Garnet VM (Palm OS emulator) future for the N900 - Page 2 - maemo.org

Hakapes | # 11 | 2009-12-31, 14:43 | Report

I also use system enhancement utilities on the Treo, these are really Palm OS specific. In fact, I am using handheld devices since mid 90', and all of them needed a handful of utilities to fill the gaps of the system.

Maybe these can help to prevent the crashes of the Garnet VM, too. Because the Treo really needs these to function smoothly. Many of these apps are written by the same person (HobbyistSoftware), who knows the Palm OS deeply, and corrected all the shortcumings that Palm/Access should have done.

Butler for Palm OS
Alarms, Attention Grabber, Navigation, Launching, LED, Keyguard
Ex. a long press on any letter key (on any screen, at anytime) can launch a program. This way, I can launch all my favourite apps by a long press on a letter, this is a very fast and practical way.

Phone Technician for Palm OS
"Funky Ringer" ringtone management - Mp3, Ogg, wav, wma, Midi or Polyphonic tones. Choose repeat time, vibrate, LED, and more. Radio control - set radio on & off times, turn radio on after reset.

Power Hero for Palm OS
Console -Instantly see and control the main power drains on your Treo
Schedule - Set your Treo's functions to be on only when you need them
Save - Automatically turn off power draining features after you have finished using them
Auto Bluetooth - turn your Bluetooth on automatically when your call arrives
Shortcuts - use the free shortcut applications to control features from your launcher

Reset Doctor for Palm OS
- saves your preferences, registrations and settings from being lost with resets
- empties the cache

Profiles - Profile Manager for Palm Treo
There are no profiles in Palm, only silent and not silent. This apps brings Nokia style profiles. It pops-up with a long press on the Fn key.

Pocket Tunes Deluxe
Mp3 player
Internet Radio
Last.fm radio
Background play (officially there is no multitask on Palm OS, but this plays in the background)

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TA-t3 | # 12 | 2009-12-31, 14:44 | Report

@Hakapes:
I like GVM, but it's limited in what it can do, the most difficult one is of course the missing hardware keys. I use Calendar on my Palm and I'll be doing that for the foreseeable future because it's just so much better than what I can currently get on any Nxx0. And the hardware button.. I do just as you:

Originally Posted by

For example, to enter a new appointment for tomorrow, I need:
1. hit calendar hardware button
2. tap tomorrows day in calendar
3. tap on time slot
-> enter text (in-line, no pop-up box)

It's hard to beat that.

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Hakapes | # 13 | 2009-12-31, 14:50 | Report

Originally Posted by TA-t3 View Post

@Hakapes:
I like GVM, but it's limited in what it can do, the most difficult one is of course the missing hardware keys. I use Calendar on my Palm and I'll be doing that for the foreseeable future because it's just so much better than what I can currently get on any Nxx0. And the hardware button.. I do just as you:

It's hard to beat that.

I see - so you use the N900 and your Palm in parallel?
Which one do you use to make calls?
How it is to have two devices on you all the time (if you have)?

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TA-t3 | # 14 | 2009-12-31, 16:05 | Report

My Palm is a T3, not a Treo, so I don't make calls with it.

(Although the voip app I installed worked suprisingly well. But the wi-fi card doesn't work anymore so it would have to be over BT anyway.)

And I don't carry just two devices.. I carry two phones (one of them is now the N900), one N800, one Palm. And soon also a Pandora. The idea of getting the N900 was as a compromise device, if I can't or won't take my jacket with all its convenient pockets then I let the other phone transfer calls to the N900 and bring the N900 only.

I'm still reading emails on my N800, because it's got mail programs which can download headers only (the current N900 email program can't do this). When there's no wi-fi I go online via the N900, that works perfect now with the availability of the bluetooth-dun package. I also still use the OS2007 Opera browser on the N800 for things that are harder to do well with the N900 browser. And it's got a larger screen.

I always bring the Palm at work, because of the TimeSheet PalmOS program. This one, admittedly, works just fine also in GVM on the Nokia tablets, but as I'm also depending on the Palm Calendar I can as well use it for TimeSheet too. And in any case I don't like to depend on an application that (currently) has to be upgraded and re-installed once or twice a year (GVM is currently time-limited).

