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At work today one of the guys, who happens to have an iPhone, was seen bug-eyed and open mouthed. The reason for this reaction. Well he was sitting watching Tegan, my 6 year old daughter, playing Sonic the Hedgehog on a rather ageing Palm Tungsten T. Sonic was on a MMC card that I had bought from Expansys a few years ago. Yes ! I thought you can't do that with your iPhone just now but she can on yesterdays technology.
Tunsten T 1 iPhone 0
Caught this over at Gizmodo, and even though I am sure this is an April fools gag a day early I just had to share it...Plus, I am sure there are some people thinking, how can I get this thing! Anyway, if you want a bluetooth headset, then thin is in, but sometimes I ask myself how far will you go.... Chinavasion is "selling" a bluetooth headset with a tiny microphone that you place in a tooth! All you have to do is get a dentist to drill a hole 2.2mm in diameter by 1.7mm deep into your tooth and place this tiny mic and voila, superb sound.... Now all we need is an ear implant for the speaker headset, maybe you can turn it on and off by pinching your ear!
Just got a phone call from Palm telling me that they had sold 1 million Centros. Unfortunately I can't find the press release, so that's all I can report so far.
Way to go Palm!!!!!!!!!
It looks like the talk about a Wimax version of the Nokia 810 is real after all. A thumbnail pic of the device was spotted on Nokia's European site over the weekend and now someone has got a better pic of it. The rumor is that it will be officially unveiled at CTIA tomorrow. On the whole the device looks identical to the wifi version of the 810, although sporting a darker color. Definitely a step in the right direction. Caught this over at Engadget first.
Palm, Inc. (Nasdaq:PALM) today announced that it has sold its one-millionth Palm(R) Centro(TM) smartphone, demonstrating the $99 product's mass appeal to customers ready to get all the power of a smartphone at the price of a traditional mobile phone.(1) Palm is now shipping Centro in 10 countries worldwide, including Hong Kong, Singapore, India, the UK, Germany, Spain, Ireland, France and Italy, and its already-rapid momentum is set to grow as Palm debuts the product in additional countries around the globe.
"The Palm Centro is flying off the shelves because users who want to step up to a smartphone see it as the perfect first choice," said Brodie Keast, senior vice president of marketing for Palm, Inc. "It has everything a person needs to stay organized and connected with everyone who is important to them. We're very excited about the Centro's near-instant popularity in the U.S. and think it's going to be a huge hit as it continues to make its way across the globe."
First introduced in the United States last September exclusively with Sprint, and more recently introduced on AT&T in February, the fully featured Centro smartphone is available from both carriers for $99.99.(1) Centro has reached more young adults and women, as well as a broader range of household income, than any prior Palm smartphone. It offers customers an affordable, simple and fun option for staying connected and doing more with their mobile phones.(2)
"Smartphones are certainly not new to business professionals; however, now more than ever we are seeing consumers migrate toward these types of devices as form factors have become more appealing and price points are now competing with traditional mobile phones," said Ryan Reith, senior research analyst with IDC. "Palm's Centro plays right into the hands of the consumer looking for a more robust experience on their mobile phone. We definitely expect to see this trend continue worldwide."
Increasingly, consumers are making the shift from traditional mobile phones to smartphones, motivated by the desire to do more with their phones and the arrival of lower-cost devices. Smartphones accounted for 11 percent of all mobile phone sales in 2007 in the United States, and this is expected to increase to 35 percent by 2011.(3) A recent Palm survey of Centro customers highlighted this trend, indicating that 70 percent are first-time smartphone users. When compared to other Palm smartphones, Centro also is reaching almost double the number of women, more than double the number of customers under age 35, and nearly three times as many customers with a household income of less than $75,000.
Centro's full QWERTY keyboard and color touch screen make it easy to quickly type text messages, respond to emails, start instant message conversations, browse the web and more. It offers all of the great organizer functionality for which Palm is renowned, such as a detailed and integrated contacts list and a simple and handy calendar for juggling business meetings and get-togethers with friends.
More information about Palm Centro is available at www.palm.com/centro.
I spent the whole weekend helping my son move into a new condo. As such, I was away from my computer for the entire weekend (by the time we got home each evening, I was too tired to even pick up the laptop). Of course, thanks to my Palm T|X, I wasn't away from important things like e-mail, my RSS feeds, eBooks, a handy calculator, phone numbers and addresses, etc. etc. etc. It's great knowing that with my T|X by my side (in my pocket, actually), I'm never without a computing resource.
Starting out from those global warning campaign from Greenpeace to make our earth more greener, and to AT&T's green-white Centro. Now Alltel & US Cellular have join in the green bandwagon craze by announced the Motorola Q9c in exciting new Lime-green color, looks like everyone can't get enough of green these days. It'll have the same features as the black color sibling:
Crave got the first news here, according to them Alltel is the only one who has already put $99.99 price for this new Lime-green color device. Let's see the bright side of this new color trend in mobile phones, at least you can match it with the green color of Windows Mobile default theme... (sigh!)
