TamsPalm - the Palm OS Blog

Our last few interview partners were rather positive - now, the folks from Mobile-Stream’s have stepped into the ring. Their representative(who remained unnamed) told as a few very interesting things about migration trends and sales numbers…read on to find out who migrates and how application sales for Centro have turned out for them!

Please tell us more about you and your company.
Mobile Stream is a small independent company that develops games and utilities for Palm, Windows Mobile and Symbian. Among our well-known programs are Card Reader, USB Modem and Landscape/Portrait utilities. Landscape utility is the only application that adds a landscape mode to Sony CLIE TH/NX/NZ and Garmin iQue 3600 devices. Although Sony abandoned CLIE series long ago we still have Landscape sales now.

Have you already handled a Centro yourself? If yes, how do you feel about it. If not, why not!
No, we do not have a Centro. We do have a number of Palm devices, it is enough for us to do testing(pictured below):

Some minor issues with USB Modem and GSM Centro have been fixed with the help of remote beta-testers. Card Reader utility supports Palm Centro. All our games (Meteor, Jackpot Casino and Mobile Jigsaw) are fully compatible with Centro.

Do you feel like the Centro could become a mayor source of income for developers given the target demographics?
If we talk about total sales, Centro software sales have so far brought the lowest revenue to us (as compared with Treo 650, Treo 680, Treo 700p, Treo 755p and palm TX). However, software sales from Centro owners have a very good growth rate and if the current trend continues for at least several months Centro applications sales will catch up with those from TX or Treo 650.

Have you seen users migrating to the Centro from other devices? If yes, which were the most affected? Would you migrate yourself?
Yes, many people migrate. According to our records, people migrate to Centro from almost all Palm devices, mostly from Treo 680 and Treo 755p.
As for ourselves, we do not plan to migrate.

Do you think that the Centro’s camera is good enough?
As we do not have a Centro, we cannot answer this question.

Which device do you currently use yourself(and why)?
For our personal use we have Symbian and Windows Mobile devices. However we use several Palm devices for testing purposes.

Has Palm done a good job helping developers to get their apps Centro-ready before release?
We have not heard of such an action. Anyway, there was no special need for us to get such help.

Have you experienced technical issues porting your apps to the Centro? If yes, of what kind have they been?
The only glitch was with GSM Centro, its device ID had been changed from its CDMA counterpart and we had to release a patch for our USB Modem software.

Feel like giving us a sneek peak at your upcoming apps which are optimized for Centro?
We do not plan special optimizations. As for Palm in general, we plan to support and update our existing software, currently we are not going to release any new Palm applications.

After the initial(and rather critical) interviews with Jan Slodicka and Radoslaw Nowak, we now have the second “positive” interview upcoming. Here’s Natalia Nogteva from Paragon - let’s see what she has to say!

Please tell us more about you and your company.
My name is Natalia, I’ve been working as a PM of Palm OS line at Paragon Software (SHDD) for more than a year already and throughout this period I’ve enjoyed using various Palm devices and releasing numerous applications. Our company is known for its innovative solutions for Palm software market since 1997 when first and unique localization programmes were launched. Later on in 2000 Paragon Software launches SlovoEd dictionary application which is acknowledged to be incorporating Palm OS design philosophy absolutely seamlessly. Palm games developed by our company have also earned a lot of awards and are still very popular in different countries.

Have you already handled a Centro yourself? If yes, how do you feel about it? If not, why not?
Yes, firstly Centro fascinated me with its design, very compact and light. Secondly it is tremendously multi-functional. One can use it as a phone, music player, internet source, camcorder, text and e-mail messenger, time keeper, storage device, notepad, document editor and many more. It is one of the most easy-to-use and reliable devices I have ever met.

Do you feel like the Centro could become a mayor source of income for developers given the target demographics?
Well, a lot of Palm PDA users are still very loyal to their devices, the number of Treo users is also great, and we are happy to supply both PDA’s and smart phones with state-of-the-art software. Of course, in the light of Centro’s increasing popularity and Palm’s announcement that they have sold 1 million Centro smart phones during 5 months after release we do have high hopes for this device and target our applications at people who give their preference to it.

Have you seen users migrating to the Centro from other devices? If yes, which were the most affected? Would you migrate yourself?
As long as Centros are not yet sold in Russia I haven’t seen those lucky men with my own eyes, just read favourable comments by those who have migrated. According to Palm research 75% of Centro customers are stepping up from traditional mobile phones. I myself certainly would like to have a ruby red Centro because I really enjoyed its handy keyboards keys and large touch screen. Another reason to choose Centro is that it became one of the most sensational releases of the last year, it takes 4th position in top 10 gadgets 2007 according to Time magazine, and to handle it is simply interesting.

Do you think that the Centro’s camera is good enough?
I think it is quite nice for a smart phone. I was able to take pictures and videos of decent quality.

Has Palm done a good job helping developers to get their apps Centro-ready before release?
Palm has always supplied developers with all the necessary assistance whether technical support or device supply. We were able to test all the applications for Centro before its release.

Have you experienced technical issues porting your apps to the Centro? If yes, of what kind have they been?
No, there weren’t any installation problems whatever application we tried to port.

Which device do you currently use yourself (and why)?
Working in a software company presupposes using different devices and changing them every new week or month, so all kinds of Symbian smart phones, Windows Mobile PDAs, Palm devices and Java handies have passed through my hands during this year. But of course I have a certain weakness for Palm OS smart phones mainly due to their exclusiveness in Russia.

Feel like giving us a sneak peak at your upcoming apps which are optimized for Centro (emphasis on Centro optimizations, please)?
All I can say by now is that all the upcoming dictionary software will necessarily be optimized for Centro.

Anything you’d like to add?
Thank you for your questions.

