WMT OS WMT OS
Linux for WM8505 netbooks

WMT OS is a modern Linux distribution for netbooks built on the WonderMedia WM8505 SoC, based on Debian 13 (Trixie).

Netbook running WMT OS

Development is focused on the Sylvania Netbook, sold for $99 by CVS in late 2010 running Windows CE 6.0. Equipped with a 300 MHz single-core 32-bit ARM926EJ-S SoC (sharing the same 2001 CPU architecture as the Nintendo Wii... well, its coprocessor), 128 MB of RAM, and an 800x480 display, it was considered e-waste even when it was first released. Naturally, that makes it an excellent candidate for a modern Linux distribution today.

The same hardware shipped under plenty of other names globally. Hardware lists the models known to work.

Getting started

Flash an image to an SD card and the netbook boots straight into WMT OS. A setup wizard on the card's boot partition configures the system prior to boot.

See Download for the images and Install for the full setup guide. Once installed, the Handbook covers using and maintaining your system.

Recent changes

- Boot-time filesystem checks

- PS/2 keyboard timeout fix

- Faster display presentation with Video DMA

- Website launch and a rewritten package builder

- PS/2 scan set 2 and a repository pin fix

All changes