Wednesday, February 15, 2006
PalmSource is going to Linux, but maintains compatibility with PalmOS
Last Tuesday, at the 3GSM congress being held in Barcelona, PalmSource revealed details about an upcoming mobile phone operating system based on Linux (code named ALP, Access Linux Platform). The most important thing is that include an environment that will run existing applications for PalmOS, as well as Java applications and native Linux applications. ALP is the first product announcement since its acquisition by Access late last year. It is planned to deliver the SDK for hardware manufacturers and software developers for mobile towards the end of this year, to begin to see phones with this operating system in 2007.
ALP implements a powerful architecture
Commented on Linuxdevices that PalmSource will put great emphasis on this new operating system for many facilities to developers, continuing the tradition dee company in this regard. Besides being a platform exemplary in terms of flexibility for development, highlighted by the technology used:
- Support for multitasking, with a simple way to switch between applications.
- 68k emulation, which will run applications written for Palm OS Garnet and Palm68k.
- Integration of a Java virtual machine, with a choice between one of the existing Sun or IBM.
- Development of new applications (or adaptation of existing) on Linux, using as a graphical toolkit GTK + libraries such as multimedia and GStreamer (both currently used in the graphical environment for Linux Gnome).
- Bear standard Linux kernel, since version 2.6.12
- Include an SQLite database, the public domain, which by default.
- Linux also components "certified by PalmSource / Access", as the bluetooth stack BlueZ (currently used in Linux distributions).
- The integrated Web browser will be recognized NetFront, which supports the latest technologies such as AJAX (used for example in the pages of Flickr or Gmail).
PalmSource is the intention of achieving a "Mobile Linux Ecosystem", offering the choice to mobile operators to collaborate with them to develop their solutions. Another interesting point is the two-way collaboration that will be set between PalmSource and the free software community, which has already begun with the release of the code of Binder, now OpenBinder, which is a very useful tool used in developing applications. Access also intends to collaborate with industry groups and standardization of Linux, something that began when helped create LIPS (Linux Phone Standard). The final bid of Access / PalmSource Linux is receiving support from other developers of Linux-based software for mobile devices, and seems to have a very promising future.
In my opinion, this has been a movement to masterfull PalmSource, which at a stroke has put his side throughout the community of free software developers. On the other hand, was the only way to develop a technology platform that could challenge the Windows Mobile, because the PalmOS Cobalt did not seem a competitor at the same level. By using Linux is automatically available to all technologies of multimedia, connectivity, application development, etc., open source commented earlier. And what I find most important now to make a run at a PPLICATION Palm, and you might not learn everything about PalmOS. The necessary knowledge to program Java applications, or using Linux GTK + (widespread knowledge at present) will be sufficient to make programs for the new operating system from PalmSource, which makes the work enormously.
I think this may be the beginning of the explosion in popularity of the Palm platform, and that Microsoft is going to be very difficult if they want done with the entire market for mobile devices. If all goes well, Microsoft and the book does not end with this initiative before it settles, we will see in future smartphones and PDAs HP or Dell with this promising operating system in its interior.
By: Mark Gonzalez Troyes in Palm News
RSS comments | 
Print this post
Related Articles
Subscribe to stay abreast of developments in this blog
As WnTel sacabó roll ... as always ...
Weno very article on the Future of Palm,
But I do not like to be so optimistic.
We are talking about the SDK will be ready by the end of this year, and until mid 2007 or late, we can not see the first launches,
and in that period, Microsoft can gain much ground.
Time will tell!
Everything depends on whether this time Palm gets batteries and strong bet, as seems to be the case, and partnerships that will provide for an integrated solution that is atryente for operators of mobile technology.
This is a golden opportunity not only for Palm, but for free software, as it still does not have to struggle to cope with a Microsoft 90% of the market and it has privatized all users so that they can not prove alternative.