Nagel Promises More Innovation

David Nagel was hired in August to be the head of Palm's Platform Solutions Group, the part of the company that creates and licenses the operating system. In an interview with CNN yesterday, he made it clear he thinks the Palm OS has fallen behind its competitors but he's doing something about that. He said, "When I first arrived a couple of months ago, one of the things that was the highest priority for me was to kick both the apparent innovation and the actual innovation into much higher gear." He went on to list three areas where the company is working hardest: security, speed, and stability.

However, he said that the Palm OS would not suffer from feature bloat. They will be concentrating on useful innovation and features people already use. Mr. Nagel was scornful of the Pocket PC's streaming media capabilitities, questioning their real-world usefulness. He decribed the idea that anyone would do a sales presentation on a handheld's screen as "nuts".

He characterized Microsoft as Palm's top competitor but said, "Microsoft's technology is so heavyweight and so overfeatured in most cases, I think the manufacturers are going to have a hell of a time making portable products based on it."

He listed as one of Palm's top challenges convincing more enterprise buyers to standardize on the Palm OS. However, he also said that Palm is already the leader in this area. He quoted a recent Jupiter study that showed that about twice as many corporations support the Palm OS as the Pocket PC. "We're not only No. 1, we're No. 1 by and enormous margin."

Mr. Nagel said that it the future all handhelds will have some kind of communications capability built into them. He is very pleased with smartphones from Handspring, Samsung, and Kyocera that use the Palm OS.

This is a very long interview that makes some great points that I don't even refer to here. I highly suggest everyon read all of it. There's a link to the full text in the first paragraph. -Ed

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Nagel is happy

I.M. Anonymous @ 11/14/2001 8:50:04 AM #
<Mr. Nagel said that it the future all handhelds will have some kind of communications capability built into them. He is very pleased with smartphones from Handspring, Samsung, and Kyocera that use the Palm OS. >

I thought Nagel works at Palm?!
And if he clever predicts that "all handhelds will have in the future some kind of communications capability built into" he livest strait in 1972 - he is a idiot with a good, long sleep. send him to Yankowsonowhere today!

RE: Nagel is happy
Ed @ 11/14/2001 9:00:35 AM #
Do not add replies to your own messages trying to make it look like more people agree with you. These comments have been deleted.

---
News Editor
RE: Nagel is happy
I.M. Anonymous @ 11/14/2001 9:18:19 AM #
You should also read the articles that you are commmenting on. Nagel works for the part of the company that manages the Palm OS. That's why they did this so that the OS group could focus more on increasing market share for ALL Palm OS handhelds.

RE: Nagel is happy
polymath @ 11/14/2001 9:55:37 AM #
Nice try! Try to agree with yourself.

As stated above, Palm OS is for making OS the standard for handhelds. So, it doesn't make who makes the device as long as they use Palm OS

RE: Nagel is happy
I.M. Anonymous @ 11/14/2001 11:33:33 AM #
So everything fine - agreed - do you buy my Palm shares now at 50 bucks?
I have tons of

RE: Nagel is happy
I.M. Anonymous @ 11/14/2001 3:35:36 PM #
Mathematics question:
10.000 thousand sole shareware programmers, sitting alone with only the basic tools and rudimentary information on a Chiquita box are alone porting their (partly very complex) Palm programs to PPC lietrally in months.

It takes 1.000 competent expert staff at Palm to port their OS to the very same processor for how long?


RE: Nagel is happy
stonemirror @ 11/14/2001 3:45:21 PM #
An anonymous troll writes

10.000 thousand sole shareware programmers, sitting alone with only the basic tools and rudimentary information on a Chiquita box are alone porting their (partly very complex) Palm programs to PPC lietrally in months.

Clearly this is a hypothetical. There aren't "10,000 thousand" or even "10,000" or even "1,000" developers "porting their Palm programs to PPC" in months or otherwise.

Trot out some support for your statements, why doncha?

RE: Nagel is happy
I.M. Anonymous @ 11/15/2001 1:10:29 AM #
>There aren't "10,000 thousand" or even "10,000" or even "1,000" developers "porting their Palm programs to PPC"

There are indeed - provided you do not walk blindfolded like a Taliban - have a look at the best former "Palm only" programsites and developers - a awful lot of the are offering PPC programs now besides Palm.

Anyhow - i miss a answer to the initial question: how long?

RE: Nagel is happy
I.M. Anonymous @ 11/15/2001 11:32:47 PM #
Walk blindfold like Taliban. Cute. You're one of the most pointless trolls I've seen in a long time.

