Why I bought a chumby

While I was waiting for my chumby to arrive, some friends asked “what are you gonna do with that thing?” Here were some of my ideas:

• Awareness of email/IRC/RSS when I’m away from my computer. (I spend *way* too much time in front of the machine. It’s physically uncomfortable, and can be socially disruptive.)
• Streaming audio or video content–perhaps pulling out stuff marked “towatch” or “tolisten” in my del.icio.us, and checking them off the list. (I’m a very text-based person so just never, ever get to those.)

My dream tool would also

• Be a tool for searching, without using a laptop. (Not what I’m expecting of the chumby.)

Other factors:

• The “ooh, cuddly, touch-me” vibe. (plus)
• Lack of a battery is a big downside. (minus)
• Hackable, with instructions for crafters, Flash designers, software developers, and hardware modders. (big plus)
• Linux in a beanbag?