Mini-ITX ... how can you not love it?
I've been learning about what makes PCs go together, and I've been fascinated by the Mini-ITX standard, freakishly small motherboards, with cases and peripherals to go with them. Via Technologies spearheaded this small-is-beautiful movement, which also champions low power consumption and, in many iterations, fanless processors for low noise.
A small, silent PC? Remember the original Macintosh? Well, many want that experience again. The Mac Mini comes close, but what about PC users? That's where Mini-ITX comes into play.
The stuff is more expensive than the standard Mini-ATX size boards and cases, but for the small form factor and quiet operation, I think it's a tradeoff that many are willing to make.
Also intriguing is that these systems are often configured to run entirely from flash memory. No disk drives. No moving parts.
Some links:
Epiacenter, "the Mini-ITX professionals"
Mini-itx.com "the next small thing"
NorhTec "networking out of the box"
Mini-Box.com "Pico-sized computing"
Cappuccino PC
Logic Supply "Leaders in Mini-ITX solutions"
I've been looking for a place to get Mini-ITX hardware without going broke, and besides NorhTech's MicroClient Jr., which can be had for about $200 with Puppy Linux installed (but which can't really do much else, since it's limited to 128 MB RAM), the next best place is Cappuccino PC, which has a bunch of great-looking little boxes for around $400 and up.
But the best so far, and I've only gotten a quick look, is Damn Small Linux's Mini-ITX Store has complete systems from $245 to $495.
The DSL store offers this tempting option:
We, are also offering Damn Small Linux pre-installed on Compact Flash units. Combine these with an IDE/CF adaptor and you can convert old atticware into a useful and secure Internet station.
You wouldn't even need a USB-bootable BIOS to take advantage of this, since it would be running through the IDE interface. I don't know if they have the CF-to-IDE converter, but Mini-ITX.com has them here. And it would be even easier to put Puppy Linux on one of these CF "drives." Or bypass CF entirely and get a IDE solid state drive (same link as before, but also here from PC-parts giant Tiger Direct.
Photo: NorhTech's MicroClient Jr. with a Compact Flash drive that can hold a Linux OS.