The folks at DataViz’s have not made too much of a splash in the last few years - yet their (excellent) products have managed to sneak into almost every Palm OS device. Today, we have DataViz’s Jenn Figueroa speaking up on the Centro, on their relationship to palm, and a variety of other interesting topics. Enjoy!

Please tell us more about you and your company
The company is recognized as an industry leader in developing and marketing Office compatibility and productivity solutions across a variety of platforms including BlackBerry, Java®, Linux, Palm OS®, Symbian OS™, Windows Mobile®, Windows® and Macintosh®. Founded in 1984, DataViz began its business developing file conversion software between Windows and Macintosh computers. In the late 1990’s the company expanded its expertise to providing solutions that meet the increasing demands of the handheld and mobile markets.

Now in our 25th year of buisness the company has two outstanding and award wining mobile office software solutions that enable users to mobilize “Microsoft Office” wherever they go.
The solutions include Documents To Go to view, edit and create Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint files and the Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync client, RoadSync.

DataViz partners include RIM, Palm®, Motorola®, Microsoft®, Sony Ericsson®, and other industry leaders.

Have you already handled a Centro yourself? If yes, how do you feel about it. If not, why not!
No. Personally I have not. We have a limited amount of devices in house. Those devices are currently being used for testing and development. Working in PR, I do not have access to those devices.

Do you feel like the Centro could become a mayor source of income for developers given the target demographics?
Yes the Centro has the potential to succeed on a much larger scale in the mobile market, branching away from the traditional enterprise market to now reach the consumer market. With a low cost price point the Centro makes it affordable to purchase a smartphone. Nearly 75% of these users are new to the smarphone market and there are twice as many women purchasing the device.

Have you seen users migrating to the Centro from other devices? If yes, which were the most affected? Would you migrate yourself?
I don’t have this information. But I do know that those who purchase a Centro are new to the smartphone market.
Nearly 75%. Yes I would migrate myself. It’s a great price point and it has all the essential tools to make it an ideal smartphone.

Do you think that the Centro’s camera is good enough?
Sorry I can not answer this question as I have not used the device and have nothing to compare it to.

Has Palm done a good job helping developers to get their apps Centro-ready before release?
Palm has always been very helpful, but we are a slightly different case than most developers in that we are bundled on their devices. Because Documents To Go is included on all Palm devices, we have to be device ready long before devices are released into the market. This way Documents To Go can be included in Palm’s device testing, and this means that we tend to get information a bit earlier than the general developer community.

Have you experienced technical issues porting your apps to the Centro? If yes, of what kind have they been?
We did not experience any significant Centro specific issues during our last product release. Most development was actually done with non-Centro Palm devices, although our testing team focused on using Centro devices. In fact, Palm took an off-the-shelf version of Documents To Go to bundle on the device.

Which device do you currently use yourself(and why)?
I am currently carrying a Palm Treo 755p which I love. The Qwerty keyboard enables me to efficiently work on my business documents when I’m out of the office.
In addition our DataViz employees carry a wide variety of handsets. They carry those that encompass the mobile platforms we develop for such as Symbian UIQ, S80, and S60, Windows Mobile, Palm, Java and BlackBerry. By actively using devices based on these platforms it enables us as a company to stay in touch with our marketing and development efforts.

Feel like giving us a sneek peak at your upcoming apps which are optimized for Centro?
We don’t have any new and upcoming apps for the Centro. What I would like to mention I that every Centro comes pre-loaded with Document s To Go Professional Edition right out of the box. Customer who purchase a Palm centro will be able to view, edit and create Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint files. We do offer a paid upgrade to Documents To Go Premium edition 10 which includes support for the following. To Learn more visit: www.dataviz.com/centro
• Upgrade to Documents To Go Premium Edition version 10.0 for only $29.99!
Feature Enhancements included in this upgrade:
o Spell Check word processing files
o Open Password Protected Word & Excel files (Office 97-2003 only)
o Support for Excel Charts & Charting
o Suport for Pictures/Graphics (JPG & BMP)

Resco’s Jan Slodicka debuted the Centro Interview series with an excellent article full of useful info. Now, it’s time to hand the word over to Radoslaw Nowak from RNS:: - let’s see what he has to say!

Please tell us more about you and your company
My name is Radoslaw Nowak, and I live in Krakow, Poland. I’ve been programming for over 10 years now, and I focused on Palm software development in 2001. Soon after that, I established my own company, RNS:: which now offers over 50 freeware and shareware products for Palm OS, including 15 created especially for Treo and Centro.

Our first notable success started in late 2003 with the release of Hi-Launcher, followed by the success of TopSelecText (formerly known as TreoSelecText) developed on request of Treo communities on various forums. These products are still our leading titles, perfectly integrating with the latest devices, including Palm Centro.

For the visitors of our website, it can be easily noticable that we focused on Treo/Centro software development in recent years. This has helped us remain in the mainstream of the Palm OS software developement market, and allowed us to continue creating software for you!

Have you already handled a Centro yourself? If yes, how do you feel about it. If not, why not!
Centro is a funny smartphone. Technically it does not differ much from previous models, while the outer look does. It was designed to be as simple as possible to attract new customers. Because of these 2 facts, I don’t think I’ll have my own Centro ever - I can test my software on previous models and the way Centro looks does not appeal to me.

Yes, I handled a Centro… for half an hour or so

Do you feel like the Centro could become a mayor source of income for developers given the target demographics?
Perhaps. I’ve seen the statistics you mentioned, but I’d be more optimistic about them

For example one of my software, Butterfly, has always been targeted to similar demographic targets, and now it’s in the limelight again!

