u/TundraLegendZ

edit: no graphics, only text with animations. (no pygame either)

a python3 CLI based operating environment for devices that are not capable of desktops targeting/made for handheld Pi devices, see much more media content here https://imgur.com/a/os-models-DvGZAAN Frames os is built catered to its user and for privacy, using squares with titles only being optional everyone else sees a screen of squares, you see your favorite scripts, your settings, your encrypted notes, etc opting for full privacy, the tui takes place inside of a frame that picks up your display size molds around it, frames forces broad themes, even over the CLI itself forcing rgb animation over anything ran inside of it, also currently supports 95% of foreign custom user chosen python code to run natively inside the system. What's the point? an awesome looking terminal that is navigated with arrow keys rather than hundreds of lines of text making it easier on handhelds. Currently includes over 170 themes all emulating vintage display technology. If interested further see imgur. This idea came about wanting a more advanced operating system that runs on linux INSIDE the project Im working on that hackaday wrote a short article about. https://hackaday.com/2026/05/18/digital-organizer-given-modern-upgrade/ https://www.reddit.com/r/raspberry_pi/comments/1tdnfua/1995_digital_organizer_gets_2nd_life/

Any opinions welcome, thanks, you really do have to view the imgur to get the full effect.

Edit: build guide, original keybeep function service, and full wiring schematics some time another. It'll be the last post. Until then, here is an update. Edit: For those starting to hunt this model, any casio sf5 will do excluding sy models (only because they have a different port, which could mean different keyboard schematics, and i havent reviewed my own sy models). Sf5500 sf5700 5900 will do.

1995 casio organizer upgraded with pizero2w. All 82 original buttons work, including power/illumination, original rtc slot works, and original piezo buzzer sings like never before. Absolutely gorgeous. It's the first publicly documented pda that looks original and functions like the original (on steroids) whilst running piOS. I reverse engineered the device myself. Oh, and believe it or not, the cord on the right is not powering it, it's charging the 6000mah battery that is.

A 1995 casio pda brought into the modern age. Beautiful. All 82keys, rtc, and piezo buzzer function as they originally did. Can't get over how pretty it is. First in the world publicly converted whilst maintaining its original functions and soul.

Edit: If you want to see the factory buzzer hijacked to play beethoven https://imgur.com/a/HJY1XRN

All 82 original carbon keys are functioning using a pico included is a picture of the keyboard only wiring hell using all gpios on the pico, the original factory plezzo buzzer functions and is as loud as the original wiring, the original rtc slot is still being used for rtc, screen has been upgraded to a near 1080p display, 6000mah battery usbc charging. Hardware wise, it's been upgraded completely, sporting its original shell and build. Ive heard someone say a cyber deck isnt about what It can do but rather what it means to you, ive always loved the vintage organizers, they arnt produced anymore and with modern python code they could be daily drivers, what better way to take an original and absolutely gut it and give it a new life whilst reusing as much of the original as possible. Don't have many pictures at the moment of the final build, only it playing YouTube, 90% clean keyboard wiring, and a better picture of the device before the screen was added. However, I may eventually post again with better pictures, of course.

Just need to set up the screen padding config, and it's good to encrypt it and finish building the pda OS im working on. Compared to the original functions, this device, in its original form, will be incomparable to its long, lost scattered siblings. This is the very first organizer that I've seen successfully fully converted whilst preserving its original soul. I plan to use this model for a very long time, so I've already got some of its siblings for parts or new shells or possibly to perform the upgrade and give to friends. If anyone is interested, I also have the full schematic diagram I created for this device to map the keyboard and perform the upgrade yourself not too difficult but very time-consuming. Also, the blur on the screen was from the bodycam youtube video, and the wiring has been cleaned up properly since that photo. it's just to get an idea of what it takes to make all the buttons shown work properly.

Cheers!

