It even allows you to mount the PocketPC's storage devices as volumes on your Desktop in OS X, which I don't think you can do in Windows.
Yup, you can do that in Windows. Open up My Computer, and there is an icon in there called "Mobile Device." In there you have access to the PocketPC's internal storage as well as anything external- SD, CF, etc.
So long as they publish th protocols then things are OK. Someone who cares can write/distribute sych tools.
But they don't now, so why would they start doing so? Sure, someone can reverse engineer the protocols- and over USB, it's been a bitch for the pilot tools folks- but that's a big investment. Sure, folks have done it- see Mark/Space's Missing Sync. But they want money for their efforts, which isnt' a surprise.
But that iBook doesn't fit in your pocket. My primary computer right now is a "PDA" that runs Windows CE. Mind you, this isn't PocketPC but something more. Nor is it PalmOS. I need multitasking- after all, I use it as a computer, not an expensive datebook. But unlike the iBook I gave my girlfriend, I can fit it in my pocket, and even more easily, in my jacket or backpack without adding more than 0.5 kilo/1 lb to my person. 800x480 screen-mmm. Though, I don't have 20 GB of MP3s on it, certainly, nor a library of DVD rips. But I don't do DVD rips, and I have a MP3 cd player for tunes.
If the past is any indication, if Apple releases a PDA, it will likely run the PalmOS- not the NewtonOS. There has been announcements of joint Palm + Apple projects in the past, though nothing became of them.
I just don't see Apple putting all that money into reinventing, modernizing and re-doing the NewtonOS. Far more likely is that they'd take something and OEM it- like Dell, Gateway and others have done with PocketPC and Sony and others with the PalmOS.
Don't get me wrong- I only just switched away from the Newton OS to Windows CE a year ago, with some experiments in between. The Newton rules all in most respects, still more useful than most Palm or PocketPC devices today as a true "assistant" and a computer.
Je-zus, it's good someone said this. I don't know how many posts were at OSnews.com saying "pfft- I already have iSync! Palm Desktop blows!" Blatantly ignoring the fact that if you don't install Palm Desktop, you're SOL as far as syncing your Palm with your Mac.
A reply mentions that you "probably" won't need the palm desktop any longer- but have we heard anything about this? Is Apple going to buy out Mark/Space's Missing Sync? Not likely. What is more likely is that Palm users on the Mac will have to *buy* a copy of Missing Sync just to sync their Palm OS devices with their Macs... Bleh.
And thank the lawd it stayed down south. I don't think I had even heard of grits until I was 10. At 23 I still haven't tasted them, although my boss gave me a packet of Quaker Oats instant hot grits that I will try one day, perhaps when sufficiently intoxicated. Don't think I'll add parmesian cheese though, which has been suggested. fucking sick.
Don't get me wrong, I love corn. But man, the south.
Except with Kazaa, everyone will be downloading the new Brittany Spears single at a whopping 2.5 KB/sec; not the best demo for a 2.5 Gbit link. That might be good for scaring away potential customers, though.
Actually, not really. There isn't any SyncML for the Zaurus, which does Linux+Qtopia just like this phone. Whereas a lot of other phones running every other OS does support SyncML. You'd probably have a better chance of your computer talking to a SyncML-enabled phone rather than whatever PIM API Trolltech/Sharp/Mot is using this week.
Judging from the Zaurus [1], we'll probably find out that this handset can kinda sorta make phone calls. But check this out! You can run MySQL on it! And PHP! And X11! See how cute my phone is at a LUG meeting, although during the rest of the week it goes unused...
[1] Enter Zaurus cheerleader, who says: "It's not supposed to be a good PDA! It's a PMT, not a PDA! *frothing at mouth*"
The ability comes in handy more that you may think. If you're just using your handset to make calls, no you don't need anything like that. But viewers of various types is very handy when you want to carry data around with you. Bus schedules, directions, etc etc.
But there is nothing about Linux that means it will use open standards. Nor is there any guaruntee that anyone else will implement those standards in other places. The Linux-based Zaurus is a good example. You still cannot sync the newer ROMs with a Linux desktop. The API and formats are open and available, but no one has done the work to put the two together yet. It's likely to happen eventually, yes, but just being based on Linux, just being "open" doesn't mean jack- and this illustrates this point.
Nor does the Zaurus (and likely these Linux-based Mot phones) support SyncML.
