PalmAddicts

Remember I am still looking for Associate Writers to join us at PalmAddict Towers, voluntary but with nice perks

Don't forget I am on a Associate Writer recruitment drive at the moment and if you have some voluntary free time then we can give you the opportunity to post yourself to the site, free software and oh and have I said that I have been known to give away some of my gadgets and gizmo's to writers. See this post and write me.

(No experience necessary and you do not need to have your own blog but we look for writers to post their thoughts on how they are using their mobile device, software they see, anything that takes their fancy. As always all entries are entered into contests etc... and whatever time you can give whether it's once a month or everyday then your more than welcome to join the team of writers and editors here at PA Towers.)

Microsoft Promises 'Desktop Grade' Web Browsing On Windows Mobile

[From Hans] Microsoft Promises 'Desktop Grade' Web Browsing On Windows Mobile. Microsoft (NSDQ: MSFT) on Tuesday unveiled the latest version of Internet Explorer Mobile and pledged that the software would bring "desktop grade" Web browsing to mobile devices. Read in full.

Microsoft Unveils Smartphone Advancements to Improve Ability to Work and Play With One Phone

No April fools Windows Mobile 6.1 is unveiled. "Windows Mobile is improving smartphones to better meet people’s rapidly expanding work and personal needs, Microsoft Corp. today announced. At CTIA Wireless 2008, the company unveiled the newest version of Internet Explorer Mobile, which adds desktop-grade Web browsing to Windows Mobile phones. In addition, Microsoft announced Windows Mobile 6.1, an update for its Windows Mobile software that includes new time-saving features, easier phone navigation and management, and increased security safeguards.

“People want a single phone that’s flexible enough to meet their needs throughout their day, whether it’s connecting to work or your everyday life,” said Robbie Bach, president of the Entertainment and Devices Division at Microsoft. “The innovations we’ve added to our Windows Mobile software ultimately make it easier to manage your world.”

“Microsoft is taking the necessary steps to broaden its consumer appeal while also addressing the complex mobile needs of the enterprise,” said Ben Bajarin, analyst with Creative Strategies. “Internet Explorer Mobile and Windows Mobile 6.1 demonstrate Microsoft’s ability to harness its technologies to bring tangible innovations and benefits to customers and partners.”" Read the full press release via Microsoft.

Window shopping, not!

Hi Sammy, how cold is it over there? Hmm..., my Worldmate told me it's 12 degrees C. Well it has been so hot these days in Batam island, Indonesia (30 degree Centigrade!), and most of the malls are crowded with people cooling down. What makes Batam different from Jakarta is the good number of free hotspots available. So in addition to the crowds, you will also have hard time getting tables in coffee shops and food corners where you can open your laptops and get connected.

But wait..., not for me, for I have my palm TX! All I have to do is switch on my device, activate Wifi, execute macroplay to automatically run Snappermail to update my corporate POP and personal IMAP, and when it is done to proceed in updating all the feeds.

And because it is a palm, after executing the macro all I have to do is to put it back in my pocket, and while it is doing its work, I can continue (pretending) window shopping near the hotspot (hey, who said we can not multitask with palm?).

_sent through palm TX_

Leaving the laptop at home

[From Lawrence (NYC) ] Be like Sammy, After your trip to New York without your laptop, I wonder if I could do the same. I take my work laptop home daily to keep in contact with the office and check my emails while I am at home. So last week I decide to try to leave my laptop at work and use my Treo 700p at home to keep in contact with the office. I have a program called Intellisync installed on my Treo which lets me sync my work email with my Treo, so I can be up to date with all my work email. The only thing I miss was not being able to sign into my work Instant Messenger system so I can be in contact with all my co-workers. It's been a week and so far I been only bring home my Treo. Thanks Sammy.

Palm Introduces Centro Smartphone in Mexico With Telcel and Movistar

[From Palm PR] After announcing the sale of its one-millionth Palm(R) Centro(TM) yesterday, Palm, Inc. (Nasdaq:PALM) today introduced its popular smartphone in Mexico with Telcel and Movistar. With voice, text, email, web, contact and calendar capabilities, a color touch screen and full keyboard, Centro brings Palm's renowned simplicity to users who want to stay connected with friends, family and co-workers.(1)

With a fun, new compact design, Centro is Palm's smallest and lightest smartphone, now available in Mexico in red and blue. Centro helps users manage email and text messaging, keep track of their schedules, stay up-to-date on the latest news, capture and share pictures, and get directions on Google(TM) Maps -- all in one small, fun compact phone.(1) Its full keyboard also makes it easy to quickly type text messages and emails with complete thoughts and ideas.