Keyboard is fully matrixed into a USB hid compatible keyboard, computer is a pi zero2w, full control over the beeper which only ever played 1 frequency when typing on the original, also has the stock cr2035 battery slot hooked up as an rtc os is raspberry pi 64 lite. Waiting on my screen, when finished, the device will feel like an alternate universe where PDA devices didn't become obsolete. Didn't use ai this time to assist in writing. What's the point? Basically, it's just a very unique oem feeling cyberdeck. Instead of a half put together 3d printed box and cheap Chinese keyboard, it is casios 1995 finest carbon, and I enjoyed electronic organizers, but of course, they became obsolete, not this one. Mentioned previously in the other post, planning to reinvent the pda os in Python and make it feel like an insane version of the device from an alternate timeline. Note this is a prototype and v1 also the first of its kind to ascend to modern computing, also the only 2 wires coming out are hdmi and charging usbc, the device itself is doing it all, I was using ssh to control it. Thanks.

The PDA Resurrection Project

A 1995 Casio PDA is being rebuilt into something different from the usual “Pi in a box” cyberdeck.

This is not just a modern computer stuffed into an old case. The entire factory input system has already been brought back: all 82 original keys are mapped and functional. Not a replacement keyboard, not a hidden modern keypad — the original carbon-pad keyboard, calculator cluster, function buttons, navigation keys, and PDA controls are working as modern input.

That is the part that changes the project from a case mod into a resurrection.

The goal is to preserve the feeling of a 90s pocket computer while removing the limitations that trapped those devices in the past. Early PDAs had the right idea: instant access, physical controls, portable productivity, no touchscreen distractions, and a device that felt like a dedicated tool. But they were locked into rigid built-in apps: contacts, schedules, memos, calculators, reminders. The manufacturer decided what the device was allowed to be.

This rebuild flips that completely.

Every key can become part of the operating system. The calculator buttons can still behave like calculator buttons, or they can launch tools. The illumination key does not have to just turn on a light; it can open a private menu, run a script, toggle a mode, launch diagnostics, trigger automation, or start an entire workflow. The function keys can control custom software. The navigation keys can drive a terminal-style interface. The whole device becomes a programmable command surface disguised as a 1995 PDA.

The software side is being built around that idea: a Python-based PDA environment with notes, tasks, inventory tools, utilities, scripts, automation menus, diagnostics, terminal access, custom themes, and a keyboard-first workflow. The goal is not to imitate a phone. The goal is to build the kind of focused personal machine PDAs could have become if the hardware had not hit a wall.

A big part of that is the display identity. Instead of making it feel like a generic Linux screen, the interface is being designed around vintage display emulation: LCD-style themes, CRT/phosphor palettes, VFD-inspired looks, inverted modes, monochrome layouts, and a UI that still feels like it belongs inside old pocket hardware. Modern software, but with the visual language of a dedicated 90s electronic device.

The hardware jump is absurd. The original class of device lived in the 128 KB to 512 KB memory range. This rebuild starts with a 128 GB SD card. Compared to 128 KB, that is 1,048,576× more storage before the project even starts expanding.

There is no clean benchmark comparison between a 90s Casio organizer processor and a Pi Zero 2 W but in practical terms, this is not a 2× or 10× upgrade. It is the difference between a tiny locked organizer and a Linux machine capable of scripting, wireless networking, automation, terminals, custom interfaces, file systems, and modern storage. Conservatively, the rebuilt device is thousands of times more capable in real-world use, and depending on the workload, the jump feels closer to science fiction than an upgrade.

That is what makes the project different.

It is not trying to make a modern device look old.

It is taking an old device seriously enough to ask what it should have become.

A 90s PDA shell.
The original 82-key interface.
Vintage display emulation.
Modern Linux-capable internals.
Custom Python software.
A fully programmable personal command machine.

The device stops telling the user what it is.

The user decides what it becomes.

Want a wrong password to trigger a lockdown? Want the device to detect when its been seized? Go for it. It could wipe the entire device, destroy itself internally and corrupt its entire filesystem. (lol)

That is the point: the device behaves how the owner wants it to behave.

See video and more pictures below!

https://imgur.com/a/xijvEZz

The plan is to eventually open source the software, keyboard mapping, schematics, and build notes so other people can revive or customize similar devices instead of starting from zero. Thoughts?

EDIT: Yes ai helped me write this but real project.