paulrickardsEver since I saw the Typeframe (a DIY writerdeck or cyberdeck), I wanted to build one. And so I did! I tweaked the design here and there to fit what I had on hand and my tastes. Here's the result. I'm pleased with how it turned out.
The Typeframe is modeled after the Epson PX-4 and looks like a twin. The 7.9" LCD is also a touchscreen. I chose a Raspberry Pi 5 and an inexpensive ready-made keyboard. It's all powered by a 10 Ah battery and charges with USB-C. And lots of 3D printing and cable management.
More info. to build your own: https://www.typeframe.net/
Yep, it runs MacOS 7.5 really wide 🙃
#typeframe #RetroComputing #cyberdeck #writerdeck #FlyingToasters #VintageApple #VintageMac
I added an internal speaker (from an old iPad) and headphone jack to my Typeframe. Since I used a Pi 5 with no on-board analog audio, I used a USB audio dongle.
I was delighted to learn of the simplicity of switching 3.5mm headphone jacks. They have 5 poles instead of 3. The audio source and internal speaker are wired to the headphone jack pins. They're normally closed and the internal speaker works. Plug in headphones, it switches. So simple!
I also cobbled together a systray icon for the battery status using Python. It retrieves the battery info from the Power Management Hat over serial and updates the systray icon as needed. The tooltip shown appears when you mouse over or tap the battery icon.
Writing zen, where the only distractions are Flying Toasters when you're idle 😉
Word 5.1a isn't too bad at 640x200 resolution. The UI is unobtrusive, crisp and legible, and big enough to touch.
Don’t forget to play Dark Castle today to see the tree in the foyer 🎄
Laurent FRANCOISE@paulrickards that's really nice !
Alien🍉@paulrickards N E E D
kianryan ☑️🐙🏳️🌈
Humbird0 Fandom@paulrickards
It works will enough for writing, but I'm having flashbacks to the old internet explorer days when unwanted toolbars would fill up half of the screen vertically.
It works will enough for writing, but I'm having flashbacks to the old internet explorer days when unwanted toolbars would fill up half of the screen vertically.
haui ☭🇵🇸@paulrickards
This could have as sell been a new 3d printed pc with some linux distro and a pi under the hood. Awesome. :)
This could have as sell been a new 3d printed pc with some linux distro and a pi under the hood. Awesome. :)
n2o ☮️@paulrickards Oh the good times! Funny how content gets worse and worse with screens getting bigger and bigger! Just like 4k movies are usually 4 times worse than ye olde color classics.
dan 💾@paulrickards 5.1a was definitely the best version!
Marc Vaudel@paulrickards This is both technically and aesthetically exceptional! Thank you for sharing!
Soh Kam Yung@paulrickards Do you encounter volume level issues (too loud or too soft) when you switch between the speaker and headphones?
@sohkamyung Yes! The internal speakers are not powered so it needs to be louder. So I just turn down the volume via the keyboard shortcut before plugging in headphones. The solution would be to power the internal speakers so the perceived volume levels are more on-par.
@paulrickards I see.
Would hooking a headphone pin to a GPIO to detect a headphone insertion/removal, to auto adjust the volume level, work also?
@sohkamyung Possibly, but it might need another circuit to detect it? I wouldn't want to connect headphone directly to a GPIO pin.
@paulrickards Yes, you would need a circuit to connect it to a GPIO pin. This might range from using resistors and diodes, to using a comparator, depending on how safe you want the circuit to be.
Rob@paulrickards I saw this toot first and I was like
whoa that's a wildly modded Epson
@robdaemon It's like they were twins. He did a really good job modeling and part selection.
@paulrickards I recognized the resemblance immediately!
@robdaemon I think I need a version with my tiny pen plotter built into it. True slabtop.
Christian Tietze@paulrickards the epson's key caps, though, so tasty
Bonkers@paulrickards I know exactly this keyboard, so my first reaction was, wtf do I see here :)
The LED highlights are awful and you can't change the color :)
@bonkers LED color is changeable :)
@paulrickards if I recall, not on this cheap one. The color palette is fixed.
Chris Combs (he/him)@bonkers @paulrickards The first two pictures in the thread show it operating in different colors.
@combs @paulrickards ok, so it's a different cheap Chinese keyboard then :)
Alexander DyasAs if a @NanoRaptor idea has crossed into real life.
Julien Goodwin@paulrickards this is what the world needs
Juustoperse@paulrickards I think we got conditioned enough that I first had to double check which account posted it to make sure it's not another one of these cursed photoshops by we all know whom ;)
Rui Carmo@paulrickards that's very nice. I suppose that's one of the 1080x720 displays that are doing the rounds these days? (I have a replica Mac Classic _just_ for running After Dark, but the idea of hacking a cyberdeck with one of those displays is appealing)
@rcarmo Thanks. It’s a Waveshare 7.9” LCD at 400x1280 resolution.
@paulrickards OK. Similar proportions then. I'm using theirs too, as it happens, but for https://mastodon.social/@rcarmo/115157628987896413
cliffle@paulrickards just wanted to say this is really amazing work, and has me nervously eyeing my stack of pending projects to see if it could accommodate just one more
@cliffle Thanks! I had fun with this build. @jeffmerrick did a fantastic job creating the models and documenting the build process. I recommend it!