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T H E D E V E L O P E R S' D I A L O G U E
July 2000
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I N T H I S I S S U E
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SPECIAL REMINDER
Announcing Palm's Developer Community Survey
DEVELOPER NEWS
1.) Palm OS (R) Software Update version 3.5.2
2.) New Web Clipping Tools Available
3.) New Debugger Plug-in
4.) TRGpro Computers Are Now Shipping
With Palm OS 3.5.
5.) Palm Plans Fix for Memory Chip Problem
PALM NEWS
1.) Palm to Work for Support of Secure
Digital (SD) Card
2.) Palm to Include SD Card in Palm Products
3.) Palm Adds Wireless Connectivity Options
to Handheld Devices
4.) Palm Introduces Mobile Internet Kit
5.) Palm Presents at National Educational
Computer Conference (NECC)
6.) Palm Reports Fourth Quarter Financials
DEVELOPER TRAINING
1.) New Development Training Courses in
the Works
2.) Palm OS(R) Programming Essentials
3.) Call for Instructors
ENTERPRISE NEWS
1.) Symbol Provides Ethernet Cradle Solution for
SPT 1500 and Palm III, Palm VII Terminals
2.) Novatel Introduces Wireless Minstrel S
3.) Sony Launches Palm Powered Personal
Entertainment Organizers for the Japanese
Market
4.) Sony's New Palm Unit Ready for U.S. Sale
This Fall
5.) Sony Unveils Details of Handheld Device
6.) Aether Invests $20 Million in Novatel
Wireless
7.) Sybase, Ericsson Announce 'Anywhere'
Wireless Banking
8.) Siebel and Sprint PCS Team on Wireless
Business Software
9.) Nokia Makes Deal With Cable & Wireless
for Delivering Wireless Internet Content
DEVELOPER EVENTS
1.) PalmSource 2000 is coming!
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SPECIAL REMINDER
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Palm's Developer Community Survey
Palm places a very high value on its solution
providers and is continually investing in im-
proving the programs, services, and support we
provide to this vital community. Palm has
recently engaged Graham Marketing Group, an
independent market research firm, to survey our
solution provider community. This survey will
give us the opportunity to gain valuable feed-
back from and insight into our developer
community so we can enhance our program.
The survey was sent via email the week of
July 17, 2000 to a random sample of Palm
Solution Provider Program members. Please help
us better serve your needs by taking a few
minutes to complete this survey. Your frank and
candid feedback is very important to our
planning process.
This is your opportunity to have an impact on
the future direction of the Palm Solution
Provider Program, so please take the time to
tell us what you think. We're listening!
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DEVELOPER NEWS
===============
1.) Palm OS (R) Software Update version 3.5.2
Palm has just released a software update for
users of handhelds running version 3.5 of
Palm OS (R) software. This update will be
known as version 3.5.2, and consists of a
small .PRC file which is installed by the
user like any other application. It will
soon be available for download at:
http://www.palm.com/support/downloads/update352.html
This update addresses three bugs introduced in
the 3.5 OS: a memory leak experienced during
soft resets, an Exchange Manager bug with empty
record databases, and a precautionary fix for
a potential, but so far undetected, multitasking
issue. More technical details are available at:
http://oasis.palm.com/dev/kb/papers/1846.cfm
2.) New Web Clipping Tools Available
The new pre-release tools for web clipping
applications (WCA) development are in the
Development Seeding Area of the Provider
Pavilion and will allow developers to create and
test web clipping applications for devices other
than the Palm VII device. For general web
clipping development, see the web clipping
development pages at
http://www.palmos.com/dev/tech/webclipping/
3.) New Debugger Plug-in
There is a new debugger plug-in available on the
Metrowerks website found at
ftp://palm:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
There you can get PalmPlugin 1.6.3.11. From the
release notes, the fixes include:
* Stack crawl has been fixed so that it now
displays the names of Palm OS ROM routines.
Previously it displayed '(<unknown>)'
instead of the names.
* Support for version 4 heaps has been added
to the console and heap commands.
* Various output formatting problems in
the console have been fixed so that it
looks more like the PalmDebugger's
console output.
* Assembly/Mixed view in the debugger now
displays the names of all Palm OS system
traps (as listed in the Palm OS 3.5 SDK's
<CoreTraps.h>)
4.) TRGpro Computers Are Now Shipping
With Palm OS 3.5.
Upgrades are now available at
http://www.trgpro.com/support/update.html#trg-007
In addition, Palm OS applications now can run
directly from Compact Flash. Using a new feature
called AutoCF, TRGpro computer users can execute
programs seamlessly and directly from Compact
Flash storage cards. AutoCF can be configured to
use any subdirectory on the Compact Flash card
for launching programs. AutoCF is available free
of charge to current owners of TRGpro computers,
and can be downloaded at http://www.trgpro.com/software/autocf.html.