Have you seen users migrating to the Centro from other devices? If yes, which were the most affected? Would you migrate yourself?
Not really. We all know that users tend to migrate to other platforms nowadays. As I already said, I’m not planning to have my own Centro. I still like my Treo 680

Do you think that the Centro’s camera is good enough?
As for a mobile phone - yes. However there still remains the same poor user interface as in Treos a few years ago, so it needs third-party software to become useful. Yes, my company offers one of such titles, too…

Has Palm done a good job helping developers to get their apps Centro-ready before release?
Did they have to do anything? It was good enough to announce the new button layout - all the rest remained unchanged since Treo 755p and Treo 680.

Have you experienced technical issues porting your apps to the Centro? If yes, of what kind have they been?
Well, perhaps the difference between the GSM and CDMA Centro was confusing for me at the beginning. The former is similar to Treo 680 while the latter to Treo 755p. At first I thought that - as with previous models - they don’t differ that much.

Which device do you currently use yourself?
I use Treo 680. I am still loyal to the Palm platform, and I don’t find any better device they produced so far… I switched to Treo 680 from Treo 600 because of various new features like high screen resolution, Bluetooth, smaller form factor… Today new Palm devices are not that innovative.

Feel like giving us a sneek peak at your upcoming apps which are optimized for Centro(emphasis on Centro optimizations, please)?
This question is tricky If Centro is so much similar to previous models, how can the optimizations be made especially especially (sic!) for Centro? I’ve already optimized all my applications for Centro. The last one was TopAreaCodes, whose new version was released last week, as it became compatible with the GSM version of Palm Centro. All my Centro-optimized titles are included in RNS:: Phone Tools Pack offered at a reduced price.

Anything you’d like to add?
As you see, I have mixed feelings about Palm Centro. Sometimes all that hardware developer needs is a sneek peak at the competitors’ products to get the idea of what to produce. Palm needs this. That’s good that they continue to release new devices but I think we’re all waiting for something that can really be called NEW.

Now that the Centro review is over, it’s time to ask developers about their Centro-related feelings. Ever-talkative Jan Slodicka from Resco was willing to share his knowledge and feelings with you - tune in for an interesting look at the Centro’s effects on software sales!

Please tell us more about you and your company
Hi Tam, first - thank you for the pleasure of being interviewed by one of the top Palm OS bloggers.
Some of your readers will know my name and even more of them will have some association when hearing the name Resco. Well, it’s primarily a PPC company, but we have created also couple of Palm OS titles that have a broad audience. Resco Explorer, Viewer, Backup and other titles are all leaders in their respective category. Plus there is attractively priced Resco Suite - the all-in-one package. (Old Resco users have interesting discounts).

Have you already handled a Centro yourself? If yes, how do you feel about it. If not, why not!
Unfortunately, I did not. First of all we have a lot of Palm devices in-house and as far the Palm OS modifications are concerned, Centro should behave more or less identically to the latest Treo models. Hence I don’t feel a real need.

Do you feel like the Centro could become a mayor source of income for developers given the target demographics
That’s the main problem - the user demographics. Centro sells wonderfully and acc. to the specs it is a very good PDA. Unfortunately, we do not see corresponding impact on the sales.

To tell the truth, Centro ranks as the device #3 in our sales stats after Palm TX and Treo 755p and more or less on the same level as other newer Treo models - T680 and T700p. But since the Centro is the top-selling Palm handheld…

Acc. to Palm 95% Centro users get a data plan, i.e. they buy the relatively cheap locked version. These users will hardly buy software.

Have you seen users migrating to the Centro from other devices? If yes, which were the most affected? Would you migrate yourself?
I got occasional user reports of such migration. Of course - the old Resco users asking for a new registration. But I can’t judge if there is any trend.

I would migrate - if my old device stopped working. Of course - unless we decided to say farewell to the Palm OS programming.

Do you think that the Centro’s camera is good enough?
I am no big photoshooter. (Despite we created an excellent photo viewer - added by yours truly). I take pictures a few times a year and then my requirements are higher. In other words - nothing for me.

Has Palm done a good job helping developers to get their apps Centro-ready before release?
Was there any such action? And was there any need for it? The OS is the same since years and there are only very few things where you would do something Centro-specific. For example all our titles have just one Centro-dependent thing - reaction to the Home button. (I apologize to Resco News users that the promised patch was not yet released - it is ready and will hit the road soon).

Have you experienced technical issues porting your apps to the Centro? If yes, of what kind have they been?
Partially answered above. But it is basically the same as for other new Treo
models: For example if the Explorer user opens an html file in the Blazer, then the Home button needs to be handled specifically.

One small thing is the run-time device recognition. Palm broke the rules applied to the last Treo models. (I mean companyID and deviceID.) If they went the old way, there would be no need to patch our apps.

Which device do you currently use yourself(and why)?
I am still a Treo 650 user. It fits to my needs and I am a bit lazy to change the device if there is no real need.

Feel like giving us a sneek peak at your upcoming apps which are optimized for Centro?
If you tell me some substantial difference, we could consider it. Maybe the point is that the Centro apps should be designed differently - with stress on UI rather than on the functionality. This isn’t the best message for us as our apps always tried to be the leaders in functionality.

We were thinking of adding for example sweeps to the Viewer, but I would like to first see that Centro really starts selling software.

Anything you’d like to add?
Thanks for running this great blog.

The vienniese FunkFeuer project has managed to significantly expands its coverage in Vienna recently. A meeting in the MetaLab enabled me to have a quick talk with Aaron Kaplan - here goes:

Please tell us a bit more about yourself
I am one of the founders of the FunkFeuer initiative. FunkFeuer is a wireless community network that currently covers Vienna, Graz and other parts of Austria.

What is FunkFeuer all about?
FunkFeuer…umm..first of all..the name is one of the few words that English speakers can never pronounce. It is made up from the words Funk and Feuer; the combined word means as much as aircraft beacon signal. But we aren’t talking about aircraft here…but rather about a citywide mesh network.

