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A Palm OS thread ... and a thank you to the community
Hello everybody!
I recently became interested in the old Palm system: Palm OS, and its PDAs. I wanted to know what this system looked like visually and what would be the best device to test it (and the one that I liked the most). This search through all devices with the latest Palm OS public OS led me to one result: Palm Centro, which seemed like a combination of PDAs of the time and a smart mobile phone. It was a small device, compact, compared to typical PDAs ... and very nice, really beautiful on the outside (and I hope also on the inside). I thought I would find a Palm Centro for sale easily, but I didn't. The ads I found for the Palm Centro I found were extremely expensive, in very poor condition, or without shipping to my country. Hope was almost lost. I remembered The Forum, which is really The Family: TMO. So I posted a thread in the buying and selling section asking if anyone had one of these phones. Our partner @deutch1976 helped me by sending me some eBay listing links, but they had the drawbacks I mentioned earlier. I had already given up hope of finding a Palm Centro. I looked for a second best option: Palm Treo 680. I thought it would be easier to find a good one, but it was not like that either. When I posted my message in response to @deutch1976 I realized that there was a message from another colleague on this forum. This message from @robthebold could not bring better news: his wife has a beautiful Palm Centro in elegant black. A box of dreams: https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...18ccd58e_h.jpg The good news did not end here. This Palm Centro was GSM, compatible with the networks of my country. In addition, it had its box and accessories. Well, I was very lucky this time, but there was a last detail that I did not expect. Phones surprise us, but it is no longer common for people to do so. And that's what happened. Colleague @robthebold was kind and generous not to charge me anything for this wonderful machine from the past, just the shipping costs. And here I am, very grateful to find a new illusion in the form of a trip to the past and excited to belong to this family. |
Re: A Palm OS thread ... and a thank you to the community. How technology makes us more human
Message to post my progress with Palm OS.
--- Palm Desktop and HotSync (Installation and Configuration): https://palmdb.net/help/hotsync-windows-10 Installing Palm Desktop 6.2.2 on Windows 10 gave me no problems. This also installs the HotSync Manager. Before starting Palm Desktop, I set up the HotSync Manager. In this I did have a small problem: the Bluetooth connection option did not appear in the Connections section. Solution: close HotSync Manager and activate Bluetooth in Windows Settings. When I opened the HotSync Manager again, I was able to see and activate the Bluetooth connection option. --- When I have the phone, I will install the Aceeca 64-bit drivers and link the phone with HotSync. As it was one of the last Palm phones, I don't think I need to buy a serial to USB adapter. --- Next step (PowerSDHC): https://palmdb.net/app/powersdhc Connect your Palm to the internet via a Windows computer: https://palmdb.net/app/softick-ppp Hacking tools: https://palmdb.net/app/hackme https://palmdb.net/app/hackmaster |
Re: A Palm OS thread ... and a thank you to the community
cool.
... i remember considering Palm devices when I bought the N900. I like that the N900 is palm (not Palm) sized and has a stylus one can use so it looks like I'm writing notes on my hand's palm. ... so, now, how does one install the Palm OS on an N900 so as to keep a palm shape and sized device? |
Re: A Palm OS thread ... and a thank you to the community
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https://palmdb.net/category/tools-emu/ |
Re: A Palm OS thread ... and a thank you to the community
There is a Garnet VM for N900, but the device will, of course, remain physically the same size. ;)
It's a decent emulator, and completely usable, except that if it crashes -- and it occasionally does -- it takes all your data with it and starts over fresh. That's sad if you have a lot of data, because you can't sync it AFAIK. But having it was great, since I no longer needed to bring my Visor and my N900 along grocery shopping to use my favorite app: HandyShopper. |
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Actually it was my second message :). However, use this better approach which does not require a desktop Garnet VM. |
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(there's a Metallica song with lyrics like those) ... I've liked the N900 and Maemo, the ash shell et. al. and imagine I'd like the next iteration (you know, depending on the improvements). |
Re: A Palm OS thread ... and a thank you to the community
Brings back memories ... I loved PalmOS. I had 3 Centros over the course of a couple of years, and tried a couple of Treos, but preferred the Centro. I dropped it when WebOS came out, which I thought was excellent, (I still have 2 Veers and 2 Pre2s). I can't imagine getting back into PalmOS at this point, but I'll tell you one of my favorite things to play with was the JVM. I don't know if there's still a way to get it, but there was a series of prc files packaged as "PalmOS IBM JVM" or something like that, and if you installed them, you could run mobile java (jar) apps on your Centro. I remember using a Sprint Centro on Boost mobile, (not officially supported by Boost, but you could get them to do it), and installing the JVM, then installing Opera Mini browser, and somehow getting free internet, as long as I was connected to the cell network. Couldn't download, but could load web pages withoit any data charge... It got more interesting on WebOS, when the Classic app came out, and then you could run java apps on PalmOS on WebOS...