Developer support for the TRGpro line is
available by emailing [EMAIL PROTECTED]
5.) Palm Plans Fix for Memory Chip
Problem (7-7-00) Palm, TRG, and Handspring are
readying a fix for an error in an 8MB DRAM chip
from Micron. The error makes certain handheld
devices from Palm, TRG, and Handspring vulner-
able to a glitch that could potentially erase
data, including contact information and calendar
dates. Palm, Inc. has released a software patch
to prevent potential data loss in some Palm Vx,
IIIc and IIIxe handhelds. If you purchased one of
those products between October 1, 1999 and
July 1, 2000 please go to http://palm.com/support/dram.
===============
PALM NEWS
===============
1.) Palm to Work for Support of Secure
Digital (SD) Card (7-5-00) Palm has announced
it will work to integrate support of the Secure
Digital (SD) card into its operating system and
future devices. The support comes despite the
fact that two of its partners, Sony and Hand-
spring, have each developed add-on technologies,
with the Memory Stick and Springboard
cartridges, respectively. SD, Memory Stick, and
Springboard products are not all interoperable.
http://www.cnetinvestor.com/newsitem-investor.asp?symbol=206665&Ticker=PALM
2.) Palm to Include SD Card in Palm
Products (6-27-00) Palm has announced that it
will include the SD Card slot in future Palm
branded products in early 2001. A sleek form
factor which will integrate elegantly into a
wearable handheld, the SD Card offers a flexible
solution that can provide both data storage and
IO access. Users will be able to plug in cards to
make backup copies of their data; access digital
media like electronic books, maps, or MP3 files;
http://www.palm.com/pr/062700c.html
3.) Palm Adds Wireless Connectivity
Options to Handheld Devices (6-27-00) Palm
plans to add more wireless connectivity options
to its popular handheld devices, including the
emerging Bluetooth personal area network tech-
nology and a new high speed mobile network
technology currently being deployed by many
operators of GSM (global system for mobile
communications) networks.
http://www.infoworld.com/articles/hn/xml/00/07/10/000710hnpalmplans.xml
4.) Palm Introduces Mobile Internet Kit
for Worldwide Wireless Connectivity
(6-27-00) Palm has introduced the Palm Mobile
Internet Kit, an easy-to-use, inexpensive soft-
ware product that allows millions of Palm users
worldwide to connect wirelessly to the Internet
using a mobile phone or a Palm-compatible modem.
The Palm Mobile Internet Kit will be available
worldwide later this year for less than $50. It
was demonstrated recently at PC Expo.
http://www.palm.com/pr/062700b.html
5.) Palm Presents at National Educational
Computer Conference (NECC) (6-26-00) Palm
recently strengthened its commitment to educa-
tional markets through a series of presentations,
workshops, and software demonstrations at the
annual National Educational Computer Conference
(NECC). In conjunction with the show, Palm
offered workshops during the conference to high-
light the benefits handheld computers provide to
educational communities. Palm solution providers
demonstrated mobile Palm OS� platform compatible
applications that transform Palm handhelds into
valuable tools for teaching and learning.
http://www.palm.com/pr/062600.html
6.) Palm Reports Fourth Quarter Financials
(6-28-00) Palm has reported record
revenue of $350.2 million for the fourth quarter
ended June 2, up 101 percent from year-ago
revenue of $174.3 million and up 29 percent from
revenue of $272.3 million in the third quarter
of fiscal 2000. Read about Palm's financials at
http://www.corporateir.net/ireye/ir_site.zhtml?ticker=palm&script=410&layout=-6&item_id=101836
====================
DEVELOPER TRAINING
====================
1.) New Development Training Courses in
the Works
Last month Palm announced new courses being
added to the developer training curriculum.
Thank you for the overwhelming response to that
announcement. If you haven't heard a reply from
us yet, please be patient. We are sorting
through the many requests. Here is an update on
some of the new classes:
**"Creating Palm OS Conduits for Windows", 3-day
course
Alpha: July 24-26, Santa Clara, CA
Beta: Aug 2000 (email [EMAIL PROTECTED]
for exact dates and location)
Final rollout: Sept 2000
Target audience: Windows C++ programmers
(no experience with Palm OS expected)
Contents: Brief introduction to the Palm OS,
Introduction to Conduit development and
tools. Coverage of databases on the Palm
OS Interfacing with HotSync Manager,
Synchronization Logic, using the Generic
Conduit, Debugging, and Installation.
