.KEYWORD visor
.FLYINGHEAD GREAT GIFT IDEAS
.TITLE Springboard stocking stuffers
.FEATURE
.AUTHOR Jason Perlow
.SUMMARY The holiday season is almost here and Contributing Editor Jason Perlow reviews the first three Springboard modules for the Handspring Visor.
Unless you’ve been sitting under a rock for the last three months, you’ve no doubt read and heard about the debut of Handspring’s first Palm-compatible PDA, the Visor (at http://www.handspring.com). You’ve probably also heard just how difficult they’ve been to reach, due to the extreme demand for product compounded with Handspring’s limited production capabilities. I myself ordered one the first week Handspring announced their availability and had to wait eight weeks for my very own Blue Visor Deluxe to arrive.
However, if you think the Visor folks themselves have been tough to get a hold of, the Springboard modules, which make up the most compelling reasons for a user to go with the Handspring platform in the first place, have been even more difficult to obtain. Many of the early adopters who have ordered Springboards with their Visor units found the Springboards to be on backorder when their Visors eventually were delivered and are still eagerly awaiting their arrival. Third-party Springboard modules such as the coveted Innogear Minijam MP3 and SixPack modules are even rarer. Only pre-production samples are in existence and they aren’t expected until early 2000.
If you’ve been especially good this year, Santa may find it in his heart to deliver the backordered Springboards to you by Christmas. But if you’ve been aching for a look at the Springboards yet to arrive on your doorstep or if you’ve been contemplating placing an order for them, you’ll probably be pretty jealous of us. We’ve managed to get our hands on the first three for review. Our verdict? Read on.
.H1 Tiger Woods PGA Tour Golf Springboard module
This module was the one that was sent out to the press for evaluation. It’s a great game, but it’s hardly the best demonstration of what Springboard modules can do. The software has been available for over a year for the Palm Computing platform distributed by Macmillan Software Publishing, so its not new by any stretch of the imagination.
The game allows you to play tournament golf as one of seven PGA golfers, including Tiger Woods, on your choice of three PGA golf courses. The software-only version of the game, when synchronized with your Palm device with all of the courses loaded, takes up over 500K of user memory, so it makes perfect fodder for a Springboard module.
The game plays out over a progression of two screens. The first screen has you lining up your stroke, which is done with an overhead map of the golf course, as shown in Figure A.
.FIG A The overhead view of the golf course allows you to line up your shot.
The second screen, illustrated in Figure B, has the player hitting the ball, which is depicted by showing the player’s legs with an animated club and a tachometer-type gauge indicating the level of power and "centeredness" of the stroke. This "centeredness" determines how far the ball goes and whether it stays on course or veers left or right of the intended destination.
.FIG B Here’s the animation of the player hitting the ball.
After the stroke is taken, the game goes back to the overhead view to depict the ball in flight, and this process is repeated over and over again until the ball goes in the cup. Your score is calculated by how many strokes you are over or under par, which is the number of strokes determined by the course designer that each hole should take to complete. The more under par you are, the better your score will be.
When the module is inserted into the Visor, the game is automatically loaded and you’re ready to tee off. The game stores a tiny "stub" database in user-writeable memory for storing game preferences and saving the progress of your current game, should you need to pull the Springboard out and resume your game later on. When the module is inserted, it doesn’t take up any precious user memory on the Visor itself. With the exception of the stub file, it all runs from the module. You can tap the application button (the little house) to bring you into the Application menu, where you can resume using your regular programs, such as Address List or Date Book. To restart the game, simply choose the Tiger Woods icon from the Application menu or reinsert the Springboard module.
The game is a good example of how software can be distributed on a Springboard module, but you can easily purchase the software-only version for 10 bucks cheaper and load it up on the 8MB Flash Module, which we’re coming to next. For more information on Tiger Woods Golf for Palm Connected Organizers, check out Heather McDaniel’s review at http://www.palmpower.com/issues/issue199910/tiger001.html.
.H1 8MB Flash Module
The 8MB Flash Module is the shining example of Handspring’s expandable memory architecture. If you’re one of those people who are constantly running out of space on your Palm device due to programs and files you keep stuffing into your main memory, this is the Springboard for you.
Like all Springboards, you pop the 8MB Flash Module in the slot and it just plain works. Any applications and files that are loaded onto it are instantly available for use. Simply bring up the Application menu. Anything that’s stored in flash memory is depicted by a small dot to the left of the program icon, shown in Figure C. Other than that, when using programs and data stored on the module, the flash memory is completely transparent to the end-user.
.FIG C Anything stored in flash memory is depicted by a small dot to the left of the program icon.
Built into the 8 MB Flash Module is a program called the File Mover, which is loaded into the Application menu every time you insert it into the slot. The File Mover, as the name indicates, is the application that’s used to move programs and databases back and forth between the Visor’s internal memory and the 8MB Flash Module. You simply pick from a list of checkboxes the programs you want to move to flash and tap the Move button, which you can see in Figure D.
.FIG D The File Mover is used to move applications between the Visor’s internal memory and the 8MB Flash Module.
Depending upon how much data you are moving, it will take anywhere between 30 seconds and a few minutes until the programs and data on the Flash Module are ready for use. The first time the 8MB Flash Module is used, the File Mover program needs to format the memory on the card – this process takes about two minutes.
