Asus eeePC Mod Workshop [Archive]

DJ Jackalope

03-06-2008, 01:00 PM

Deviant and I were kicking this idea around a little bit after I'd taken apart my Asus to see its guts.

The eeePC is seeming to be the new ricecar of the laptop world.

Actually getting to see mods and stuff might be an inspiration to some of the defcon attendees who haven't even considered doing things like that to their computers.
I would be down with helping run a workshop with moding the eeePCs.

I just wanted to put the idea out there.

haden

03-07-2008, 12:27 AM

ive been thinking about getting one of these so i think this would be a great idea to help with some of us who might not really want to start hacking it up till we have a better idea of what we want to do to it

DJ Jackalope

03-07-2008, 04:24 PM

Other idea: would be just to have a eeePC user's meet or something if we can spare the room space. Ideally I'd have some sort of agenda for us to check out and cover, maybe painting and other customizing as well as software/firmware/hardware mods.

haden

03-08-2008, 12:33 AM

sounds great im kinda wondering what would be good to use for the painting, like an enamel or maybe just some kind of cheap spraypaint

DaKahuna

03-08-2008, 05:33 AM

I will have mine with me for sure. Have been looking at some of the hacks that others have done - especially like the one which added bluetooth and a 16GB flash memory. However, am not sure my soldering skills, unused low these many years, are up to the challenge.

haden

03-09-2008, 01:12 AM

im thinking about keeping mine simple but upgrading the ram and more memory. im just going to get one of the 2gigs since they are so cheap. does any one else find it strange that asus doesnt seem to have an online purchase program? was on their site for about an hour and if they do sell them from the site i could not find it.

edit: also i cant seem to find a list of compatible ram for it. i know it uses DDR2 667 but i read an article that said corsair isnt compatible.

DaKahuna

03-09-2008, 09:01 PM

Be careful if you get the "Surf" model. I have read reports that the memory in those is soldered into place and you can't upgrade the RAM without having to unsolder and resolder.

I have the 4 GB modem which originally came with 512MB RAM. I ordered a 1GB upgrade module from NewEgg when I bought mine and took about 30 seconds to do the upgrade.

haden

03-10-2008, 03:58 AM

what brand of card did you get? and how much faster does it run with the extra ram?

DJ Jackalope

03-10-2008, 04:07 PM

I just figured out that the white 4G surfs (and maybe the regular model) don't come with the nice memory upgrade door at the bottom of the computer. The black one does. Go figure.

I would also exercise caution on buying the 2G. I don't know a ton about the availibility of SSHDs but i would imagine the 4G would be worth the extra $ for the headache later.

DaKahuna

03-11-2008, 08:30 PM

what brand of card did you get? and how much faster does it run with the extra ram?

The memory is Crucial and I have no idea. I never ran it with the 512MB in. I got the 1GB SIMM with the box and first thing i did was replace the RAM before I even booted it up the first time.

yamamushi

04-08-2008, 03:40 AM

I'd love to help out with this, I've modded my eeepc to have a touch screen which isn't very hard, but it's still nice to be able to play oblivion with touchscreen.

renderman

04-08-2008, 03:13 PM

I think that rather than a workshop, at least a meetup and comparison of notes is in order. I would think the wireless village would be a good place for this? Yes, no?

DaKahuna

04-08-2008, 09:07 PM

I think that rather than a workshop, at least a meetup and comparison of notes is in order. I would think the wireless village would be a good place for this? Yes, no?

That works for me. I will certainly have my EEE PC with me.

Grifter

04-08-2008, 10:01 PM

I believe this is the RAM that works well with the eeePC:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148060

I haven't purchased one yet because I'm trying to decide whether I really want one, or if I'm just caught up in the hotness and hack appeal. Are they really that sweet?

I messed around with Major's when he had it with him at the bar in Amsterdam, he'd thrown BackTrack on it, which made me swoon, but I'm trying to decide how much use I'll get out of it versus my standard laptop.

I literally have one sitting in a shopping cart on Newegg right now, along with a 2GB Stick of RAM, and a 16GB SDHC card. Should anything stop me from clicking "Checkout"?

haden

04-09-2008, 04:11 AM

I'd love to help out with this, I've modded my eeepc to have a touch screen which isn't very hard, but it's still nice to be able to play oblivion with touchscreen.

yamamushi. would you be interested in a little side project at con? i want to add the touch screen mod to mine and integrade it with a gps for use in my car. think of it as not only a car pc but one that will be able to flash and reprogram the cars computer at will after some more mods to the car. video, internet, games, gps, music, perfomance mods on the go while in the car, all in a nice small package.

i just would like some help from someone whos already done the touchscreen mod.