Easy to Use and Highly Customizable

Running on Palm OS(R), Centro offers Palm's unrivaled ease of use and organizer functions, making it the perfect solution for users who are looking for a smart but compact mobile phone to help them manage increasingly busy lives, whether it's juggling business meetings or keeping track of social engagements. Centro also is highly customizable, with thousands of commercially available applications to help users with everything from maintaining a healthy eating plan to keeping track of golf handicaps or personal expenses.(2)

Additional Centro Features and Benefits

-- Superior Phone - Centro's touch screen and full keyboard, combined with the simplicity of Palm OS, make it easy to use, with key features such as one-touch speakerphone, conference calling, ignore a call with text messaging and Bluetooth(R) connectivity.

-- Easy Messaging - Centro's full keyboard makes typing complete messages fast and easy when sending text, pictures, audio and video clips. Plus, Centro keeps all conversations in a chat-style view, just like Instant Messaging, so users can see the entire conversation unfold.

-- Personal and Work Email - New users to the smartphone world now have an easy mobile email solution. Personal email, such as Gmail and Yahoo!, is simple to access right out of the box. And, if users have to check their work email, Microsoft Direct Push Technology gives users access to their corporate email, as well as the ability to automatically update work calendars and accept or decline meeting invites, all on the go.(3)

-- Web Browsing - Fast and easy web access on EDGE networks.(1) The full keyboard and touch screen provide quick access to online information.

-- Multimedia - Pocket Tunes on Centro lets users manage music, audio books and videos easily.(2) Users can also shoot pictures or videos with the built-in digital camera and share them with friends.

More information about the Palm Centro smartphone is available at www.palm.com/centro.

My new "iPod"

Alongside the Treo, another thing I purchased was a 2.5mm to 3.5mm headphone adapter; yeah, I know I have an iPod already, but if I'm going all out on the convergence, why not do this as well? After loading the songs on the SD card, I popped them into my Treo and off I was, commuting to school. The Treo makes for an excellent audio player, and I'm enjoying every bit of having to pick up only one device for my PDA and MP3 player nowadays. I also highly recommend Pocket Tunes; a great piece of software for listening to music!

TreoCentral has done a review of the Seidio super slim rubberized hard case for Palm Centro

TreoCentral has done a review of the Seidio super slim rubberized hard case for Palm Centro. "I usually avoid hard cases, but this one’s designed the way I like: it offers full, impact resistant protection of the Centro’s casing while leaving the screen and keyboard fully accessible. It’s reassuringly rigid while having a soft exterior that’s pleasant to the touch. The soft touch coating is a terrific addition, especially if you’ve come from a Treo 755p." Read in full at TreoCentral.

Simple things for a fuller life

This particular date in my life makes me think about how our hectic modern lives we live have robbed us many small but important things. At least this has been the case in my little piece of society I live in. Now let me ask: how often do you call someone in their birthday? Or send an email? I could bet that your calls and emails are given mostly to your nearest relatives and friends. Isn’t it? And still I am sure most of us like it when they call us to congratulate us, even if they are not that close to us. But what does all this have to do with mobile technology?

My point is that for the past three of four years I have been using my Palm Calendar and Contacts to keep record (and act upon it) of the birthdays of friends, relatives and even customers of mine. Most of the time I have been able to send an email or call to congratulate them on their birthday. Every single time they have been pleasantly surprised because they didn’t expect me remembering. Of course I didn’t remember. It was my Palm!

Well, today is my birthday (and I am not April-fooling you). And I mention this not because I expect anything from you guys (but doesn’t hurt anyway; who knows if any of the readers would feel impelled to send my way a little something ;-)). I mention this because after several years congratulating others year-in year-out, today I received for the first time congratulations from some of these people I have been congratulating myself; and it feels great! The principle behind this is that if you give, you will be given. And my Palm device has been instrumental to this end. Using it to remember this important dates, it has helped me keep a little more warmth and closeness with the persons I have around me. It is ironical that something material like a Palm device has made us a little more human, don’t you think so? Please have a great day.

TX Addiction

Hello everyone! I am more of a newcomer to the wonderful site here and it's ironic that I chose to try my hand at contributing now. Today I would like to talk to you about withdrawal. The kind of withdrawal that is happening to me right now. My Palm TX just died on me. Completely dead. I tried all the typical things like resets, resets while connected to a charger or cable… letting it charge overnight… nothing. It's done. Now, my post is not about what I'm doing to take care of this problem, but rather, how I felt upon realizing my Palm was toast. I panicked. Just a little, but I still panicked. I started to wonder, how will I get my email, my RSS feeds, what do I do when I need something to do while standing in line or waiting in a waiting room? What will I use at the gym to listen to and keep track of reps and weights? What will I do before I fall asleep and am lying in bed, waiting for sleep to take me? And by god did I suddenly have an intense craving to play Bejeweled!

