The Efika 5k2 is up for sale, but only in batches of 50.

http://www.genesippc.com/press.php?date=20051203

So, anyone wanna buy 49 Efika 5k2's from me?

Why? What benefit do you have from the sole board?

A complete device like that 4U2 thing would be something different, but a plain Efika board? Also keep in mind that at the moment, MorphOS does just support Efika's GFX and USB, but not networking, for example.

@ Senex

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Because I can think of so many cool things to do with it! A music/server solution in my car perhaps? An Internet Phone? I want to get down experimenting! I want to discover its size, its specifications, and its performance with my own eyes!

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"Plain" Efika board? It's a complete computer, except GFX. I have several graphics cards lying around here, and not all applications *need* graphics in the first place! The only difference AFAIK is that the "4U2" is supposed to have GFX integrated on the motherboard. And wireless/mobile stuff. On the other hand - in the end it can turn out that those things are integrated in the *device* but perhaps not specifically on the *motherboard*, who knows?

I will of course buy the "4U2" when it gets here as well.

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So MorphOS actually *do* support the Efika USB today already? Didn't expect that. How about sound then?

Of course I know that the latest public MorphOS releases came long before this Efika thing, but AFAIK some 5k2 hardware has been in the hands on MorphOS developers since early thins year. At least it *should* be so, according to the announcements made back then (but you never know of course).

Only in recent MorphOS release we got support for the optical digital out on the Pegasos. We are still waiting for the Gigabit drivers (they are ready though, AFAIK). I don't fully expect everything in the Efika to be supported by MorphOS right out of the box, right from the beginning, but I fully expect the MorphOS Team to put a public release of Efika drivers at the top of their to do list!

This hardware is the best opportunity for MorphOS that has appeared this far. Turning their backs on this hardware would in practice mean throwing in the towel, switching the lights off, and go home.

I mean, there are so many things you can use this gadget for. Take an Efika (or 4U2), MorphOS and Hollywood, and you have a foundation for a whole industry, like Scala! Put it all in some flat panel screens, with or without touch screen support, with sizes varying from a few inches to huge wide screen HDTV's. And there you go, a solid product based on MorphOS!

This board is for testing what could be done
with the 4u2 Playing around will be it's main task
I really hope that someone offers them one by one
And that the MorphOS-Team finds the time to add
networking and needed stuff ... or we could setup
a bounty for needed drivers

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At $299 each I would love to get one if we actually could get 48 other people to agree!

There is no public/enduser support planned for the EFIKA board so it
is not helpful to get over enthusiastic here.

Regards.

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What a shame....

MOS Team:

Thanks for the post. That is understandable, however is there any plans at all for possible full support?

magnetic

Dear MorphOS_team:

How does this 'no public/enduser support' for Efika differs from current support level offered for Blizzard or Pegaus 2

@ JoannaK

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"Support" is obviously not meant as "support service" in this context. Instead, "support" most likely refers to "availability of MorphOS." So, in other words, while MorphOS might be available to business customers to be used on EFIKA-powered devices, there are currently no plans for a free or commercial end user release.

Well... What can I say? It would be really nice having any Amiga(like) system on something like EFIKA, so let's hope at least Hyperion turns out to be more reasonable.

So bbrv was again too quick saying MorphOS will be available
or did he mean only the 4u2-efika ?
Thats a shame ...

I know that one should not read too much out of Genesi marketting sites, but there's no mention of any difference on Efika MorphOS availability in comparision of their other products. Efika's "Operating Systems available" points to exactly same page as or Pegasos2:s... and there's no mention of MorphOS *not* been available.

Jobbo: Is your comment about "no plans" official word or your own palm-reading ? (just to be sure..)



koszer: That's a bit nasty thing to say.. Morphos at least IS available for all BPPC/CSPPC users (Unlike the 'certain other beta-system') and there's hardware on sale (and delivery) that is (allmost) up to date and runs this OS quite well...

[ Edited by JoannaK on 2005/12/12 15:12 ]

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The Pegasos has always been underpositioned, that is what has prevented it from real success.

This Efika will be the *first* product ever since the demise of Commodore with a clear positioning, and great chances of reaching success through a numerous applications based on it.

For the first time ever there comes a hardware which could really make a *difference* for MorphOS!

And you won't support it?



OK then I just want to ask this question: since you are denying MorphOS the chances of running on *this* new hardware, will you also deny it to run on *any* future hardware? Has MorphOS turned into yet another AROS, a project only interesting to the handful of coders involved, with no chance of making an impact on the world other than in some peoples pipe dreams?

The Pegasos2 is great hardware, but it has always been hopelessly underpositioned. However, it has functioned as a great platform for development, both for OS's and applications, and as such it could function as a springboard to other, better positioned hardware that can target some *real* markets, like the Efika/"4U2". But if MorphOS isn't going anywhere, then what's the point with it all? What's the point with developing software applications for it? what's the point with the bounties? what's the point in caring for it, promoting it and trying to get it seen?