(blogged with my Treo 750v)
Perhaps not many of you fellow PalmAddict-ers who follow the news about PWN to OWN contest that was held by TippingPoint, a child company from 3COM, the contest purpose was to find out vulnerable holes in top three OS. Those three OS are: Windows Vista SP1, Mac OS X & Linux Ubuntu; here are the "short" rundown of the contest results:
On the second day of the contest at CanSecWest-Vancouver; the Mac OS X in MacBook Air was hacked using vulnerability in Safari in only two minutes flat! For that Charlie Miller & his team won $10,000 plus brought home the MacBook Air.
Finally after more than 7 hours later, the Windows Vista SP1 that runs on Fujitsu U810 laptop was also hacked. Shane Macaulay and his colleges have used Adobe’s Flash vulnerability to infiltrate Windows Vista SP1 system, the SP1 update that’s released recently by Microsoft was not expected by Shane and thus prolonged the efforts.
So at the end of the contest, only Linux Ubuntu that runs on Sony VAIO laptop was the only one last standing un-hacked. Both Apple and Adobe have been informed of these new found vulnerabilities in their product’s security system, and hopefully a new patch will be ready soon. As for Adobe, they have been working on around the clock to patch this vulnerability found in Flash Player software, but until then millions of websites and internet users are vulnerable to hackers attack. Read on DVLabs-TippingPoint website here for more infos & pictures of the contest.
A shocking news actually came from PC World article here, where another vulnerability was found way back in December last year by a Google researcher Rich Cannings. And whether the vulnerability is the same that used by Shane in PWN to OWN contest or not, it’s already been 3 months and seems like it hasn’t been fixed yet.
If I may take a quick conclusion from above news, then we can rejoice for the fact that Linux has better security than the other two OS mentioned; especially for you who use Ubuntu distro. And I really believe that Palm’s choice to go for a new Palm OS based on Linux is a wise decision, not only now it’s been proven to be more secure; a Linux powered OS can provide more supports from 3rd party software developers. Fernando, we hear you bro and we believe too. But still we need to wait until the actual Palm OS Nova to come out in 2009, before any more praise given.
(blogged with my Treo 750v)
[From Rob at HobbyistSoftware] We have put Power Hero 1.18 into official release mode...
30/Jan/2008 Added experimental feature to detect fast drain condition on the 680 (aka "Glen Phenomenon"). See Power Saver -> Misc tab.
30/Jan/2008 Reintroducing "Don't turn off BT if paired" feature. I believe its prior problems were due to stack overflow. See Power Saver -> Misc tab.
30/Jan/2008 Log file now sends as text file instead of pdb.
30/Jan/2008 Log file can be exported to Memo.
30/Jan/2008 Usage info form now has time and battery % in title bar.
30/Jan/2008 More improvements to reduce stack usage.
30/Jan/2008 Plugin shows nag message.
06/Feb/2008 Temporarily hiding fast drain detect option (applied to 680 only). Will add back in when more info collected on the GP.
06/Feb/2008 Added "Log drain rate every 5 minutes" option to Power Saver -> Misc tab. Send me your log if you experience the GP!
06/Feb/2008 Log improvements; doubled entries to 1000, limits Export to Memo to 30K characters, newest entries at top instead of bottom when exported, mAH value is now part of log entry.
06/Feb/2008 More improvements to reduce stack usage.
06/Feb/2008 Removed "Don't turn off BT if paired" warning.
31/Mar/08 Power Hero 1.18 released
Download at the Hobbyist Software download page
[From Alison at Astraware] Astraware(R) is excited to announce the release of their first game for Symbian(R) S60(R) and UIQ(R) smartphones! Astraware Boardgames features 8 classic boardgames including Reversi, Chess, and Backgammon, all designed with casual players and non-experts in mind.
Astraware Boardgames offers 3 levels of gameplay that everyone can enjoy, even complete beginners. If you're new to board games, you can play a nice easy game to begin with and when you're winning those regularly, select a harder difficulty.
The game features plenty of options so that you can choose to play it your way - against the computer, or alongside other players, and with your choice of rules, so whether you like huffing in checkers, flying in nine men's morris, want more ladders or less snakes, Astraware Boardgames lets you play it your way!
The gameplay and graphics are designed to evoke the feel of classic board games, played on wooden boards, with traditional playing pieces and satisfying piece movement. Astraware Boardgames includes Chess, Backgammon, Ludo, Checkers, Reversi, Nine Men's Morris, Snakes and Ladders, and Tic Tac Toe.
Astraware Boardgames is compatible with Symbian S60 3rd Edition devices including the Nokia N95 and E61, and with UIQ 3 devices including the Sony Ericsson P1i and Motorola RIZR Z8. The game includes support for English, Spanish, German and Portuguese languages and is available from Astraware.com priced $19.95.
What a week it was... I can actually say I'm glad it is Monday, which is odd.
Last week, I put my xv6700 to full use.
I started using the "Notes" program which is built-in to WM5, and found that it has a built-in transcriber - which translates my (bad) handwriting to typed text. That has been invaluable as I've had many notes I needed to make quickly, and I still write faster than I type on any small keyboard. I was surprised how good the recognition was, and had very few errors.
I
have also started using the Evernote beta, and really like how it is able to sync between the xv6700, the web, and my Macbook. I'm a heavy note-taker, if you can't tell, haha.
