Pandora >

2016-01-02 ∞

• Due to an issue with the manufacturer of one of their parts, the battery doesn’t have the spring-clip it ought to. I stuffed some paper towel into my battery holder.
• Another known issue is the low quality of the casing’s plastic. Mine got dropped at one point and it’s cracked.
• I wanted to start fresh before writing these notes. It’s trivial to install/update the firmware.
• It’s trivial to update once it’s up and running, but that feature is buried in one of their menus and isn’t just a big fat icon on their desktop.
• I see no way to add more software. I know there’s a program out there somewhere, but it looks like it would be much more sensible to use a desktop and it’s web browser.
• It has a web browser launch prominently in the top of its menu. If you are stupid enough to use it, it’ll either lock you into a browser that doesn’t work because it’s not installed.. or to Links, which while awesome shouldn’t be the default browser.
• It has no proper browser. There needs to be a sort of “bonus download” that includes the various common packages, like a better media player.
• Using Links to try to get to another package downloader is a ridiculous endeavour. First off I have to manually google everything, since there are no links provided. Secondly, all the Pandora websites look like complete shit in Links.

• The quick start guide needs more love. It has some odd language, and it desperately needs images. Perhaps that complexity should exist for sort of “slow start guide”. Like a proper selection of packages, this ought to exist as a secondary download.

Using .pnd files ∞

• Get .pnd files from repo.openpandora.org

• It’s really easy to get software working.

  • On a SD card, make /pandora/desktop and put the .pnd files there. More options are available.
  • Insert the SD card, and everything is loaded up, on your desktop, in your menu, etc..

• There is some really old software in their repository.

  • It looks like I’m going to have to get into software compilation and packaging myself.
• Each .pnd has its own environment which does not influence that of another. This also means that the rare pnd files which need to package multiple programs together for whatever reason will have different configurations since they’re separate.
• I think it’s really easy to meddle with settings per-pnd.

• Earlier today I was able to easily directly run a .pnd, but I can’t figure out how I did that now..

2011-06-23 or earlier ∞

Hardware ∞

• The audio jack is placed on the front long side, and not a short side. It NEEDS to be moved. I would need to either hack it or get an “L” adaptor to (hopefully) prevent me from destroying the insides of the jack.
• The lanyard hole is also placed wrong. It should be on a corner and not on the back.
• The keyboard layout is fucking retarded. I’d bet the keys aren’t nearly as good as the HP 200LX.
• Need to develop an SD-to-SD sync script for cloning the SD. Maybe some kind of raid? I have notes..

• Where are the control/alt keys?

  • I have one video which shows the keyboard which should show it.
  • there should be a good picture of the keyboard, hell of the whole thing..

LCD Display: Poor pixel response time (Ghosting) ∞

Pixel response time

The amount of time a pixel in an LCD monitor takes to go from one value to another and back again.

This is not the same as Display lag and certainly not the same as Motion blur.

Imagine that you are playing a video game, and there is a dark area in the background with something bright in it. If you pan across this background, ghosting can cause fuzz/blur or trail effects.

• Ghosting video

  • Compare with the PSP’s ghosting

Seating the Battery ∞

Modified from this source.

There was supposed to be a clip that would keep the battery in place, but for some reason unknown to us, it had been removed by the case company.

It won’t help to put a piece of paper on top of the battery. You need to make sure the battery stays in place /sideways/. The trick is to ensure that the battery contacts can’t move sideways anymore.

1. Lay your Pandora in front of you with the L/R buttons facing up.
2. Open the battery lid.

3. TODO – clarify – If you take a look at your battery, you can see it can wobble up and down.

   • (I guess you’d have to press on one side of the battery..)
4. Remove the battery

5. Place your “stabilizer” sideways on the top-left area of the battery compartment, just a bit below the R button.

   • Try some folded paper (1-2mm thick) for testing.
   • I use some padded self-adhesive small sticker (about one mm thick).