4 October 2000 | 7 October 2000 |
General - There will be no Wednesday meeting in November
Attendance
Wednesday
Saturday
Ron Apperley Alan Adams Rob Bowen Al-Noor Alladin Stephen Cook Leon Blevis Kenny Delaney Rob Bowen Ernie Doforno Jonathon Castellanes Sean D. Evans Sean D. Evans Bryan Glaholm Ron Kolthoff Dave Harvey Russell Scheer Bruce McKay Kim Waddell Trevor Wilkinson
Topic - Free discussion
There were two demo this month. Stylus Q by SimpleCom Inc. , SmartTrinkets by SmartTrinkets Inc. and SuperMemo by MapleTop Software.
Stylus Q is a stylus replacement for you Palm OS device. Compatible with the following models IBM Workpad C, Palm V series, Palm M100, Handspring Visor, and Sony CLIE. It is not compatible with the Palm III series. The features are; a ballpoint pen, reset pin and screen safe writing tip. It comes in the following three colour combinations. Silver body - Blue ball, Black body - Red ball, and Gold body - Gold ball.
The user group found them quite interesting and had a few comments on the stylus. The ball that covers the pen (when not in use) is screwed in place with threads on the pen end of the stylus and in the ball it self. However, when you remove the ball to use the pen you don't have any place to put the ball. Sure you can push it on the screen tip end, but then you run the risk of damaging the threads inside the ball. Perhaps threads on both ends might fix that? Another comment was that it would be nice if it came with an assortment of coloured balls. We also discovered that if you use a PalmV series with the hard case that the case will not close completely. We had to pull up on the stylus to make the case close. This could lead to the stylus falling out. All in all people liked the StylusQ and apparently there is a new one coming in November; one with a strap. What could that be? Check their website for details.
SmartTrinkets is an integrated suite of applications designed to simplify your life. It helps you to save money and time by the use of five configurable channels;
Money channel in which you can do things like calculate monthly payment on loans, track credit cards, convert currencies interest compounding.
Business channel in which you can do things like track expenses, and look up gift ideas.
The user group found this product rather forced and hard to use. The navigation was not very intuitive and the interface looked like it was not finished. Example: Command text did not fit in the space allocated. You can try out this application and make your own judgments from Handango and PalmGear.
SuperMemo is a speed learning application in the vain of flash cards. Highly adaptable and configurable for individual needs with unlimited categories, font selection for ease of reading and portability so learning can be done anywhere. You can download one of the 23 available databases or you can create your own.
The meeting attendees found this application enjoyable and fun. One of the members thought how he and his children could use it on road trips. You can try out this application at MapleTop Software.
Palm, Inc. has announced that Kyocera and Motorola will use the Palm Computing platform to develop smart mobile telephony products. Kyocera purchased Qualcomm's CDMA handset business, including its Palm Computing platform pdQ smartphone, earlier this year and intends to use its Palm license to create a new suite of mobile communications products. Kyocera is planning to update the design and release a new product by the end of 2000. In a separate announcement, Palm said that it was expanding its existing agreement with Motorola, first announced in December 1999, to jointly develop a range of smartphone products. The first device will have a large colour screen, operate on all three GSM bands and support GPRS for 'always-on' connection and high speed data transfer. Product availability is expected in early 2002 and will be through Motorola's existing retail channels.
For the full article please see http://www.pmn.co.uk/
Handspring has announced that it will introduce a Springboard module offering wireless voice and data mobile communications capabilities for its Visor range of hand held computers. VisorPhone plugs into the Springboard expansion slot of Visor devices and provides everything the user requires to start sending and receiving voice and data over a GSM network. The Visor can either be held up to the face as a traditional mobile telephone or used in conjunction with a hands free kit. It also supports text messaging and has its own rechargeable lithium ion battery. Developed in conjunction with Option International, the Belgium communications specialist, the VisorPhone will be available shortly for around $299. In addition to the VisorPhone, Handspring is also thought to be planning the release of two new products in October. One will be a Visor with a colour screen, designed to make the device more suitable for gaming and the other an evolutionary upgrade of the Visor Deluxe.
For the full article please see http://www.pmn.co.uk/
Sanyo, the most recently announced licensee of the Symbian platform, is to preview its first communicator product in Tokyo tomorrow. The device will be shown at the CEATEC JAPAN event and includes Bluetooth and USB connectivity. Sanyo has worked with Phoenix, a company which operates a Symbian Competency Centre, to create a communicator featuring wireless internet access and personal information management. Phoenix helped Sanyo to integrate a range of hardware components with the Symbian platform. The Sanyo product will be one of the first Symbian devices commercially available, but Symbian has said that it expects a number of licensees to release devices throughout 2001, including products from Nokia, Psion, Motorola and Ericsson.
For the full article please see http://www.pmn.co.uk/
Palm, Inc. has reported strong results for the first fiscal quarter of 2001, more than doubling profits and revenue on the same period last year.
