Bernard Leach reports that he has gotten uClinux running on the Apple iPod . . .

“Features and robustness are limited at this point but it is bootable and has basic framebuffer and audio support. The IDE driver is also suitably working,” according to Leach.

Why do this? Will it turn the iPod into a PDA?

“No one said anything about a PDA. This is all about running Linux not converting the iPod into a PDA,” writes Leach.

At this point, the project is very young and lots of work remains to be done. Additionally, there are apparently some interesting obstacles and challenges.

“Unfortunately the iPod is considered a 'closed-platform' by Apple and technical info is virtually non-existant so this has involved a fair bit of guess work, reverse-engineering and experimentation,” Leach continues. “But the end result is a Linux kernel (based on the uClinux port) running on the 'Pod.”

As of February 3, 2003 a project website is now established on SourceForge. There, you can find more information about the iPod Linux project, including screenshots, documentation, downloads, and the latest project news.

“I hope that this initial port provides some inspiration to others out there to see what more they can get the iPod to do!,” adds Leach.

A story about the iPod Linux project has also been published on CNET. It is entitled “Penguin-powered iPod? Sort of”.

 
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