RE: Nagel is happy
I.M. Anonymous @ 11/16/2001 12:01:27 AM #
Sorry - blindfold like Wolfowitz, Sharon or Arafat (if you like that more) - how long it takes Palm to match the work of a oneman show ?

Agree 100%

Scott @ 11/14/2001 9:55:51 AM #
Wow, this article really makes me feel good about the future of Palm. I was beginning to worry with the ouster of Yankovich and all of the FUD that the so-called technology journalists have spread about how PPC's future looks so bright and Palm's future looks dim, that the Palm management was buying into all of that nonsense. His plans for improvement are right in line with what I've thought. The logical next-steps for Palm are faster processing and built-in communications. Higher resolution would be good as well (he didn't really address that), though I don't believe that higher-res should be a standard for all future Palm OS devices (take a look at some of the smart phones - squeezing 160x160 into a small form-factor is difficult).

Scott

PS - Anyone notice the glitch by CNN's writer/editor in transcribing their recorded conversation? He references "Tieserra" as being a player in the smart phone market. Who's that? Sound it out. Hehehe.

RE: Agree 100%
mikecane @ 11/14/2001 10:02:35 AM #
Kyocera?! If so, that's a very bad transcription!

Yankovich?!?
fleegle @ 11/14/2001 10:17:20 AM #
Was Weird Al the CEO of Palm all this time? That's why their stock plummeted. He should stick to writing song parodies. ;-)

RE: Agree 100%
Scott @ 11/14/2001 11:16:33 AM #
Doh!

Wonder why I had that name Yankovich in my head? Perhaps fleegle hit upon something.

Scott

RE: Agree 100%
I.M. Anonymous @ 11/14/2001 3:54:26 PM #
I know some CIO/CTO's at some fortune 500 companies and
they are all standardizing with the pocket PC. Palm
just doesn't come with the functionality out of the box.
They seem to like the iPaq and Jornadas

RE: Agree 100%
I.M. Anonymous @ 11/15/2001 8:15:23 AM #
Yeah, playing mp3s and .wmv videos--THAT'S really important to a CTO at a Fortune 500 company. The fact is, the Palm only falls short on 2 things that matter: screen resolution and processor speed. Functionality on a business level is pretty much a dead heat. Pocket Word & Excel aren't that great (I used to use them both), and installing, say, Docs-to-Go is a VERY simple process, and it's included with the m125, m500, and m505. Plus, DTG works better, in my experience. Let's not even bring up WordSmith's superiority.

So what other functions does PPC have? Oh, yeah, that ever-important audio/video support. Again, REALLY important to a company...

Why don't you check out some PPC boards instead of trolling this one?

Actions speak louder than word...

Foo @ 11/14/2001 10:06:58 AM #
I'll believe it when I see it. I'm really sick of listening to Palm's spin doctors. When I have an ARM based Palm running OS 5 with a high res color display and digital audio support in my hand...then I will do my cheering. Until then we are going play the waiting game.

Move your ass Palm!

RE: Actions speak louder than word...
I.M. Anonymous @ 11/14/2001 10:16:16 AM #
For the most part, those spin-doctors you are complaining
about have been given the boot, Yankowski and Kessler to
name two. Palm's top management has almost completely
turned over in the past 6 months or so. Product lead times
are such that we are still living with the mistakes of the past but
there is much more hope for the future. Nagel seems to
have a good grasp of the situation. I know the proof is in
the pudding but things are looking up.

RE: Actions speak louder than word...
mikecane @ 11/14/2001 10:27:41 AM #
Benhamou and the Palm Board are still there. If you think all bottlenecks are gone, you are dreaming.

RE: Actions speak louder than word...
mikecane @ 11/14/2001 10:55:27 AM #
And let me add this: Kessler! My God! I'd forgotten all about him. He made less of an impression than Yankowski (and I didn't think that was possible!).

RE: Actions speak louder than word...
I.M. Anonymous @ 11/14/2001 11:17:30 AM #
You better becareful in wanting a High Screen Resolution and digital audio support. By Nagel's view, that just might all be bloatware. I wonder if Sony is aware that they in danger of playing the PPC game with all it's added features that native Palms can't do? Besides I thought the Palm community took programs which allowd your Palm OS PDA to do presentations very well... But I gus again Nagel sticks his foot to far in his mouth by comming short and telling the Palm community that we must be jacks**es for wanting these things. Way to go Palm. Maybe this guy should leave the company too and go work for Rebock.