Thorn

04-09-2008, 05:51 AM

I think that rather than a workshop, at least a meetup and comparison of notes is in order. I would think the wireless village would be a good place for this? Yes, no?

Yes. What the hell. We may end up as the "Hardware Village", but let's host this and other projects until they at least get off the ground.

At least the Asus eeePC has a wireless tie-in. :wink:

renderman

04-09-2008, 10:37 AM

Deviant Ollam

04-09-2008, 11:05 AM

We're something like 90% certain that Grifter is planning to have adjoining, full size (aka "double") skyboxes for both the Wireless Village and the Lockpick Village. So space will hopefully not be an issue at all this year and you can have a whole corner for eeePC mods.

My biggest advice... try to put up really large signs, maybe ones that can be suspended from the ceiling tile grid somehow. Anything to get the throngs of people moved to where they want to be and not in each other's way. What is attendance like for you guys? We are always totally slammed in the LPVillage (at least, that's been the case with previous years)

theprez98

04-09-2008, 11:26 AM

What is attendance like for you guys? We are always totally slammed in the LPVillage (at least, that's been the case with previous years)
From the few times I walked back and forth, we didn't have quite the traffic you did, but that being said, it was busy almost non-stop. People were showing up an hour before we even opened up and staying late. It was crazy.

DJ Jackalope

04-09-2008, 12:56 PM

Thorn

04-09-2008, 01:51 PM

Thank you Church of WiFi...

I like the signage idea..... Does anyone remember if the ceilings in the place are panels so maybe we could hang signs from the ceiling? Do we run into trouble with having to hire hotel staff or something dumb like that if we hang things?

I would imagine i would just set up a couple hour block for one day or something (unless you guys think it would work better if it was done from like 1-3p on both fri/sat/sun?) That way we'd just invade on space for a couple hours and then reset the room...
You're welcome. Will you spin some custom 'church music" for us? :biggrin:

Hanging stuff from the ceilings is usually problematic, due to fire regulations regarding sprinklers. But I found a great solution to signs on the walls: Clear duct tape. It sticks like crazy, but no gooey white residue is left behind.

As far as sessions, what's the preference of you guys that have Asus eeePC's? One long session? Or several sessions going from beginner > medium > expert?

I'm with Grifter, I may just have to get one of the eeePC's now...

DJ Jackalope

04-09-2008, 02:02 PM

Ha, who knows about the tunes! Would be fun to arrange, but equipment will probably be an issue. Maybe we can ipod/speaker system it.

I am not sure about the kind of sessions. I am actually kind of wondering how to put out a request for people who would be interested in teaching something. I haven't quite had the chance yet to figure out some mods that would be fun and easy to do at a con.

I'll try and get some of those up soon. And yes, you should buy an eeepc. And why isn't Asus commissioning me, I convinced a local high school teacher that he needed them for his classroom the other day.

You're welcome. Will you spin some custom 'church music" for us? :biggrin:

Hanging stuff from the ceilings is usually problematic, due to fire regulations regarding sprinklers. But I found a great solution to signs on the walls: Clear duct tape. It sticks like crazy, but no gooey white residue is left behind.

As far as sessions, what's the preference of you guys that have Asus eeePC's? One long session? Or several sessions going from beginner > medium > expert?

I'm with Grifter, I may just have to get one of the eeePC's now...

theprez98

04-10-2008, 05:46 AM

I'm with Grifter, I may just have to get one of the eeePC's now...
I won $58 in the office NCAA Tournament pool. Now I just need to save up a few more dollars... :wink:

DaKahuna

04-10-2008, 05:55 PM

At least the Asus eeePC has a wireless tie-in. :wink:

More than one. With the BT3 beta I am running on an 8 GB SD card, I am doing both 802.11 and Bluetooth with mine.

Comes up with some neat code or hacks for either and maybe we can use mine to play with.

signcarver

04-14-2008, 01:55 AM

Yes. What the hell. We may end up as the "Hardware Village", but let's host this and other projects until they at least get off the ground.

At least the Asus eeePC has a wireless tie-in. :wink:

I noticed on the main site and here in the forums the "new" hardware hacking village. Is this new area from this idea and adjacent/part of the wireless village or something different. I haven't seen a post there yet but was wondering if this eeePC mod should be part of that.

theprez98

04-14-2008, 05:45 AM

I noticed on the main site and here in the forums the "new" hardware hacking village. Is this new area from this idea and adjacent/part of the wireless village or something different. I haven't seen a post there yet but was wondering if this eeePC mod should be part of that.
The Asus Eee PC mod workshop will be hosted by the Wireless Village. We're also looking to host other hardware hacking projects that don't yet have a space.

