[LinuxBIOS] Open Gaming Console

[Richard Smith]

> And as was suggested earlier in the thread, the circuit, case, etc could
> be under the GPL just like the GumStix, with the BIOS being GPL'ed, etc.
> allowing multiple manufacturers to produce these units.
> 
> I think the market is ready for a portable unit you can play at home,
> and which *CAN* but doesn't nessesarily have to be your portable music
> player too, which can run any number of different games, not just those
> which are licensed through a central authority.

Oh.  I agree.  Look athe the success of projects like MythTV in fact I
would suggest that MythTV is a very good base to start since it has
really good media support all ready.

I don't want to discourage development at all.  A GPL game console
would be excellent and a great feather in the cap of LinuxBIOS.

Just don't be thinking you are going to get the same kind of
performance you get from a commercial unit without spending 2 to 3x
what they cost.  Haveing really a reallly good software engine may
help to minimize this but to get a _really_ good software engine you
have to have good knowledge of the hardware.  With the current
graphics landscape thats hard and boderline impossible to get.

One glimmer of hope. If you can work with these guys

http://lists.duskglow.com/mailman/listinfo/open-graphics

you might actually be able to drive a small market for it.

I'm interested in it since Bitworks is capable of producing board runs
on the level you are talking about.  Say like 25 - 100 units.  You can
do like the MegaSquirt people do.  Start an escrow account and take
orders until you get enough that you can have it built.  If the
schematics, and gerbers, and BOM are alreday done then thats a lot of
the cost of having a custom run built.

Of course whoever does the prototype(s) is going to pay a chunk. 
Perhaps you could seek some funding somewhere?  Most of the groundwork
issues could be worked out with COTS stuff thats available already.

-- 
Richard A. Smith