Quickies: New Palm Apps

Posted By: The People Below Sunday, March 25, 2001 9:17:33 AM

To help travelers communicate in countries where they don't speak the language, Landware has released SmallTalk. Using the familiar form of flash cards, it gives users full sentences, organized into intuitive categories such as Lodging, Transportation and Dining. It includes five languages and costs $20. -David Porfido

Pine Tree Software will soon release Torpedo, their HTML 3.2 editing software. It will come with a Windows conversion tool to create HTML files from the Palm files. It should be released at $12.50 .

Torpedo will have a server-side application for enterprise users by the end of Summer 2001 (Win NT/2000 Server only). Beta testers are wanted. A Pocket PC version should also be available, too. -Eston Bond

It already has a rival. Green Dragon Software is developing PHTML, which should be available in a few weeks. It will offer easy access to every HTML tag and a desktop conduit for $11. -Ed

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Dreamweaver for the Palm?

twizza @ 3/25/2001 11:23:24 AM #

Well it is nice to see that web heads liek myself who have been playing with teh idea of developing websites for the Palm, not clippings but true webpages with graphics, now have the chance to get to this.

is there anychance though that these could be like dreamweaver on the palm os and develop the pages from there and then bpreview with a browser like avantgo. that would really make phtml take off.

RE: Dreamweaver for the Palm?

GregGaub @ 3/25/2001 11:59:17 AM #

Have you played with Palmscape? It can open Memo Pad entries as web pages. So, although limited to the 4k Memo Pad barrier, you can code ram HTML in the Memo Pad, then see how it looks in PalmScape. This is very helpful for testing different formatting methods, but doesn't help at all for testing graphics and translation to other browsers (iSilo, AvantGo, Browse-It, Plucker, Blazer, etc.)

I agree though, that it would be nice to be able to write a page bigger than 4k for Palm browsing, with images and everything. :)

RE: Dreamweaver for the Palm?

Ed @ 3/25/2001 1:11:08 PM #

I think a WYSIWYG HTML tool would be overkill. An HTML text editor with tag help, which is what these apps look like they are going to be, is good enough for me. However, I'd like to ask that an FTP tool be added. If I'm writing a page on my Palm, it is because my computer is nowhere near. Being able to write the page then upload it directly to my Web server would be awesome. I think PHTML might already planning something like this.

---
Plenipotentiary
Palm Infocenter

RE: Dreamweaver for the Palm?

iebnn @ 3/25/2001 1:33:49 PM #

Hi, I'm the developer of PHTML. While PHTML may not have a built in FTP program, there are already several freeware FTP programs and one of them will probably come bundled with PHTML (and you'll be able to launch it from PHTML).
And yes PHTML will be a text editor with tag help.
I'm yet to decide whether to keep the pages in the memo pad database or use a seperate database file for the pages.
Is there a hack that breaks the memo pad 4k barrier? Because you really can't put much of a page in 4k... I'll have to look, possibly there could be a hack bundled with PHTML so you can have memo pad files that exceed 4k.
Any comments or suggestions would be very well appreciated and considered to be added to the program!

-Alex E., owner of Green Dragon Software.com

RE: Dreamweaver for the Palm?

I.M. Anonymous @ 3/25/2001 8:28:47 PM #

ok...as to the developer above I am trying to downl;oad pocket hunt from green dragon's software web site and cannot find where to download it. there is no support email adress either. Can u please help me find this app?

RE: Dreamweaver for the Palm?

iebnn @ 3/26/2001 6:46:28 AM #

I'm sorry, the web site is still be worked on. Pocket Hunt is almost finished and will be uploaded this week and go on sale for approx. $5 for the full version.

Oh, and PHTML will use the Memo Pad database, so you can read and edit the same memos as you do in Memo Pad, but there is NO 4k limit. You can also use PHTML as a general Memo Pad program without the 4k limit. I think the memos in their full length show up in Memo Pad if they exceed 4k, but you are unable to edit the characters after the 4k mark in Memo Pad (unlike in PHTML.) Also, the price has been lowered a dollar on PHTML. It will go on sale for $9.99, $2.50 less than Torpedo.

