Question - compaq-flash/SD other as HD

[Tiago]

Like Amiga, will PC work if i remove the HD and put a compaq-flash (SD or other format) adapter as HD? For basic use, realy basic use, can i do it, will XP be to slow?

i want to build a new system to connect to my railway layout, so the software is very simple only a 2mb program.... so any basic pc will do.

but space is a problem here, an temperature to, i will have to put the pc in a closed place.
I have memory, keyb, mouse, monitor, cables, cd-rom, but i have to get:
-mboard
-cpu
-probably no case, i will just put it inside a draw, furniture, i dont know yet.
-PSU, smallest possible, dont need to much power, i will not use cd-rom,only to install win xp... and if i put compaq flash as HD even less power.

[Teho]

Probably, I don't see why not. People have been running Linux boxes and old DOS PCs with CF adapters.

It used to be an issue that CF cards have limited read/write cycles, so while they were excellent for data storage they weren't that great for running an OS off of. But I think this has changed and that read/write cycle limitations isn't much of an issue anymore.

[Harrison]

I'm not sure myself as I've never tried it, but I also can't see why not.

Some newer motherboards, my Asus P5Q Deluxe included, have a flash ram drive built into the motherboard which holds a second Linux OS that boots from cold in under 10 seconds so you can access the files on your HDD to view images and video, and launch a firefox based browser to access the internet. The idea in this is to access your computer quickly without needing to fujlly boot the main OS. And this proves OSs can be installed and run fine from flash ram on a PC.

However, as Teho mentioned, CF cards did used to have a limited number of read/write cycles before they started to generate write errors. Not sure if they have now overcome this limitation or not. I would hope so.

Data transfer speed is also something that needs to be checked. I can imagine seek times and access speed would be much faster on a CF card compared to a HDD, due to it being soldstate. However you do need to check the transfer speed possible because that could seriously slow down a whole system's speed. 66MB/s is probably the minimum to look at for sustained transfer speed as that is close to IDE ATA100 speeds. I do know that faster SDRam cards could do 66MB/s, but not sure about CF cards. You can also get IDE to SD card adapters, which could be an alternative to look at.

One other option is Linux. Some versions of Linux are able to be installed onto a flash drive plugged into a USB port. This is a great solution for portability. It would mean that you could install and setup the OS and software on a different physical PC that has HDD and CD/DVD drive for transfering files. But then the flash pen drive could be disconnected and plugged into the computer controlling the train and booted directly from the drive.

Does your train software have a version compatible with Linux? If not you might still be able to use Linux with WINE that allows Windows programs to run on Linux.

For the actual PC to build for such a project, as you want to keep the whole thing small, minimising heat, sound and power used then it is worth looking at Mini-ITX motherboard setups.

With a Mini-ITX motherboard you can get them with the processor, graphics card, audio etc all integrated into the small form factor motherboard, and only need to add some memory and a HDD or other storage device to make a full working system. Their power consumption is also very small. Especially the ones using the Itel Atom processors, and you normally can run them using a very small internal PSU, or an external laptop style brick PSU.

Atom based Mini-ITX motherboards are also capable of running Windows XP, so if you cant use the software you need with Linux they will still work well.

Have a look at http://www.mini-itx.com to see the current range of small PCs you can build.

For a small system build, it does depend on your budget, but obviously without a case needed it reduces the cost even more.

Have a look at http://www.mini-itx.com/store/?c=53 for an idea of Atom based Mini-ITX systems.

Also these boards run using a DC power input, so you might be able to build your own PSU power source running from the one already powering the train set, thus reducing heat even more. Or you could look at even smaller motherboards of Nano and Pico sizes, all available to look at on that site.

The boards do look quite expensive, but remember they all have the CPU already built in along with the graphics and audio. So you are getting a complete PC in one small integrated board, which is ideal for your project.

[Tiago]

Thanks fot the vaule info.

Yes the software (rocrail) is available for Linux.
I think i have a friend here at work that has an old pc that he cuold sell it.
It will be a cheap one, if it cames with a HD, better, if not, maybe i will try the adpater.

I will look for those mini-itx, looks very interesting.
thanks