(As you may understand I would be first in line to buy a version of the N900 with dual SIM functionality, i.e. two phones in one, like some of the Samsung phones).

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Hakapes | # 15 | 2009-12-31, 16:23 | Report

TA-t3, thanks for feedback!
What do you use TimeSheet for? I checked the website, but I am interested in what can be the use of it.
And how do you find using an applicaiton in the Garnet VM?
What is the Pandora?

I wrote to Access, I don't know if they bother with any reply...

Is there a Symbian or other emulator, that can help to fill the gap of missing apps?
Thanks!

TA-t3 | # 16 | 2009-12-31, 16:31 | Report

I use TimeSheet (http://www.jsankey.com/software/timesheet/timesheet.htm) to keep track of my working hours. As in many IT companies everything I work on has to be accounted to some work package (for lots of different customers, for internal stuff, warranty work, whatever). Whenever I switch targets I simply click on another workpackage in TimeSheet and it'll keep track of it for me.

(There's apparently a GPE-timesheet native Maemo application too, but I haven't checked it out. In any case I don't want to lose years of data that I have in my current app.)

To use GVM can be a little slow, at least on the N800, but that's just the initial startup. It's also possible to make shortcuts and start individual applications directly (even installing icons in Maemo to do so). This is explained in another (old) thread.

Pandora: It's designed as a gaming device, but if you ignore the gaming (as do I) then it's basically a device based on the same OMAP3 chipset as the N900, but designed like a super-charged N800 (e.g. two full-size, accessible SD slots). http://www.open-pandora.org/

I don't know anything about Symbian emulators.

Last edited by TA-t3; 2009-12-31 at 16:33.

DojwqIO | # 17 | 2009-12-31, 17:37 | Report

Originally Posted by mtjioe View Post

DojwqIO,

did you run this on the N900?
I just couldn't open any ebooks! It always crahses. It doesn't even matter what kind of non-DRM protected file I try to open, a few kb's to a few Mb's, plaintext whatever...
How did you manage to get it running

Yes, I'm running this on the N900.

I first installed the .deb for the Garnet VM .deb as root with
dpkg -i garnet*.deb, then I installed Mobipocket for palm OS.
You have to go to the manual install page:
http://www.mobipocket.com/en/Downloa...ualInstall.asp.
There are 3 files to install, mobireader.prc, mathlib.prc bluepalm.pdb. You install them within the Garnet application, but before the virtual machine is fired up.
Finally, I installed non-DRM e-books in Mobipocket format (.prc), again from within the Garnet application.
I think it all worked fine the first time.

I also tried installing Audible for Palm and google maps but those didn't work. They both crashed the VM.

DojwqIO | # 18 | 2009-12-31, 17:42 | Report

Originally Posted by TA-t3 View Post

And I don't carry just two devices.. I carry two phones (one of them is now the N900), one N800, one Palm. And soon also a Pandora. The idea of getting the N900 was as a compromise device, if I can't or won't take my jacket with all its convenient pockets then I let the other phone transfer calls to the N900 and bring the N900 only.

@TA-t3:
Sounds like you have one of SeV's jackets: http://www.scottevest.com/ .
I have the Essential Travel Jacket and it's great for carrying all these gadgets.

Addison | # 19 | 2009-12-31, 23:44 | Report

Originally Posted by Hakapes View Post

Did anyone tried Fitaly on-screen keyboard with the Garnet OS - could someone try it?

I used the sticker version on my Palm Tungsten T, but of course, because of the keyboard, I don't need it on the Treo 680.
It could be an alternative for using Graffity (handwriting recognition).

Entering accented characters is very fast with Fitaly, a long swipe with the stylus in specific directions enters accented chars. Ex. a long swipe starting from "e" to the right enters "é", to the top "ë", etc.

Any type of heavy data entry, I go with my trusted xkbd virtual keyboard setup.

No clue whatsoever though if it would work on a N900.

seth1776 | # 20 | 2010-01-18, 05:09 | Report

any luck getting something simular to the chapura syn program to work with the 900....I am coming of a tre0 680 and the contacts program on the n900 is terrible compared to the treo version