Mesh networking means that a bunch of access points are linked together - and as long as one of them has internet uplink, packages are routed around wirelessly from router to router.

In the end, it becomes one huge city-wide WiFi network…

Does this mean that we are talking about municipal WiFi?
At the moment, we are still mostly a research network. We cover the whole city, but only on rooftop level - we don’t quite penetrate down to the floor yet.

But - on a long-term view, this is definitely where we are heading to!

What do you need in order to log in?
At the moment, we still wish the network to grow. Thus we require people to install the so-called optimized linkstate network protocol stack. Once the program is up and running, your device becomes part of the network.

We may eventually open the network to all clients - however, as of now, we do not want freeloaders and thus do not allow anyone to connect.

For what platforms is OLSR available?
First of all, you need WiFi.

We currently have the program running on Nokia 770, apple iPhone/iPod touch and a select few Symbian phones.

At the moment, we still are very focussed on routers. However, crosscompiling the software should be easy - it’s open source and pretty portable.

As already said, this is a community project - if you feel like giving it a pop, just download the sources and get it compiling!

You mentioned power consumption before - what were you talking about exactly?
As of now, WiFi still is very power-hungry. However, we expect powersaving chips to become available soon, which will cut power consumption significantly.

Additionally, OLSR is permanently being optimized for lower power consumption - we permanently work on reducing the power need of the protocol (stack).

Are there similar installations existing where everyone can connect?
Please let me emphasize this once again - we COULD turn this feature on any time. However, as of now, we want to keep the network growing. Later on, enabling this is a matter of running an access point service next to the mesh routing daemon…as said, we could do it any time.

What are the future goals?
First of all, power consumption awareness and universal compatibility with mobile devices. In order to achieve that, we need to reduce our CPU utilization(something we have done very effectively in the past, reducing client overhead from O=n*n to O=n*log(n)). Additionally, we also plan to experiment with routing metrics…and…last, but not least, complete coverage down to street level…

Anything you would like to add?
Yes - visit www.oslr.org to check out the current development status!

Should you have any questions, please leave a comment - Aaron is an avid reader of this blog!

At Asus’s official pre-launch event, I had the opportunity to have a quick chat with Lars Schweden. My original 10q-Interview was soon ripped up completely and replaced by the “chatlog” below - Lars is truly a refreshing exception from the average, dull-minded project manager! Read on for loads of interesting information on the future of Asus eee lineup:

Dear Lars, please tell us a bit more about who you are!
First of all, hello to all TamsXXX readers. I - Lars - am the product manager for mobile computing. Mobile computing means notebooks, handhelds, and - last but not least - the new eeePC.

Let’s get down to the eeePC immediately…specifically, to its small 7′ screen. Many reviewers have complained about this…what happened to the 10′ version that leaked along the 7′ one?
Based on today’s information, all future products are still under NDA. Keep in mind that we start selling the eee in Germany/Austria tomorrow…so I unfortunately can’t say much here.

However, I can say that we have an eeePC roadmap full of interesting new devices…but as said..that’s all I can say.

Is a touchscreen version planned? A few web sites have already leaked info here.
My answer is very similar to the previous one. I think that this idea is currently being discussed and could very well be in a future product!

Can’t you just give us a few hints on what’s coming next? An integrated phone? A faster CPU(seeing that the one currently in is underclocked)?
I am sorry…I really can’t say anything here atm. But - I can promise you that we will see a load of new, cool models in the eee family sooner or later!

Why is the processor underclocked to approx 650MHZ from the advertised 900(FSB at 70 rather than 100MhZ)?
This is a matter of battery runtime. Testing has determined that this frequency gives customers the best ratio between performance and battery runtime. The underclocking you talk about has increased battery life by approx. 10%.

But why is the machine being advertised as 900MHZ?
First of all…the eee has never been advertised with a specific frequency. We just claim that a “power-saving Intel CPU” is in the machine.

When talking about the eeePC, our main topic is how easy it is to use - detailed hardware specifications are not part of that…

How will the eee lineup become a part of Asus’s strategic portfolio?
I think that the device is already part of the portfolio. We hope that the eee will help us further the market reach of Asus here in Germany/Austria and the rest of the world.

Keep in mind that we have over 1000 engineers working on the eee project - I am sure that the eee family will become a very important part of our future lineup!

Hmm…I actually meant if the eee will be ‘integrated’ into the existing portfolio. E.G., by allowing Asus notebooks to sync data with an eee sort of like Palm’s Hotsync.
All I can say is that we think about ways how to interlink Asus’s different business departments in order to make the products work together better in the future.

How does easy to use/easy to play/… blend in with commercial software. Does Asus plan to create some sort of MicroISV community around the eeePC selling shareware applications developed specifically for it?
At the moment, we want to target first-time buyers(children, housewives,…). We were very surprised to see that Linux freaks and especially business customers were very interested in the eeePC. Thus; we of course have to think about a way to offer them more value - but as much in the interview, this has not been finalized as of now.

You mentioned that you were surprised by the amount of Linux users adopting the device(Lars smiles) - what is your position towards homebrew solutions for his eee(e.g. if someone integrates a HDD instead of the flash SSD)
From my personal point of view, I am very proud to see what currently happens and how well the Asus eeePC is accepted. I am especially proud about all the hype that currently surrounds the eeePC…we have web sites giving step-by-step update procedures.

Additionally, please keep in mind that the eeePC is the first product ever in Asus’s history where we openly support Linux. This still is a new area for us, so expect more to happen here.

Of course, our strategic partner Microsoft is also very interested in the eeePC - it is very possible that we will see eee’s running Windows sooner or later!