I also love the Today screen, I had missed the display from when I had a Windows Smartphone (but I sure don't miss the Smartphone OS and lack of touch screen).
I also read ebooks with eReader Pro, especially at night when I'm trying to wind down. Reading before bed can be very relaxing, though I recommend reading an old favorite.
How're you using your mobile device?
The first person to email me with how they are using their mobile device can take the TyTN II 
OK time for a throwaway and today it is a HTC TyTN II which is about 2 month's old and works a dream running Windows Mobile 6. So to get your lovely little mitts on my TyTN II then I want you to send me a couple of lines on how your using your mobile devices and again it doesn't matter what device that you are using. Don't send something you have already sent and no personal plea's or self software or website mentions allowed. As I have mentioned in the past I really appreciate the people who add kind words to their me in their email, a small percentage of people just send their thought in without even saying hi or how are you, so your messages are always welcome. The first person to email me and follows the guidelines can take the TyTN II off my hands and please put MONDAY in the subject line. Email me at sammymcloughlin@gmail.com
[From Jennifer] Jennifer has just wrote me to let me know that the black GSM Palm Centro is official from AT&T, now I have the unlocked version of this and love it. TreoCentral for the deets.
[From VITO] VITO Technology releases new application EyePhoto designed specially for viewing photos on Pocket PC Windows Mobile. Slide your photos with finger and enjoy watching them. User-friendly interface oriented on gestures is one of the main features. The program shows only the folders that include jpeg pictures. It is likely to become a photo album that allows you to watch all your photos at once.
EyePhoto organizes all your photos into photo albums. Having started the program you face all folders containing jpeg pictures in the main memory and on a storage card. Upon opening a folder you are presented with photo tiles displayed in one finger-scrollable window. Everything is done for your convenience. The preview window with photo tiles can help you find the photo you need just in a moment.
Tapping a photo tile opens a full screen photo. Now you can slide the screen with your finer to flip through the photos just like with a real photo album. Zooming in and out can be done by double tapping the image.
Tapping the photo only once will bring forward upper menu which shows the number of photos, the back arrow to go back to the list with tiles and the button for changing the view mode: landscape or portrait. The photos can be moved aflat or upright depending on the view mode.
EyePhoto is available for $ 14.95 at http://iwindowsmobile.com.
VITO Technology Inc. is known for its high-tech products in the field of Windows Mobile and Symbian software, GPS navigation and custom projects. Introduced in the present article EyePhoto designed specially for viewing photos on Pocket PC Windows Mobile.
[moblogging from my iPhone]
I hope that you are all having a great Monday, I am just sat in my local coffee bar Drip here in Manchester blogging this from my iPhone. I hope that you all had a great weekend. Mine was pretty hectic between DJ'ing in Liverpool on Saturday night and seeing friends I have lapsed a little with email but I will have caught up by Tuesday. PaulDavies emailed me last week and asked if I was still using the Blackberry or was I using a Centro. Well Paul I use two devices at the moment, the Centro and the iPhone. Both for different uses and both are great devices. The Blackberry Curve I have is also great but I just found that I missed all my Palm programs too much so the Curve is in my drawer. On the other hand the iPhone is a great multimedia device which I use as a iPod and of course to view video. The Centro on the other hand is a great phone and communications device. I love Toccer to stay in contact with my AOL contacts. I can which I can also do with my iPhone update my Twitter feed, [my Twitter page is here for all of you who follow Twitter] and of course I have so many Palm programs, such as RMRBank which keeps on top of my finances, SplashID to keep track of usernames and passwords etc and my favourite photo viewing program SplashPhoto. So the Centro is a great tool and helps me stay in communication. I mainly check facebook from my iPhone because I like the interface and helps me keep on top of what friends are up to and I actually use Facebook as an easy way to communicate and network with friends and of course I know that a number of you are also on Facebook so if you want to follow what I am up to on Twitter then subscribe here and also if your on Facebook feel free to ad me to your friends list here.
OK so I hope that you are all having a great Monday. A couple of quickies for you. I'll have a new PATV for you hopefully this week now that I have found some time. Winners from throwaways last week include Dave Kent from Chester in the UK and Nate83 [now sure his location] well done guys. In about an hour or so I will do a random throwaway so stay tuned, it's quite a nice throwaway and I will let you know what it is shortly. Have a great rest of your Monday my PalmAddict friends.
[moblogging from my iPhone]
Remember to take a look at the excellent at the excellent 2Cool4U now I tried this out and demonstrated it in a recent PATV, by the way a new PATV is coming this week and it's a great program that works well and a new version was posted last week
Come back to 2Cool4U when you finish a call initiated from 2Cool4U
Incremental search as in the build-in contact app
SIM card contacts can be included too
Contact pictures are scaled proportionally
Default phone number for each contact can be set
Icons for incoming/outgoing in call log
Contact can be created from unknown caller ID in call log
[From Eric Mann] Beta TAKEphONE 7.55 (052) has gone live today, with a number of changes including:
Another free looking neat program that those of you with Treo and Centro Palm phones may want to take a look at and thats TreoStar. "TreoStar will display reminders just after starting or receiving a call, you can use this to remind yourself of important things that you would like to talk about, or maybe to remember details about the caller/callee.