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Re: A Palm OS thread ... and a thank you to the community
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This? |
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I have not received my future Palm Centro yet (I think it will arrive in a few days). I have never used Palm OS, but I have already made everything ready to be able to "play" with the phone and the system (although this month I will not have much time). |
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Re: A Palm OS thread ... and a thank you to the community
A news report a few minutes ago said that LG is leaving the cell phone business. I read, a few years ago, that LG owns the patents on Palm technology. So, this could be remarkable business to follow. I'd assume they'll sell or otherwise transfer whatever patents they have. I've been wrong before, though.
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Re: A Palm OS thread ... and a thank you to the community
I think most of the Palm Linux remnants are in WebOS which is mostly used in a shrinking number of dumber smart TVs as a back end with custom branded UI 'skins'.
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Re: A Palm OS thread ... and a thank you to the community
First update since I have the phone:
The system at first works very well, it is simple and easy to operate. I was struck that the home screen is the Phone / Contacts app. The Preferences application is very 'vintage' in style. There are not many adjustments. I like the simple Color Themes. The first thing I didn't like at all is not having a button to go back to a previous screen. I find it strange not to have found this characteristic, perhaps it is due to ignorance. Is there a way to go back (like in Android)? I installed Palm Desktop and HotSync Manager without too much trouble on Windows 10. It is surprising that these old programs work well. Lately HotSync closes unexpectedly when trying to install something on the Palm, but restarting the program solves the problem and I am able to install applications. It is a lesser evil. I have installed many applications on my Palm Centro and with some applications the phone locks. A curious fact about the Palm is that they cannot be turned off with a button, it is necessary to remove the battery. So every time the phone crashes I need to remove the battery. I have added some tape under the battery to make it easier to remove. Now I am testing the apps and will remove the ones causing the phone to crash. A bug that I have found in my Palm phone is that the music cannot be heard, even though the player is playing it. However, the phone does make a sound when, for example, there is a failure in the HotSync operation. |
Re: A Palm OS thread ... and a thank you to the community
Second update:
I have tried many applications, it shows that this system had a great variety of applications of all kinds and users who requested them. The visual style of the applications is very different from other systems, it makes you go back to the past. There are quite a few applications that cause the phone to freeze, especially the sound applications. This may be due to a hardware failure, I don't know. I like that there are even applications to 'hack': HaCkMe, Codez4Palm, HackMaster ... I have also liked some games like Bang!, Bzzz, Dropairs or Zap!2016 (the latter reminds me of a similar Nokia/Symbian game). I managed to connect the phone to the Internet using a cable connected to my PC and the Softick PPP program. However, I could not navigate with the PalmOS browser or Opera Mini (Java version). I could only use one application well: GoogleMaps (amazing!). Third update: Nostalgia sometimes makes us believe that things from before were better, but this is not always the case. I have been using this phone and this operating system for a few days, and the truth is that I thought it would be a magical experience, but it has not been. However, comparing PalmOS and current systems would not be fair. In 2006/2007 I remember entertaining myself with Nokia phones, like the Nokia N70 and the N95. I was a kid and everything, simple as it was, seemed wonderful on the phones. I think that PalmOS was a very advanced system in its time, I honestly believe that PalmOS was more complete than S60, the Symbian of that time. I didn't know that much about systems that year, but I think that Nokia's system was simpler and that it failed less (perhaps because it was less complete). It is difficult for me to compare the systems of that time, what do you think? Which was the best system (in 2006/2007): PalmOS, Symbian, Windows Mobile 6 or BlackBerryOS? |
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I have an HTC HD2 with WM6.5 and it worked quite well (I don't remember the phone freezing often). However, I think PalmOS had a bigger community and more apps, right? In fact, PalmOS still has a community (PalmDB) and WM does not. PalmOS seems to be remembered more fondly. |
Re: A Palm OS thread ... and a thank you to the community
I don't believe I ever had a Symbian device . . . I used a couple Sony Ericsson phones with what I believe to be a proprietary OS. In 2006, I think it was a K510. You could run Java apps on them, but I only installed one ever (a streaming music player).
I stuck with Palm until my Handspring Visor Prism died of a broken port. I had to back up my data as quickly as possible before the battery died and took the volatile bits along with it. Fortunately, my second S-E, a K550 had an IRDA port and a removable memory stick, and my computer had a memory stick reader. For a guy who needed a calendar, a contact list, check register and grocery list, the PalmOS was perfect. I doubt I'd installed more than 3 or 4 apps beside the built-in ones. Handspring's custom version of the calendar app had the neat feature of being able to look up sunrise and sunset times on an arbitrary date. More useful than it sounds when planning events held outside or with older folks attending that don't drive after dark. I never knew any Blackberrry users who didn't get the phone issued by an employer. It seems like an business executive thing. The keyboard was handy for texting in meetings when they got bored. And the security (or at least perceived security) was its big selling point. |
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Re: A Palm OS thread ... and a thank you to the community
Nice to read here. I still have a TX fully functional. I have to charge it every 4-6 weeks. Since it is not the main device it does not need to be backed up for years. But it is always alive - wonderful hardware and software.
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