**"Communications", 2-day course
Alpha: July 27-28, Santa Clara, CA
Beta: Aug 2000 (email [EMAIL PROTECTED]
for exact dates and location)
Final rollout: September 2000
Target audience: Palm OS programmers
(prereq: "Essentials" class or equivalent
experience)
Topics:
-Serial
-TCP/IP
-Exchange Manager (Beaming)
-IrDA (low-level infrared)
**"Advanced Debugging and Testing", 2-day course
Dates/location: TBD
Target audience: Palm OS programmers/QA
Engineers (prereq: Essentials class or
equivalent experience).
Contents:
-Performance Tuning and Optimization
-Advanced Debugging
-QA1ing your application
**"Localization", 2-day course
Dates/location: TBD
Target audience: Palm OS programmers
/Localization personnel (prereq:
Essentials class or equivalent experience
desired, but not necessary)
-Localization tools
-Localizing to Roman languages
-Localizing to other one-byte languages
-Localizing to two-byte languages
**New modules for "Essentials" course
(presented in standalone 2-day course for
limited time)
Dates/location: TBD
Target audience: People who took the
original Essentials course and who are
interested in the new topics
New topics:
-Fonts
-Graphics (including Color/Grayscale)
-Sound
-Find
-Tables
-Gadgets (existing module updated)
For more information, send email
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
2.) Palm OS(R) Programming Essentials
Plan ahead to attend an upcoming session of the
Palm OS Programming Essentials development
training class. The following classes are taught
by instructors certified by Palm at training
houses authorized to present Palm's development
training curriculum.
HOST: Symbol Technologies
Dallas, TX area June 19-23
San Jose, (Northern) CA July 10-14
Holtsville (Long Island), NY July 24-28
HOST: Hong Kong Productivity Council
Hong Kong July 24-28
HOST: Symbol Technologies
Costa Mesa, (Southern) CA August 7-11
San Jose, (Northern) CA August 7-11
Atlanta, GA area August 21-25
Holtsville (long Island), NY September 11-15
Dallas, TX area September 25-29
San Jose, (Northern) CA October 9-13
Costa Mesa, (Southern) CA October 23-27
To enroll in courses hosted by Symbol, go to
http://edu.symbol.com/palm/palm.html or email
Maureen Tiritilli at [EMAIL PROTECTED]
For information about courses hosted by Hong
Kong Productivity Council, go to
http://www.hkpc.org/esd/Training/training.html.
For more information about these and future
developer training courses, visit
http://www.palm.com/devzone/training or
email [EMAIL PROTECTED]
3.) Call for Instructors
We have had an overwhelming response to our call
for instructors in last month's newsletter and
we thank you all for your interest. We ask for
your patience as we sort through all your
inquiries, which we will be responding to in
the coming weeks.
==============================
ENTERPRISE NEWS
==============================
1.) Symbol Provides Ethernet Cradle Solution for
SPT 1500 and Palm III, Palm VII Terminals
Symbol Technologies Inc. has created a 4 Slot
Ethernet Cradle to enhance the benefits of Palm
OS based applications and communication. For
developers and companies whose applications and
information need to be transmitted over networks,
the cradle plugs into a hub on the Ethernet LAN,
allowing easy synchronization with local or
remote host computers. The Cradle works with
Palm III, Palm VII, and Symbol SPT 1500 devices,
and can be daisy chained with up to 7 cradles.
Visit http://www.symbol.com/palm for more
information about and details of how to buy
the Cradle.
2.) Novatel Introduces Wireless Minstrel S
(7-13-00) Novatel, Omnisky, GoAmerica, and
ActiveLink currently have wireless products in
development. Most of the solutions are based on
the Novatel Wireless Minstrel S Springboard
module. The Minstrel S enables 2-way wireless
access to the Internet using Cellular Digital
Packet Data (CDPD) technology and supports
popular Palm OS applications and synchronization
programs. The AvantGo web browser and OneTouch
email client will be bundled with the unit.
http://www.visorcentral.com/article.php3
3.) Sony Launches Palm Powered Personal
Entertainment Organizers for the Japanese Market
(7/13/00) Sony has announced the September
launch in Japan of 2 lines of its Palm Powered
personal entertainment organizer. Sony has
positioned its personal entertainment organizer
as one of the strategic products of the coming
broadband network era and strives for the
creation and growth of a new market segment.
http://www.palmos.com/news/2000/071200.html
The Sony devices are based on Palm OS(R) 3.5 and
will include support for Memory Stick and a Jog Dial.
In anticipation of this release, Sony has created
a web site in Japan for Developers:
http://www.jp.sonypdadev.com. Currently, the
developer web site is in Japanese only; status of
the English site can be found at
http://www.us.sonypdadev.com.
