dhis2-users team mailing list archive

[Knut Staring <knutst@xxxxxxxxx>]

Thanks for this summary, Mark, very interesting.

I assume our typical setup of getting mobile internet through a USB
dongle would work well.

I wonder about options for power supply and inexpensive monitors
(which also requires a power supply.

Not sure why they say  "None of the browsers for Raspbian “wheezy”
support HTML5", since you had no problem running Chrome.
http://www.raspberrypi.org/quick-start-guide

Knut

On Sun, Oct 14, 2012 at 1:02 AM, Mark Spohr <mhspohr@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> I just thought you might be interested in the results of my tests of
> the Raspberry Pi computer for DHIS.
> It works great!
> I used the current recommended software (Raspbian Wheezy) and
> installed the Chrome browser (apt-get install chromium-browser).
> I used the DHIS2.org Demo site (Sierra Leone data).
> The site loads quickly, data entry and validation are fast. Reports
> run well and are displayed properly.
> I also tested offline data entry which works great.  I disconnected
> the network and it went into offline mode; I entered some data then
> reconnected the network; it then told me I was back online and there
> was data to upload.   I clicked upload and all was good.
>
> In a way, this doesn't surprise me since DHIS is designed to do most
> of the work on the server and has very lightweight requirements for
> the browser, client computer and network.  Good to see that this all
> works very well in practice.
>
> The Raspberry Pi is a small (credit card sized) computer based on a
> Broadcom ARM chip.  It's similar to most tablets and smartphones.  It
> costs just $35.00.  You need to add a keyboard and mouse plus a
> monitor (HDMI or composite video).  It uses an SD card for program and
> data storage (you can also add USB memory).
>
> This would make an ideal low cost computer for data entry.  It has
> very low power requirements (about 3 watts).
> Since it's Linux, you don't have to worry about malware.  This is a
> great dedicated data entry terminal.
>
> The supply of these has been tight since they were released earlier
> this year but supply seems to have caught up with demand recently and
> they are available from distributors.
> See their web site for more information: www.raspberrypi.org
>
> This computer works great for DHIS but is slow with complex web sites
> (gmail does work but is very slow).
> It does do a good job with video since it has a nice graphics processor.
>
> Anyway, nice to see there is a good inexpensive option for running DHIS!
>
> Kind regards,
> Mark
>
> --
> Mark Spohr, MD
> mhspohr@xxxxxxxxx
> +1 530 554 2230
>
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-- 
Knut Staring
Dept. of Informatics, University of Oslo
+4791880522
http://dhis2.org