Now I do realize that I have a computer. I can get most or all of those things at my desktop with no problem. And to be sure, none of this is truly an emergency, but it is darned inconvenient! I've come to realize I have structured my life for the past 8 years around having some measure of mobile computing. Yes, I can read my feeds and email at my computer, but it does take time. Time that can be best used on other things. If I am standing in line somewhere, why not check my email? Why not read an article or two off of Resco Neews? It passes the time while I wait, and I learn something new instead of reading about "Brad and Angelina's New Baby! Pics inside!" I mean, heck, it takes me time to fall asleep. Why lie there in silence or watch TV when I could listen to podcasts and play a game of Sudoku or Text Twist until I get tired enough to sleep?

I realized quite suddenly that I won't be able to do any of that for at least a few days. Possibly a week! When my wife and I talked about getting a replacement, she asked what I use it for. I wanted to reply "EVERYTHING!" And of course, to me, I do use it for everything. It's a storage place for my emails, my contacts, calendar, notes, and entertainment (arguably the biggest part). She felt it was more of a luxury. And of course, it is.

I'm not a high powered exec who needs to be connected all the time. I don't need to use it for taking notes during meetings for selling and buying stock. I do need it for when I forget what to buy at the grocery store and remind myself to pick it up. Or I do need it for when I do grades at my school and need to enter them into the school's gradebook system. Again, I could do without the device in these cases as well because it IS indeed, a luxury. But still… I NEED one! No no no, I WANT one is more accurate.

So now I await the arrival of a reconditioned TX. I feel out of sorts today as I had to setup Google Reader to get the RSS feeds I would normally read with Resco Neews. I borrowed my wife's old iPod to use for my podcasts (and boy I miss Pockettunes already!). It's been a very strange day thus far being Palm-less and I'm not looking forward to the days ahead until my device arrives. It wasn't until I was faced with the prospect of NO device, that I realized, I'm addicted. A true Palm addict, as it were. Are you guys with me? Do you really NEED your device? OR like me, do you just really, really, WANT it?

PalmAddict Reader Meetup in Dubai / Sunday 1st June

Well we have enough of you interested in a PalmAddict Reader Meetup in Dubai and with that in mind, we just need to find a venue that can accommodate about 40 people but this should be secure this week. If your in Dubai on Sunday 1st June and wish to attend the PA reader meetup then drop me a line with DUBAI in the subject but please note that I think we can only accommodate up to 50 people and I can only do this on a first come, first served basis and of course it doesn't matter what mobile device you use we look forward to seeing your device. Also thanks for the offers of sponsorship but I am not taking advertising or sponsorship offers for reader meetups at this time. Email me at sammymcloughlin@gmail.com

PlanPlus

I used PlanPlus for Outlook for years with my Palm m500. It worked very well for me. I really liked being able to plan for the whole week by dragging items from the Master Task List and dropping them into the day or time of day I wanted to schedule them. It also has some great productivity tools. After upgrading to the new version of Outlook my old PlanPlus was not compatible anymore. Now I am using the Palm Desktop and it works quite well. I am pleasantly surprised at how well it helps me prioritize and schedule my tasks. While I really miss the "week at a time" scheduling I am very happy with the Palm Desktop.

The first person to email me with how they are using their mobile device can take the Tungsten TX

As promised second throwaway of the day today and it's a used Tungsten TX which is in good condition and kindly donated by my good pal Jon who now has a Centro.

So if you want to take this off me then you know what to do. The first person that emails in following the guidelines gets it. 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 Tungsten TX off my hands and please put TUESDAY2 in the subject line. Email me at - sammymcloughlin@gmail.com

Paul at the Palm blog talks Palm Centro

[From Eric Mann] Paul at the Palm blog talks Palm Centro. "Just over a week ago, I joined the hordes of people descending upon Austin, TX to catch, or be the latest music discovery. It didn’t take too long to learn that SXSW is a tidy little field study for what makes the Palm Centro so popular for today’s mobile lifestyle–in fact the Centro is such a hit that today we announced we’ve sold one million of them. Palm helped host a music showcase at SXSW with 11 nationally touring artists, who shared what it’s like to try to stay in touch with their family, friends and fans while they’re on the road. " Read in full.

Astraware games on the eeePC?