Here are some key features of "TreoStar":
Tiny PRC (~ 14 KB).
TreoStar DOES NOT hook-up to the dreaded \"hede\", \"hvch\", or any of the other performance-draining notifications. You can check this with PalmInternals.
Fast contact lookups.
TreoStar does not interfere with any other software (esp. ringtones, picture Caller ID, etc.) installed on your Treo, as long as these don\'t take over the actual phone functionality and display dialogs."
I just caught Treobble it looks like being a neat little program plus it's free. "Treobble lets you rapidly scroll, select and dial (message and email too) numbers by swiping across the screen.
Along with TreoSkey, you can also select and dial any number in your address book with only the side volume keys and side button.
Limitations of Treobble:
- Treobble currently has a limitation of approximately 300 addressbook entries.
- It is not possible to do incremental searches in Treobble."
MyTreo has posted a review of SplashMoney for Windows Mobile and it indeed looks like being a great program and worthy of a read. "SplashMoney for the Windows Mobile platform was released in January 2008.
If you are looking for a simple but very effective way to manage your finances, then this product may be for you. It includes a desktop application as well as the Windows Mobile application. Transactions can be entered on either desktop or device and then all changes can be synced between the two.
Installation was simple. I use a Vista 64 bit laptop. I connected my smartphone via Windows Mobile Device Center, and downloaded the software from the SplashData site. This installed the desktop application followed automatically, through Windows Mobile Device center, by the device application.
The interface is intuitive with good clear screens and has all the essentials you need for keeping track of your finances."
3 sites this wek that PalmAddict readers should cehck out which are amongst my favourites the first being PalmDiscovery which is a great site with indepth reviews aimed at the beginner or the more experienced Palm user with the odd giveaway. PalmMac is a british Palm and tech blog written by Murray where he details his mobile experiences again worthy of bookmarking as is MorningPaper which combines mobile technology and entertainment and again is updated severla times a day. Do check the sites out as they make for an informative read.
I may end the MacBook Pro giveaway this week so if you wish to enter then you need to send me your thought's sooner rather than later 
I may close the MacBookPro contest this week so if you want to get your hands on this then you need to follow the guidelines and get your entry in to me sooner rather than later please. As always the guidelines are in this post.
In quiet moments, such as while I'm typing up this posting, I greatly enjoy listening to Alexander Scourby's deep and resonant voice reading from the pages of the Bible. (This is one of the many reasons that I installed a 4GB miniSD card in my Treo 755P.) More than thirty years ago, I used to like to relax at my grandparent's home while listening to the same readings on cassette tapes. I am amazed and very happy that technology has improved so well that I can now listen to these same readings (all of them!) with one tiny device that fits in my pocket. The MP3 Bible is available at "Amazon.COM" - just search for "Alexander Scourby".
1SRC Podcast 174 is available for your listening pleasure. "This week on the 1SRC podcast we cover Palm's presentation at the Bank of America conference, Accenter 1.0, more on the discussion around the Eee PC, and this week's 1SRC Editorial, Operation Top Secret." 1src after the jump for this one.
[From Eric Mann] Again, this looks a pretty useful program it's called LifeBalance, "Life Balance is award winning coaching software that provides a dynamically ordered To Do List driven by the importance of your goals, your desired allocation of time and effort, and feedback from what you get done each day."
So what are some of the features:
A built-in outliner so that you can organize your tasks into projects
Unique "balance" feature nudges your to do list to help to bring your actual time and effort allocation more in line with your desires
Dependencies, so that Step B won't appear on your list until Step A is finished
Routine tasks, like laundry, can be scheduled to happen with a flexible interval rather than scheduling for a particular day and time
Integration with the schedule in your Palm's built-in Date Book
Astraware have all the deets on this program, more after the jump.
[From Eric Mann] Pocket Hound looks an interesting program for you to take advantage of. "The definitive resource for movie reviews is now playing on a Palm OS handheld near you. We took every ounce of material from the behemoth, bestselling VideoHound's Golden Movie Retriever, added an interface to pant over and packed it into one lean, mean movie machine. VideoHound contains ratings for 27,000+ movies and extended reviews of all top-rated films. A free 21-day VideoHound sneak preview is available or to purchase the full version for only $14.95."Make the jump.
[From Eric Mann] Look for an update to the excellent Speedy in fact there are quite a few changes:
Today I used my Treo to wake me up with my alarm. After a quick shower and shave I hit the calendar. I see that I have to pay a couple of bills and that I have to write a couple of posts. I head to work and use the Telenav in my phone to guide me trough traffic as I bob and weave through the side streets. Once at work I use my calculator to total up some prices for customers and Alarm Today to remind me when I have to get back from lunch. Once I head home I put the Treo on the charger and charge it up for another day. Just another Trusty Treo day.
