are cheap second-hand real-PCs (not > thin-clients) that come for about Rs.4k (with hard-disk). Sun's Sunray, > HP's and even LTSP's thin clients are way above my budget (works out to > Rs.8K or more for the most basic model without considering import duties). > Although, they are the only ones that do not need a fan and come with an > intel atom / Via C7 like minimal CPU. I see a couple of local sellers, but > that is exactly the reason I write to you :) How important is it to you for a fan less solution? The above solution works me, especially, when I don't have to call the vendor to fix it and loose 2 or more days in the process. > If given no choice, I'd choose the older PCs at 4K which would run at a > higher operating cost (higher power bills, higher cooling bills). But > that's atleast a safer bet, unless you have recommendations on local > thin-client sellers/assemblers. narrating your edubuntu experience will > also be very useful here. > > Your suggestions? I have shared my solution. I hope you will share your solution once you have completed your setup. -- Arun Khan _______________________________________________ ILUGC Mailing List: http://www.ae.iitm.ac.in/mailman/listinfo/ilugc