OK…but does Asus actually support homebrew guys by giving them access to schematics,.. of the device to aid them in hacking?
We don’t do this currently, but are evaluating this option. In Taiwan, we currently do a survey about eeePC first experiences. This feedback will be used to see what we can do to improve eeePC support in the future. Based on my current information, however, the eeePC hackers figured it all out by themselves…

Do you have an eeePC yourself?
Yes - I have one of the first samples that arrived in Germany. My family and friends are very impressed about it and keep bugging me if I can get them one…

Did you mod your eeePC already
Not yet, no :).

The unit’s price is very close to PDA’s. Do you feel that the eeePC can compete with classic PDA’s
Personally, I don’t think that the eeePC should compete with PDA’s or other handhelds. Yes, the prices are similar - but that would be comparing apples and oranges. A person who buys a PDA usually has experiences on a PC, whereas the eeePC is targeted at first-time buyers.

Is there anything else you would like to add?
Well - one last thing I want to highlight once again(slide below; kein is German for not):

For us, the eeePC is NOT a notebook. Even if you offer a laptop for 300€, it is not comparable to the eeePC - the eeePC is much lighter and easier to use. It IMHO cannot and should not be compared with laptops - compare the user interfaces and you’ll see what I mean!

Today, I can proudly present you Luc LeBlanc, the man behind Auriga(aka the cave tool for Palm OS). Stick with us to find out what a Palm does in a cave, what Luc thinks of the Meazura and how the platform will fare in the future!

Could you please tell us a bit more about yourself? How did you get into programming, what was your first handheld,…
I’m a software designer by trade, and a cave explorer by nature. In 1982, after receiving a B.Sc in Computer Science from McGill University in Montreal (Quebec, Canada), I got a job offer in Paris, France. I worked there for 5 years, but love brought me back home. In 1990 I ended up working for the local power utility, where I eventually headed a team of 20 developing a monitoring system for hydroelectric generators.

The client side was written in C++ under OS/2 (!) with DB2 as the storage database while the acquisition side was written in C and PL/M running on a 12-MHz Intel Multibus hardware. The latter, which performed Fast Fourier Transforms (FFT) on the fly to reduce the volume of signal data, gave me a feel for what a limited CPU can do when driven by a lean OS…

In 2001, I got my first PDA, a m100, that I bought to organize myself and to get rid of all the PostIt stickers I had around. Alas, the device was plagued by the “capacitor bug” and I had to replace it, this time by a Sony Clié S-360. it was still monochrome, but the screen and backlight were better, and I especially enjoyed the JogDial. In 2004, I was the only freeware writer attending the PalmSource Conference in California, and I took advantage of the 50% rebate to get a Tungsten T3. I would now like to get a TX, but since Palm is not releasing any new PDA model, their price is not going down

Many of my readers are not aware of what Auriga does. Could you please explain it to us in “laymen’s terms”?
Auriga is a cave survey freeware that replaces the traditional paper notebook. Caves are surveyed by measuring a “line plot” or skeleton of the passages, around which a sketch is drawn to represent walls and other features (water, deposits, stalactites, etc.) The line plot is measured with a tape or laser distancemeter, a compass (yes, a compass works underground) and an inclinometer (to measure slopes). The sketch is drawn with stations marked in it.

In the traditional way, the numeric data was jotted into a paper notebook as columns of digits. With a Palm running Auriga, the data is input via a form implementing all relevant validations; after that the line plot can be viewed in graphical form, with closure errors and orphan stations spotted in red, thus allowing surveyors to fix errors right away, instead of discovering them only once back home, when it’s too late.

Why did you choose Palm OS devices for this application?
Quite simply because I already had one. The Quebec Speleological Society holds an annual caving expedition in the Mexican jungle [http://www.mexpe.org] , far from any power outlet. In order to process the survey data in the field, we had started bringing a PC, along with a solar panel and lead-acid batteries. Alas, the PC would drain 7 hours of sunshine in less than 2 hours. I started seeking a Palm OS cave survey software that could run for days on a pair of AAA batteries. In April 2002, just before leaving, a German caver told me about Auriga, a piece of software he had written to test his electronic compass-clinometer prototype. He had stopped working on the electronics, and he gave me the Auriga source code. Since then, the code has grown ten-fold with additions such as a specialized keypad, unit conversions, loop detection, beaming, new graphical rendering, printing, etc. The software is now published in 3 languages (French, English and Spanish) and has conduits for 2 PC cave survey programs, with others on their way. Most of this is done during the night, where I can cut on sleep to get extra spare time.

Which handhelds are used the most? Which do you consider best-suited(WristPDA, Meazura,??)
Given that they have to take their handheld underground enclosed in a waterproof case, few users get expensive high-end devices for using Auriga. The most popular devices seem to be the Palm IIIxe from eBay or the Zire 22. Depending on the duration of the underground trip - I myself used a IIIxe during a week-long underground camp in New Mexico’s Lechuguilla - surveyors may prefer models with replaceable batteries, a disappearing species nowadays. However, thanks to the ability to connect Auriga with Bluetooth-enabled measuring devices such as the Leica Disto laser distancemeter, several users are now turning towards the Palm Tungsten E2 or the TX. As for the Fossil wrist PDA, its screen is way too small to be useful.

Thinking about caves, I immediately think about the Aceeca Meazura. Do you think that the Meazura is a great platform for Auriga; given that it is almost completely invulnerable to water and dropping?
A Spanish caver purchased a 400$-Meazura for Auriga even before trying the software- that’s what you call an early adopter! - but he now prefers his Zire 22 after he cracked his Meazura screen underground. When Acceca introduced the Meazura, I had asked them to get one to try it in caves, but they said they had already done plenty of testing and simply offered me a rebate; well, I guess they never took their device on a caving trip! And quite frankly, the Meazura is too much money for a rugged IIIxe.