About a week ago I was listening to the "This Week in Tech" podcast, and they talked about a device that will turn your EVDO or HSDPA smartphone to a wireless hotspot! I was so interested, I decided to check out www.cradlepoint.com, to find out more. They have a device called the CTR-350 Cellular Travel Router that connects to your smartphone via a USB connection. It then uses your smartphone's high speed data connection, and shares the connection via a Wifi 802.11 b/g signal. This is similar to how your DSL/cable router works in the home, except this uses the phone as your connection to the Internet. Cradlepoint Technology says that it is important that you be sure you have some kind of "phone as a modem" data plan. I am assuming this means you need to have some kind of "unlimited data plan". I have not tried this device yet, but once I save some money, I am going to get one, and try this out. It really sounds cool! If someone has already tried this device, please let us know what you think.
Back in middle to late 1990s, I bought many audio CDs. Since it is no longer convenient to carry CDs around, several months ago I decided to rip the songs from some of those CDs so that I can have the songs in file format. I think it will be more convenient. Since I ripped the songs on Ubuntu workstation, with GNOME desktop environment, I used Sound Juicer. Being an open source advocate, I chose Ogg Vorbis as the format. All is well and good. I can play the song files on my Linux box, and also on Windows box.
But what if I want to play them on my PDA? So began my search for Ogg Vorbis Pocket PC player. A few google queries later, I found this PocketOgg. It is a free and open source software. It does not seem to be actively developed (the last news is three years old), but I decided to try it anyway. Well, it works nicely. As can be seen from the picture, the interface is straightforward and simple enough. Just extract the .zip file on PDA and then run it, so it is that portable. According to the website Windows Mobile 2002 and 2003 are supported. Since I only have a PDA with Windows Mobile 2003SE, I cannot check whether it runs okay on later versions. Anyway since it is open source, the source code is provided on the website, and anybody interested can try.
As usual, disclaimer: I am not in any way affiliated with any companies or websites I mentioned above.
Following my post last Saturday, I am sad to report that the Pocket DOSBox did not work. When I tried to run the software on my O2 Xda IIi PDA Phone, it just gave a short beep and then nothing happened. I tried running the software one more time after soft-rebooting the PDA, but again nothing changed, nothing happened. Okay, I thought, maybe it was an installer, and I was supposed to install it through ActiveSync. So I tried to run it on my laptop connected with my PDA via ActiveSync, but Windows rejected it as not a valid Win32 application.
I am quite disappointed, of course. On consolation note, however, I found that (Pocket) ScummVM does work. So, I guess I can still play some old adventure games on my Pocket PC. I am still hoping that someday DOSBox will be ported to Pocket PC.
I've been away from posting for a bit and want to explain. My wife just gave birth to our third child and I have been busy with the kids and getting ready for the birth. We just spent 2 days in the hospital and I was pleasantly suprised to see that I was able to use my Treo in almost all areas of the hospital. The number of times that I was able to use my Treo was wonderful! I was able to help in timing the contractions, taking some pictures, stayed in contact with grandparents, sent the birth notice to tons of people, connected to high speed internet (with the laptop tethered to the Treo acting as the modem), kept in contact with friends after the birth, read part of an ebook while mom and the baby slept, and the list goes on. Overall, having my Treo with me in the hospital was an amazing advantage for us. I will not say miracle because holding your new born child is the most wonderful experience ever.
Hi, recently all the core users of the palm OS had been wondering when palm is going to make the big jumo to the future where as everyone has noticed almost all the competicion has arrived...
I'm don't hesitate every time i need to defend my treo or the palm os the simplicity and features are great but someday i won't have much left to stand still, recently i had a blackberry in my hands and i was impressed is cute, slick and easy to use i don't think i'll make a switch soon but the device has some appeal, i checked an iphone and the interface is great, i still think is a more eyecandy solution than a productivity one (like my treo) but i really feels and looks so good, the thing that makes me think that is that the so expected SDK has the lack of background apps (like our palms or kind of) and it will limit a lot the system if weren't so palm will be in more troubles.
A few days ago i read about that another former member from Apple has join the palm boat (Lynn Fox) it is good to know that creative and competent people are ready for the rebuild of palm because even with a still significant share of market palm needs and i think is thinking how to regain the trone, it gives me hope.
Now i own a Treo 680 and i'm looking forward for the end of the year so palm announces the new Palm OS treo or even PDA... no more palm os 5.X.X but a new Palm called Nova or whatever with a slick and cool interface i don't what a rip off an iphone but somethin' like that but very cuztomizable ( i love the iphone feature when and incoming call appear a full screen img appears looks so cool) also a bigger screen could be great but not in case of loosing the qwerty wich is great, a slimmer device could be great to, the camera of the centro i think it fullfills out needs... and of course a must have... wifi palm can't ignore wifi capabilities, the gps could be great to but firts things firts :)
My next device will depend of the possibility of palm reborn with the device we all want or we only see a palm treo 800p with the same OS i'll think about twice specially if it doesn't have wifi but seriously we need an upgrade, the "future" linux based os could be great i can't imaging the porting apps posibility fir the device (like firefox, thunderbird or whatever) if the future device will run under linux and under linux filosofy we can have a device with an entire army of developers and porter of a well known and secure OS i know they won't be the same but check out some apps on windows mobile because the OS has some features and portability, i really hope the linux solution of the future palm is going to be a decent linux implementation with no more locks than neccesary.
