Nick Bild has created a generative AI platform on a Pi 400, that is controlled through a 1990s Rolodex personal data assistant (PDA).
Bild reverse engineered the PDA’s serial protocol to disconnect it from its original Windows application, to use as an interface for the AI.
The PDA only allows the transfer of text files, which is an inefficient means to communicate with the AI, satisfying Bild’s requirement to make the process more painful.
These PDAs, from various manufacturers, were sold with applications such as dictionaries and thesauruses and were frequently aimed at an older customer demographic.
The Rolodex PDA recognises handwriting, making it a somewhat useful interface for the AI platform.
