According to Cnet, Palm intends to offer a back-end platform to allow employees access to networked applications through their handhelds. Palm intends to offer businesses a choice: hosted by Palm or sold directly to the enterprise customer.

"We want to be a solutions provider," said William Maggs, Palm's chief technology officer.

Quickword is half of Cutting Edge Software's new Quickoffice suite. The other half is Quicksheet, which we reviewed back last Summer. Together, they are the first attempt to bring a Microsoft Office-type suite of applications to the Palm. Quicksheet is an excellent fully-featured spreadsheet app. The best I can say about Quickword is that it is a good first try.

DDH Software's contest for the $1,000 bounty to be awarded to the best new HanDBase applet has yielded nearly 150 new applets to their online gallery. This is a 45% increase. The contest will continue through November 30. -Kevin Doel

envi.con has released the version 1.8 of Pilot Install. This freeware tool allows you to install PalmOS software without HotSync. Since the first release it has added a lot of features, like txt to doc and midi to alarm conversion on the fly, USB (Visor support), Web to Palm installation and more. -envi.com

PixAround's PixScreen PDA Lite is a free Palm app that lets users view color 360° panorama pictures that have been created with the company's free PixMaker Lite desktop application. PixMaker Lite does not require images to be taken using expensive professional equipment such as fisheye lens or a tripod stand. You can snap your pictures using any camera and stitch and publish them into PixAround Scenes. A full version of PixMaker costs $20 for home users and $350 for the pro version.

In a recent interview with Cnet, Handspring Vice President Joe Sipher said that his company intends to eventually integrate wireless Internet access into its handhelds rather than relying on Springboard modules.

In the same article, David Yang, a spokesperson for Sony, said his company has not yet included built-in wireless Net access on the Clié is that wireless networks are too slow. Instead, GoAmerica will be a wireless service provider for the Clié, though no details have been released yet.

Brayder (makers of JackFlash) are running a contest with software giveaways, with grand prize a loaded Palm IIIc with JackFlash, Qvadis Express Reader and BackupBuddy. -gsnyder

The latest issue of Mad Magazine has a parody of Palm's advertising campaign featuring their ideas of the contents of Julia Roberts' Palm V. Not to be missed. -Ed

Liberty 1.2 is now available, and as promised it provides you with dramatic speed increases (30-70%) through a complete rewrite of the screen handling code [we had to do it] and there is also limited support for sound! You can now play your favourite games with the bleeps and blops you have all been asking for :)) Please take our word for it when we suggest you disable any music that is played in the background (its kinda annoying).. it is also possible now to configure your games (grayscale, color, config) on a game by game basis! It should have been there since day 1, but - its there now, so you don't need to keep asking for it!

The new BugMe! Messenger allows users to exchange handwritten, text, and graphic notes between wireless Palm handhelds and Internet e-mail. Users create messages on their Palm that can be sent to any e-mail address, where they arrive as small graphic "yellow sticky" style notes. BugMe! Messenger users receive notes on their handhelds through Electric Pocket's free BugMe.net service. Each user is given a BugMe.net e-mail address and messages sent to this address are delivered to their handheld. It is available now for $40.

MSNBC is reporting a conversation with a Sony representative who, when asked when the color version of the Clié would enter the U.S. market, said “Well, we have a big trade show in January.” This is a reference to the Consumer Electronics Show, January 6-9 in Las Vegas.

The same article goes on to say that GoAmerica will be a wireless service provider for the Clié, though no details have been released yet.

Handspring Updater V1.1 is a software utility that will update the Palm OS included on English-language Visor Platinum and Visor Prism handhelds running Palm OS v. 3.5.2H. This update improves Graffiti writing performance on the Prism, adds Modem HotSync, and fixes Connection method editing. Handspring recommends that all English-language Prism and Platinum owners update their software. There are versions for both Windows and the Mac.

Representatives from the Palm and Pocket PC (PPC) camps held a debate at Comdex yesterday to compare and contrast their respective operating systems. It started out friendly with Phil Holden, the director for mobile devices at Microsoft, complementing Palm for their pioneer work in the field. But then things turned ugly. Holden urged to PPC users to show off their high-definition color screens and "make these people jealous". Michael Mace, Chief Competition Officer for Palm, then pointed out how much smaller Palm devices are by holding up an iPaq and a Clié and saying, "One you can put in your pocket, the other you can put in your pocket and it will pull down your pants".