Thorn

04-14-2008, 08:18 AM

I noticed on the main site and here in the forums the "new" hardware hacking village. Is this new area from this idea and adjacent/part of the wireless village or something different. I haven't seen a post there yet but was wondering if this eeePC mod should be part of that.

The Asus Eee PC mod workshop will be hosted by the Wireless Village. We're also looking to host other hardware hacking projects that don't yet have a space.

Right, we already have a sub-committee going on this.

Deviant Ollam

04-14-2008, 08:31 AM

Maybe you'll have to expand your village name one year if the scope of hardware keeps growing. :wink:

Thorn

04-14-2008, 09:34 AM

Maybe you'll have to expand your village name one year if the scope of hardware keeps growing. :wink:

We were actually talking about that. Just of the sale of continuity we're sticking with Wireless Village, at least for the moment. We may do some handouts or something saying "Wireless Village: Wireless and a whole lot more!' or something along those lines just so people know.

DJ Jackalope

04-14-2008, 11:32 AM

Wireless Village, home of homeless tech.

converge

04-14-2008, 02:00 PM

And thus spake the people of Pwnshire.

DJ Jackalope

04-24-2008, 05:23 PM

Has anyone painted their eee yet? I'm about to, can't decide on what to put on it!

Deviant Ollam

04-24-2008, 06:52 PM

Has anyone painted their eee yet? I'm about to, can't decide on what to put on it!pink with hello kitty! no, it's not an over-used reference at all in this world... surely hasn't been beaten to death yet. :wink:

heh, but seriously... the more obscure and non-fuzzy a thing is, the more awesome a hello kitty decoration theme is. if i had a huge collection of old Jeeps (and hopefully one day when i'm independently wealthy i will) one will be crazy J-Pop teenage girl hello kitty style.

and then, of course, there's also this awesomeness...

http://www.glamguns.com/hk47.jpg

valanx

04-24-2008, 09:03 PM

Has anyone painted their eee yet? I'm about to, can't decide on what to put on it!

What are you painting with?

DJ Jackalope

04-24-2008, 09:38 PM

What are you painting with?

Will probably be airbrush or spray paint. Am a bit worried about getting spray particles inside my computer, but I know that's why tape was invented.

My dell desktop case seems pretty happy with spray paint, so will probably go with that if i have to cheap out. Noid mentioned some paint to me this weekend which I will have to track down and probably try out. Will post more when I remember what it is.

valanx

04-24-2008, 10:05 PM

I don't have an eeepc around to look at and see how easy it is to take apart, if it isn't a pain I'd do that, it makes for a better end result. The last laptop I painted I used acrylics on, because I wanted to put some texture along with the colors.

I thought about putting some metal leaf and then clear coating the surface, but that was in a different country and I didn't really have access to everything I wanted for art projects.

DJ Jackalope

04-29-2008, 07:20 PM

Go Go valanx!

I just wanted to check in with everyone to see if anyone ended up with a new machine or has seen a new trick they were interested in checking out. But mainly, I just wanted to say *hi!*

astcell

04-30-2008, 04:56 AM

Now I want an Eee.

che

05-01-2008, 09:29 AM

I rather have the Hello Kitty AK. :-)

Deviant Ollam

05-01-2008, 02:46 PM

I rather have the Hello Kitty AK. :-)i have actually given serious consideration to doing a wickedly outrageous paint job when i take one of my AR lowers and get a parts kit to build a full rifle. after all, since it's in pieces anyway... why not go for the gold right there? the folks at Duracoat (http://www.duracoat-firearm-finishes.com) now have a whole line of shades they call the "Bloomberg Collection (http://www.houtsenterprises.net/dur_bloomberg.html)" which includes pink. how amazingly secure in my manhood would i clearly be if i showed up at the next DC-Shoot with a Hello Kitty M-4? :biggrin:

che

05-02-2008, 01:16 PM

Check out http://www.jimsgunsupply.com/index2.html for some ideas then.. I think they were one of the first to actually make and sell them. I'm sure not to many folks would question the manhood of a guy holding a pink AK.. It may be pink, but it is still an AK.