Until Auriga implements on-screen sketching, surveyors still need a paper notebook for that part. So far, the best setup to carry both the PDA and the paper consists of a flexible waterproof case screwed into the cover of a regular survey binder. The PDA is kept on one side, while loose sheets of waterproof sketching paper are kept on the other. Placing the case closure at the bottom even allows for beaming without exposing the PDA. Surveyors are used to carry their survey binder on their belly inside their coverall between survey stations, and this enhanced binder still allows for that. If you were to use a Meazura, the binder would become too thick, or you’d have to carry it separately.

Looking at the current state of Palm, do you think that the platform will still be around for a long time?
I think the platform will be around for a while, if only for the large number of available applications, but it may be as a compatibility layer running under another OS. If Palm executives hadn’t been busy going around in circles selling, re-buying and selling again their OS, they might have found some time to actively support their OS and make it evolve and the future would be brighter, or at least less uncertain. I personally see a need for good and small PDAs, but the trend is now on multi-function smartphones, which seem adequate for nothing. I could already feel that trend at PalmSource 2004, where the hype was on mobile apps, at the expense of everything else. I never leave home without my PDA, yet I don’t have (nor want) a cell phone. I can always find a phone, but I can’t say as much for all my personal data, notes, driving directions, birthdays, gift lists, shopping lists, etc.

Do you plan to port Auriga to another platform?
Given the big price difference between low-end Palm OS and Windows Mobile devices, I get very little demand for this platform. Even those owning a Pocket PC decide they prefer to go caving with a cheap Palm OS device from eBay than risk a nifty handheld underground. And even then, Auriga runs fine under StyleTap, a 50$-emulator that executes Palm OS apps under Windows Mobile. As a matter of fact, I recently tested Auriga under StyleTap on a colleague’s HP, and StyleTap’s most recent release fixes beam-related issues I reported. So why should I bother writing for that platform? As for other mobile platforms, they mostly run on smartphones, which are irrelevant to Auriga.

What was the biggest cave mapped with Auriga?
To be honest, I don’t know, since cavers don’t send me the caves they surveyed, unless they hit a bug, which seems to happen very seldom. Last year in Mexico we mapped 10 km of new cave passages, half of them with Auriga. And folks surveying in Lechuguilla, the “world’s most beautiful cave” in New Mexico are now starting to use it for new passages; in order to view the rest of the known 185 km, they simply use the conduit to upload the data from PC to Auriga.

The world’s largest cave system is Kentucky’s Mammoth Cave; at 587 km, computing its 80 000 survey shots would currently exceed Auriga’s limit of 65 535 (a round number to programmers but an upcoming version should push this limit to about 150 000, i.e. what the available heap memory can hold.

Looking at technology, what part of Auriga are you proudest of?
In Mexico, when exploration teams come back to camp at night, even before they’re done changing and emptying their gear bags, they pull out their PDA and beam the survey work they just did to the “Camp” Auriga handheld, where all caves get displayed simultaneously, properly geo-located. We immediately see the daily growth of the discovered cave system, and decide where we’ll be heading the next day. Never before had we had an immediate view of our work and upcoming connections!

Anything you would like to add?
I recently became a .NET programmer, but looking at my younger colleagues whose background is in VB or Java, I’m glad I previously learned assembler and C. It has taught me to care for limited resources and to write tight and efficient code, well-suited for small devices.

The Austrian Games convention recently offered us the opportunity to get a little interview with Markus Neumann from Activision. Markus gave us his personal opinion on gaming for mobile devices, egoshooters and device sales - enjoy(picture courtesy of abc texte/Dr. Doris Maria Kohrs)!

Mr Neumann, please tell us a bit about what Activision does?
Activision is the world’s second biggest game publisher known for franchises like Call of Duty and Guitar Hero. We publish games for all major platforms like PC, XBox360, PS2, PS3, Nintendo DS, PSP & Wii.

The platforms listed above are impressive - they cover almost all gaming platforms. But how does it look when mobile devices are concerned?
For us, mobile device == Nintendo DS & PSP mainly at the moment, with NDS currently performing very well.…

Could you give us specific figures?
The past has shown that the Nintendo DS outsold the PSP by multiples, especially in the DACH (Germany, Austria, Switzerland) markets, so we’re looking at an 4 times higher installed base for NDS when we compare to PSP at this time. We do hope that the PSP slim gives the platform an uplift again.

And what about ‘real’ mobile devices like the PPC?
The PPC field is unexplored for us. We have not released any games for PPC, I personally think that this is due to lack of experience.

We leave this field to licensing partners mainly, who deliver the games for mobile devices based on our franchises and to the best capabilities of these mobile devices.

What about Java?
This is something we leave up to our partners. They get the franchise, and then choose the target platform on their own….this really isn’t my decision.

On to something else - Germany/the EU wants to ban egoshooters. Can this be done?
To be honest - I think that these cannot be forbidden. That would mean censorship of content which the state IMHO isn’t permitted to do in the radical fashion recommended by
the organs of state.

Would Activision fight a ban?
It’s not a question wheter Activision would stand up, I think the whole industry will need to stand up. The problem is that there are no decisions atm…all you have are discussions done in a very unprofessional way. My personal opinion is that we have popularization against a medium that the people discussing don’t understand themselves.

It is a matter of money-making for the state… games also pay a significant amount of VAT, the majority of the games fall
within the age ratings below 18 as well. It seems to be a system which is misjudged by politicians as of now.

This interview was edited by Mr Neumann after the initial transcription from the voice file, as some statements sounded too definite in the original form.

TamsPPC recently managed to get a hold of Thomas Kritsch from Microsoft’s. Thomas gave a little interview covering interesting questions like the future of the Zune(and how it will fare next to the PocketPC), what to do with your XBOX 360 and what one must do to bring a Microsoft game to a mobile device.