Being free is certainly a motitivator- especially in markets like China where a cheaper device makes a big impact. But there is a lot of potential- again, look at Sharp for an example- of this being abused. That is, companies don't put the work in required to make the solution a nice one, content to just pass the buck on to the community, assuming that they'll do the work to make it usable. That is fine and dandy for a tiny niche market like Linux PDAs, but for regular markets- yeah right!
No one is under the impression that those [] tags are valid HTML. They're not HTML nor attempted HTML- it's common markup for a lot of BBS software. Valid in a lot of places- most forums strip HTML because of the potential for abuse. No potential for abuse when you just have a subset of non-HTML markup.
Re:This is pretty stupid, and not worth a /. artic
on
Enderle's Ferrari Laptop
·
· Score: 2, Informative
Man- look at the battery specs. All but one model only gets 60-90 minutes of battery life- and it is inevitable that will hover mostly around 60. An hour of battery life? sheesh!
Yeah, I remember seeing one at BestBuy. They had them there for quite a while, though I don't think so any longer. When they first came out, I remember folks on here and other more PC-leaning forums, singings its praises- finally something to rival the TiBook, but one capable of running Windows and Linux/x86. Joy.
The thing doesn't feel sturdy, less than most PC laptops and far less than a TiBook or any other current Apple 'book for that matter. Although, AFAIK, it was the first widescreen PC laptop, aimed at taking the market the TiBook lived it, so I imagine some folks bought it for that.
I'd say the prevalence of drop-in replacements for the Palm Pilot's Date Book, Phone Book, Note Pad, and To Do List would imply that the format isn't actually that obscure.
Exactly. In fact- unlike on Linux or most OSes- all of the internal data on a Palm device is a database. It is very easy- even without documentation- for a developer to write an app that manipulates the internal data of any PalmOS app. Though it's often not needed, there is also documentation on these internal formats from Palm and third parties. Somewhat ironically, on the other hand, the Sharp PIM API for the same data is just about the most evil thing I've ever used.:)
The slightly ironic part of this is that on Windows CE you usually don't need the source to reach your ends because the API is better.
On the Zaurus, you have Qtopia and Linux. Let's say I want to write a full-screen gesture recognizer. On Qtopia, the only way to do this involves modifying Qtopia itself. At first glance, this sounds like something good- proof that being open can be useful sometimes. But to do the same thing on Windows CE, I don't have to modify the display server itself. The API was designed well enough- designed for PDAs and other stylus-based devices- that I don't have to hack on the OS/GUI system itself.
On WinCE, since my app can simply be installed and ran on a regular WinCE installation, a lot of people download and use my application. But on the Zaurus, almost no one touches it. Even Linux users- who are used to having to spend more time administrating their computer than other users- for the most part aren't willing to install a whole new version of Qtopia to get the feature I provide. For some of them, it means installing a new ROM.
And the hassle just keeps growing. In the next minor version of Windows CE- WinCE.NET 4.2 or 4.3 or beyond, my app should run, and if not, I update it if something has changed a little. On Qtopia, my users grumble even more because all of a sudden, things break. They can't run a new app because they want to keep using my feature, and the new app requires the new version of Qtopia. After a little of this, most users give up- it's not worth the hassle for most people.
I can't say if these assertions apply to desktop Windows. I don't have a desktop Windows machine, only this lil WinCE.NET 4.1 box. I have a Linux PC, though these days it's mostly for file serving, sharing MP3s with my WinCE machine, which has taken over as my primary box. I'm not a MS advocate, and certainly think every version of Windows leaves things to be desired. But it's something to think of, though a lot of Linux advocates will choose not to.
I'm not sure if you have a PalmOS or WinCE/PPC-based device, but...
If you have a Windows CE or PocketPC device, you can play OGGs. Another common misconception, sometimes perpetuated here at Slashdot. I've used GSPlayer to play MP3s and OGGs for a few years without a problem.
Have you ever used Windows CE? I switched back to Windows CE from the Zaurus because I have more useful Unix/Linux ports for my Windows CE palmtop than there are for the Zaurus. LaTeX, Perl/Tk, GNU Maxima, GNUplot, and others... all tools I run on Windows CE, complete with usable GUIs. And all tools that have no usable port for the Zaurus. Sure, I can get a console version, usually without line editing (e.g. no readline), but that simply doesn't count on a PDA.