You may soon see some of your favourite Astraware games available for the eeePC if this Astraware blog entry gives any indication. "Once I'd got the games running I was curious to see if they would run on an unaltered Eee PC so after some quick negotiations with Paul S and promises of death if I broke his 2GB Eee PC I copied the files over. Since he was still using the default interface which discourages this kind of thing, it required a little creative thinking, but I was also able to get the game running on his unmodified laptop. At the moment that's where the story ends, but who knows, the Eee PC is a very popular device. If people start buying software and games for their new laptops then one day you could see your favourite Astraware games coming to a tiny laptop near you." Read in full.

Eco-friendly Seafood on your Mobile Device

I found out that you can use any web-enabled mobile device to access a seafood menu on m.eedf.org/seafood and get health and environmental information information about your favorite seafood dish. In addition, when you access the site on your mobile device,you can access a list of recommendations for seafoods that are eco-friendly for the environment. For those of us, that doesn't know about the eco-friendly revolution that is going on now; Basically, there is a growing concern about the health quality of seafood, since research has found, that there are a lot of dangerous chemicals that can contaminate your seafood such as mercury, which has terrible consequences for your health. Therefore, sites like eedf.org seem to be providing a way for consumers, such as ourselves to access a way, where we can have control over the seafood that we purchase for our homes. I found it reassuring that you can check out the health and environmental information on the food that you buy because I'm a big fan of sea food. Furthermore, you can also access an unique way to read the research about health and environment concerns with seafood on your mobile device. So take out your web-enabled mobile devices and check it out and give feedback about the new marvel on your mobile devices that helps you, to order healthier seafood.

Crystal Clear Protection – Nokia N95

[From Hannah at Proporta] Everybody’s fully aware of the Nokia N95, right? Well just in case you need reminding, the N95 is a beast, combining satellite navigation, a cutting-edge 5-megapixel camera, a media player and PDA functions, in a handset that somehow isn't the size of a brick.

Due to popular demand, Proporta have re-released their Alu-Crystal Case for this highly successful device. Wahooo we hear you say. :0)

The Alu-Crystal Case (Nokia N95 Series) design features a combination of durable and scratch-resistant polycarbonate plastic (used to make protective eyewear we’ll have you know), with an aircraft grade aluminium, making it near on impossible to find a more lightweight, yet protective case.

P.S. Your SD/MMC and SIM cards never have to leave your side if you use the Aluminium Memory/SIM Card Holder. It fits neatly into your wallet and holds up to three SD/MMC or SIM cards.

Mobile Dependence

[From Joe Sewell West Melbourne, FL] I am very well-known for my dependence on my Palm. I looked through a list of reset screen logos and was surprised that I have had a device representing them all, from my IIIxe to my m515 to a Tungsten E (that was a gift from a friend) to my current Treo 680. My Palm is often called my "second brain" by those who know me. From my appointments to my Bibles to my meeting notes, it's all here. I'm even using VersaMail to write this. God help me if I were ever stranded on a desert island without a solar charger ... I wouldn't even be able to occupy myself with Sudoku! AAAAAAAH!

Microsoft Needs to Improve the Music Handling Capabilities of Windows Mobile

[From Craig Summerville, SC] I have several Windows Mobile devices of both the "Pro" and "Standard" variety. I also have an old iPod (4th generation, I think, from 2004). I have tried to use my WM devices as true converged devices by also using them to listen to my favorite music and podcasts. Unfortunately, WM OS is intolerably clunky when it comes to handing large quantities of media files. Navigating to find what I want to listen to is a pain in the rear, so I find myself one degree shy of being truly converged because I reach for my old iPod every time I want to listen to something. The rumor mill seems to suggest that Microsoft is wisely addressing the ancient user interface paradigm they've had for all these years in response to the iPhone's success. I can only hope that they're also addressing the media-handing capabilities of their OS as well. By addressing the former without the latter, they will only be putting a pretty, finger-friendly face on a device that still can't match the iPhone's usefulness in media consumption.

Gino wins the SD Memory Card

Gino is the winner of the SD memory card, I'll have another throwaway a little later today, I'll not tell you the time as many of you find out on RSS.

The first person to email me with how they are using their mobile device can take the 4GB SD Memory Card

Chris Gill was the winner of yesterday's throwaway as he is the first of 362 emails that came in for our HTC TyTN II and with that in mind I am doing a couple of throwaway goodies today, the first is for a 4GB SD Memory Card. The first person that emails in following the guidelines gets it. 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 4GB SD Memory Card off my hands and please put TUESDAY1 in the subject line. Email me at - sammymcloughlin@gmail.com

New looks to both Pocket PC Thoughts and Palm Discovery

Two sites that get new looks include Pocket PC Thoughts which looks great and obviously cover all things Windows Mobile and Palm Discovery which gets not just a new domain but also a fresh, more professional look. Both sites looking great.
Pocket PC Thoughts / Palm Discovery

Troublesome Air for Linux OS?