i have actually given serious consideration to doing a wickedly outrageous paint job when i take one of my AR lowers and get a parts kit to build a full rifle. after all, since it's in pieces anyway... why not go for the gold right there? the folks at Duracoat (http://www.duracoat-firearm-finishes.com) now have a whole line of shades they call the "Bloomberg Collection (http://www.houtsenterprises.net/dur_bloomberg.html)" which includes pink. how amazingly secure in my manhood would i clearly be if i showed up at the next DC-Shoot with a Hello Kitty M-4? :biggrin:

DJ Jackalope

06-26-2008, 02:23 PM

EEE PC Mod / EEE local users group (n theory) will be happening 1-3 on the Saturday of Defcon. It'll be at the Church of Wifi Skybox.... bring your pink AKs. I wanna see.

valanx

06-26-2008, 05:37 PM

mine should be here tomorrow, hopefully I have some time to work on it. At least cosmetically.

Also hopefully I'm able to check it out, isn't Gringo Warrior going on around that time?

DJ Jackalope

06-27-2008, 05:39 PM

Gringo should be in a room nearby... not too sure on the timing tho, will have to consult Deviant. Both of which I am assuming will be pretty "drop in", so if both are running, it won't be too much of a disturbance in the force.

Deviant Ollam

06-27-2008, 05:52 PM

Gringo should be in a room nearby... not too sure on the timing tho, will have to consult Deviant.Gringo Warrior is taking place on the ground floor level in the contest room from either noon or 13:00 until about 16:30 or 17:00. there will be a final half hour where the game course is moved up on to that center stage and the top 5 finalists can take a second shot for an improved score.

DJ Jackalope

06-27-2008, 09:40 PM

Hmmmmm...
may end up switching the Mod time around a bit...maybe an hour earlier. Gotta check with the Church of WiFi for their events list as well...

valkyrie

06-29-2008, 02:55 AM

Hmmmmm...
may end up switching the Mod time around a bit...maybe an hour earlier. Gotta check with the Church of WiFi for their events list as well...

Oooooo! Do I have to have an Asus to come out and play, or can I just bring one of the XO's?

And keep your paws off of "Hello Kitty!" She is MINE I tell you! MINEMINEMINEMINEMINE!

:-D

DaKahuna

06-29-2008, 05:40 PM

Oooooo! Do I have to have an Asus to come out and play, or can I just bring one of the XO's?

Depends. Are you going to play nice?

LosT

07-01-2008, 11:41 AM

I'll have my laser etched AsusEEE there, haven't done any good mods yet though....

LosT

incudie

07-02-2008, 10:32 AM

Sweet will bring mine too (now If we can just find someone with a laser etching machine to come as well...)

mage2

07-02-2008, 02:37 PM

LosT, did you get yours etched at the makerfare in cali?
I am so hoping they drag it to the austin one.

DJ Jackalope

07-03-2008, 09:54 AM

I'll have my laser etched AsusEEE there, haven't done any good mods yet though....

LosT

Do you have any pictures of it yet?

barry99705

07-06-2008, 02:37 PM

ADATA AD2667002GOS 2Gb works. It's basically the cheapest ram I could find that was compatible with my MacBook. Then I got the eee and threw it in that and put the 1Gb back in the MacBook.

DJ Jackalope

07-10-2008, 10:19 AM

Has anyone done any painting or anything on their EEE?

Thorn

07-10-2008, 12:36 PM

Has anyone done any painting or anything on their EEE?

No, but I found a nice neoprene sleeve on Amazon, as well as a silicon skin.

DaKahuna

07-10-2008, 07:57 PM

Has anyone done any painting or anything on their EEE?

Just stickers .. Hack Naked. Internet != Port 80

[Syntax]

07-10-2008, 11:12 PM

Im having the "how much use will I get out of it" debate as well.

Thorn

07-11-2008, 07:12 AM

;96719']Im having the "how much use will I get out of it" debate as well.I'm finding for "quick network stuff" at clients' places the eeePC 701 is perfect:

It cold boots almost as quickly as my full size laptop comes out of standby.
The price is so cheap in comparison to the full size laptop that I'm not too worried about it getting damaged.
Between Xandros' "Advanced Mode" (a real desktop), and Back|Track 3 on an SDHC card, I've got almost all the software tools I need for working at a client's place.
It's lighter to haul around and the small size makes it easier to use in confined spaces like server rooms. The light weight is especially nice when you have to stand at a rack, plugged into a patch panel and hold the notebook.

