10:53 PM by Bob Russell in Archive | Handhelds and Smartphones

Okay, first of all I have to admit this is unauthorized. It's simply some information from a snoopy reporter who was curious about DateBk6 (because I love the DateBk program), and happened upon some draft web pages that are worth sharing. Well, okay, I admit that I didn't just "happen" upon them. I started guessing URLs and got lucky. And I also have to admit that I was too lazy to contact the developer directly (a really nice guy, by the way) to confirm any of this info, or look into the Yahoo Groups forum for beta testers. So what I'm about to share may or may not be close to final form.

Here's the basic scoop... Version 6 has been out in beta form for a while, and the web pages look like they are just about ready to go. There is a payment page, upgrade page, new features page, product main page, etc. Looks like prices stay very reasonable at <$30 purchase and <$15 upgrade.

If you want to see all the good info, here's a great page to start with...
http://www.pimlicosoftware.com/datebk6.htm

It will lead you to just about all the info. It will probably become one of the main Pimlico pages once it's completed.

Let us know what you think if you are one of the beta testers and are allowed to share with us. Or if you are the developer and surprised at all the new web traffic on unpublished pages, then feel free to join us here for some free publicity and to tease us a little with some news about the new release!

10:04 PM by Bob Russell in E-Book General | Deals and Resources (No...

The Palm eBook store is offering 20% off for one book. If you've had your eye on a particular title in eReader format, this is your chance. They seem to offer this special every once in a while, and I may just take advantage myself.

To get your discount enter the code "BEST2005" until March 10.

09:50 PM by Bob Russell in E-Book General | News

TeleRead is commenting on article from the Register. Apparently, the author of that article "has a beautifully concise explanation of why DRM would fail in a free market: it costs more, but delivers less."

I'm not ready to jump on the DRM is evil bandwagon quite yet, but I think it has been used so heavy-handedly, and so intrusively, and even so deceptively (such as for content people think is theirs, but turns out to be non-permanent) that it's a real problem. It's holding back a lot of revenue streams for content providers as well as technological advancement of digital content in all forms. Including mobile technology, of course.

I'd be happy to launch my own full-scale rant about DRM, but apparently that article has plenty.

09:38 PM by Bob Russell in Archive | Handhelds and Smartphones

Werner Ruotsalainen at the PPC Magazine blog shares some good information on whether or not Pocket PC memory cards need to be defragmented, and how to do it.

Some tips:
* Yes, it's worth defragmenting them every 2-3 months, if there are frequent writes to the card.
* Never use a Pocket PC utility to do the defragmenting
* Do consider getting a card reader

If you have a card reader, the process is simple: Copy the files to your hard drive, reformat the card (E.g. "format i: /q /u" but make sure you use the correct drive letter!), and then copy your files back to the card.

Card reader warning: If you have an old card reader (say more than 2yrs old), make sure you have the current firmware upgrade. Some of the older readers with out-of-date firmware can actually corrupt an SD card and render it completely unusable. I've had this happen, but fortunately I had a name brand card with a good warranty, and they were kind enough to provide me with a replacement. Unfortunately, the company that promised a firmware upgrade never got it to me and I finally gave up and threw it away after a number of months. Then they eventually did send me the firmware upgrade, but by then my old card reader was in the trash. Just as well because I wouldn't have trusted it anymore anyway.

Via pocketpcmag.com

06:33 PM by Bob Russell in E-Book General | Deals and Resources (No...

Are you a fan of Cory Doctorow, for his fiction writing as well as his popular blog? He's big proponent of doing away with DRM because it just gets in the way of the customer experience and as a result it doesn't help the content sellers either. But he's also a great writer and true to form he makes his stuff available for free without DRM constraints. Here's your chance to get an audio book from him if you have a thirst for more.

Cory says, "I've begun podcasting another story, 'Return to Pleasure Island,' a dark and mean fantasy story that was originally published in Realms of Fantasy in 2000, and reprinted in my 2003 short story collection A Place So Foreign and Eight More. It's in four parts, and should be fully posted by the end of the week."

Via BoingBoing

10:31 PM by Bob Russell in Miscellaneous | Lounge

One of the great pleasures for all of us at MobileRead is when we are noticed and appreciated by our readers. Here and there we are so happy to receive some great feedback and encouragement from this wonderful community of mobile computing fans. We thank you, one and all, for all your interest and support. And we appreciate your participation in this delightful "conversation" we all share about the latest mobile news.

