Re: emacs on the N800

[Adam Spiers <orgmode@adamspiers.org>]

On Wed, Dec 12, 2007 at 08:55:37AM -0800, Daniel M German wrote:
> I am moving this back to org, since I suspect they will be interested people.

Good idea.

>  Bastien> Hhmm... yes, this is what I expected.  Daniel, is the physical keyboard
>  Bastien> something that you miss?  How are you dealing with Emacs key chords?
> 
> I can't miss what I have never had ;) The stylus is ok with Ctrl
> sequences, they just need one extra tap. Unfortunately xterm is broken
> in OS2007 (control-_ is impossible) but I fixed it. In OS2008 it is
> difficult to issue Ctrl- commands (they require an extra tap). I might
> look into this once i fully move to 2008. So I guess that out of the
> box, a phyical keyboard might make a difference, if it supports
> <Ctrl>.

It does.  I haven't figured out how to get <Meta> or <Esc> on it yet,
but xmodmap is available so it should be possible.

> With respect to the virtual keyboard, it lacks <Ctrl>, <Alt> and
> <Meta>. But a physical key can provide ESC. This is the reason I run
> emacs inside an XTerm (emacs -nw). The Xterm can provide me a shortcut 
> to <ctrl>: I tap it, then next key I tap is read as <ctrl-key>. The
> disadvantage is that is no "mouse" support (the stylus can be used as
> a pointer).

Ah, drat :-( I didn't think of that.  Of course, org-mouse.el won't
work with emacs-nox.  But judging by your org-mode screenshot 

  http://turingmachine.org/~dmg/temp/emacsOrgN800full.jpg

you seem to know how to configure the xterm application to feed more
complex macros such as C-x.  How did you set this up and is it
documented anywhere?

> Now, OS2008 can work in host-mode (I have tested it myself). This
> means you can attach any external keyboard. Some people have luck with
> the apple bluetooth keyboard. I own a bluetooth IPaq keyboard (but I
> haven't been able to connect it to it under OS 2008). So when I really
> need to use emacs, I can always connect a real keyboard. Not ideal for
> standing up, but way more practical than a virtual keyboard when
> sitting.

Yes, I guess even one of those virtual laser keyboards would be
possible.

>  Bastien> Sorry to ask so insistently, but I *can't* test the N800
>  Bastien> until I make up my mind on this :( And chosing the N810
>  Bastien> instead means that I'll have to wait for another two
>  Bastien> weeks...
> 
> Well, it depends on how much money you are willing to spend. The N800
> is around 150-250 dollars cheaper than the N810. I personally don't
> see a reason to upgrade. But this is mainly because I always have a
> laptop with me.

Yep - most N800 users seem to agree it is a lot to ask for an upgrade,
but buying from scratch I think it's easier to justify.

>  Bastien> (There are many other factors.  For example, how many softwares are
>  Bastien> available for 0S2008, compared to 0S2007?  Is it worth waiting for 
>  Bastien> an AZERTY physical keyboard?  etc, etc...)
> 
> This is why I dual boot. Some applications I use regularly haven't
> made it to OS2008.

So it's not possible to install OS2007 libraries on OS2008?

> What we need is to compile emacs23 and see if works well with a
> physical and stylus keyboard.

Amen!  That sounds like a very interesting project.