One last note: Universally, women have looked at it and said something like "That is the cutest little thing. It's so tiny!" Those are not the word most guys like to hear from a woman. :frown: But in this context I guess it's OK. :wink:

For anyone who's interested, a few of us have started a eeePC Hacking mail list. If you want to join, send a subscribe message to eeehacker [AT] blackthornsystems [DOT] com . It's not overly active, but we've had some good tips get exchanged.

lil_freak

07-11-2008, 10:10 AM

I
One last note: Universally, women have looked at it and said something like "That is the cutest little thing. It's so tiny!" Those are not the word most guys like to hear from a woman. :frown: But in this context I guess it's OK. :wink:

Maybe it's because I'm not like other women, but I think the first words to come out of my mouth about the eeePC were: "Sweet, what things can I get away with now?"

For anyone who's interested, a few of us have started a eeePC Hacking mail list. If you want to join, send a subscribe message to eeehacker [AT] blackthornsystems [DOT] com . It's not overly active, but we've had some good tips get exchanged.
:biggrin:When I get home sometime later on today I'll get my subscription message off.

DJ Jackalope

07-15-2008, 12:34 PM

theprez98

07-15-2008, 02:44 PM

I dropped mine the other day from an "OMG I just killed my laptop height" and the thing could have cared less. That whole let kids play with them thing is true.

Someone said the Best Buy has them now.
Yes, they do. (http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?_dyncharset=ISO-8859-1&id=pcat17071&type=page&st=eeepc&sc=Global&cp=1&nrp=15&sp=&qp=&list=n&iht=y&usc=All+Categories&ks=960)

Logik

07-30-2008, 02:24 PM

For anyone who's interested, a few of us have started a eeePC Hacking mail list. If you want to join, send a subscribe message to eeehacker [AT] blackthornsystems [DOT] com . It's not overly active, but we've had some good tips get exchanged.
:cool: thanks

DJ Jackalope

07-31-2008, 09:52 PM

Heyza! Just saying that I'm excited to see what is out there that people have been working on!

yotta

08-05-2008, 06:03 PM

I am SO in on this :) I just got an EeePC 900.

Partison

08-25-2008, 03:01 PM

Newegg has them too, a lot cheaper than best buy.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&N=40000032&Description=EEE%20PC&name=Laptops%20%2f%20Notebooks

Cheers

DJ Jackalope

08-25-2008, 05:06 PM

Newegg has them too, a lot cheaper than best buy.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&N=40000032&Description=EEE%20PC&name=Laptops%20%2f%20Notebooks

Cheers

Saves ya on tax, too!

Partison

08-25-2008, 06:36 PM

Saves ya on tax, too!

If you're not in NJ or CA that is ;-). But even with tax it's still cheaper than best buy....hmmm hard decision.

nerdgir1

09-04-2008, 07:17 PM

Amazon is carrying them now too. Tax if you are in WA but the price is still pretty low. Newegg seems to have raised their price on the 1000H! I got mine for $560 incl second day air but now they are about $100 more. Even with sales tax it was still cheaper to get my boyfriend one off Amazon ($4 overnight with Amazon Prime).

I haven't done anything physical to mine yet, still looking for ideas. Spent the first weekend with mine installing Ubuntu on it and configuring all the function keys. Still haven't enabled onboard LAN...

Partison

09-05-2008, 10:26 AM

Amazon is carrying them now too. Tax if you are in WA but the price is still pretty low. Newegg seems to have raised their price on the 1000H!

Yeah I saw that when I was about to order mine. I hopped over to pricewatch and found it for $525, fluke of some sort to find that price I guess.

I haven't done anything physical to mine yet, still looking for ideas. Spent the first weekend with mine installing Ubuntu on it and configuring all the function keys. Still haven't enabled onboard LAN...

I haven't monkied with the onboard LAN yet but I was playing with the wireless card last night and come to find out the RT2860 doesn't support packet injection. A lot of forums are suggesting you just swap out the card for one that does. I opened up mine last night and it looks like a super easy swap.

Cheers

noid

09-05-2008, 02:18 PM

Target.com has the 2GB 'Surf' EEE PC models for 250 bucks. Just thought I'd pass it along. I was thinking of getting one, but I'm currently preoccupied with upgrading my ruggedized notebook.

renderman

09-11-2008, 05:26 PM

If anyone is looking to easily add bluetooth, a local store had these on for $25:

http://www.directron.com/btdv201.html

It's as small as it looks and works in Linux. Could probably be easily adapted for internal mounting

It's a CSR radio and works with the Bluez stack. No digging out a noticeable adapter when I want to be a jerk in an airport!