RE: Actions speak louder than word...
I.M. Anonymous @ 11/14/2001 11:20:55 AM #
Kessler was at best a unimpressive "high nose" figure rarely seen in public (more rare internally) - but at least he was here and paid - a costly form of Gallion-mast on the sinking ship - but from now on Palm is not leaded anymore by whackos, there not lead by anybody anymore - nobody home anymore - all spin doctors gone. evereybody is off - exept the rest giving nice interviews.
WHERE ARE THE PRODUCTS PALM PROMISED?

RE: Actions speak louder than word...
I.M. Anonymous @ 11/14/2001 11:26:29 AM #
<You better becareful in wanting a High Screen Resolution and digital audio support. By Nagel's view, that just might all be bloatware.>

Do you honestly think every single handheld that runs the Palm OS needs to have an MP3 player? If you do, then you are projecting your needs onto everyone else. Let me put it as plainly as I can. I DO NOT WANT MY HANDHELD TO PLAY MP3S!!!!! Nagel is going to make an OS that is flexible so that some companies can add MP3 playback but not everyone has to. So you can have the MP3 player you want (and pay for it) while I can save money by not having one.

Will you PLEASE stop the constant whining about music playback. That is a niche product that very few people over the age of 25 think is important. It is NOT the main purpose of a handheld!!! Geez.

RE: Actions speak louder than word...
mikecane @ 11/14/2001 11:55:34 AM #
I'm not sure anyone is saying MP3 has to be built-in. But it would be nice to have a CPU and OS that is powerful enough so that we could add MP3 playback via 3rd-party software (instead of clip-on DSP devices). At the very least, Palm should get a real speaker in there for customized alarms using .WAV or other audio files.

RE: Actions speak louder than word...
Foo @ 11/14/2001 12:00:13 PM #
Well, I agree that not every devices should support MP3 playback. WAV audio (like the Clie T415 would be nice). But I DO believe Palm should standardize the entire platform on high resolution. 160x160 has got to go. =)

RE: Actions speak louder than word...
mikecane @ 11/14/2001 12:13:31 PM #
Yes, please let's have at least 240x320! Soft Graffiti too.

RE: Actions speak louder than word...
I.M. Anonymous @ 11/14/2001 12:36:29 PM #
> Will you PLEASE stop the constant whining about
> music playback. That is a niche product that very
> few people over the age of 25 think is important.
> It is NOT the main purpose of a handheld!!! Geez.

Niche product ?!? Speak for yourself and what praytell is the "main purpose" of a handheld? If you want a Casio organizer then stick with one, but YOU DO NOT SPEAK FOR THE REST OF US. And Yes, I'm older (much older) than 25 and I want MP3 playback capability.

You would have made a "brilliant" [sic] sidekick or flunky for Yankerkowski. He needs you right now !!!



RE: Actions speak louder than word...
Quik_Fix @ 11/14/2001 1:26:03 PM #
I'll speak for myself. My handheld has 4 main purposes:
1) Keep me on time
2) Keep my budget
3) Organize my thoughts
4) Mobile word processing

I think both of the posters here are right in a sense. Yes, there a lot of peeps who want mp3 and hi-res and soft grafitti. But they are the minority, and the companies have to keep that in mind. If they make super-muscular PDAs and everyone who wants one buys one, they will still probably suffer for it financially. I love all the fancy stuff. I'm all for it. But we are the VAST minority.

"The needs of the many outweight the needs of the few...
Or the one."
So sayeth Spock.

...In accordance with the prophecy...

Quik_Fix
quikfix@hotmail.com

More...
I.M. Anonymous @ 11/14/2001 1:50:06 PM #
"I'll speak for myself. My handheld has 4 main purposes:
1) Keep me on time
2) Keep my budget
3) Organize my thoughts
4) Mobile word processing"

Sure, if you have more memory you can do more word processing and keep more files. If you have high resolutions your excel spreadsheets comes out nicer and in more detail. If you have internal wireless networking you can send your thoughts, articles, budget and even your schedule to your secretary or friends..... Maybe a little music to help you unwind while you are word processing and organizing your thoughts would be nice too...

Even people with basic needs would somehow find the additional features useful, it's just that people don't dig deep enough to demand those needs. I would buy one that can do things as fast as possible, as many as possible so that I don't carry five devices and get things done quicker.

See the point?

RE: Actions speak louder than word...
I.M. Anonymous @ 11/14/2001 2:57:25 PM #
So there are folks who do want MP3 and other features, and there are folks who don't. Sure maybe those who do are in the minority, but they're out there. Hopefully everybody understands that everybody else may have different needs. To me the problem is how Nagel doesn't seem to understand that, and calls the minority "nuts." Laughing at things that some people may want or need is probably not a good way to be an innovator.