Head over to our sister site TamsPPC for the full interview:
http://tamsppc.tamoggemon.com/2007/09/24/microsoft-interview/

In the last few days, a few developers shared their opinions on Palm’s “secret business” aka Foleo. Now that the first round of interviews is done, I think that its time for a “conclusion” and a list of opinions.

First of all, here is a table with a few “characteristics” of each interview(descending order from positive to negative):

The interviewers had very diverging opinions, yet every one of them presented a coherent and “possible” scenario for the Foleo’s future. Here is each interview, along with a short summary(from positive to negative):
Andreas Voigt
Andreas Voigt(PDA repair house, Meazura king) is very positive about the Foleo. He thinks that the product can sell very well if marketed correctly - as smartphone addon to fulfill the infinite need for a bigger screen and keyboard…as well as the need for simple-to-use computers for the “masses”.

Donald Kirker
Donald Kirker(Universe3 developer) is pretty excited about the Foleo…although he thinks that its main use will not be email. His company plans on delivering applications for the machine, he expects it to sell decently well, but not blockbuster-style.

Iain Barclay
Iain Barclay(ElectricPocket) feels that the Foleo will be a “Web 2.0″ platform of some sort or the other. He thinks that it will make a “laptop lite” for people who don’t need the hassle of a full laptop(”I hope it is the perfect computer for my Mother and my kids!”), and plans to offer products for it.

Tunji Afonja
Tunji Afonja(GX5) thinks that Palm’s “gamble is very bold”. He thinks that the device has a good standing against UMPC’s(if only because of Vista’s various quirks); and could possibly sell well in the market for “simple” computers.

Jan Slodicka
Jan Slodicka(Resco) is rather negative about the Foleo. He expected a device that will at least somehow support the Treo market; which he feels that the Foleo does not. Jan cannot envision Treo users carrying an extra bag for the Foleo…

Radoslaw Nowak
Radoslaw Nowak’s position is short and simple: there isn’t enough space for the Palm Foleo between laptops and smartphones…

Dmitry Grinberg
Last but not least, Dmitry Grinberg goes into “full-scale” attack mode on Palm and delivers an amusing-but-accurate depiction of why the Foleo will fail and why it all doesn’t surprise him. His writing style alone makes this a must-read…

Overall, the Palm OS economy has spoken - and we aren’t wiser than we were before. We got very negative interviews, very positive ones and neutral ones, too. In the end, time will tell - what do you think?

Please tell us more about yourself and your company!
My name is Radoslaw Nowak, I’m the founder and owner of RNS::
I’m a student of computer sciences and economics, but still I have a lot of time to run my business, as well as (mostly!) to do my hobbies, which mainly consist of travelling, sightseeing, and visiting the undiscovered We are a quite small company, though by developing software for Palm OS only, we managed to get visible popularity around the users of this platform. Although Palm devices seem to stay behind Pocket PC handhelds, we are still loyal to Palm, wishing Palm well, and waiting for its renascence I encourage everyone, especially the Treo owners to visit our website and have a look at our software - it’s really worth it!

What did you expect Palm to release? What were your initial impressions of the Foleo?
After releasing a few smartphones, I hoped Palm will release a new PDA (without the phone module) running Palm OS. It was during the Jeff Hawkins’ webcast that I first saw Foleo… in fact I was a bit late for the webcast, and when I first saw the new device in Jeff Hawkins’ hands, my first impression was: “why does he hold an early 1990’s computer in his hands?”… sharp edges, gray plastic, straight keyboard layout… Then I learned it was the new device everyone was to enthusiastic about in Palm… honestly I was disappointed at the first sight

What do you think about the device now that the news is out for a few days?
This is a very exotic device… I mean there are no similar devices around, and I think it will have to have a really strong advertising campaign to make people aware that it is not a replacement neither for a palmtop nor a laptop… well… in fact this idea does not convince me… I have a palmtop, I have a laptop, why do I need one more device? I’m afraid Foleo won’t be a successful product from Palm (yet another one

Do you plan to produce products or provide services for the Foleo?
For sure not in the foreseeable future. And I don’t think we will ever do.

Do you think that the Foleo will sell well? Will it get a successor?
As I mentioned - without strong advertising - it won’t sell well. A successor? I don’t think so - Palm has never released successors for unsuccessful devices so far, so I’m afraid the same applies to Foleo.

The Foleo looks very much like a subnotebook/UMPC mixture. How will it fare against UMPCs?
I think Foleo’s feature set (both hardware and software), as well as its potential are too weak to compete with with Microsoft/Intel/Samsung products. And the alleged ease of use is not a big advantage here if compared with the possibilities of UMPCs.

The Foleo was hyped almost as much as Apple’s iPhone. Which of the boxen deserves the hype more?

Would you prefer Palm to open the Foleo platform to other hardware developers?
That could be the light in the tunnel for Foleo. So yes - that would be better than not opening it, but whether it would make much difference… I don’t think so.

How will the Foleo affect the Palm OS economy and the PDA/smartphone market in general?
It won’t And co-marketing of Foleo and Treo, like Jeff Hawkins presented in the webcast, won’t help much here. You won’t convince a Treo owner to buy Foleo, neither the opposite.

Anything you would like to add?
Palm! You are FAR behind Pocket PCs! Wake up, guys - you still have a real potential! Wake up!

Please tell us more about yourself and your company!
My name is Tunji Afonja, President of Gx5. We try to create compelling software for PCs and Mobile Devices. Check us out at www.gx-5.com, you might see something you like.

What did you expect Palm to release? What were your initial impressions of the Foleo?
I had no clue what they were going to release. After All it was a � Third Secret� business. As for initial Impression:- Tremendous Disappointment. With so much hype in the Palm Community what we saw just did not live up to the hype. Remember, most of us want the latest, greatest and glossiest device. None of which the Foleo is.

