Responding to the topic title,
I found this forum from a website which linked to the portrait mode thread and asked people to give their reasons for portrait mode.
My main reason at the moment is one handed use.
I was injured playing sport earlier this year and walk around with a crutch now, so stopping in the middle of the street to open a keyboard in landscape just to type ok in response to an email, SMS or IM is not really appealing. This is analogous to holding a shopping bag or basket, or carrying your suitcase in an airport etc

Implementation: (mods move to appropriate thread if this is the wrong place)

First, assume there is no hardware keyboard, and typing can be done via the touchscreen in both landscape and portrait mode.
(It would be a nice aim to be able to use it as a touchscreen only. Personally I prefer a hardare keyboard but the options are nice. Eg. Watching a movie, SMS comes through and you quickly reply "yes" then back to movie)
This means we need onscreen keyboards.
I assume a landscape OSK is already in place. Perhaps even a T9 landscape keyboard. The latter may not get used much but may help in keeping with the conventions for the portrait mode version.
I would think there would be a button (when the OSK is onscreen only) to switch between T9 and full QWERTY. Eg a button that say T9 hen you are using QWERTY and vice versa so switching between the two is simple. Similar to having a 123 button to switch to numbers/symbols.

- a question: how do you bring up the OSK in landscape mode? If it is pressimg a button in a corner like it is for pullimg up the multi-tasking screen, the same can be implemented in portrait to bring up its OSK.

-Auto-rotation seems to be the thing here, but there should be an option to switch it off (the option is there on my N82). Useful if you like to lie on your side in bed watching youtube videos, for example.

-The application should also be able to override ASR if the designer wants it to. Eg. It wasn't designed for portrait mode or landscape mode. This prevents such a program being a garbled mess when turned to another orientation. On my N82 the only thing that doesn't seem to rotate is the homescreen and camera (I think).

-i'm not sure how a rotation animation should be handled, but perhaps there can be a setting for turning the animation off/on for those who don't care for it.

The accelerometre can send a signal as orientation changes which triggers the ASR (if switched on).
I'm not sure how this would be handled from a software point of view. Will it have to 'keep an eye out' for the signal and does it cause bloat in the code?

My thoughts essentially are:
- Nokia need to provide a portrait keyboard which can be switchable from T9 and QWERTY which is then the choice of the user.
- Nokia need to provide information on accelerometre auto-rotation events (possibly already available from the N810 days?).
- ASR can be handled by each individual program to switch UI from portrait or landscape mode, so the desktop does not hapharzadly get garbled in portrait mode, for example.

Someone like Anidel will know better how all this is handled, having read his posts on his program.

I hope my ramblings make some sort of sense!

As the headphone connector is on the bottom and usb is on top, I suggest its just a matter of fact to have everything usable in portrait mode upside down (or not) in case someone creates a desktop stand it would be upside down and you wouldnt use the qwerty for input cause you dont want to lift it or detach it.

so I'd like to have all four orientations for everything as long as it is useful (eg phonecall just one portrait mode if not charging), the on-screen keyboard in portrait modes could/should have smaller caps?! or adjustable (fingers/pen) size osk caps at all cause some people like to use their pen instead of fingers from time to time or depending on case.

I still don't know why people think I am an UX expert (but thanks ), but all my knowledge of how Fremantle handles rotation comes from this wiki:

http://wiki.maemo.org/Using_Fremantl...#Portrait_Mode

Anidel

Hey, don't complain, but build up a reputation on that

In past Maemo releases, the on screen keyboards have been summoned by:

1. not having the hardware keyboard (if any) opened
2. not having a Bluetooth keyboard (if any) connected
3. tapping (or otherwise moving focus) into any text entry area on the screen

I've not yet used a Maemo 5 device, but I've heard nothing to indicate there's been any change in that behavior.

Well, the N900 is the first Maemo device with an accelerometer, so no, there's nothing from previous Maemo devices that transferred forward in that area. However, through a lot of trial-and-error work, and some time spent teasing information out of Nokia developers, the community has obtained and documented a solid understanding of how to add portrait support to applications.

I actually recognize your knowledge of the software development process, and have asked that everyone post to this brainstorm instead of mine. Best we join efforts. I've already added my solution for the widget rotation. Hope to see more coming.

I always imagined the portrait mode being all four the home screens compiled and compressed in one view, like the four homescreens being 4 big widgets in one view

wouldn't that be easier and more practical to implement?

I guess that would be true portrait support, what I don't understand why people just want everything to flip, that would mean in portrait mode you would still have to use "two handed" because you would need to swipe to the other home screens, so making them all in one would be the best way to go kind of like in N97 portrait mode with the widgets but instead active home screen rectangles

uh, jayhule, I'm not sure you said that right. Rotating the N97 doesn't require 2 hands to swipe the desktops. What makes you say that? It rotates, you still have the 4 desktops, and you swipe the same way as before.

And to the 4 screens in one, no. Its hard enough rotating one, but now cram all the widgets in an unviewable mess? no thanks

More portrait mode support is coming:

http://maemotalk.com/2009/10/09/maem...it-2009-day-1/

Seems the browser will work in portrait mode for this year's Christmas.

Edit: Also http://www.slashgear.com/maemo-6-ui-...irmed-0959800/