It's likely most people- especially Zaurus users- don't run those apps. I expect my "PDA" to be usable as a computer, and not just a toy to show off as LUG meetings.
The existence of Unix software says nothing about the existence of quality Zaurus or other Linux PDA software. You can get a lot of programs for the Zaurus that are simply something for desktop Linux recompiled for the ARM arch- but that hardly counts as a "Zaurus port." That isn't a PDA application, it's a desktop port that happens to run on the PDA. Not really workable, and the number of desktop ports that haven't seen any real porting or adaptation work to the Zaurus is partially responsible for inflating the percieved number of "apps" for the Zaurus and other Linux PDAs.
Graffiti is old news. Palm itself doesn't even use the original Graffiti anymore- there is Graffiti 2. With G2, you make your Ks like you usually would- though you can do the alpha-style if you want.
But then again, there have been a lot of other input options on the PalmOS for a long time. No matter how much you repeat your "Linux is more flexibile" mantra, PalmOS still has more options as far as input than any Linux PDA, and Windows CE-based PDAs have even more options.
Uhh... If they replaced the hard Graffiti area with a software Graffiti area the screen would likely enlarge to 320x480, rather than stay fixed at 320x320. See the Tungsten T3 for an example by Palm.
I suppose what you said could be true, the Tungsten C being an example. They took out the hard Graf area and put in a keyboard, but you can still use Graf anywhere on the screen. But the poster was interested in a bigger and better screen I think, not just getting rid of the hard Graf area.
I picked up a used- but in new condition- Sony Clie NX-70V for a piddly $230. $30 more than a Tungsten E retail, but worth it. The 320x480 screen is beautiful. Not as nice as the 800x480 screen on my other PDA, a Sigmarion III, or as nice as the Zaurus C760's VGA screen, but it's more reflective than either, which makes it perfect for outdoor use, which is often enough in the summer for me.
Slashdot Mirror
It even allows you to mount the PocketPC's storage devices as volumes on your Desktop in OS X, which I don't think you can do in Windows.
Yup, you can do that in Windows. Open up My Computer, and there is an icon in there called "Mobile Device." In there you have access to the PocketPC's internal storage as well as anything external- SD, CF, etc.
So long as they publish th protocols then things are OK. Someone who cares can write/distribute sych tools.
But they don't now, so why would they start doing so? Sure, someone can reverse engineer the protocols- and over USB, it's been a bitch for the pilot tools folks- but that's a big investment. Sure, folks have done it- see Mark/Space's Missing Sync. But they want money for their efforts, which isnt' a surprise.
Heh. No joke; and I second that as a Newton lover/user. Just stopped using the ol Newt 6 mos ago. *sigh*
But that iBook doesn't fit in your pocket. My primary computer right now is a "PDA" that runs Windows CE. Mind you, this isn't PocketPC but something more. Nor is it PalmOS. I need multitasking- after all, I use it as a computer, not an expensive datebook. But unlike the iBook I gave my girlfriend, I can fit it in my pocket, and even more easily, in my jacket or backpack without adding more than 0.5 kilo/1 lb to my person. 800x480 screen-mmm. Though, I don't have 20 GB of MP3s on it, certainly, nor a library of DVD rips. But I don't do DVD rips, and I have a MP3 cd player for tunes.
If the past is any indication, if Apple releases a PDA, it will likely run the PalmOS- not the NewtonOS. There has been announcements of joint Palm + Apple projects in the past, though nothing became of them.
I just don't see Apple putting all that money into reinventing, modernizing and re-doing the NewtonOS. Far more likely is that they'd take something and OEM it- like Dell, Gateway and others have done with PocketPC and Sony and others with the PalmOS.
Don't get me wrong- I only just switched away from the Newton OS to Windows CE a year ago, with some experiments in between. The Newton rules all in most respects, still more useful than most Palm or PocketPC devices today as a true "assistant" and a computer.
Je-zus, it's good someone said this. I don't know how many posts were at OSnews.com saying "pfft- I already have iSync! Palm Desktop blows!" Blatantly ignoring the fact that if you don't install Palm Desktop, you're SOL as far as syncing your Palm with your Mac.
A reply mentions that you "probably" won't need the palm desktop any longer- but have we heard anything about this? Is Apple going to buy out Mark/Space's Missing Sync? Not likely. What is more likely is that Palm users on the Mac will have to *buy* a copy of Missing Sync just to sync their Palm OS devices with their Macs... Bleh.