4.) Sony's New Palm Unit Ready for U.S. Sale This
Fall (7-14-00) At PC Expo, Conrad, Editor in
Chief, took a couple of shots of the upcoming
Sony Palm. The new unit will be available in
Japan in Mid-July, but will not debut here in the
United States until this Fall.
http://www.pencomputing.com/palm/
5.) Sony Unveils Details of Handheld Device
(7-11-00) Sony will unveil details of
its handheld personal computer running on the
operating system developed by Palm. The device,
whose prototype was introduced at the PC Expo
trade show in New York last month, will include
a Memory Stick flash memory slot that can in-
crease the machine's capacity for storing
information, and a Jog Dial scrolling and
highlighting button that allows users to
maneuver the screen with one hand.
http://www.cnetinvestor.com/newsitem-bloomberg.asp?symbol=93771666&Ticker=PALM
6.) Aether Invests $20 Million in Novatel
Wireless (7-11-00) Aether Systems has invested
$20 million in Novatel Wireless, building on
their existing relationship. Based in Owings
Mills, Md., Aether provides wireless data
services, such as real time stock quotes and
wireless messaging. San Diego based Novatel makes
modems that give notebook computers and devices,
such as Palm's line of personal digital
assistants and Microsoft's Pocket PC, wireless
connection to the Internet.
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1006-200-2239986.html?tag=st.ne.1002.bgif.ni
7.) Sybase, Ericsson Announce 'Anywhere'
Wireless Banking (7-10-00) iAnywhere Solutions,
the database subsidiary of Sybase Inc. has
entered into a strategic global alliance with
Swedish telecommunications equipment supplier,
Ericsson, to develop a Wireless Application
Protocol (WAP) based system that permits
always-on wireless banking, available anywhere.
http://www.mobilecomputing.com/shownews.cgi?490
8.) Siebel and Sprint PCS Team on
Wireless Business Software (7-6-00)
Siebel Systems and Sprint PCS Group have agreed
to the joint marketing and sale of nationwide
access to Siebel's eBusiness applications over
Sprint PCS' Wireless Web for Business. Siebel
said in a statement, "Via the minibrowser on any
Sprint PCS Internet-ready phone, business
customers can have instant remote wireless
access to Siebel eBusiness applications--
including Siebel Sales and Siebel Field
Service--virtually anytime, anywhere on the
Sprint PCS nationwide wireless network.
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1007-200-2210749.html?tag=st.ne.1430735..ni
9.) Nokia Makes Deal With Cable &
Wireless for Delivering Wireless Internet
Content (7-6-00) Nokia Networks, a subsidiary
of cell phone maker Nokia, and Cable & Wireless
together will create wireless data centers for
delivering wireless Web content and services to
mobile network operators, Internet service pro-
viders (ISPs), and large corporations. The move
is strategic, as both companies prepare for a
growing shift in Web access.
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1004-200-2210750.html?tag=st.ne.1430735..ni
==================
DEVELOPER EVENTS
==================
1.) PalmSource 2000 is coming! Inform. Inspire.
Innovate. Attend PalmSource 2000 to join the
world gathering of Palm Economy Developers and
Solution Providers, and:
**Experience the next generation Palm OS.
**Conquer new markets.
**Go wireless--cut loose.
**Serious networking--serious fun.
When: December 11-15
Where: Santa Clara Convention Center
Santa Clara, CA, USA
Visit http://www.PalmSource.com to sign up to be
notified when online registration begins. At the
website you'll also find the latest news and
information about PalmSource 2000.
===============
FEEDBACK
===============
This monthly publication is sent via email to
all Palm Solution Provider Members. This is
another of the many ways we keep you up-to-date
on product news and information.
However, if you decide you no longer want
to receive this newsletter, please
send an email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the
subject line reading 'UNSUBSCRIBE'." Please keep
in mind, by unsubscribing you will be removed
from all email communication. Please allow 3-4
weeks for processing. For general questions,
please email [EMAIL PROTECTED]
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ADDITIONAL RESOURCES AVAILABLE TO YOU
======================================
To review the latest corporate information,
visit the Palm website at http://www.palm.com
---------------
InSync Online
---------------
InSync Online is a free service providing you
with tips, priority notification, and information
about new products and special offers via email.
InSync Online will keep you up to date with news
and information to help you get the maximum
use and enjoyment from your Palm handheld. To
sign up and get more details about this free
service, visit: http://www.insync-palm.com/
-----------------------------------------------
Copyright(c) 2000 Palm,Inc., or its
subsidiaries. All Rights Reserved. Palm OS is a
registered trademark and Palm are trademarks of
Palm,Inc.,or its subsidiaries. Other product and
brand names may be trademarks or registered
trademarks of their respective owners
