Re: Semi-Permanent Onboard PC?

Eric,

Glad you're still here... :-)

>- 6 serial ports is a little tough to do with current PC platforms,
>most users don't use them (although we all know that we do!). Not
>impossible by any means though.
Of course there are multiplexers but I'd like to avoid added
complexity. Larry mentioned another type of port for nmea. Can't these
be used? I lack real understanding here. All I know I want to connect
multiple nmea talkers like gps, wind, depth, compass, ais, and I want
to let my nav prog talk to my autopilot.
Non-nmea would be my cell phone and my Victron inverter/charger that I
want to monitor/program by pc.

>- a 12V USB hub shouldn't be difficult to find, though I haven't really
>looked, it's more of a peripheral. Definitely worth looking into as an
>accessory though. A panel-style mount is an interesting idea. You
>want to mount it right to the bulkhead in your nav station?
>
>- Len, you mentioned that you want "remote connectors" for the USB.
>The USB has to connect to the box somewhere. Do you want to move the
>back-panel connectors to the front, or the side or something? To
>perhaps limit the need to access the back?

Bulkhead, that was the term I was looking for, thanks.
The answer is yes. I'd like to connect the peripheral in a simple way,
with having to play the acrobat.
A hub with say 4 connectors to build into the bulkhead would do.
Talking of usb, I find this tech somewhat disappointing regarding
power supply. When I want to connect my usb-stick wifi-antenna the
show stops when I use a cable of > 3 meters. XP says tehere something
wrong with the power supply.

>- Also, Len, why an external hard drive? Do you mean an extra external
>drive with one built in? This gives me the idea of modularizing as
>much as possible. We could get this size down really small if
>everything is an add-on (Optical drive, USB hub, storage drives,
>etc...).
What I meant was it should be very simple to deal with a hdu-crash,
the biggest risk remaining when the pc is solid state. In my thoughts
I only have external hdu's and would keep say two external hdu's
"synchronized" so when one fails I have a near 100% backup including
OS and installed software I only have to connect my other unit: up and
running again in a minute. (Maybe this one appeals to the anxiety many
pc-owners have imo about pc-reliability. Combine this with the fact
navigational software and charts become more an more vital (sometimes
even too vital when you ask me), and you have a major reassuring
advantage to offer).

>- as far as entertainment/music, my thought has been that this PC can
>be your entertainment center as well. Just run speakers to the
>cockpit, or wherever and just play mp3s straight from the PC. DVD just
>depends on the optical drive, TV will probably require another card.
Oh, I also want to be sure I'll wake up when my anchor moves: my
anchor alarm should not just "beep" like a scared mouse over 15 feet
away but should really wake me even when sleeping in my bunk after 2/3
nights without much sleep, of course with minimal power consumption.

Regards, Len.









































>This is some great info, everyone! To answer your question, Len, yeah,
>I'm still here!
>
>I posted the question looking for specs for the perfect PC, so I'd have
>something to shoot for. I'm glad to say that I've already met some of
>these, some are a little more of a challenge, but not impossible.
>
>For instance, I decided early on to use the EPIA mini-ITX platform.
>Right now, I'm focused on the MII120000, but different boards can be
>used for different purposes.
>
>A few questions/follow ups:
>
>- 6 serial ports is a little tough to do with current PC platforms,
>most users don't use them (although we all know that we do!). Not
>impossible by any means though.
>
>- a 12V USB hub shouldn't be difficult to find, though I haven't really
>looked, it's more of a peripheral. Definitely worth looking into as an
>accessory though. A panel-style mount is an interesting idea. You
>want to mount it right to the bulkhead in your nav station?
>
>- Len, you mentioned that you want "remote connectors" for the USB.
>The USB has to connect to the box somewhere. Do you want to move the
>back-panel connectors to the front, or the side or something? To
>perhaps limit the need to access the back?
>
>- Also, Len, why an external hard drive? Do you mean an extra external
>drive with one built in? This gives me the idea of modularizing as
>much as possible. We could get this size down really small if
>everything is an add-on (Optical drive, USB hub, storage drives,
>etc...).
>
>- as far as entertainment/music, my thought has been that this PC can
>be your entertainment center as well. Just run speakers to the
>cockpit, or wherever and just play mp3s straight from the PC. DVD just
>depends on the optical drive, TV will probably require another card.
>
>- it seems that there is a lot interest in video options. Let me tell
>you about something I did for a customer in the past. He had a
>standard LCD screen at his nav station, and an all-weather LCD at his
>helm. He wanted to see the same image on both screens, but they were
>at different resolutions (the helm LCD only supported 800x600).
>
>All we did was use a VGA splitter cable, and I installed a couple of
>batch scripts on the desktop to quickly change resolutions depending on
>which monitor he was using at the time. I haven't gotten into selling
>monitors (yet), but his helm monitor had a USB port, so he could easily
>connect a trackball when he needed it. The whole 2 monitor solution,
>costs about $12 (not including the monitors or trackball, of course).
>
>I also see some interest in LVDS connections. I looked into that
>because I know a competitor is offering an LVDS all weather display,
>but from what I can tell, he's the only one in the PC industry doing so
>(please correct me if you've seen more than one). The EPIA LVDS module
>provides a good connection for a laptop LCD screen (as in an all in one
>PC), but not an external monitor. There needs to be another cable to
>bring that connection to the outside of the PC case, but there isn't
>really a standard for external LVDS (that I can find). The desktop
>industry seems to have gone the way of DVI for connecting an external
>monitor to a digital video source.
>
>Thanks for everyone's input! Keep it coming!
>
>Eric

.

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