

A complete Internet web server built into an Ethernet (RJ-45) jack - tzm
http://www.inventables.com/technologies/miniature-web-server

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tylerritchie
Off topic-ish:

Is inventables actually just linkbait garbage which happens to also sell
things? They never list the vendor of their products, the prices are always
high (often twice that of retail), and they never have any technical details
or volume pricing.

Oh, you're interested in this Sorghum based "Non-Toxic Decorative Wood
Composite?" [1] Well, you can buy a 4"x3" sample for $15 but they won't tell
you who makes it (Kieri USA [2] does) or the cost for boards.

The manufacturer is usually only a Google search away, and I'm willing to pay
a premium for a small sample, but I'm not going to order even samples unless I
can get more detailed information. Does Inventables actually serve any purpose
other than to act as linkbait for a bunch of interesting products?

[1] [http://www.inventables.com/technologies/non-toxic-
decorative...](http://www.inventables.com/technologies/non-toxic-decorative-
wood-composite) [2] <http://www.kireiusa.com>

~~~
ChuckMcM
Yes, basically. Its a storefront for someone who sells at 100% markup stuff
you can get elsewhere.

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sethg
OK, it’s got an Ethernet jack and a Web server on one end. What’s on the other
end? If I were designing a clothes dryer or coffee machine and wanted to
Internet-enable it, how would I hook up the signals from the control panel to
the jack? Is there some standard bus or serial protocol that appliance
manufacturers use for their onboard computers?

~~~
jerryr
It's a manufacturer-specific serial protocol--NOT standard. You can find the
command reference here: <http://www.lantronix.com/pdf/XPort-Pro_CR.pdf>

But, if you're really interested in internet-enabling a new product, you'd
likely be better off selecting a microcontroller with built-in Ethernet (or an
Arduino with Ethernet shield, if prototyping). In my experience, products like
the XPort were better for manufacturers looking to internet-enable a legacy
device with a free serial port.

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ErrantX
Hmm. $200.

You can get an Arduino with an ethernet shield for about $75-80.

This does not appear to have any detailed tech specs on the linked page,detail
on customisability/programmability or on the interconnects offered. But even
if we allow it some leniency on that I figure an Arduino is still the no
brainer choice :)

~~~
tesseract
It looks like a Lantronix (<http://lantronix.com>) XPort, which can be had for
much less than $200 from various electronics suppliers. For example, I just
found the XP1001000-03R variant for $51 (qty. 1) at Arrow.

As far as the product being designed for hobbyists - hmm - it doesn't really
have that feel to it. I think the intended market is more along the lines of
one-off or low production volume industrial control hardware, test equipment,
etc. One use I've seen documented was as an out-of-band control channel on a
very high end FPGA board.

~~~
reemrevnivek
A classmate of mine (Junior-level EE) used the Lantronix with an ATmega 8-bit
controller. Lantronix sent him some Java, and the thing just worked.

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imr
Certainly not new, I know digi.com sells a lot of these things since at least
2008. Look for the Digi Connect products. The interfaces on the other side can
be as simple as RS-232.

~~~
Isamu
They've been on the market for a lot longer than that, actually. But it looks
like some incremental improvements have been made over the years, quite
interesting really.

[http://www.digi.com/products/wireless-wired-embedded-
solutio...](http://www.digi.com/products/wireless-wired-embedded-
solutions/solutions-on-module/digi-connect/)

[http://www.lantronix.com/device-networking/embedded-
device-s...](http://www.lantronix.com/device-networking/embedded-device-
servers/xport.html)

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DuckPaddle
That appears to be a Lantronics XPORT, been using them for over 7 years.
Interesting they are selling them for over 200 we buy them for 70 each, Now
that's markup....