-Alex E., owner of Green Dragon Software.com

Torpedo

pinetree74 @ 3/25/2001 5:44:56 PM #

Torpedo will come with an FTP client- with Torpedo Server even wireless FTP capabilities will be possible. We are deciding on which way we want to run HTML previewing... either through a Memo Pad Document or an internal browser.

Eston Bond
CEO Pine Tree Software
http://www.pinetreesoftware.net/

Eston Bond
CEO Pine Tree Software

WYSIWYG is a MUST

Kristopher Wilson @ 3/26/2001 3:15:44 PM #

Even WordSmith doesn't get it. HTML is the defacto document standard readable by anyone with a browser. I have wanted a WYSIWYG HTML editor for years just for use in word processing on the Palm. First one to write such an editor that conforms even to just the most basic standard gets my money! (and I would pay even more for this than for WordSmith.)

PHTML?

I.M. Anonymous @ 3/27/2001 10:11:53 AM #

PHP used to be called PHTML. Pick another name.

RE: PHTML?

iebnn @ 3/27/2001 4:23:25 PM #

I haven't heard it called that. I don't think it will be an issue as most people know PHP as PHP, not PHTML. I don't think people will get them confused. And you already said that it isn't currently being called PHTML. BTW, PHTML stands for Pocket HTML.

-Alex E., owner of Green Dragon Software.com

RE: PHTML?

I.M. Anonymous @ 3/27/2001 9:03:44 PM #

Just call it Pocket HTML then to keep confusion to a minimum. or do what pEdit did and make it a small p. people will think, cool, php on the palm? and they will get confused or mad or whatever. why don't you make phtml wysiwyg? i would buy a tool like torpedo-ez, because i don't know html very well and dreamweaver for the palm would be cool. look at what the guy said about wordsmith. yet if you open a ws doc under memopad it is tagged in a form of html...

RE: PHTML?

iebnn @ 3/28/2001 5:23:46 PM #

I don't see how it would be a problem. I don't see people complaining or becoming angry when the glance at an app and think it was something else. Someone isn't going to buy a program unless they know what it is (and they've tried it.) I wouldn't think very many people would be confused. Too many people know the name PHTML (the Palm app) for me to change it this late.

-Alex E., owner of Green Dragon Software.com

WYSIWYG

Eston Bond @ 3/27/2001 12:24:18 PM #

Torpedo-EZ, a rudimentary WYSIWYG version of Torpedo, should be released by the end of May. Its selling price will be the same as Torpedo and will come with a desktop conduit only.

Eston Bond
CEO Pine Tree Software

Green Dragon Software???

I.M. Anonymous @ 4/14/2001 9:17:44 PM #

Greetings, “Alexander E.” of the grand corporation of Green Dragon Software. I remember fondly a game I used to play which involved a horse leaping gracefully over a fence, played in glorious black and white. A rather "ghetto" form of software to be sure. Nevertheless, I, in my entire life, have never seen such graphically sparse, thoughtlessly unplanned, and, in general, lacking work of un-programming. The fact is that you are brilliant. Enough so that you would have been a software pioneer with your modern technological skills in the early 80's. However, I believe that since the horse outruns your flying ducks, you would do well to act upon the two following suggestions. Initially, to enroll in seminary in preparation for a more fruitful career in the priesthood than you would have in software development. Secondly, I advise that you not send messages which may be posted on message boards across the internet which also contain advice on how to improve the competitor’s products before they are released. By the way, I’ve never heard of Green Dragon Software before, but I have never seen a web site appear instantly with three projects directly posted, yet without separate pages even describing their progress. Under any circumstances, it is advised that you abstain from developing TI-82 games for the palm.

Darius Anderson
Freelance Palm Developer
ago665@hotmail.com

RE: Green Dragon Software???

iebnn @ 4/17/2001 9:40:18 PM #

Interesting.
You're suggesting that my whole company is flawed simply because one of our applications is a simple game. Pocket Hunt is simply a small application I made in my spare time.
The only point you're using against me in your argument is that Green Dragon Software developed a small, simplistic game. It's not supposed to be a large, elaborate product. Are you saying that a company's first product should be one of the most advanced in that genre? That doesn't seem like much of a basis for an argument.
Thank you for the "encouragement" you gave to a new Palm software company.

-Alex E., owner of Green Dragon Software.com