Date: Sat, 16 Sep 2000 22:49:34 -0400
Reply-To: "Joe L." <mejoe100@EARTHLINK.NET>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: "Joe L." <mejoe100@EARTHLINK.NET>
Subject: Re: Net Appliance GPS Conversation
In-Reply-To: <00091610543600.20178@dilbert>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
All I know about the new I-OPeners is that they exist and are now priced at
about $300 and require a contract to buy their internet service for $22/mo.
I dont know if they are still hackable or not. They sold the original for
$100 figuring to make their money on the internet subscriptions which they
thought was the only thing the machines could be used for. When they went
flying off the shelves and no one was signing up for their internet service
they lost a bundle. Now that they seem to be 'guaranteeing" themselves some
profit by tripling the price and requiring the contract it seems to me they
dont really have any reason to care if anyone hack it or not. Of course,
with the price of an I-Opener rising to the price is a good used laptop
(after the contract is paid)the reason for the hack (cheap laptop) is gone
as well.
I hope they didnt make the new ones unhackable. I would kind of like to
pick one up and try my hand when they start showing up in the yard sales in
a couple of years. I suspect they are going to be as common as a used
Nintendo.
-----Original Message-----
From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM]On Behalf
Of Mike Barfield
Sent: Saturday, September 16, 2000 10:49 AM
To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
Subject: Re: Net Appliance GPS Conversation
Hi Joe,
I have one of the "old" I-Openers and have modified it with a hard drive,
faster processor. I have Windows running on it and use DeLorme Street Atlas
and
a Gamin GPS. I haven't mounted the I-Opener in the van yet because I'm in
the
middle of a Subaru conversion. I saved the van from the wreaking yard since
it
had a blown engine. So for now I just using the I-Opener like any other
computer. I don't know anything about the "new" I-Openers. Can they still be
hacked?
Mike Barfield
Tampa, FL
'84 Westy
'91 Leagcy donor car
www.geocities.com/subagon
On Sat, 16 Sep 2000, Joe L. wrote:
> I saw a new version of the "I-Opener" at Compusa the other day. That put
me
> in mind of a GPS conversion of the old type I-Opener some of your guys
were
> trying back when these first came out. Any of you guys actually get these
> things going?