As always have been Palm will be my main choice but right now it is in jeopardy the loyalty of the powerusers, the true palm addicts.
As a new Treo 680 user, I am finding one-handed use to make things much easier for text entry, navigation, app control and everything else. In fact, I can barely recall the last time I pulled out my stylus; it's that helpful! One thing I find myself needing to do frequently, however, is go back to the last app I was at; just like the "back" button on a web browser. Well, after searching forums and asking questions, I found out how to go back to the last app you had - just hold the Home button for 3-4 seconds (holding it for 1-2 seconds will pull up a list of apps you check frequently) and it will take you back to the last app you had open! A very handy trick, and something I've been looking for for a long time! Thanks to bigalex from the Brighthand forums for the tip!
[From Anthony] Hi Sammy,
I cycle competitively, and could use a mobile device that estimates my
power output, based on my weight, change in altitude, and change in
acceleration. I'd like to write a program that will use my next
smartphone's GPS and accelerometer that will track my movement and
give a lower bound on my power output (has to be a lower bound because
wind resistance can't be factored in).
Thanks a lot for your blog!
Anthony
[From Russell Powell] I love my TX as I did my E2 before that, but my concern was for my 4 kids and their disorganisation. The day before my son was to start work as a personal trainer, I could no longer stand it. I knew his work successs would depend on being organised. I bought him a Z22. It was a risk. He is not tech-friendly. That's why something rugged and simple. It worked a treat! He carries it everywhere and is finally organised. That is technology working for us - not the other way round!
[From Mark Schutt] Greetings Sammy,
I am watching the NCAA basketball tournament in the USA this
Saturday afternoon. I have a light on by my chair so I can see the PC
World magazine articles I am reviewing during "time outs". My laptop is
plugged in as I write you. My TX is plugged in on my book table next to
my chair and my Moto Razr is charging as I write.
So tell me, what happens if the lights go out? I no longer have a paper calendar; it's all on my lap top and TX. I think my flashlight batteries are in good shape, but I seldom know until I need them. A couple candles sit on the fireplace mantle but I am not sure where the matches are. Is it just me, or are we really held hostage; not by political philosophy or economic ideology, but by something as simple and essential as electricity? As I read about more and more online applications and calendars used by businesses and individuals to keep in touch and share information, I am more and more cautious. Am I really comfortable with the idea that keeping my next appointment is dependent upon an on/off switch and a traveling collection of electrons, protons and neutrons?
Perhaps I'll find my answer at the next "time out" when I grab my magazine, turn toward the light and bookmark a relevant website on my lap top; or someone turns off the master switch and I am left to reflect in the dark about when that Thursday contact was calling back.
[From Don Austin, Tx] Hi Sammy - One PDA led to Two and I hope Palm will make more with Full
Size Screens. I use my T3 for reading books, archiving snapshots, keeping
passwords etc; and my recently acquired Tx for mobile wifi browsing and as
insurance for my mobile future. Thanks for the pointer to PalmCiv as it
almost duplicated my first experience with Civilization and kept me playing
late. I check your site daily and appreciate the variety.
Thanks again,
[From Ezio from London]
One of the most useful and most underrated Palm OS features is in my
opinion Global Find. That little magnifying glass in my Treo 680
keyboard is yet another step towards worrying less about where I put
stuff and more about what I do with it.
Did I write that shop address in my todo list note for when I'm out an
about, in my diary for a specific date? Or was it synced from the
memos I wrote on my PC? It could be in a Documents to Go file as well
then... well, to be honest, I don't need to care, all I need to do is
to use global find and it shows up, provided I was careful and I used
sensible keywords when I jotted it down in the first place (which I
do).
Did I write my doctor's surgery phone number under "S" for surgery, "D" for doctor, or maybe under my doctor's name? Again, I just need to fire up Global Find and type my doctor's name to get the number. Incidentally, the number is stored under his medical pratice's name but I never remember that...
It's funny to think how this feature has been built into Palm OS since its beginning and it's now become so popular in desktop operating systems, like Spotlight for Mac OS X, Tracker for Linux, Google Desktop for Windows and how I welcomed it when it appeared, I could finally claim my desktop was as powerful as my Palm :-)
[From Ricardo Alves
Madeira Island
(Portugal)
] Hello there Sammy,
hope you're enjoying the sun and nice temperature like i am :)
I live in Madeira Island in the atlantic ocean, and we have nice
weather almost the time, and i just keep saying the line above to my
friends who live in cold places.
The reason i'm writing is to say how much i miss the psion pda's, i owned the psion siena and after i've got the psion revo... uauu what a cool design and software, the only thing i didn't liked was the missing of backlight, but the rest was just great. After they abandoned the pda section i was hoping that someone get that (revo) design i make it better, but .. NOPE. Then i buyed the palm T5, since i dislike windows machines... wasn't to much to choose in operating systems, i like it but like everyone is saying, the operating system was so oooooold. But something nice is happening -> Iphone and -> Android ... just hope that bring some Healthy rivalry.
Bye for now Keep the good work
[From Vanessa Wesley] I have just received a new red palm centro and it is love at first
sight. The speed is fabulous, my Zap works just like a arcade video
game. I have games and programs that have never worked so flawlessly.