And thank the lawd it stayed down south. I don't think I had even heard of grits until I was 10. At 23 I still haven't tasted them, although my boss gave me a packet of Quaker Oats instant hot grits that I will try one day, perhaps when sufficiently intoxicated. Don't think I'll add parmesian cheese though, which has been suggested. fucking sick.
Don't get me wrong, I love corn. But man, the south.
(northern minnesota representin')
Except with Kazaa, everyone will be downloading the new Brittany Spears single at a whopping 2.5 KB/sec; not the best demo for a 2.5 Gbit link. That might be good for scaring away potential customers, though.
Actually, not really. There isn't any SyncML for the Zaurus, which does Linux+Qtopia just like this phone. Whereas a lot of other phones running every other OS does support SyncML. You'd probably have a better chance of your computer talking to a SyncML-enabled phone rather than whatever PIM API Trolltech/Sharp/Mot is using this week.
Judging from the Zaurus [1], we'll probably find out that this handset can kinda sorta make phone calls. But check this out! You can run MySQL on it! And PHP! And X11! See how cute my phone is at a LUG meeting, although during the rest of the week it goes unused...
[1] Enter Zaurus cheerleader, who says: "It's not supposed to be a good PDA! It's a PMT, not a PDA! *frothing at mouth*"
The ability comes in handy more that you may think. If you're just using your handset to make calls, no you don't need anything like that. But viewers of various types is very handy when you want to carry data around with you. Bus schedules, directions, etc etc.
But there is nothing about Linux that means it will use open standards. Nor is there any guaruntee that anyone else will implement those standards in other places. The Linux-based Zaurus is a good example. You still cannot sync the newer ROMs with a Linux desktop. The API and formats are open and available, but no one has done the work to put the two together yet. It's likely to happen eventually, yes, but just being based on Linux, just being "open" doesn't mean jack- and this illustrates this point.
Nor does the Zaurus (and likely these Linux-based Mot phones) support SyncML.
Being free is certainly a motitivator- especially in markets like China where a cheaper device makes a big impact. But there is a lot of potential- again, look at Sharp for an example- of this being abused. That is, companies don't put the work in required to make the solution a nice one, content to just pass the buck on to the community, assuming that they'll do the work to make it usable. That is fine and dandy for a tiny niche market like Linux PDAs, but for regular markets- yeah right!
Trust me. A biologist just knows.
No one is under the impression that those [] tags are valid HTML. They're not HTML nor attempted HTML- it's common markup for a lot of BBS software. Valid in a lot of places- most forums strip HTML because of the potential for abuse. No potential for abuse when you just have a subset of non-HTML markup.
Man- look at the battery specs. All but one model only gets 60-90 minutes of battery life- and it is inevitable that will hover mostly around 60. An hour of battery life? sheesh!
Yeah, I remember seeing one at BestBuy. They had them there for quite a while, though I don't think so any longer. When they first came out, I remember folks on here and other more PC-leaning forums, singings its praises- finally something to rival the TiBook, but one capable of running Windows and Linux/x86. Joy.
The thing doesn't feel sturdy, less than most PC laptops and far less than a TiBook or any other current Apple 'book for that matter. Although, AFAIK, it was the first widescreen PC laptop, aimed at taking the market the TiBook lived it, so I imagine some folks bought it for that.
But bleh.
I'd say the prevalence of drop-in replacements for the Palm Pilot's Date Book, Phone Book, Note Pad, and To Do List would imply that the format isn't actually that obscure.
:)
Exactly. In fact- unlike on Linux or most OSes- all of the internal data on a Palm device is a database. It is very easy- even without documentation- for a developer to write an app that manipulates the internal data of any PalmOS app. Though it's often not needed, there is also documentation on these internal formats from Palm and third parties. Somewhat ironically, on the other hand, the Sharp PIM API for the same data is just about the most evil thing I've ever used.
The slightly ironic part of this is that on Windows CE you usually don't need the source to reach your ends because the API is better.
On the Zaurus, you have Qtopia and Linux. Let's say I want to write a full-screen gesture recognizer. On Qtopia, the only way to do this involves modifying Qtopia itself. At first glance, this sounds like something good- proof that being open can be useful sometimes. But to do the same thing on Windows CE, I don't have to modify the display server itself. The API was designed well enough- designed for PDAs and other stylus-based devices- that I don't have to hack on the OS/GUI system itself.