Wait up, this isn’t about the famous MacBook Air that you own (lucky you lucky!); but instead this is about Adobe’s announcement of their new Air product for Linux OS platform. Adobe Air is a framework that allows internet enabled applications to run in web browser; the technologies include HTML, AJAX & Flash. After Windows and Mac OS X, Adobe is planning to make a “Linux version of Air” (quoted from PC World article here). Although it’s starting up with an alpha build, developers can already use the Adobe Flex Builder Linux alpha 3 to build Flex applications. But as it’s still in alpha build, Adobe have warned there should many bugs and hiccups in it.

This move by Adobe to enter the open source standard of Linux is being heralded by the Linux Foundation, a nonprofit organization that promotes and standardizes Linux. But as for me, this new Air product from Adobe could be the beginning of a new security trouble for Linux OS. I’ve discussed about vulnerability found in Adobe Flash at PA here, and how more secure Linux OS from Windows Vista SP1 & Mac OS X. So I hope the Air for Linux there is not creating a new hole that can be use by hackers to pawn Linux powered OS, and especially to the upcoming Palm Nova that’s also based on Linux platform.

(blogged with my Treo 750v)

What I've Done With Treo Lately

I haven't posted much to PA but been busy elsewhere. I do my daily RSS feed, weather and time checks. I have been emailing, texting and sometimes speaking. I have been trying my luck on Ebay for an old Nokia with infra red to try and use it with my older pdas namely Zire 71, Visor Deluxe and Psion Revo. Maybe I am a skinflint but I have had no luck and still am trying. It just the challange of connecting these older devices. I would love to see how I get on using two devices and leaving the 680 at home.

New Beta: Bar Boost increases signal strength by up to 2 bars

[From Rob at HobbyistSoftware] Folks, I have a new beta-application for you to try. Of all the hacks I have posted, this one is the most obscure. I spotted this one when poking around looking for more ways to save power in Power Hero. Obviously it actually isn't a power saver, in fact, it seems to be a slight power drainer. What it does is shift the balance that the phone has to make between saving power and battery life versus getting the maximum signal strength. I found the function while poking around in the phone library. The comment by the library trap entry suggests it is putting the software into fixed origin originator linkup mode. This seems to increase the power usage of the radio, but also significantly increases the reception by between 1 and 2 bars. I'm not exactly sure about how much power this will use, so please do let us know at the forum how you find it. Lastly, this is a new beta, so use at your own risk! Download from here.

mr Handsfree Blue Dongle II USB adapter

mr Handsfree Blue Dongle II USB adapter on offer $19.45 Retail Price: $29.95 . "mr Handfree's Blue Dongle II USB adapter provides Bluetooth capabilities to computers that do not have Bluetooth. Wireless connection with Bluetootho?= enabled devices Perfect combi with mr Handsfree headsets Bluetootho?= V2.0 + EDR compliant; Class 2 Range: up to 25 meters (75 feet) Supports data and voice communication Data rate: 2~3 Mbps (High-speed transmission) Stereo audio streaming support (A2DP) Connect up to 7 devices in a Piconet Security: encrypted link, authentication IVT 2.3.0.0 software included Suitable for Windows ME/ Windows 2000/ Windows XP/ MAC OS 10.4 or higher."

Always Available

While on vacation, I like to take as little as necessary with me. This includes my TX and a wireless keyboard. As long as I have wireless available I'm set. Today for example, I woke up using MegaClock set at 6:30am which, because of a time change, is really 5:30am. I quickly checked the weather report using 4Cast to find that it might rain so I went to geocaching.com to see what geocaches were in the park and saved them to my TX. then using Cachmate, converted them and installed them. After a long day of hiking and caching, I spent the next two hours listening to music and podcasts with pTunes while washing and folding the laundry. After that I finished some of my homwork in Documents to Go then uploaded it to the schools server. Know I am getting ready to learn how to use typepad mobile in order to make my TX even more useful on the road.

When Your Palm Gets You Down

Do you ever get a little Stressed? So do I. This nifty little application adds a "stressed" option to the menu command stoke (bottom left to top right, normally used to access cut, paste, etc.). No matter what application you are in, you can perform the menu stroke and then select the "stressed" icon. This puts your application into "stressed mode", where you can take out your frustrations using any of four weapons (gun, blaster, hammer, or chainsaw). After you're done shooting, blasting, bashing, and slicing the offending application, you can exit from "stressed mode" and everything goes back to normal. Until next time, heh heh heh!

