Re: [Discuss-gnuradio] Questions about E100

[Marcus D. Leech]

On 28/04/2011 2:26 PM, Stefan Gofferje wrote:
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> Hi,
>
> as far as I understand, the E100 is a complete standalone system. I'm
> just a bit irritated by the descriptions "Console (USB)" and USB
> on-the-go. I assume, console USB is a serial console via some getty to
> ttyUSBx? How am I supposed to use it? Adaptor USB->Mini-USB and a
> USB-Serial adaptor?
> What is USB on-the-go?
USB on-the-go (OTG) is a USB standard that allows a USB port to adopt 
either "host" or "device"
  personality, depending on application.  It's fairly common on 
embedded-system platforms to
  supply this.

It's also *very* common for such embedded systems to provide a virtual 
serial-port via USB, by virtue of
  "looking" exactly like a USB serial port.  Such devices work with 
existing Linux serial-port
  software, and as you observe will "manifest" as /dev/ttyUSBx or 
sometimes, /dev/ttyACMx.

> How about the software? Is the box x86 compatible or do I have to wait
> for Ettus to create some kind of software image if there is an update of
> gnuradio?
The E100 is based on an TI OMAP  platform.  Phil Ballister could fill in 
the details, but it ships with
  a Linux image pre-installed, and you can do either a cross-build or 
native build of Gnu Radio yourself,
  and most E100 users do so.  It's completely end-user configurable, 
programmable, as you would expect
  any Linux platform to be.  But it's not X86.

> And finally - how about the performance? Does the box run X? Is it
> powerful enough to run grc-created WX-stuff?
It's not a desktop-class platform by any stretch of the imagination.