Penguin to the Rescue?

With the (not so recent) news of Palm OS Cobalt being scrapped and the change of hands to ACCESS, the future of the Palm handheld legacy is up in the air. In the world of technology, change can mean the sudden surge to the top of the market or the downfall of an empire. With the switch from Palm's own operating system to a Linux based one, there are bound to be changes that people will either learn to love or hate. But which one will it be?

Since the introduction of the original Palm Pilot in the mid-1990's the Palm OS operating system had remained considerably consistent in terms of the look and feel factor, and even overall use. Even the Palm OS5 GUI in the Tungsten TX and LifeDrive Mobile Manager looks extremely similar to the original operating system that debuted with the original Palm Pilot from 10 years ago (e.g. Palm Pilot 1000 in 1996), but functionality significantly improved during those years in between. Whether you are a casual day planner user or a complete PDA nut like ourselves at Canuck PDA, there is no doubt that the original Palm Pilot was the beginning of a great legacy that would span over a decade and build a reputable name that everybody would come to recognize. Even folks who know little about mobile technology have at least heard of or know what a "Palm Pilot" is - it's the layman's term for "PDA" at the very least. However, the introduction of a new operating system possibly means a whole new look, and even a whole new name. So can ACCESS keep its inherited reputation?

The Palm Pilot legacy was built over years through innovation and customer loyalty. With a large-scale change just around the corner, everything now is a big grey haze. Ever since ACCESS came into the picture, people have begun giving mixed opinions over the future of the Palm OS: “Linux will never succeed on a Palm Pilot”, “having a Linux based operating system will open up a whole new world of opportunities for the PDA”, and my favourite still, “Linux? Really? Can you load Ubuntu on to it?”. So far, ACCESS has been quite secretive over the new operating system they are going to use, yet pictures have been leaked showing what could be the future operating system of the future generation Palm Pilot devices. Some people have said that it looks very similar to that of a cell phone’s interface, others have said that it just won’t do. But there are still some who remain highly optimistic. Personally, I’m one of the optimists. Linux is a very versatile operating system for any hardware platform such as PCs, handhelds (like the Zaurus), and even video game console systems like Microsoft’s Xbox and Sony's PlayStation 2(although not condoned by those manufacturers). With such an operating system, developers can tap into things that couldn’t be achieved with the original Palm OS: perhaps fully upgradeable operating systems (like some Windows Mobile devices) or better hardware accessories through drivers. Hardware will definitely be something to get used to, but the other most important aspect of the change is software. How will it hold up? Will it be anything like what we’ve all gotten used to through years of Palm Pilot use?

One of the largest areas of cash flow in the PDA industry is software. Nothing sells more than a stable, productive, and highly useable piece of software. Take the personal information management (PIM) application suite Agendus for example. As one of the largest software sellers for the Palm OS, and even Windows Mobile (we can’t forget Symbian devices too!), Agendus has become a replacement application for the original PIM applications that reside in a Palm’s memory. But what about the PIMs to be on the future Linux based devices? Can we expect it to act like a Zaurus? Perhaps, but I doubt it. ACCESS is also the developer of some previous Palm OS applications such as the NetFront web browser found on some (now discontinued) Sony Clies and cell phones. Given that they also have an online software store on their website, ACCESS will probably look to make their own PIM suite for the upcoming operating system, maybe even keep the original style that Palm OS users have come to recognize: Address Book, Notepad, ToDo List, and Datebook alike. Doing so may also bring back loyal Palm users from when the Palm Pilot Professional debuted, something that is sometimes quite difficult to successfully execute with a change of such magnitude. And maybe this is exactly what will bring the ACCESS to the same or even higher level that Palm was at for all those years. Just maybe.

But I think I’ve digressed and talked long enough. At this time, we are still uncertain what the future holds for the new Palm operating system platform. Opinions are plentiful and so are the opportunities to be had with the new operating system.

So fasten your seat belts, ladies and gents, we’re in for a wild ride!

What do you think? Have an opinion and would like to voice it? Come drop by our forums, we'd love to hear what you have to say!