Most program executables have no problems running in flash, although some programs have accompanying files and databases which they need to write changes to in order to function. These programs require the databases to be stored in user memory, but the program executable can be stored in flash. You’ll have to experiment with moving programs and data back and forth between flash and user memory to determine if the application can be used successfully in flash.
Games like SimCity, Giraffe, and the software version of Tiger Woods PGA Tour Golf worked perfectly. Some programs we tried wouldn’t work properly because their data files couldn’t be seen in flash memory. For example, AvantGo’s channel databases weren’t visible. AportisDOC 2.1 crashed when we tried reading DOC files loaded in flash and TealDOC crashed when we closed large DOC files loaded from the module, especially the 196K DOC version of the Microsoft antitrust ruling we obtained from Memoware. Aportis has since informed us that version 2.2 of their AportisDOC reader, which will be released soon, will have full support for DOC files stored in 8MB Flash Module.
.BEGIN_SIDEBAR
.H1 Mini-interview with Handspring
We asked Jeff Hawkins, father of the PalmPilot and Handspring’s CTO about why certain applications behave badly in flash. Here’s what he and Robert Gosselin, Director of Developer Relations at Handspring, had to say:
.Q JH
The problem is likely that not all applications handle flash memory properly. The 8MB Flash Module behaves like read-only memory most of the time. Most, but not all, applications behave properly with either the app or its static data in read-only memory. However, if the app tries to modify the data in Flash or tries to create new files in Flash it won’t work. We found that some applications don’t check for errors when opening a database for write access or trying to write to a database. The rules that an application developer needs to follow to make sure they work well with a flash card are not hard, but there hasn’t been a flash card to deal with before, so even "well behaved" apps may not work well with Flash(TRG’s Flashpro has similar issues). So some applications will need to be modified to work properly with read only memory. If an application doesn’t handle Flash well you can, of course, place the application and its data in RAM.
.A RG
Jeff is right when he is says there are minor differences between applications running from internal Read/Writable memory (like other Palm platforms) and Springboard module memory which is currently read-only.
Not all of the Palm OS API calls work when an application is in ROM memory (even if it is internal). For example, the Palm SDK documentation mentions the MemPtrRecoverHandle API call, which is not allowed on read-only memory.
The other thing that we have introduced with the Springboard expansion slot is that module now sits on what is called Card 1 (where internal memory is on Card 0). Palm OS has always supported this option, but nobody in the past has implemented it. That might be a problem for some applications.
If you’re a developer and you need help getting your Palm applications to run well in Flash Module and are interested in getting your software running on Springboard ROM’s, We at Handspring will be placing a developer presentation on our Web site shortly. You’ll be able to access it by going to the Handspring Web site, clicking on the Developers link,and then clicking on Technical Information.
.END_SIDEBAR
The 8MB Flash Module can also be used as a pseudo-backup device for storing read-only copies of your core Palm application databases (such as AddressDB, DatebookDB, MemoDB, ToDoDB). If you run down your batteries on the road and your Visor’s main memory gets wiped, you can copy the backups on the 8MB Flash Module back to the Visor and you’re back in business. But if you want a complete, no-brainer backup solution for your Visor, you should look at the Backup Module as well.
.H1 Backup Module
The Backup Module is a perfectly implemented special-use Springboard module. It takes longer to explain how easy it is to use than to actually use it. You pop the Backup Module into the slot and tap the Backup Now button displayed on the screen. The Visor copies all of its internal memory to the Backup Module, as shown in Figure E. To restore data, you insert the module, tap the Restore Now button displayed on the screen, and the Visor copies all the data on the module to main memory. It’s totally idiot-proof.
.FIG E To use the Backup Module, pop the Backup Module in the slot, tap the Backup Now button displayed on the screen, and the Visor copies all of its internal memory to the Backup Module.
The Backup Module is ideally suited for those people who don’t have frequent access to a PC in order to perform regular HotSync operations, such as travelers that don’t carry laptops. Provided you back up your data to the module on a timely basis, you’ll never ever lose important data and applications again. The module is also a cool way of cloning a Visor’s configuration, if you have multiple Visors and need to distribute applications and data. Keep in mind, though, that the Backup Module does not save incremental changes to files in memory. It backs up everything onto your Visor. It overwrites all data and applications you currently have on your Visor, including new changes, with the current contents of the backup module when you do a restore. So make sure that you don’t care about wiping clean whatever is currently on your Visor.
.BEGIN_KEEP
.H1 Synopsis
The initial crop of Springboard modules from Handspring shows definite promise for the Visor platform and at least two of them, the 8MB Flash Module and the Backup Module, are must-haves in our book. We’re very interested in what other modules Handspring has in store for us in the future, such as the 33.6K modem Springboard and the modules third-party vendors have up their sleeves. Stay tuned.
.BEGIN_SIDEBAR
.H1 Product availability and resources
For more information on Handspring’s Visor, please see http://www.handspring.com/products/vindex.asp.
Check out Claire Pieterek’s in-depth review of the Visor at http://www.palmpower.com/issues/issue199910/visor001.html.
The 8MB Flash Module, Tiger Woods PGA Tour Module and Backup Module can be found at http://www.handspring.com/products/modules.asp.
Heather McDaniel’s review of Tiger Woods Golf for Palm Connected Organizers at http://www.palmpower.com/issues/issue199910/tiger001.html.
.END_SIDEBAR
.BIO
.DISCUSS http://powerboards.zatz.com/cgi-bin/webx?13@@.ee6db19
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