Charlie StrossAug 4, 2024

Welp, I have spent the morning playing with/exploring my Pomona DM250, and I have to say, it's proving a LOT friendlier as a distraction-free writing sidecar for #scrivenerapp than I'd expected! Makes the advertised features of the Freewrite Traveller look weaksauce, and it's only half the price.

https://artvsentropy.wordpress.com/2023/08/12/retro-writing-15-pomera-dm250/

Retro writing 15 – Pomera DM250

…and my current writing setup Just recently, our small son began his kindergarten experience, getting used to it at first, just for two or three hours each morning. This schedule allowed me t…

Art vs. Entropy
Show threadCharlie StrossAug 4, 2024

At some point I should probably write up a comparison between the DM250 and my first portable writing deck computer, 1989's Cambridge Z88 (from Sir Clive Sinclair). 35 years on, the DM250 is half the weight, 120% greater battery life, 1000x the built-in storage, CPU is about 1000x faster, screen is infinitely better ...

And less than half the price (adjusted for inflation).

Show threadFazal MajidAug 4, 2024
@cstross ha! I had a Z88 as well. Can’t say I miss it, unlike my work-issued HP200LX a decade later.
Show threadCharlie Stross
@fazalmajid It could have been *so much better* (I still have mine)! The membrane keyboard was surprisingly good. The display … they now make e-ink panels about the same size? I'd love to see a revival of the concept: A4 footprint, with modern hardware like a Raspberry Pi Zero 2W and micro-SDXC reader, and about 5mm thick. Could even run Pipedream under emulation, considerably faster than the original.
Aug 4, 2024 at 6:25pmWeb
Show threadFazal MajidAug 4, 2024
@cstross you could jury-rig something using a RaspberryPi 400 combined with an e-ink display like those available on AliExpress:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005006288721007.html
The question is whether their usually SPI interfaces can be driven or even bit-banged from a RPi.
New 11.4 inches EL114TR1 Eink Screen Display - AliExpress 7

Smarter Shopping, Better Living! Aliexpress.com

aliexpress.
Show threadCharlie StrossAug 4, 2024
@fazalmajid This started with a discussion of the Pomera DM250, which it turns out can run Linux mostly happily …
Show threadFazal MajidAug 4, 2024
@cstross how does your impaired vision cope with the tiny screen? I tried one of the GPD Pocket subminiature laptops with the 7” display and the Planet Computers reinterpretation of the Psion Series 5, it’s just too small for my tired eyes. The 12” MacBook was nearly ideal in form factor and usability. Nowadays I carry either a 13” M1 MacBook Air or the 15” M3 version when I can.
Show threadCharlie StrossAug 4, 2024
@fazalmajid Yep, I got that. The DM250 font size can be increased; I find the default is okay, but anything smaller is right out. (It's a full-screen editor and defaults to 16 lines of text, on a 7" display. Which is *just* enough for me. The Freewrite Traveller, with a 5.5" screen, would be on the wrong side of small.
Show threadRajel Aran, Nostalgia HunterAug 4, 2024
@cstross @fazalmajid I have a 6-inch e-ink panel sourced from an old Kindle, waiting for when I have the energy and space to build *just* that very sort of thing.
At the time, A4 sized panels were pretty hard to come by. It's likely much easier now!
Show threadFazal MajidAug 4, 2024
@rajelaran @cstross e-ink is still way too expensive, specially in larger sizes. You'd think their use in programmable shelf labels for supermarkets would create economies of scale and bring prices down.
Show threadCharlie StrossAug 5, 2024
@fazalmajid @rajelaran I've never seen a programmable shelf-edge e-ink display in a supermarket. Is this an American thing?
Show threadmarkusAug 5, 2024
@cstross @fazalmajid @rajelaran ALDI in my town has them.
Show threadFazal MajidAug 5, 2024
@cstross @rajelaran programmable as in they can be written by RFID, they probably don't have enough processing capability to run actual apps or even WiFi, and eInk refresh rates are just too slow to do something like rotating promotions advertising. As someone else pointed out, Aldi has them. They cost about £10 in bulk and some have 2 colors, usually black and red, like this one I bought to tinker with:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005004674902090.html
Digital E Ink Epaper Nfc Price Tag | Electronic Shelf Label Price Tag - E Price - Aliexpress

Smarter Shopping, Better Living! Aliexpress.com

aliexpress.
Show threadFazal MajidAug 5, 2024
@cstross just saw this on Crowd Supply (like Kickstarter for hardware projects, much less sleazy): https://www.crowdsupply.com/zerowriter/zerowriter-ink
Seems like it ticks all your boxes: keyboard, e-ink, open-source
Zerowriter Ink

Your open-source e-paper typewriter

Crowd Supply
Show threadCharlie StrossAug 5, 2024
@fazalmajid Noted: the screen is tiny and the wrong aspect ratio for the keyboard. (And I don't like the e-ink lag when typing: it's only good for reading.)
Show threadFazal MajidAug 5, 2024
@cstross oh, you'd mentioned e-ink in the context of the Z88. I prefer LCDs or OLEDs myself. It would seem like a 8" tablet combined with a Bluetooth keyboard and some distraction-free writing software should do what you need without hunting for niche hardware. Isn't Scrivener available on the iPad? If you're worried about your low saving throw against Shiny, you could always use iOS' Guided Access feature to lock you into that app.
Show threadCharlie StrossAug 5, 2024

@fazalmajid The LCD on the Z88 was very bleeding edge at the time—eye-bleeding! E-ink would be better than that, but a good OLED would be miles better than either.

Scrivener on iOS is a mixed bag—better than nothing. Scriv has increasing sync issues with cloud services these days. Literature and Latte are beta-testing a new app called "Written" that gets sync right AND has the perfect core feature set—it's like iOS Scrivener 2 done right (but it's not file-level-compatible, so a new app).