How to become a Palm OS developer

Alexander Turcic · 02-09-2006, 08:04 AM

PalmAddicts carries an interesting step-by-step guide this morning to developing Palm OS applications. Before you get too excited at the prospect of becoming the world's most wanted Palm developer, bear in mind that you still have to go to work and learn about C programming. The experienced C programmer among you may as well buy a dedicated book on Palm OS programming.

interlard · 02-12-2006, 02:11 AM

You don't have to use C at all. Go to http://www.handheld-basic.com/ and start creating your first Palm application in (what feels just like) VB. They even let you download a trial version for free.

The applications compile into tiny Palm applications with no apparent overhead. It really is as sweet as it sounds.

Bob Russell · 02-12-2006, 02:31 AM

I agree, there's many ways to become a PalmOS programmer. But I think if you want to be mainstream and able to do just about anything you want, it's back to CodeWarrior or the Palm development tool. But I think the latter has limitations. I forget. Maybe it was aimed at Cobalt and left behind some features for Garnet?

The only language I could use easily (for simple programs) without hardly any learning curve or time spent is... http://www.aldweb.com/articles.php?lng=en&pg=5350 and it has gotten much better since I used it myself.

But then again, I don't know visual basic, and my first language was the old-fashioned BASIC, so I guess that's what stuck in my head more than others. Funny thing is that for new coders coming out only familiar with OO, it might be really hard to get used to how Basic works! (In my mind, that trouble is only fair after all the trouble we procedural structured programming guys had to go to in order to get used to OO!)

You can also do Java-like programming with SuperWaba, but that has a bit of a learning curve, and some quirks and limitations that can be frustrating if you are used to Java. There are other Basic languages available like NS Basic.

And of course if you look around you'll find Pascal, Lisp, database app development systems (basically a bunch of forms tied to database records make up your app), and all kinds of others. But I don't know if they still work on newer PalmOS devices.

Laurens · 02-12-2006, 07:23 AM

In the interest of completeness we should also mention PRC Tools.

For C programming PRC Tools works well enough. Segmenting your code (necessary for code larger than 32Kb) is a bit more cumbersome than CodeWarior, though.

For C++ programming, PRC Tools may not be suitable. The lack of support for exceptions and weak support for templates make it hard or impossible to adapt some C++ idoms to Palm OS development. CodeWarrior is definitely the better choice here.

Also, PNOlets (or ARMlets) are much easier to do in CodeWarrior. I'll spare you the details of why this is so.

The bad news is that both PRC Tools and CodeWarrior have not been updated for a long time and it doesn't look like they're being maintained either.

Finally, don't bother with the Eclipse-based PalmOS Developer Suite. It's primarily meant for Cobalt development.

The Lonnon Foster book is great, BTW. I have the previous edition (known as the "Palm OS Programming Bible") published by Wiley.

02-09-2006, 08:04 AM	#1
Alexander Turcic Fully Converged Posts: 18,171 Karma: 14021202 Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Switzerland Device: Too many to count here.	How to become a Palm OS developer PalmAddicts carries an interesting step-by-step guide this morning to developing Palm OS applications. Before you get too excited at the prospect of becoming the world's most wanted Palm developer, bear in mind that you still have to go to work and learn about C programming. The experienced C programmer among you may as well buy a dedicated book on Palm OS programming.

02-12-2006, 02:11 AM	#2
interlard Junior Member Posts: 1 Karma: 10 Join Date: Feb 2006 Device: Treo 650	Not true You don't have to use C at all. Go to http://www.handheld-basic.com/ and start creating your first Palm application in (what feels just like) VB. They even let you download a trial version for free. The applications compile into tiny Palm applications with no apparent overhead. It really is as sweet as it sounds.

02-12-2006, 07:23 AM	#4
Laurens Jah Blessed Posts: 1,295 Karma: 1373 Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: The Netherlands Device: iPod Touch	PRC Tools In the interest of completeness we should also mention PRC Tools. For C programming PRC Tools works well enough. Segmenting your code (necessary for code larger than 32Kb) is a bit more cumbersome than CodeWarior, though. For C++ programming, PRC Tools may not be suitable. The lack of support for exceptions and weak support for templates make it hard or impossible to adapt some C++ idoms to Palm OS development. CodeWarrior is definitely the better choice here. Also, PNOlets (or ARMlets) are much easier to do in CodeWarrior. I'll spare you the details of why this is so. The bad news is that both PRC Tools and CodeWarrior have not been updated for a long time and it doesn't look like they're being maintained either. Finally, don't bother with the Eclipse-based PalmOS Developer Suite. It's primarily meant for Cobalt development. The Lonnon Foster book is great, BTW. I have the previous edition (known as the "Palm OS Programming Bible") published by Wiley.

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
New Developer - Getting Started	ssbkt	Calibre	10	01-05-2010 06:15 AM
Developer support	JirkaS	Calibre	16	11-23-2009 07:27 PM
Hello from potential developer	whippy	Introduce Yourself	4	06-05-2009 10:20 AM
New Developer Here	infosprt	Introduce Yourself	0	08-28-2008 07:10 PM
iLiad Cannot get Developer download	talaivan	iRex Developer's Corner	5	02-24-2008 07:54 PM

02-12-2006, 02:31 AM	#3
Bob Russell Recovering Gadget Addict Posts: 5,381 Karma: 676161 Join Date: May 2004 Location: Pittsburgh, PA Device: iPad	I agree, there's many ways to become a PalmOS programmer. But I think if you want to be mainstream and able to do just about anything you want, it's back to CodeWarrior or the Palm development tool. But I think the latter has limitations. I forget. Maybe it was aimed at Cobalt and left behind some features for Garnet? The only language I could use easily (for simple programs) without hardly any learning curve or time spent is... http://www.aldweb.com/articles.php?lng=en&pg=5350 and it has gotten much better since I used it myself. But then again, I don't know visual basic, and my first language was the old-fashioned BASIC, so I guess that's what stuck in my head more than others. Funny thing is that for new coders coming out only familiar with OO, it might be really hard to get used to how Basic works! (In my mind, that trouble is only fair after all the trouble we procedural structured programming guys had to go to in order to get used to OO!) You can also do Java-like programming with SuperWaba, but that has a bit of a learning curve, and some quirks and limitations that can be frustrating if you are used to Java. There are other Basic languages available like NS Basic. And of course if you look around you'll find Pascal, Lisp, database app development systems (basically a bunch of forms tied to database records make up your app), and all kinds of others. But I don't know if they still work on newer PalmOS devices.

Advert