Revenue for Q1 2001 rose 127% to $401m and net income increased 140% to $23.9m. The results follow a period of strategic announcements and product launches, with the recent introduction of a new product range and the announcement of licensing agreements with Kyocera and Motorola. The company shipped over 1.5m units in the quarter, bringing the cumulative total of units sold to almost 9m in four years. The m100, Palm's most recently announced device, has generated considerable demand and the company is thought to be planning a major promotional campaign ahead of the holiday season.The company's statement stressed its increasing push into the market for wireless information devices and services, pointing to its forthcoming products which will enable existing Palm users to send and receive voice and data from their hand held computers over GSM networks. Palm is planning to integrate the feature set of AnyDay.com, the personal information management portal it recently acquired, into its existing Palm.Net service to enable all Palm users to access sophisticated information services using Web Clipping technology.
For the full article please see http://www.pmn.co.uk/
Handspring, manufacturer of Palm Computing platform devices, is showcasing a wide range of wireless options for its Visor range of hand held computers at PCIA GlobalXChange in Chicago this week. A number of companies are developing Springboard modules which slot into the expansion port of the Visor and instantly provide wireless communications capabilities. Among the solutions being shown in Chicago are the SB1000, a CDMA module by Airprime, the Parafone cordless phone module by Arkon, a wireless CDPD adapter with internet access from GoAmerica and Sierra Wireless, the WIPClip CDPD modem by Tellus and a 3G reference design by Texas Instruments. Handspring has also announced that it will market a GSM voice and data telephony module developed by Option International under its own brand.
For the full article please see http://www.pmn.co.uk/
Palmtop Software, the Dutch mobile technology developer, has released V-Rally, a three dimensional racing game, for the Palm Computing platform. The V-Rally concept was originally developed by Infogrames, the French computer entertainment specialist, for the desktop PC and console environments, but Palmtop Software has now created a version for hand held devices. Users can race twenty courses and a variety of different terrains, drive four different cars and visit ten different countries. The full colour simulation features various obstacles, skidding and three different play modes. It is available immediately and priced at $29.95.
For the full article please see http://www.pmn.co.uk/
LOOK OUT FOR THE NEW PHAGE VIRUS
by Steve Niles, PalmPower Magazine
The first official virus for the Palm OS has been discovered by McAfee AVERT.
They gave it the name PalmOS/Phage.963. Apparently, when an application infected with the virus is run, the screen will be filled with a dark gray box before the program terminates. The virus will then go on to infect all third party applications on the Palm device. McAfee has provided a solution for getting rid of the virus. First, you have to delete any file containing the virus. Then you have to perform a hard-reset and HotSync your device. Though they don't say, I would imagine it would be a good idea to make sure you have your HotSync manager set so that the desktop overwrites the device. For more information on PalmOS/Phage.963, visit http://vil.nai.com/vil/virusChar.asp?virus_k=98836.16 October 2000 -- Handspring, manufacturer of Palm Computing platform devices, has officially announced two new products in its Visor range, Visor Prism and Visor Platinum.
The new hand helds build on the success of the existing Visors, which have been in huge demand through both direct and retail channels worldwide. Prism is the first Visor to feature a colour screen and is capable of displaying 65,000 colours. Unlike other Visor products, which run on disposable AAA cells, it features a rechargeable lithium ion battery. It also has a faster processor and a cobalt blue casing. Visor Platinum is an evolution of the existing greyscale Visor Deluxe and has the new, faster processor and a metallic silver casing. Both products use Handspring's signature Springboard expansion technology, allowing users to add new capabilities to the devices by plugging in modules such as MP3 players, mobile telephones and GPS.
On Friday, Palm lowered the price of its colour hand held, the Palm IIIc, to $329 and announced a free gift pack, comprising a selection of colour applications, to ship with every product. Visor Prism is priced at $449 and Visor Platinum at $299. Handspring will also be marketing a new range of accessories, including the snap-on GameFace joystick for enhanced gameplay on Visor devices.
"Combining Visor Prism's rich, bright color display with Springboard expansion technology makes it a unique platform for exciting applications like digital photography, global positioning systems, and colour internet browsing," commented Joe Sipher, Vice President of Product Marketing for Handspring and formely of Palm, Inc. "Visor Platinum's increased performance coupled with a display capable of 16 shades of gray will help enable developers to create new performance-intensive and advanced graphics applications." Further information from the Handspring web-site.
For the full article please see http://www.pmn.co.uk/
Prizes
Prizes were determined by means of a blind draw.
Member
Prize Member
Prize Alan Adams SuperMemo by MapleTop Software Bryan Glaholm SmartTrinkets by SmartTrinkets, Inc Al-Noor Alladin A thinkingBytes Tech. application Dave Harvey A thinkingBytes Tech. application Ron Apperley Jalapeno spread Ron Kolthoff StylusQ Jonathan Castellanes SmartTrinkets by SmartTrinkets, Inc Bruce McKay Red Chili spread Stephen Cook SuperMemo by MapleTop Software Russell Scheer Stylus Q Kenny Delaney SuperMemo by MapleTop Software Kim Waddell SmartTrinkets by SmartTrinkets, Inc Dave Dickson SmartTrinkets by SmartTrinkets, Inc Trevor Wilkinson SmartTrinkets by SmartTrinkets, Inc Ernie DoForno Antipasto spread
A special thank you to our sponsors for their support of Canada's Premier PUG. Please visit their websites to see a collection of other impressive products to help you get the most out of your Palm.
Respectfully,
Rob Bowen, Vice President, Canada's Premier PUG
Sean D. Evans, President, Canada’s Premier PUG