RE: Actions speak louder than word...
I.M. Anonymous @ 11/14/2001 3:33:44 PM #
* But we are the VAST minority.
*
* "The needs of the many outweight the needs of the
* few...Or the one."So sayeth Spock.

Not only a Vidiot but also a bloated Trekkie fan.
Gimme a break. You represent yourself and others represent themselves. Don't even think for a moment that you speak for the VAST minority or majority or whatever you believe in your deluded fantasies.

Let me ask you: Did Spock or Janeway command you to represent the VAST minority? Or did you believe this fantasy after you received a BORG probe where the sun don't shine?

Son, I think it's back to the Casio organizer for you. You can pick 'em up at the local $1 store. There is definitely a VAST sumo-sized minority looking for cheap organizers.

RE: Actions speak louder than word...
Quik_Fix @ 11/14/2001 5:42:46 PM #
Ouch. Tough room.
Anybody got a hypospray?
:-)


...In accordance with the prophecy...

Quik_Fix
quikfix@hotmail.com

RE: Actions speak louder than word...
I.M. Anonymous @ 11/14/2001 10:15:28 PM #
Quik_fix happens to be right.

Adding useless features is the only thing that is going to allow MSFT to compete. Don't get me wrong, I'm not suggesting that Palm should cease to innovate. Just that it should be very careful about which so-called 'features' it adopts.

The Newton failed because it was too complex for the average user and because it tried to do too much within the confines of the technology. PPC is dying (despite the brave face that MSFT is putting on) for the same reason. Palm dominates the market because it has stuck with a winning formula.

Resting on Palm's laurels would be wrong; adopting a failed strategy would be suicide.

RE: Actions speak louder than word...
mikecane @ 11/15/2001 8:39:56 AM #
"The Newton failed because it was too complex for the average user" -- in some ways, yes. But mainly it was the price and the large size. Hawkins nailed the form factor and made apps even simpler. And let's not forget the importance of HotSync.

After reading the Nagel interview, I have to agree with ohers who came away with thinking, "This guy doesn't get it, either!" I hope he is a better technologist than he is an interviewee. Then again, he could simply be parroting the narrow scope of the mandate he was given by the frozen-in-amber Palm Board. I hope not.

Tough Talk but....

I.M. Anonymous @ 11/14/2001 10:45:36 AM #
Great article!! He obviously can talk the talk, I just hope he can walth the walk! I seem to rememberthe last guy talking tough as well and Palm nearly went into the toilet. But we'll see.

RE: Tough Talk but....
I.M. Anonymous @ 11/14/2001 11:14:18 AM #
I see my shares plunging and the CO's moving away (oposite to my shares) with full pockets in a steady and swelling row and the rest is "a dance and music" - I want to see products - and I want to see them now! at Christmas!
- not nice cheap talk.
It seems thet the CO's becoming entertaintment specialists instead of delivering in the shops what they claimed a year before

RE: Tough Talk but....
I.M. Anonymous @ 11/14/2001 11:21:49 AM #
> I want to see products - and I want to see them now! at Christmas!

Nagel has nothing to do with making hardware. He is in charge of the Palm OS. A different part of the company does Palm's hardware now.

And demanding new products from a guy who's been at a company for 3 months is unrealistic. You can't blame him for the screw ups of the past.

RE: Tough Talk but....
I.M. Anonymous @ 11/14/2001 11:28:16 AM #
If your an insider you know that OS 5 is at least 8 month away, Arm for at least 12 and upcoming OS 4.1 has more bugs than bugfixes (we developer tear our hais out), besides it has no new features - any comment what the chap was doing in the last 3 months on the OS?

RE: Tough Talk but....
I.M. Anonymous @ 11/14/2001 12:39:55 PM #
> any comment what the chap was doing in the last 3
> months on the OS?

Probably having a circle jerk with Yankerkowski and the rest of the "supergenius" boardmembers.

It's amazing that all the rejects from CrApple are showing up. With the rumor of Sugar Water Man (aka Sculley) being the next CEO the circle will be complete and Palm will be finished.

RE: Tough Talk but....
I.M. Anonymous @ 11/14/2001 1:28:15 PM #
> any comment what the chap was doing in the last 3
> months on the OS?

Probably getting up to speed on the job he has ahead of him. Remember, he has financial incentives to get PalmOS 5.0 (with ARM support) out the door (according to SEC filings). And his resume indicates that he understands what innovation is (as opposed to previous leadership, who thought innovation was a country near the south pole :) ). I like what he says in the article, give him a chance...

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