I was hesitant to purchase this palm because of the price. I am a
fan of the top of the line phone, pda etc and this price gave me the
impression that this is the base model. However its performance begs
to differ. Why wouldn't Palm offer a top of the line model with all
of the upgrades that this model has with a better megapixel camera
three or four. A better music player and real GPS at the top of the
line price point for its advanced users. A Flash video player like
sony would be nice and visual voicemail of some sort would be the
perfect palm pda.
[From Ted
Richmond, VA USA] The thing I do every morning right after I turn on my office lights is load
an SD card into my TX. The card holds a Smartlist To Go database that keeps
track of every forensic evaluation I have ever done or am currently doing.
I'm a forensic psychologist and I work in a high security forensic
hospital. Every day I sit across a tiny table from people who may be
acutely psychotic, frantically manic and always, always involved with the
law. Murder to trespass, we see them all. Competency to stand trial,
competency to plead, competency to be sentenced, sanity at the time of the
alleged offense... evaluations R Us.
My TX has grey rubber no-slip stair tread material stuck to its side in
strips and a non-slip bottom sheet as well. That way I have a fighting
chance of keeping a grip on it when things go -badly- downhill and the
chairs start flying. Why risk a $300 device instead of just carrying a
notebook? Easy. I can be killed with a notebook.
Plus, with the click of a button and a bit of stylus-jockey maneuvering, my TX can spit out cumulative stats. When the beady-eyed attorney glares at me and implies I ALWAYS find for the defense/prosecution, I can answer precisely what percentage of my findings have been friendly to each side, how many defendants were opined to be insane and how many sane. Nothing wins an argument like deft, targeted facts.
I love my TX. It helps me do my job and it can't be used to beat me to death. What's not to like?!
[From C.W. Grommett] Hey there Sammy, how goes it? I can give you probably hundreds of thoughts of how I use my Treo 700p that I either couldn’t do without it, or simply was too disorganized to. I’ll just share a few though. Hopefully there’s something here that’s new to you.
I use a program called “MyCar” and it holds all my vehicle information: license number, insurance info, oil changes, gas mileage, warranty info, everything all in one place.
I have “Noah Pro” installed, which is a dictionary, and it’s very handy & fast.
I use my Treo 700p as a flashlight sometimes, when simply crossing the room and don’t want to hammer my shit into the footboard, or whatever.
I play a battleship clone via bluetooth to my g/f’s Centro.
I use a program called “Cryptex” to store all my secret & sensitive information, like online logins, kids’ SS#’s, etc.
I gave away my MP3 player because I bought a stereo bluetooth headset, so now I can stream music directly from my Treo to the headset without wires.
I keep track of flight information.
I have two “bartending” programs for when I’m in the mood for something different.
I have a rebate-tracking program so I don’t forget about any because the paperwork happens to be out of sight/out of mind.
And finally, I have an alarm set in my ToDo list to remind me to check my ToDo list daily.
I hope you found a couple of these helpful, or even amusing. Of course, I also play lots of games and all the typical mundane tasks. Enjoy!
[From Jeffrey Jarin
Jackson, MS] As a testament to just how much of a visionary Jeff Hawkins was, I found a video of him being interviewed by the well-respected Charlie Ross waaaay back in year 2000, as the Head of the "then-new" company Handspring, as he was trying to introduce the Palm Pilot to the Computing World.
http://www.charlierose.com/shows/2000/07/03/2/a-conversation-with-jeff-hawkins
It was a very insightful interview. Here he explained perfectly just why Palm was so successful in introducing the handheld computer as a new category of devices and described perfectly what was Palm's secret formula, which we all now call as "Palm's Secret Sauce":
- INSTANT ON
- Focusing on certain functionalities and doing it well (and not try to do everything)
- ease and simplicity of use
In this interview He introduced concepts about mobile computing that was completely unheard of before and very pioneering in the mobile computing world, and that we are seeing here... now... today... alive and very well shaping how we do our computing tasks in the world today.
Quoting:
CR:
If nothing else i can say about you , you believe in the future of handheld computers and wireless data.... that is part of your bible and your ideology
JH:
Yes! More on more people are gonna be carrying a mobile device and think of that as their personal computer and primary internet access device...
CR:
When?
JH:
Oh thats a big question.... in 10 years.... (it was year 2000 then)
Fast forward 8 years... how much of that statement is true today? Everything. He hit it on the bull's eye. Today, with our TX's, iPhones, iPod touches, Treos... these devices have become our primary computer... Now what will happen in the next 2 years, since they were talking about 10 years? Again, Jeff Hawkins described a mobile concept that was unheard of before but may very well be true in the next 2 years...
"Cheap Ubiquitous Wireless Internet Access"
That's WiMAX! In 2 years time, we may very well be covered universally by WiMax and access it with our Treos/iPhones.
His predictions did not stop there...
He was asked by Charlie Rose, "How do you see this (Palm Pilot) in 10 years?"
His reply: "It will be much thinner, probably half this thick, with a bright color display, and always connected to the internet... (actually pretty much like a vision of an iPhone)"
It gives me goose bumps every time i watch this video, to think that 8 years ago, Jeff Hawkins did predict how Mobile Computing was going to be. I am hopeful that Jeff Hawkins stays with the company and keeps giving us devices that stays true to this vision.