A New Way to (tap) Type

I was browsing around the freeware forums on 1src and came across a new skin for myKbd, which is a skinning utility for the Palm T3, T5, TX, and LifeDrive.  This application lets you skin the DIA (the Dynamic Input Area... which corresponds to the graffiti area on older devices.  One interesting skin is using the ATOMIK key layout (shown here).  The ATOMIK layout was designed by researchers at IBM using advanced techniques in character pair loading to permit very fast speeds of data entry (upwards of 45 words per minute!).  It is also optimized to be easy to learn quickly.  myKbd comes with a 15 day free trial, and I was already doing 15 words per minute within ten minutes of installing it.  I liked it so much that I quickly shelled out the $15 to purchase it.  I received my registered copy via e-mail within a day of making the payment via paypal.  I still have some work to do to improve my speed, but it definitely makes typing faster and easier.

Study predicts strong growth for mobile Linux

According to the article here, study predicts that there will be strong growth for mobile Linux in the market. Quoted from the article: In its study, Strategy Analytics argues that mobile Linux offers an attractive mix of "customization, cost, developer community..."

I tend to agree with the study. Linux, be it on mobile or non-mobile device, is about customization. It is about freedom to tinker and modify as you see fit. It may or may not be free in cost, but chances are even if it costs it will still cost much lower than proprietary counterparts. And Linux is supported by community. In fact if we look at Linux on desktop front, some of famous Linux distros are community-based. I am sure Linux on mobile front is the same.

The article mentions that Motorola is going to continue pushing the growth for mobile Linux. Too bad Linux-powered mobile devices in Indonesia is still very rare. Just last month I sent an inquiry e-mail to Motorola Indonesia customer service, asking for the availability of Linux-powered cellphones. While the models are there (ROKR E6, RAZR2 V8 and ROKR Z6), they do not seem to be available. Whereas for Nokia Indonesia, their customer service said plainly that they do not produce Linux-based cellphones in Indonesia.

Anyway, hope spring eternal. Hopefully in the future more and more Linux-based mobile devices are produced, and by then they will be available in Indonesia.

Rockbox

Okay, this is not exactly a latest news. This news is at least half a month old, but I just learned about it yesterday, and I am pleased to have found out that Rockbox has been accepted as a mentor organization in Google's Summer of Code 2008.

For those who do not know, Rockbox is a free, open source firmware for various forms of mp3 players. It is an alternative to the original firmware of the players, with various additional features that the original firmware may not have.

At the moment, version for iPod Touch is not yet developed/supported, so hopefully by participating in the Goggle's Summer of Code 2008 fresh ideas and more device supports including iPod Touch will get developed in the (near) future.

Menu Magic

[From Doug Hill Gaithersburg, MD] Not that I eat out a lot but when I do I often come across items on the menu that I don't recognize. Particularly in ethnic restaurants, there will be items listed in the contents of a dish that I cannot even guess what they are. And since i usually prefer to have some kind of info about a topic before I even ask a question, out comes the Treo 750/p and onto the Google search I go. I can then ask an intelligent question about (for example) whether that kind of cheese has a strong flavor (which my wife hates) or not. Sure beats just asking "what is that"? And let's face it we've all been in places where people don't even know what it is they are serving! Cause Miller and Bud don't cut it for me I love to try different beers and I've got a great little program (which I won't mention) that helps me track what the name of the beer is, who makes it how it tasted and if I liked it. Now wherever I go I can look up the beers they have and try something new (or something I've had before and liked). I've got about 40 in there now (not that big of a drinker) and it's great for a beer fan. Hope these help!

Skyfire Mobile Browser

[From Neil S. Patrick] Hey Sammy, hope you're doing well . About 3 days ago I got an email from the fine folks from Skyfire informing me that I was now able to download their browser for Windows Mobile. Needless to say I jumped at the opportunity to test it out and let me just say right now.....wow. The browser was just amazing at rendering web pages, everything was 100% accurate and even better even flash videos loaded with no issues at all. The experience was almost iPhone level, with the only thing holding back Skyfire was the screen resolution the browser supports right now, which as of right now doesnt support 640x480 screens, I was using a 320x240 device which is a good bit lower than the iPhones. It taken a really a long to for Windows Mobile to truly be able give users a desktop internet browser experience, but Sammy, trust me when I say its here NOW!

My Treo helps me wake up

today i have used my treo to wake me up to the sounds of 2 pacs to live and die in LA. Then i checked google reader and my email. nothing to spectacular going on today and sounds like a light use day. thats how im using my Treo.

