Mini Arcade Project - Netbook configuration

[Bender]

EDIT: 7/11/10 I'v decided on a netbook and think I got a good deal on one, $170 (not bad considering a "60 in 1" board is $150 and has no power supply, screen, speakers, rechargeable battery, hard drive, or real OS)

here are the specs

Asus 900HA
8.9 inch screen 1024 x 600 (I'm going to run it at 800 x 600, in other works pillar box the sides)
160 GB HHD
Atom N270 1.6 GHz
1Gb ram (which I think I'll upgrade to 2)
533 MHz FSB and 512KB L2 Cache
Can't find any info on the video processor but I'm sure it's shared

I think I'm going with TinyXP or MicroXP, but am open to any suggestions
Does anyone have a suggestions about what version of mame would work best with this machine

----------------------------------------------------

Hi Everyone,
I'm thinking of a new mini arcade project and I have some requirements and wanted to see if anyone had any ideas about it

1) this is supposed to be ultra portable so it must be battery powered
this means I need to use a netbook OR find some sort of rechargeable battery system for a Mini-ITX motherboard
is that even possible?

2) it has to be small, so 9" screen at max
I have a nice 8" vga screen but it requires 12v to run so again I'd need some kind of rechargeable battery system
there are a few 8.9 inch netbooks out there that claim to have 6hrs of battery life so that's a possibility too

3) I'm not looking to run NFL blitz or anything so it doesn't have to to great a computer but good enough to run the classics and some early emu's (nes, Snes atari 2600, ect.)
will a net book do that?

4) oh, and what OS should I be looking at? I'm used to XP for arcade stuff so I'm kinda predisposed to that, but I'm open to suggestions

Thanks all and any input

[jholman76]

If I was looking to do something like this, I would go the netbook way. Then you dont have to worry about powering the monitor/speakers/PC. Its all right there.

You could always take the head off and rotate it around as you needed, or if you can find a tablet-style one. I know at work here, we used to have motion brand tablets that would have been pretty sweet since they dont even have keyboards. Just a slate like the iPad.

I would stick to XP or Tiny/Micro XP since you are familiar with it. I was looking around at a couple intel Atom projects that exist and it seems that they can play most things, but one of the earlier versions we demoed at work had trouble with SFII, which turned me off to them, but now they have dual core Atoms, etc, so maybe its better.

[MikeDeuce]

Doing the same as soon as I'm done with my minipin, as another fiscally responsible project (meaning using stuff I have sitting around collecting dust).

A netbook can definitely run the classics... the first gen Asus EEE 4gb surf (I think that's what I have) can even run some of the street fighter II + versions in Mame. TMNT runs well, too... I haven't had much time to try many others. And so you can see for yourself, there are videos on youtube of various emulators running on Asus EEEs: http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=mame+asus+eee&aq=f

I'm using a custom install of TinyXP (Or was it XPlite? Whichever is the customizable installer creator). I'm sure other OSes would be lighter yet, but I'm in the same boat as you, and I like the various front end options in XP.

And like jholman76 mentioned, a netbook does seem the way to go... battery, power, speakers, all built in... I've taken apart the EEE already (which is pretty easy), and you can basically fold the computer part against the LCD, making it super compact. There's no ribbon cable between the two parts in mine that would make it awkward.

After Benderama, it would be super cool to see what you come up with for an even smaller machine.

[jholman76]

if you wanted it to be ultra-portable, you could put it into a metal briefcase:

http://www.crestock.com/images/410000-419999/418605-xs.jpg

But then you would have to figure out how to make the joystick rotate down 90 degrees and lock in so you could close it. It would be a pretty sweet setup. Ultra portable and ready to go.

the top half when you open it would have the PC in it and the bottom would have the controls. Its just a matter of finding the right case. dremel in a couple of breathing holes.. nice flush control panel with USBs, etc

I'm a big fan of the sleek look, so that is just my opinion.

[EightBySix]

I was considering having my coffee table powered by battery somehow, as it may be in the middle of a room making cables tricky. As it turns out, its location means I'll be OK. Anyway - the point is - I was considering getting a ups - some are like bulky power strips - your motherboard psu wouldn't know the difference and you could just connect / disconnect as you saw fit....

O/S wise - some are better than others at power management (including integration with PSUs) - might be a factor to consider

But then you would have to figure out how to make the joystick rotate down 90 degrees and lock in so you could close it. It would be a pretty sweet setup. Ultra

If you manage to crack that nut - please tell me how! I've been banging my head against the wall for weeks 

[jholman76]

If you went with a UPS, you could get some time out of it, but unless you get some hefty Lieberts or APC's that have ATV batteries, dont expect a marathon of gaming. Oh, and unless you unhook/disable the speaker on them, prepare for a bone-chilling beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep when not on AC power. Plus it would be hella-heavy.

If you have a stationary coffee table, you could always do some "remodeling" and put in a floor power recepticle:

http://img.archiexpo.com/images_ae/photo-g/built-in-floor-box-for-power-sockets-19305.jpg

[Bender]

thanks everyone!

I did a little research and it looks like making a battery supply for the mini-itx is doable but way over my head so I think the net book is the winner

8by6: I'm going to try to just rotate the joystick up 45° once I get a design worked out I'm going to post in the project thread, might be while though, this is a kinda back of my mind project

[Bender]

Hey MikeDeuce,

I took your advice and picked up an EEE (see top post)
seems that asus is one of the few still making 9" netbooks

What version of mame were you running on that thing?

[SammyWI]

I would recommend this forum for a lot of info on the EEE netbooks:

http://forum.eeeuser.com/index.php

[MikeDeuce]

Cool, I think almost any netbook would have sufficed at this point, but there is a ton of random support for the EEE models (particularly when it comes to teardowns for mods).

I'll have to check on which version of the mame executable I was using to test, but both it and mame32 worked as well as anywhere else I've experienced.

For FEs I tried hyperspin, but it was unfortunately a bit too processor intensive for my model (even overclocked at 1ghz using eeectl). Standard mala was totally fine, though... I haven't had as much of a chance to continue experimenting, however, thanks to another project currently in-progress.

Looking forward to the build thread!

[jholman76]

I have an older Gateway 450sx4 laptop (Pentium4 M 2.0 ghz, 512MB RAM) and I put MicroXP on it and it started Maximus/Mame just fine. I just had to add a few specific drivers for the basics (network, video, sound, etc).

It boots very fast and runs splendidly. I would recommend it for at least a learning experience on how it runs!
-
joe

[kronic24601]

So will this one be called the "Baby Bender" ??

[jholman76]

Or you could call it "Angleyne" after the "Bendless Love" episode of Futurama.

Or it could be a "Flexo" cabinet... basically use all the same art work, but put a little goatee on Bender..

[Bender]

So will this one be called the "Baby Bender" ??

jholman76: Love Flexo!      hummm........??

SammyWI: Thanks for the link, lot of good info there!

MikeDeuce: The EEE was the best possible choice I think there are a lot of dedicated users and a ton of parts and mods available
I just did some looking around on eBay and I could get a motherboard, screen and a battery for just over $100 (should have done that research before I bought the one I did)

[Bender]

well I got the netbook and got MicroXP installed on it
Man I have to say I'm impressed
Works great, Looks Great, sound is so-so (tiny little speakers mounted underneath)
Mame is running and a few other emus, even got some N64 stuff to run
Pretty damn good for that little Atom 270 processor
Better than I was expecting, Sunset Riders is running smooth as silk