VIA now offering unofficial Mozilla OS

VIA Embedded's APC range of computers was launched with the Android OS. They're soon to offer the unofficial version of the new Mozilla OS called Boot 2 Gecko.

The $79 APC rock and the $99 APC Paper are beautifully designed, embedded platforms, offering a quick way for developers to develop new software for operating system such as Android and Mozilla. More at Liliputing.com

Case mod memory lane #7: Bender case

I actually saw this case mod in person at QuakeCon in 2005. It looks more like a movie prop than a computer. The dimensions are just right and the eyes and mouth have the right personality. This is one mini-ITX case mod where the VIA motherboard inside is not the star of the show!

"After the platform was made, everything went like a dream. The parts slotted right inside. I can thank myself for this due to careful planning and taking my time with the project. It actually took 3 months longer than planned." - Mini-ITX.com

Case mod memory lane #6: The Spidercase

This mod is certainly one of the most creative and unique. Rather than putting a VIA EPIA Mini-ITX motherboard inside something that already exists, this mod was made from scratch. It was not without cost ...

"After cutting openings for the legs, I had to figure out how and what to make the legs with. Originally I had planned for the aluminum look but finding a cheap CNC cutter + blocks of aluminum in only a few days seemed nearly impossible. So I decided to go with my reliable source of acrylic at www.tapplastics.com. Since there was a local store within a mile of my house, I quickly made some templates and ran off to get some acrylic. About halfway through cutting the legs out, I stuck my middle fingertip into a table saw and found out first hand why people wear gloves. One stitch and 3 hours later I was back in the garage cutting again. I'll spare you the pictures. The thighs were 1-1/4" thick and only 6 were made at the time because the template picture I was going off showed only 6 legs on the spider. Later I changed it to 8. As I was cutting the lower portion of the legs, I routed my thumb and figured out for the second time why I should learn things the first time (wear gloves!!!@#). Since I couldn't use my right hand for the last few leg parts, I took them to Tap Plastics and they gladly cut out the shapes I needed cheap. This was after they laughed at me for cutting my hand for the 2nd time."

More on Mini-ITX.com.

VIA case mod memory lane #5: The teddybear

It's all class this week with a look back at the computer case mod that has a teddy bear stuffed to the brim with a VIA EPIA-based computer.

Was that the best place for the power cord? Seriously though, it was good thinking to include a fan on the top. VIA embedded motherboards do run without passive cooling, but maybe not when they're inside a fur coat. More on Mini-ITX.com