[TriLUG] mostly OT: movies on the go?

[Ken MacKenzie via TriLUG]

A tablet is probably the easiest single item solution.  You just need one
with external storage. sd card.  Another option is to use an OTG hub.  I
have one of these and they work for both android and windows tablets.
Basically it connects to the micro USB port that charges the tablet.  It is
a small box that has USB and SD options on it and then you can run power to
it with another micro USB connection.  It can then both feed the external
storage to the tablet and also charge it.  I have used it to connect audio
devices to android such as USB audio interfaces and MIDI controllers.

This is the one I have:
http://www.amazon.com/Inateck-Adapter-Compact-Compatible-Smartphones/dp/B00OCBXIY8/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1437405264&sr=1-1&keywords=otg+hub

A side note on the Pi.  Why does it have to be actually wired to the car's
power directly.  And for that matter if it does why do you need to put it
on a switchable fuse.  The radio in your car has 2 power lines to the main
fuse box in the car.  One is switchable which turns it actually on, the
other is a constant.  This is why when you turn off the car your station
presets don't disappear but when you change the battery they do.

Perhaps you could wire the pi to the constant but have it detect when the
switchable goes off to shutdown.

Another solution is in stead of wiring the pi to the cars power is just to
have it on a battery pack, and have the car charge the battery pack when it
is running.

Ken

On Mon, Jul 20, 2015 at 11:06 AM, Dewey Hylton via TriLUG <trilug at trilug.org
> wrote:

> i'm seeing the exact type of feedback i expected and hoped for.
> filesystem/database corruption due to lack of proper shutdown of a rpi
> device never occurred to me. makes perfect sense, and though it saddens me
> (this was my original first choice) it'll remove the rpi from the list for
> me in this case.
>
> after more thought, i decided i really don't want to deal with the laptops
> in the car. they're overly bulky for what we need, though availability of
> the $15 power adapters does make them more attractive.
>
> the set top boxes are an interesting idea too - i typically take a roku
> with me, as it plugs right into most hotel TVs and happily plays movies
> right from a thumb drive. i could use this in the same way in the car, i
> think - assuming i could find a display i like. i'd love to know what you
> have used and liked.
>
> but overall after hearing recommendations from this list, i think the
> tablet route might be the easiest/smartest way forward. i have an ipad mini
> and an original google tablet, neither of which has a way to accept thumb
> drive or sd card. i don't mind selling the two tablets to fund two others
> which would be a better fit. so what tablets do the happy parents (and
> other users) recommend? amazon shows a whole slew of them, but some details
> such as sd card slots don't really stand out so it's hard to tell what i'm
> looking at. and an earlier comment about how to actually access the
> external storage worries me a bit too. so any specific information here
> would be warmly welcomed.
>
> thanks for all the responses! i honestly thought i'd get more
> recommendations for rpi (linux!) but what i'm hearing makes perfect sense.
> and i'm glad to be reminded i'm not the only parent having encountered this
> situation.