Opening Day on my Treo

[From Gabriel Lowe] Today I am using my Treo 700p on Sprint and the EVDO connection to stream the opening day broadcast of my favorite baseball team, the Milwaukee Brewers! It's a festive feeling when the season begins, as it signals that Spring is upon us and summer looms in the near future. Baseball may be a slow game, but it's a beautiful one, and there is nothing like listening to a good announcer call the game!

I pretty much live by my Treo 750p

[From Steven McMillen] Hey Sammy, I pretty much live by my Treo 750p. I use Day Notez as by 'bucket' to capture all those little things that come up that I'll need to remember. Every other day or so I then empty the bucket and place info into the programs where it is most easily retrieved, perhaps a Memo, Listpro, or Ewallet. I also rely heavily on Pocket Tunes to listen to audio books during all the drive time I put in for my job. Thanks to my Treo I am known around work as someone who can quickly retrieve almost any kind of info and I've managed to convert several people around me to utilizing a PDA for that 'second brain'. There of course is all the ordinary stuff like email, calendar, etc but that is boring. Movies, Games, and GPS are the fun things I use it for as well, can't wait for integrated GPS and wifi!

TX to watch video's

[From Alan] Hi Sammy, I am loving your site, I check for updates several times a day and am quickly becoming addicted. One thing I started doing this weekend, we have a long drive to church and my wife drives, is watching movies on my TX. I have watched "The Fellowship of the Ring" and the third star wars movie so far. I could never go back to life without a pda.

This spring I'm excited about a new use for my device

[From Rick McCarthy] Sam, This spring I'm excited about a new use for my device (well new to me at least). I've loaded a couple hours of my favorite music onto the mini-SD and will use this while cycling (with the single ear hands free phone headset) . In the past I always carried my phone and my MP3 player, but that gets a bit bulky - now I can have both with me while I pedal away the miles. I also us my mobile device for a host of the traditional aspects of daily information management that are important to me. I keep track of appointments, to-do's, and projects - each of these is useful in managing a staff of 10. I haven't read a physical book since 2001, having fallen in love with e-reader - great for those late night bouts of insomnia (and not waking up the other half). I also use my device to keep track of contacts, manage my fitness routine/diet, keep a personal journal, mobile web browsing and e-mail check, the unanticipated photo opportunity, and of course the "occasional" game here and there.

Centro Woes

[From Albert R. "Rusty" Mullally] Hi Sammy; I’ve been trying to update my wife’s Centro for the last two weeks, but I can’t seem to get ahold of it. I am sure she has it, as the Motopure H12 is steadily blinking in her ear, but she won’t give it up. I have to put the ringtone manager on, and well, it’s a little bit hard to do without the phone being hooked to the cable, right? Not so! I downloaded to my Tx, and met her for lunch. I bluetoothed the file to her centro, activated with the unlock key, and viola! Ring Care is live. Just goes to show, more than one way to skin a palm.

Initiate

[From Jon. S. Rochester, NY] I use a cell phone case from Maxpedition for my Treo 700P. Really keeps it in one piece, and off of the floor. It's a bit too tight though, and I'm constantly calling people accidentally and having it turn on when in the case. I just bought Initiate and I love the feature that lets you hit the Option key, then the Center key to unlock my Treo. That and the extra keypress options for answering the phone, let me actually look at the Caller ID before answering it when I pull the phone out of the case.

Watching CNN with Kinoma on Treo 700p

Hi Sammy, I have found myself using Kinoma more and more these days. Most recently, on my 700p, I'm streaming news from CNN. I'll leave it streaming on my desk at work, with the sound off. From time to time, I glance at my Treo sitting in it's Seidio cradle to see what the latest headlines are. It's a great way to stay current without having to take up resources from my computer.

Kinoma Player is available from the Kinoma website

Pocket Player keeps me humming

I really like to use Pocket Player (www.conduits.com) on my Windows Mobile device. The features are too numerous to list, but suffice it to say, I don’t own an iPod or other MP3 player.

My Treo 750v keeps me in check

Several months back my LifeDrive died and I have not had a chance to sent it off for repair. However my Treo 750v is still working and is keeping me in check making sure that I never miss meetings, family days and know when I'm on call and unable to go to the pub. My Treo has also come very handy in keeping track of my favourite sites when I'm on the move. I am also in the middle of planning and building several sites which the Treo helps me scratch out code and plan the sites basic.

moblogging

Today I am using moblog for the first time. Making a blog and learning how to blog. Moblog is one app where you need to read at least some of the documention. But the program works. So to summarize how I have been using my treo 650), I first write for my blog in Cardtxt, but it could be any word processor, then I copy and paste the contents into moblog, then Moblog uploads everything into a blog. I haven't yet uploaded pictures, but I think I will be soon. And learning about blogging came from being an associate writer at palmaddicts.