~~~
jerryr
Yeah, looks like an XPort. Maybe this is the evaluation kit, which comes with
the carrier board for ~$150-200. It's been a while since I used one (probably
7 years ago), but the serial interface was rather limited. To develop firmware
for the XPort itself, you needed an SDK only available under NDA for customers
they were willing to support (we were such a customer and the SDK was
reasonably usable). It was a cool idea & a great way to Ethernet-enable serial
devices, but nowadays something like the Arduino with Ethernet shield is
probably more accessible.

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grandalf
I wish someone would design a firewall that is just an RJ-45 jack with a few
dip switches to open/close commonly needed ports, the rest closed by default.

~~~
pixdamix
There's was a company who tried this kind of thing: Selling a wireless card
which embedded a linux powered firewall:

<http://www.yoggie.com/New_Yoggie/Welcome.html> <http://www.yoggie-
gatekeeper.co.uk/>

I don't know but it seems they failed a funding round.

~~~
zdw
The "Killer Nic" is semi-sucessful in the gaming arena:

<http://www.bigfootnetworks.com/killer-nic-m1/>

It basically is linux on a NIC card that does packet reordering for lower
latency, with varying degrees of success depending the situation.

They're also moving into wireless:

[http://www.bigfootnetworks.com/bigfoot-networks-killer-
wirel...](http://www.bigfootnetworks.com/bigfoot-networks-killer-wireless-n-
adaptors-deliver-breakthrough-wi-fi-performance-for-notebooks/)

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nabilt
Interesting product. Doing a quick google search I have seen prices under
$100. Unfortunately, it looks like it only has serial out.

I have been looking for a small single board linux computer (preferably open
source) to use as a gateway and/or web server for embedded projects. I would
like something in between an Arduino and Beagleboard.

Arduino is great for running simple web servers, but it would be nice to have
a Linux OS with some familiar tools to be able to build more complex web apps.
Products like the Beagleboard fill this need, but they are complex and
expensive if you decide to bundle it with your product.

If you don't mind external hosting you can always send your data to the cloud,
but I like the simplicity of a self contained product.

The closest I have found to these requirement is at Dangerous Prototypes (sill
in development).

    
    
      Web Platform v2
      - 210MHz ARM926             - 2x SPI
      - Hopefully 2 layers!       - Linux 
      - 4x USART                  - 2x 10 bit a/d
      - ethernet                  - < $100? 
      

Forum:
[http://dangerousprototypes.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=24&...](http://dangerousprototypes.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=24&t=935&start=180#p16876)

Wiki:
[http://dangerousprototypes.com/docs/Robert:_AT91SAM9260_Linu...](http://dangerousprototypes.com/docs/Robert:_AT91SAM9260_Linux_development_board)

~~~
noonespecial
Try a SheevaPlug. Its a little ARM with a full-on debian install. About $80.

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SheevaPlug>

Or if you're into x86 try something from pcEngines. A bit more expensive, but
no crosscompiler required to build packages on your desktop.

<http://www.pcengines.ch/>

~~~
nabilt
Ahh yes. I forgot to mention that. Plug computers seem like the best option
right now. Thanks.

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mhp
I sure hope its IPv6 if everyone is going to start putting web servers into
their socks.

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drdaeman
That's not RJ45, it's properly called 8P8C.

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philthy
This is one of the smaller devices like this I've seen. I am really curious
about the photographic opportunities that could be open with such a device.
Footage could be directly streamed online via ethernet cable connected
directly to the camera...

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brianbreslin
could this be used the same way those wall outlet/pluggable web connected
computers were for hacking networks? i.e. you replace someone's existing
ethernet wall jack with this one w/a server in it, and they would NEVER find
your machine piggy backing off their internal network.

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ashishb4u
does it means that interface jacks have not advanced even a bit in the last
few decades??

~~~
iclelland
If you're referring to the physical jack, then, essentially, no. They were
standardised in the 1970s, and the form factor hasn't changed at all, while
electronic parts have become much much smaller over the same time frame.

There may have been advances within the connector itself, to improve the
signal-carrying properties of the internal connections, but the overall design
of the connector is basically unchanged.