On WinCE, since my app can simply be installed and ran on a regular WinCE installation, a lot of people download and use my application. But on the Zaurus, almost no one touches it. Even Linux users- who are used to having to spend more time administrating their computer than other users- for the most part aren't willing to install a whole new version of Qtopia to get the feature I provide. For some of them, it means installing a new ROM.
And the hassle just keeps growing. In the next minor version of Windows CE- WinCE.NET 4.2 or 4.3 or beyond, my app should run, and if not, I update it if something has changed a little. On Qtopia, my users grumble even more because all of a sudden, things break. They can't run a new app because they want to keep using my feature, and the new app requires the new version of Qtopia. After a little of this, most users give up- it's not worth the hassle for most people.
I can't say if these assertions apply to desktop Windows. I don't have a desktop Windows machine, only this lil WinCE.NET 4.1 box. I have a Linux PC, though these days it's mostly for file serving, sharing MP3s with my WinCE machine, which has taken over as my primary box. I'm not a MS advocate, and certainly think every version of Windows leaves things to be desired. But it's something to think of, though a lot of Linux advocates will choose not to.
I'm not sure if you have a PalmOS or WinCE/PPC-based device, but...
If you have a Windows CE or PocketPC device, you can play OGGs. Another common misconception, sometimes perpetuated here at Slashdot. I've used GSPlayer to play MP3s and OGGs for a few years without a problem.
D'oh, forgot to put this in my other post...
... all tools I run on Windows CE, complete with usable GUIs. And all tools that have no usable port for the Zaurus. Sure, I can get a console version, usually without line editing (e.g. no readline), but that simply doesn't count on a PDA.
Have you ever used Windows CE? I switched back to Windows CE from the Zaurus because I have more useful Unix/Linux ports for my Windows CE palmtop than there are for the Zaurus. LaTeX, Perl/Tk, GNU Maxima, GNUplot, and others
It's likely most people- especially Zaurus users- don't run those apps. I expect my "PDA" to be usable as a computer, and not just a toy to show off as LUG meetings.
The existence of Unix software says nothing about the existence of quality Zaurus or other Linux PDA software. You can get a lot of programs for the Zaurus that are simply something for desktop Linux recompiled for the ARM arch- but that hardly counts as a "Zaurus port." That isn't a PDA application, it's a desktop port that happens to run on the PDA. Not really workable, and the number of desktop ports that haven't seen any real porting or adaptation work to the Zaurus is partially responsible for inflating the percieved number of "apps" for the Zaurus and other Linux PDAs.
Graffiti is old news. Palm itself doesn't even use the original Graffiti anymore- there is Graffiti 2. With G2, you make your Ks like you usually would- though you can do the alpha-style if you want.
But then again, there have been a lot of other input options on the PalmOS for a long time. No matter how much you repeat your "Linux is more flexibile" mantra, PalmOS still has more options as far as input than any Linux PDA, and Windows CE-based PDAs have even more options.
Uhh... If they replaced the hard Graffiti area with a software Graffiti area the screen would likely enlarge to 320x480, rather than stay fixed at 320x320. See the Tungsten T3 for an example by Palm.
I suppose what you said could be true, the Tungsten C being an example. They took out the hard Graf area and put in a keyboard, but you can still use Graf anywhere on the screen. But the poster was interested in a bigger and better screen I think, not just getting rid of the hard Graf area.
I picked up a used- but in new condition- Sony Clie NX-70V for a piddly $230. $30 more than a Tungsten E retail, but worth it. The 320x480 screen is beautiful. Not as nice as the 800x480 screen on my other PDA, a Sigmarion III, or as nice as the Zaurus C760's VGA screen, but it's more reflective than either, which makes it perfect for outdoor use, which is often enough in the summer for me.
I've owned just about every kind of PDA around- WinCE devices, Zauruses, PocketPCs, PalmOS PDAs and even a non-Zaurus Linux PDA.
:P
And the SL-5600 sucks. Come into #zaurus on irc.freenode.net; everyone will be read and willing to tell you how craptastic the SL-5600 is.
If I had that much of a hard on for a Linux PDA- but didn't have the money to buy something from the SL-C7x0 series- I'd get an old iPAQ or something.
But, thanks the lawd, I've outgrown the teenage Linux obsession, leaving that behind when I was 17. Now I can just use what works.