My new Centro

[From James in Glasgow, Scotland] After much debate I have just bought a new Centro and I am very impressed. I'd certainly recommend the device to anyone who needs the traditional functions of a Palm OS device or access to the huge numbers of specialist software available over the big screen of the iPod touch/iPhone.

The lack of WiFi for me is less important than the inclusion of Bluetooth and was the final reason for going for the Centro over the iPod touch. My existing TomTom navigator and bluetooth keyboard work excellently.

And as for the included keyboard it is much better than I expected. You wouldn't want to write a novel with it but it seems much more accurate than the iPod touch/iPhone virtual that I have played with. Even with my big fat fingers!

With two 4 gb Micro SD cards and Pocket Tunes/Core I have a very capable media player as well as my trusted phone and pda. I am going to invest in a second battery as the life isn't as good as the Treo 650 I have upgraded from... but that wouldn't be an option if I'd gone for the apple product. Overall, I'm very pleased.

Jabra BT125 Bluetooth Earset

If your looking for quite a neat headset to go with your Palm smartphone then take a look at the Jabra BT125 Bluetooth Earset which is quite neat and available form the PalmAddict store. The BT125 is so light and comfortable that you'll hardly notice you're wearing it. And its design is so functional, you'll rarely ever have to touch your mobile phone. What's more, it couldn't be easier to pair and operate.

Highlights
Microphone type: 6mm omni-directional
Last number redial
Voice dialing
Talk time: Up to 8hours
Stand-by time: Up to 170hours
Charging time: Approximately 2 hours
Battery type: Rechargeable lithium polymer

TealSafe

[From Eric Mann] Another update is TealSafe and thats available for those of you with Windows Mobile devices, this excellent program is also available for those of you with Palm devices. "Store your passwords, credit cards, PIN numbers, and bank accounts in the TealSafe data wallet. A personal encrypted data vault and wallet, TealSafe is the perfect place to safely and securely store and organize all your private, identifying, and financial information. TealSafe is ideal for storing computer passwords, credit card numbers, calling cards, software registration codes, PIN numbers, bank accounts, business contacts, journal entries, or any other data you'd rather keep away from prying eyes. TealSafe supports 128-bit encryption, multi-level passwords, selectable icons and layouts, categories, private entries, find function, data import/export, and exclusive list-based data stores." Make the jump.

Fun Friends Universal Case - Punky Case

Fun Friends Universal Case - Punky Case on offer $9.99 Retail Price: $14.99. "The Punky Ipod/Universal Carrying Case. Punky is our cute pink and white monkey that will help give your SmartPhone attitude, while also protecting it from damage. Fun Friends Plush Ipod/Universal Carrying Cases are compatible with several SmartPhones and MP3 devices such as: Phillips GoGear Jukebox, Microsoft Zune, Cowon iAudio, Toshiba Gigabeat, iRiver H10, Creative Zen Vision Fun Friends Plush Animal Covers are cute and stretch to fit the Treo SmartPhones and most Ipod Cases. Made of the highest quality fabrics and materials, these adorable plush Cases are a great gift or stocking stuffer for family and friends. Fun Friends products are washable by hand and should be line dried."

Star Trek: TNG: A Weary Life

Star Trek: TNG: A Weary Life from ereader. "A WEARY LIFEBOOK V.... A team from the Enterprise--Riker, La Forge, and Daniels--is sent to deal with the latest threat from the Maquis. For La Forge and Daniels, it's just another mission, but Riker must face the specter of his transporter twin, Tom Riker, who left Starfleet to join the Maquis.When the Enterprise team is caught between the Maquis and the Cardassians, Riker finds himself with an important decision to make--one that may affect his future in Starfleet...."

Star Trek: TNG: Slings and Arrows Book VI: Enterprises of Great Pitch and Moment

Star Trek: TNG: Slings and Arrows Book VI: Enterprises of Great Pitch and Moment from ereader. "A new Federation President has been elected, and his first order of business is to attempt to restore the alliance with the Klingon Empire. To that end, he sends Captain Picard to Deep Space 9, in the hopes that Picard's relationship with Chancellor Gowron might lead to a normalization of relations.At first, things go well, as Gowron agrees to meet with Picard and Captain Sisko of DS9 on a neutral planet--but when their runabout is shot down, it's up to Commanders Worf and Data to find out the truth before their captains are killed!"