What do you think about the device now that the news is out for a few days?
After thinking it through, I think there is tremendous potential. While it may not look sexy or something from the future, it could perfectly meet the demands of certain types of Professionals who work on the road. For certain Professionals that need to handle a ton of email on the road, the ability to have the Foleo with instant on and 5 hrs of battery life could be heaven sent. If you think more about what is out there, you see why the Foleo makes sense. UMPCs are not the answer because they don�t have a full keyboard. Laptops are not the answer because they can�t give you battery life the Foleo claims to have and most are just not as light. In addition, Vista is currently proving itself as totally incompetent.

Do you plan to produce products or provide services for the Foleo?
Well, at Gx5 we tend to create apps with high end visual appeal, interactivity and multimedia. The Foleo, as pointed out by Ed Collligan is for people that do 5 things on the go ( Email, Word, Excel, Web Browsing, and Solitaire). So currently we have no plans, but as time goes by and with successful adoption, we would definitely take a look at the platform again.

Do you think that the Foleo will sell well? Will it get a successor?
I actually think it has a very good chance to sell very well. The tech community is a bit misguided. Everyone seems to think a device on steroids is what will sell because naturally we in the tech community have the latest and greatest gadget loaded with everything. But if you think about your average professional, they just want simplicity and something that works well. So if the Foleo can do what it says, I think it will be appealing to many of these professionals that do the basic 5 things I just said.

The Foleo looks very much like a subnotebook/UMPC mixture. How will it fare against UMPCs?
I have seen quite a few UMPCs and they all don�t have a full keyboard and as large a screen as the Foleo. Plus they tend to have the usual tech lovers bells and whistles, which for the most part mobile professionals won�t care for. Also ask your self this. The UMPC has been around for what a year now? Have you seen anyone on the street or caf� using one?

The Foleo was hyped almost as much as Apple�s iPhone. Which of the boxen deserves the hype more?
The Foleo should not have been hyped at all. Am not sure if it was Palm�s intentions, but for some reason, those tantalizing hints of �a third secret� business grew a life of its own, building up unnecessary hype. Plus, Palm should have not even focused any of it�s energy announcing to the tech community. They should have known the tech community with it�s lust for the latest and greatest would slam the Foleo. Palm would have been better served going after the target audience right away.

Would you prefer Palm to open the Foleo platform to other hardware and Software developers?
Well, we are an ISV and always welcome new opportunity. But Palm has to do what is best for them. If opening Foleo makes good sense then am for it. If it doesn�t then so be it.

How will the Foleo affect the Palm OS economy and the PDA/smartphone market in general?
I am not sure yet, The Palm OS as we know it is dead. Palm�s new SmartPhones will be running a new OS and we still don�t have details on that. There are still too many questions that need to be answered before we know the impact or non impact of the Foleo.

Anything you would like to add?
What the tech community thinks is the hottest gadget may not sell well in the real world( UMPC).
What the tech community thinks is the dumbest gadget may be what the real world wants( Foleo?)

Also, Palm�s gamble is pretty bold. They are saying the mobile professional basically performs 5 tasks( Email, Word, Excel, Web Browsing, and Solitaire) on the go and that the Foleo helps them achieve these 5 tasks most efficiently such that they don�t need to carry their laptop on the road anymore. So it is not a laptop replacement but you won�t need your laptop anymore when you are on the road.
What might even help Palm sell this is to provide a solution like gotomypc which will then remove the fears of the mobile professional since they can now access the same laptop they have now left behind.

And finally, when I get a Foleo is when I have finally made it. That is; an overpaid executive that does nothing but approve stuff and give presentations. Right now am working way too hard logging around this 9 lb laptop.

Welcome back to the TamsPalm Foleo interviews! Today, Iain Barclay from Electric Pocket joins us for his take on the Foleo - let’s go:

Please tell us more about yourself and your company! We are developers of popular Palm and Windows mobile applications, including BugMe!, Ringo and LobsterTunes.

What did you expect Palm to release? What were your initial impressions of the Foleo? We were expecting a tablet device, probably with large touchscreen and now keyboard.

We were initially underwhelmed by the Foleo, and its description as a “smartphone companion” - we didn’t really understand how that could be a large market device.

What do you think about the device now that the news is out for a few days? We quite quickly realised the potential for this device almost as a “web 2.0 client” - for reading the web, gmail, etc. around the house and other places we go. I also think my kids will love it. I can see a big potential now for people to use this as a “laptop lite” - an easy to use device without all the cost, bulk and time consuming aspects of a real laptop. I hope that it is really capable in this direction - I’m especially interested in its media handling abilities.

Do you plan to produce products or provide services for the Foleo? I hope that we will. We will certainly investigate it as a possible platform.

Do you think that the Foleo will sell well? Will it get a successor? I think that depends on how well the story is told. I would certainly hope enough will sell for a Foleo 2.0

The Foleo looks very much like a subnotebook/UMPC mixture. How will it fare against UMPCs?
I think it will do fine. It seems much simpler, and that is a good thing.

The Foleo was hyped almost as much as Apple’s iPhone. Which of the boxen deserves the hype more?
Probably neither deserve the hype they’ve had, though the iPhone seems to have fared better in the “industry reaction” stakes since its announcement.

Would you prefer Palm to open the Foleo platform to other hardware developers?
No, that would be a big mistake. They need to control the hardware and software, and make the whole platform great.

How will the Foleo affect the Palm OS economy and the PDA/smartphone market in general?
It will be interesting to see. In some respects I think this is to the side of that space, so it may create a whole new set of opportunities.

Anything you would like to add?
I’m certainly excited to get hold of a Foleo and see what can be done with it. I really hope it is well executed, and simple to use - that is what its promise is to me. I hope it is the perfect computer for my Mother and my kids!