Thanks for making your post though. There are not many posts from the "MorphOS Team", but at least I must say it's nice of you to let people know you are dropping it before people goes out to buy the stuff ...

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AFAIK, MorphOS *does* run on the 5200. But that's not necessarily the same thing as OS drivers (and future updates to those) for every single onboard peripheral, which I think many can agree is needed for an "end-user version".

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The MPC5200 is a System on Chip, and the "4U2" is essentially the same thing as the Efika. The only difference is whether the GFX chip is slotted or soldered on board. From an OS perspective this doesn't matter, it's all the same.

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[ Edited by Velcro_SP 05.10.2011 - 17:05 ]

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Hyperions OS is *not* MorphOS, and it's MorphOS that at least *I* want!

I respect the effort of their project, but I feel that Hyperions OS4 has been redundant from the start. Amiga Inc never cared about that kind of products, it was only something that got merely incidentally started towards Amiga Incs "end of the line" as a wild venture, despite the fact that there already was MorphOS and Pegasos. Maybe it was a spasmic move by Fleecy/McBill to "get back" to some people they felt pissed off with, maybe it was something they did in order to keep the sheep herd quiet in the storm a little longer, while hoping to ride the storm out? I don't know, but what I *do* know is that Amiga Inc never really cared about it, not even half heartedly, and MorphOS and the Pegasos already existed and had come some way. MorphOS had already acquired all the best standards of everything (MUI, CGFX, SFS, Poseidon, Turbo Print, etc) as well as the most talanted coders, and it had come a long way already. Eyetech and Hyperion, not scared about redundancy or community splits, started up their projects and pretty much got what was left over, and then they sent the Friedens for some OS programming course at a University. The result was a few really strange design decisions (IMHO), less Amiga compatibility than MorphOS, and second hand choice of already existing solutions, and yet another OS competing about the attention from clever third party developers.

Again, please don't get me wrong. I follow Hyperions bold OS project with great interest, and I will probably buy some device running it (if some ever comes) just for the sake of it.

But it can of course never *replace* MorphOS!

@ TMHG

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Its price and the available processor speeds position the Pegasos quite clearly in the market space. When you talk about "being underpositioned", you should keep in mind that you are referring to a general purpose mainboard. Think again, please.

"Cool Computing" (i.e. silent) is about as far as you can go when you try to position a general purpose mainboard in the heads of end consumers. Too bad that the Pegasos2 is only available with CPU cards that include fans at the moment.


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As was mentioned last week, MorphOS does run on EFIKA to a degree but the functionality is so limited that it is not really useable as a desktop OS at the moment. Why don't you just relax and wait until the first EFIKA boards are delivered to end consumers?

Some things just have to develop over time.

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Yes, some new passively cooled cpu module could gain interest. Look, AOpen are selling their pentium m boards because of just *one* reason: They offer a low energy, low noise solution.
These AOpen boards (+cpu) are not much cheaper than the PegII is. And thexy sell those boards quite well.
I guess a 1.x Ghz passively cooled PegII could get some more attention. Silent computing gets more and more momentum.

@takemehomegrandma
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Read again paying a bit more attention the message from the MorphOS_Team and the reply from JoBBo. No public/enduser support means that you can't buy an Efika and go register at http://support.morphos-team.net just like if you had bought a Pegasos 2, and be eligible to freely download MorphOS for Efika. Probably the Efika will be equipped with a dedicated OEM version of MOS at some point in the future, if there'll be a need for it for some particular applications.
As it stands now, MorphOS_Team just clarified the things a bit, because "someone" at the beginning of this thread was planning to buy 50 of these devices to run MOS on, but this "someone" overlooked the fact that you need to get MOS for Efika somewhere, since, as it stands now, it's not public. Hence the "there's no need to get overenthusiast here".
@Velcro_SP
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Click on the "Profile" button for said user, and you'll get his history - this is the first forum post, but this user posted six news so far, and looking at them your doubts should automagically disappear.

Kind regards,
Andrea

@takemehomegrandma

u Genegeek !!!

If you read the MOS Team post properly you should see that it does not
say 'MorphOS will never support this board'. It says there are
(currently) no plans to support it. I don't think it would be good for
MorphOS if people started organising some purchase of 50-board
batches, when there is no fully functional MorphOS for it. Paying for
hardware now and expecting the OS 'later' is something I'd like to
avoid for our platform!

Let's wait and see - if this board becomes available for consumer
purchase, maybe there will be a MOS version for it. But until the MOS
Team says so, don't rely on it.

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Actually, it doesn't even say that. It says that there's no planned PUBLIC support. You can't buy the Efika and download MOS at support.morphos-team.net . That's perfectly undersrtandable. However this doesn't mean that MOS (in some flavour) won't run on the Efika: it's just not for us ATM.

Kind regards,
Andrea