This week, another special honor was bestowed on the site. We are delighted to let you know that the MobileRead site has been selected by Sammy McLoughlin at Palm Addicts as the "Best of the Best." What greater honor can we receive than this sort of recognition from the grandfather of Palm sites, and Palm Addicts is without a doubt, the most complete news site for everything Palm, and even a bit more.

But more than that, we appreciate the support and friendship and respect that has grown out of sharing a similar love for mobile devices and enjoying this great community of mobile technology fanatics. Sammy continues to be a great example of a leader in web coverage and community building. We salute him, as well as Lindsey and Jan and Peter and the rest of the Palm Addicts' team for their work on a site that gets better and better every year.

If you are a Palm Addicts reader that has just come across our site, we hope you'll enjoy your visit. If you are a MobileRead regular with an interest in Palm devices, be sure to add Palm Addicts to your list of sites.

But most of all, we salute you our readers. Whether you are a silent visitor or a regular participant, we appreciate your interest and hope you will continue to enjoy your time here. We work hard to make it a place that is fun and informative. We have some great software developers here, as well as other subject matter experts, and an awesome group of writers that we feel gives a perspective that you can't find anywhere else. We don't desire to replace any other site, and take pride in how we complement the many other great tech sites out there. And so, when some nice words come our way, well, I'm sure you'll understand if we boast just a bit and take a moment to give ourselves a pat on the back.

Thanks again to one and all, and thanks to Palm Addicts for the very kind words!

09:55 PM by Bob Russell in Miscellaneous | Lounge

It seems a resonable time to reflect. The weekend is winding down and after a short sleep, another work week is ready to begin. And for mobile computing, there is no longer any doubt that we are definitely in the beginnings of our "heyday."

Microsoft is expected to announce a new type of portable computing device with a touch screen and connectivity. Even if you don't like what Microsoft comes up with, it will surely spur other competitors for whatever is announced. Cell phones are almost ubiquitous, and they are beginning to have features that are bringing the typical phone closer and closer to what we now call smartphones. Music players, video players, streaming tv content, messaging, web access and PIM functions are all in the works and will be available in more and more devices. Right now it's only the geeks that have it, but soon it will be your neighbors and co-workers.

That's great news for us in many ways. First of all, as this type of technology becomes mainstream, we will see costs go down, features beefed up, and we'll see all kinds of variety in designs and software platforms. I guarantee that Windows Mobile and Access Linux Platform (the new PalmOS) are not going to be the only games in town. And investment in power supply, processors, displays, communications, input devices, 3rd party add-ons and all kinds of related technologies will bring tremendous improvements. And with the huge markets developing, we'll see some really impressive making someone some really impressive profits.

There are still some battles to be won or lost. Standards will need to be chosen. DRM technologies and copyright law are up for grabs, and it's beginning to look like it's content providers versus the consumer. There are some pretty big issues to be worked out relative to who carries the internet traffic and how. Will it remain a "single" infrastructure freely carrying content inexpensively, or will we see service providers locking it up with service tiers, high prices and control over devices and content? Nobody knows yet.

But like I said, this is the best of times for mobile computing. We will live the excitement of the PC revolution, but faster and with better technology and better connectivity. Every week we see new devices and rumors of devices. There are new companies entering the field. Gaming is coming to mobile devices in a new way. And it's (slowly) becoming more affordable to the general user. It's a great day for mobile computing and it's only getting better!

04:53 PM by Bob Russell in Archive | Handhelds and Smartphones

Here's a nifty way to dramatically increase the memory on your phone. Basically it's an internal connector and a storage card that gets stuck to the back of the cell phone.

According to the US Modular product site,

A 4GB Stik & Stor™ Card has the capacity to store:
* 24,000 640 X 480 photos
* 48 hours of music, or
* 17 hours of video
(or a combination of all three)

Some of the Motorola and Samsung phones it works with are the Motorola V635 , A1000, E1000, E398, V1000, A840, A780, V850, V710, V975, V980, ROKR and Samsung D600, Z500.

Plus, an 8 gig version is in the works if that's not enough storage for you.

Via makezine.com