Palm has just announced a new "early access program" for its Mojo SDK via its Developer Network blog. Admission to the program is by application for early access to the development tools for building WebOS applications. The program is being billed as an opportunity for developers to test-drive and provide feedback on the Mojo SDK prior to its public release.

Palm says they will initially admit a small group of developers they choose to start and plan to gradually increase the size of the program as the tools mature. The program will continue until the SDK is officially released to the public, at which point any developer will be free to download the SDK. Just like the Pre's release date, Palm has not yet stated when they expect this to be available.

Palm is demonstrating a few new WebOS applications on the Palm Pre this week at CTIA. In our first video post in a series to come, we take a look at some of the music capabilities of the Palm Pre.

In the video after the break, three music applications for the Pre are demo'd. First up is the Music Player shown playing a track along with its multitasking notification area controls. Then we take a look at Pandora's Streaming music application, followed by a preview of the the Amazon MP3 store.

PalmInfocenter just got some additional demo time in with the Palm Pre today at the Sprint VIP lounge at CTIA in Las Vegas. We will be posting some video and additional coverage shortly, but one thing really caught our eye that we had to get out first.

The Pre's in use at the Sprint VIP lounge are running on a newer build since the CES demo's and Palm is showing some additional third party apps (more on these later). We caught a glimpse of a new app called "Classic" in the launcher that looks like a traditional PDA icon. Of course, I immediately asked if this was some sort of Palm OS emulation/compatibilty app, however the Palm rep would not talk about it. However, the rep did hint that more about this may be revealed later today, presumably at the Web 2.0 keynote. Click the pic at the right for a larger view and stay tuned for more CTIA coverage on the way.

In what looks to be the first genuinely solid bit of Pre-related information directly from Palm since CES, a new Palm Blog post has appeared hinting at a substantial bit of new WebOS or Pre-related info from the Web 2.0 Expo in San Francisco. While I would assume Palm will announce a semi-firm release date, the device's pricing or even the announcement of the SDK availability (see our earlier story on the August arrival of Palm's new WebOS book) could be in the works. To date, no Pre release date has been given other than the usual "first half ‘09" heard since CES. Entitled "Watch this space: No foolin" Palm basically squashes any chance of the announcement being an ill-timed April fool's joke. Ironically enough, Palm also suggests following their Twitter updates (@palm_inc) for the latest breaking news.

Prior to today, the general consensus online was that Microsoft's upcoming Windows Mobile 6.5 update would not be released as a update to existing devices, due to the beefed-up hardware requirements. Now Engadget is reporting that word has leaked out prior to the kick-off of CTIA that Microsoft has clarified their stance in regards to WM 6.5 upgrades for existing handsets. Devices currently on the market, such as Palm's Treo Pro (but not the older, lesser clocked 800w) that feature at least a 400 MHz CPU and 128MB or more of RAM can technically accommodate the 6.5 upgrade. It will, however, be up to the individual hardware manufacturers such as Palm and HTC to go through the effort and cost to offer the upgrade to their customers.

Today marks the kick-off of the 3rd Web 2.0 Expo event in San Francisco's Moscone Center West. Co-produced by O'Reilly Media and TechWeb, the Web 2.0 Expo is an annual conference designed to showcase the future of the constantly-evolving nature of web-based services, businesses and technologies.

Palm's Michael Abbott is delivering a keynote address on April 1st at 5:10. Mr. Abbott will be discussing "…how WebOS will change the way users and developers think about mobile web experiences." No word if any additional Palm Pre information will be released at this event but the smart money would be on no new information coming out until the CTIA Wireless conference later this week.

Last month we wrote about the announcement of the availability of the Rough Cuts electronic version of Palm and O'Reilly's new Palm WebOS: Developing Applications in JavaScript Using the Mojo Framework". Now, on the heels of the announcement earlier this month that the second chapter of the work has been made available online, Amazon has just made the final print version of the book available for pre-order. Written by Palm's CTO Mitch Allen alongside the WebOS development team, this title represents the first official book release focusing on developing for WebOS and the Palm Pre.

Amazon's pre-order price of $23.09 represents a nice discount off the book's $34.99 list price. The current release date is listed as August 15th, 2009, and the book's page count is 352 pages. The ISBN-13 number is 978-0596155254.

This past Sundays new episode of the Simpsons featured a humorous reference to everyone's favorite PDA. In the episode "Wedding For Disaster" (s20e15) Reverend Lovejoy learns that he was not certified for a period of time and quickly checks his Psalm Pilot to look over his list of messages.

You can checkout the screen-grab to the right (click for larger), or catch the full episode online (also embedded after the break). The specific scene occurs in Rev. Lovejoy's office, at about 5:20 minutes in.

Palm, Inc. today announced that the Treo Pro is now available in Brazil on the Vivo network. Treo Pro is an easy-to-use smartphone for businesses that want to simplify their IT infrastructures and lower costs, and for users who want to stay on top of their professional and personal lives.

Running Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional, the Treo Pro is a quad band GSM phone with Tri-Band 3G HSDPA/UMTS (850/1900/2100MHz) support. It runs on a 400 MHz Qualcomm MSM7201 processor with a 320x320 pixel flush touchscreen, 256MB memory (100MB user available), microSD expansion (up to 32GB supported), built in Wi-Fi (802.11b/g with WPA, WPA2, and 801.1x authentication), Bluetooth 2.0, GPS and a 2.0 megapixel camera.

PearMobile has released a new application for Palm OS devices. PearEvents is a event tracking and management utility. It aims to help you organize upcoming events, dates, birthday lists and more with the ability to set alarms, reminders and custom details. The program also includes categories, zodiac determination for birthdays, and icon database and more.

PearEvents v1.0 is available now for $6.95. A free trial is available. It is compatible with Palm OS 4.0 or later and supports high-res plus displays.

Palm Inc. has apparently taken issue with TealOS, the webOS lookalike application for Palm OS devices, and has requested the programs permanent removal. In a post to the Tealtalk support forum, a TealPoint representative delivers the news:

I'm sorry to say that at Palm's request, as of this upcoming Monday, March 30, we will no longer be selling or distributing TealOS.
We really appreciate the help and unprecedented enthusiasm so many of you have shown for this product. It's been a long time since we experienced this kind of customer cooperation, and the program's success came at a badly needed time. We wish we could continue contributing to this great community.

Assuming the above information is correct, TealOS will vanish from TealPoint's site on March 30th. All existing users and customers are encourage to download the latest beta release (currently v1.43) while they still can.