04:32 PM by Laurens in Archive | Handhelds and Smartphones

The Opera browser needs no introduction. It may very well be the best Pocket PC web browser currently available, even if it's still beta.

The second beta release adds tabs, for browsing multiple pages at a time more easily.

Opera is available for Windows Mobile 2003 and 5.0. The beta expires June 1st.

Download and Product info

03:30 PM by Bob Russell in Archive | Handhelds and Smartphones

Now we know: Origami = Mobile PC with XP! That also means that it's probably very closely tied to the UMPC (Ultra Mobile PC) initiative which is supposed to be rolling out actual products this month.

How did the secret get out? Embedded data in the web page. Unwanted metadata in documents keeps popping up where you least expect it - and where you least want it. There have even been US Government documents on how to "cleanse" documents of private information and past change histories, etc.

Well this time, Microsoft slipped up on its web page by including the following text, "Origami Project: the Mobile PC running Windows XP." So instead of announcing it at the CeBit trade show end of next week, we got a "secret accidental stealth announcement." But Microsoft may not be unhappy about it because they are getting a lot of interest this way. When you just announce something it's boring. But people think they got information that you didn't want them to have it becomes exciting!

Did they plan it that way? I doubt it, but it's sure possible. And even without any special tricks, they've sure got my interest!

Read the whole scoop at News.com.

06:10 PM by Bob Russell in E-Book Formats | Workshop

Even digitizing a single book is a pretty significant endeavor for a single individual. But Google announced a couple of years ago that they were going to digitize entire library collections including the New York Public Library and Harvard University libraries. This may be a big challenge, and may even face some legal resistance, but it's also a big step forward into the digital generation of books.

So far, Google has been very private about how they plan to accomplish all of this. I suppose they don't want any others to copy their methods. Or get indications of how they might make use of the scanned materials based on scanning methodology.

But it turns out that Carnegie Mellon University is doing a large scale scanning effort of its own, and they are talking about it. They are using off-the-shelf scanning technology and put book scanners at 40 locations in China and India in order to keep costs down.

Check out more on both efforts at Technology Review.

But maybe Google is using robotic scanners. This approach was experimented with at Stanford. For an interesting interview on it with Michael Keller, University Librarian, Director of Academic Information Resources, and Publisher of HighWire Press and the Stanford University Press, check out this article.

05:56 PM by Bob Russell in Miscellaneous | Lounge

There is a new kind of tiny microphone available from Akustica, that is completely contained on a single chip. The new mic will cost about $3.76 in large quantities, which is a bit higher than about $1 for a traditional ECMs (Electret Condenser Microphones), but it is a good fit for handheld devices or even better quality audio for digital camcorders.

One big advantage is that it doesn't need the insulation to protect from interference that is required for traditional microphones. That's good news for designers of shrinking notebooks and handheld devices that contain more and more capabilities. It is also a boost for design of devices meant to be used for VOIP telephone calls over the internet.

(via ZdNet )

01:28 PM by Bob Russell in Archive | Handhelds and Smartphones

This is pretty exciting. It's not exactly a tiny sleek cell phone, but when have you ever seen a cell phone with the ability to project a 15" image?

Get all the scoop at Engadget on this phone that was shown off by a Taiwanese company at the Intel booth at 3GSM.

05:26 PM by Bob Russell in E-Book General | News

Have you ever heard that good news comes in batches? Well, sometimes good blog news comes in like the tide, and at TeleRead the tide is in!

Take a look at some of the great stuff that's on topics near and dear to our hearts:

* The really open reader
* USA Today columnist calls for e-book standards
* The iPod IS a threat to listeners? ears
* PDF, PDAs and the reflowability question
* Downloading Dickens: Inevitable, or a Fantasy??
* IDPF survey of e-book buyers: PDA platform and eReader lead?and, yes, book prices matter
* Update on HP e-book reader
* Manybooks.net readers use Palm, Pocket PC, desktop PC

05:11 PM by Bob Russell in Archive | Handhelds and Smartphones

Looking for game emulators that run on Windows Mobile devices? You're in luck! You can find a recent one here.

Apparently it is more up to date than this one from PDA Arcade that I've visited many a time when I thought I might give game emulation a try. And then I always remember that I don't have the patience for these games anymore anyway and just let it go.

(via the remarkable Werner Ruotsalainen!)

05:06 PM by Bob Russell in Archive | Handhelds and Smartphones

Werner Ruotsalainen at Smartphone and PPC Magazine is quickly becoming one of my favorite writers about Windows Mobile devices. He produces some really great information, and his latest contributions are top notch.

The article I want to highlight here is called "The Definitive Pocket PC Mail Client Roundup" and it really looks like it is.

The clients covered are:
* The built-in (Pocket) Inbox / Messaging client
* WebIS Mail
* FlexMail beta 2
* Qmail
* nPOP and nPOPw
* ProfiMail 2.37

There's also some follow up material that the author recommends over at a PocketPC Thoughts thread with the same material and more.