20071223
Safely upgrading PalmOS for the Treo
Palm recently had an update available for the Treo 680 that nearly scared me to death last night when the USB port on the older computer I use to sync with my PDA. Supposedly this update should improve battery life. (Tip: Hop onto eBay and look for a battery with double or more charge storage. The inital battery stores at least 1200 mAh (milliAmpere-hours). For all you physics majors out there, that is about 4320 coulombs (1 coulomb = 1 Ampere-second). The electronics industry likes to use mAh.) While it might be true, it actually adds alot of crap software to your PDA.Flashing your PDA is RISKY, as previously entries will show.
But the people who wrote the instructions for the update wrote four different versions of the instructions.
So here is what you should do.
1. Sync your PDA. Back up everything first. Back up any third party programs to your SD card.
2. Find a spare SD card. You don't need a large SD card. A 256MB will do, though you'll only need about 20 MB. Do NOT use the same SD card that you store your stuff on. It needs to be blank. You can find a 256MB card down at Target for like $10.
3. Go to the Palm website where the update is. Read everything.
4. Use the IT instructions. When you get to this page, use the instructions for IT and Enterprise.
5. Download the update file, extract files to spare SD card. This step is listed in the IT instructions, but it is important to list here considering the following step.
6. Reboot the PDA. With NO SD card in the PDA at all (you can still leave your SIM card in the PDA), take the battery out and put it back in. (That is if you have a Treo 680).
7. Plug-in AC Adapter. You are going to need it plugged in for this operation.
8. Put in the SD card with the update program on it. It should start automatically, but if it doesn't go back to step 6 and perform a hard reset.
9. Follow the rest of the instructions on the website.
10. When the entire update process is complete, remove the other SD card with the update on it. Put it some place where you can use it again when the next update comes out.
11. Put the SD card you use for your stuff back in, but don't put the programs that need to be on your PDA back on the PDA. They may be reloaded after the next step.
10. Resync your PDA with your computer. After you since, reinstall any outstanding programs that may not have been put back after syncing.
What I can't believe is that this update DID NOT come with a Java VM.
I plan to have more stuff to talk about after the Holidays. Fall has been sort of a dry spell here at this website, and after reading some of my old archives, I realized that many of the things that I talked about doing an am able to do now and am ready to explain here in the new year. I would like to get some wiki entries wrtten up for Eclipse, Android, Treo, and syncing on Linux within the next month or so. These are promises I would like to keep as they are what people really want. Not some discount for some sudoku game. (I never liked sudoku. Crosswords are better.)
So until next time, Merry Christmas!
Labels: handhelds, palm, phone, scary
posted by Bushido Hacks 12/23/2007 03:52:00 PM (0) comments top
20071113
Android Runs on Java and Under the Couch - Click!
I don't know why people still use Java. Even on a dual core system with pleanty of memory, Java love to suck up system resources until it putters at a Commodores pace. In addition, Java is an energy hog on portable devices, including Moto's RAZR.Here's something to think about: Why aren't portable apps being written in Python or C? I read about portable applications for mobile devices using open source software all the time. Why don't we see these things in other technology magazines other than Linux Journal or Linux User?
C is efficent. The codes can be ported to iPhone and Palm OS. But mobile application projects for C and Python came to a halt earilier this decade, primarily because Java became the only game in town.
Thanks to Apple, interest in programming mobile devices is on the rise again. Hacking the iPhone is the primary goal, but hopefully Palm OS and Blackberry users will join in. (This was one of Android's goals in the first place.)
Android runs under the couch like a Roomba Robot. Atleast I still have an SSH program.
UPDATE:
After some review of Android, I have decided to reconsider my stance on Java programming. Perhaps I will find what it is that Java does that make is so energy-innefficent.
My appologies for being dismissive.
Labels: brew, google, java, palm, phone
posted by Bushido Hacks 11/13/2007 02:01:00 PM (0) comments top
20050203
Nice TuSSH - Click!
A good computer operator should always have a back up of their most important data and aplications when the you-know-what hits the fan.Recently, I have learned to take advantage of Dreamhost.com's Linux Server capabilities including the fact that I can compile PERL and C++ online using SSH and query my mySQL database.
Secondly, I have always wanted a way to access SSH through a small handheld device. PocketPC could not do this, the failed Familiar Project never had anything, but Palm had a program.
The program is called TuSSH, short for Tungsten SSH. SSH is a secure form of telnet. This is one of the greatest programs I have ever used since I learned about OpenOffice.
TuSSH is freeware but it is not open source. So if you really really like this program, donate $20 to the guys who created TuSSH.
posted by Bushido Hacks 2/03/2005 01:16:00 PM (0) comments top
20050131
Wanted: Instructions to sync a Sony Clié PEG-UX50 with Fedora Core 3 - Click!
OK, I love my new PDA (thank you, duffstuf123! ^_^), but finding instructions to syncronize such a wonderful piece of new technology has been difficult to find.Yeah, my Clié came with an installation CD and an instruction manual. The guy who sold it to me was even generous enough to include a 128MB Memory Stick. But something I had not anticipated occured: there is no instructions for syncronizing this device with Linux...yet.
PalmSource did make an announcement stating that they would develop software to syncronize PalmOS devices with the Linux operating system. KDE has a good program called KPilot to syncronize the device with programs part of their KDE PIM groupware.
However, their are some relatively simple instructions to set up Palm devices with Linux. I just have not found a common method yet. I hope to find the instructions by the end of this week and when I do find them, I will post them here at BushidoHacks.com or I'll post the link to the instructions that I have found suitable for the Sony Clié.
Stay tuned. Good news is on the way.
Labels: ebay, handhelds, linux, palm, sony
posted by Bushido Hacks 1/31/2005 07:59:00 AM (0) comments top