"The future of personal computing is mobile"
That was and always will be Palm's motto and I believe we can engrave that into stone because there's no other truth that can be truer than that in our computing world today.
[From Natasha Reid, New Clarkstown, USA] Mobile phones is my way of connecting to my family, while I'm away at college. No matter how far I am in the United states, I'm still able to communicate with my family when they need me or I need them. In addition, my family is able to communicate with me, whenever they like, which I appreciate because I'm very close to my family and I miss them when I'm struck at the college dorm. Personally, I only use my mobile phone mostly to contact my family and other times, to communicate with my friends through text-message or through a phone call on subjects such as school work or other personal matters. Nowadays, there's a lot of gadgets on phones such as the I-phone with it's touch screen, internet connections and other special features, but for me I feel that it's useless to have all those gadgets on your phone, when you can get the same features on a laptop. A cell phone should be used for communicating with others, I just don't understand why electronic companies have to make it more complicated with all this features, just to take money from their fans or the "younger crowds." It's obvious that companies are aiming for the younger crowds when they add wireless connection that can able people to go on sites like You Tube or search through music videos or even when they add larger keyboards for people to text-message easier. Teenagers and college students would love to get their hand on phones with a lot of special gadgets but I'm pretty simple, I only use my mobile phone for what it was designed to be, a portable phone. So maybe, the evolution of the cell phone wasn't made for people like me, that just love the old school way of using things for the basic need that they were created for. I been using the same mobile phone for over three years now and I don't plan on upgrading it, until it finally stops working. I feel that it's pointless to keep paying a lot of money to upgrade your phone when you know, there will be a better version of your phone next year and the year following that. It's an endless cycle so I feel, just stick with quality. If something works for you, keep it and use it until it can't be used anymore. If it breaks, try to fix it and if you can't do that, try to recycle it. I know that a lot of people don't consider recycling their cell phones but now that they have options to do so, I feel people should take advantage of the opportunity to help their environment. People should enjoy their phones until they are not usable anymore, recycle your old phone and then get a new cell phone when your original phone crashes. There's no point of buying a new cell phone when your old cell phone works fine and at least that's my reasoning for deciding not to upgrade my mobile phone because it's still working even though I think the battery needs to be replaced. I like to close this passage by stating that it's nice having a mobile phone, however I feel that there is so much corruption evolved in the industry of advertising and selling the product. Mobile phones will always be privilege, because you need a lot of money, to afford it and the prices for mobile phones and their services can make a person broke, much faster than paying for college books. This is my opinion of mobile phones so you don't have to listen to me, but if I changed your opinion about the convenience of mobile phones than my words were meaningful and made the effort of writing them, worth it's weight in gold.
RANDOM THROWAWAY - 15 inch Mac PowerBook [could end anytime] 
Our latest throwaway is now live and you have the opportunity to take one of our 15 inch Mac Powerbooks off our hands. As always it's a random throwaway and easy to enter, in fact the guidelines are pretty much the same and you can find the guidelines in this sticky post. Just remember that I have not stipulated a end date so I could end the giveaway so bear in mind if you wish to enter.
Plantronics Discovery 655 Bluetooth Headset on offer $57.95 Retail Price: 
Quickoffice Premier for Palm OS from Pocketgear. "The #1 selling mobile office software
Proven intact data exchange from the experienced leader
Utilizes your original, native Microsoft Office desktop files
Winner of multiple awards
Chosen by the world's leading device manufacturers and wireless carriers
Superior file management
Easy to install and use."
MxCalc 12c - Financial Calculator from Pocketgear. "The best Financial Calculator for Palm
~ Looks as good as the HP-12c
~ Performs as good as the HP-12c
and more ..
Calculate loan payments, interest rates and conversions, standard deviation, percent, TVM, NPV, IRR, cash flows, bonds and more. Ideal for real estate, finance, accounting, economics and business related work."
LSL Cantina Games from Pocketgear. "Do you like playing Dominoes? Do you like playing Dice games, or have you ever play Cubilete? Then try playing this classic games on LSL Cantina Games by Lakshmi Solutions LLC.
Play LSL Dominoes in your mobile device by yourself or with 3 more players. LSL Dominoes allows you to play up to 4 players per game, either real human players or computer-simulated players (John, Dave, Tony and/or Jean). Configure the game according to your preferences by selecting the players of each game, enabling players commentaries, selecting the set of dominoes to use (black or white), the board or screen size (Normal, Normal with Text, or Large size), the colors of the game board and background. Analyze the game and your opponents by getting statistics at each play of the game (dominoes at the graveyard, dominoes left per player and number of points), and by using the game log. Play multiple games and keep track of the score by looking at the number of wins per player, and by looking at points based on a greater number or lower number counts. Note: In this version, points are scored only at the end of each hand. Also this version does not support all styles of play (i.e. Cuban, American, or other several world variations), however as simple as it is, the game is still very fun to play. To guide the user, the Game contains Help features instructing the novice player on the Basic Rules of the Game, how to configure players, the game, and how to understand the statistics."
