Os6

[planetjag]

Does anyone know when OS6 is due, and how it will be different to OS5?

I'm wondering whether to spring for a NZ90 or wait for OS6 if it allows better hardware (more memory etc). Or will OS6 be a minor upgrade that will run on the NZ90?

jag

[ArK]

its supposed to be out before the years end but who knows. As for more memory os5 can handle more just clies can't. I think the max out there in terms of ram is 32 mb. the new os 5 is just an upgrade but 6 is supposed to be totally redone.

[gfunkmagic]

PalmSource indicated last year that they are targeting June 2003 as the date for final release of OS 6 to licensees. That means if everything sticks to the scedule, we should start seeing the 1st OS 6 pdas by late August or early September. However, Palmsource has not indicated recently whether they will be able to keep that deadline....

[Galley_SimRacer]

Just as long as OS6 has some of that "BeOS goodness" in it! :)

[Griff]

Jag, depends on what you are running now.

I have an NR70v that I probably won't upgrade until OS6 is out. The NZ is going to be too bulky for my tastes. I don't need it tugging on my pants-pocket as I run up the stairs and having my pants fall off. Seriously, the suckers going to be big and heavy.

[planetjag]

I've currently got a T665. I'm interested in the NZ for the camera which will be handy at times, for bluetooth, and I wouldn't mind the option of a thumb keyboard.

Purchasing the NZ would still depend on me seeing one in the "flesh" to get a good idea of what it's like. It also may depend on whether the CF driver crusade is successful.

jag

[Phalanx]

OS6 is supposed to be what Windows XP was to Windows 98. That's what I read, of course. You can try to think about what that means for yourself. :)

[hacthesac10]

Originally posted by philipv
OS6 is supposed to be what Windows XP was to Windows 98.

So, by my judgement, bloated amounts of memory, lots of bugs, and few additional features.  Don't forget ruled by a monopolizing tyrant. (Is monopolizing a word?) I still have faith in Palm (Sony on occasion too) to get it right, although I am done with handhelds.  I have outgrown their features for their size because their battery lives will become the same as laptops with all the current features (camera, mp3, bluetooth, etc.) and those to be added.  I'm moving on to the less portable but higher capability laptop.  Any suggestions?

[Galley_SimRacer]

Originally posted by philipv
OS6 is supposed to be what Windows XP was to Windows 98. That's what I read, of course. You can try to think about what that means for yourself. :)

To me that means "sucking" vs. "Non-Sucking". ;)

[Thyraz]

Win98 sucks so much it cant be beaten, XP is overloaded but I dont have to reboot 100times a day because the badest Memory Handling I've ever seen...

I by myself prever Win2k, with SP3 its the only Windows that seems to be a little bit good.... (ok Win3.11 was stable too *g*)

[zhamilton1]

Do anyone of you know what multi-tasking will it have?
Since it needs compatibilty, will movable windows be in the OS6 release?

I think it will be more of a 'yes, the old application is still running' thing. It will be hard to do any UI changes since most programs are built to use ALL of the screen estate. Palm will have a big problem just like dos to windows, programs will have to be rewritten to use the windowing facilities.

[Molerat]

While this is obviously a MS pissing match, I should point out that, from a software engineering perspective, Windows NT/2000/XP is far superior to the 9x branch. Protected memory, premptive multitasking, the hardware abstraction layer, and modularized processes all make the NT branch of Windows far more robust than its predecessors.

That said, Kazaa, Bonzai Buddy, and all the other spyware/malware out there have no problems bringing even the best-designed OS to its knees. When you have malicious (and they are) third-party programs adding hooks and extensions everywhere, often competing with one another, the results are going to be messy.

While it is fashionable to blame Microsoft for every computer crash, the advent of Windows XP as the prevailing MS consumer OS goes a long way to correct many of the BSOD-class computing annoyances. It is just as important for the user to practice "safe computing" (that is, know what they are installing on their system, keep the anti-virus software up-to-date, etc.) as it is for Microsoft to weed out their unchecked buffers.

[Eric S]

Originally posted by zhamilton1
Do anyone of you know what multi-tasking will it have?
Since it needs compatibilty, will movable windows be in the OS6 release?

I think it will be more of a 'yes, the old application is still running' thing. It will be hard to do any UI changes since most programs are built to use ALL of the screen estate. Palm will have a big problem just like dos to windows, programs will have to be rewritten to use the windowing facilities.

I know this probably won't be a popular answer, but I hope not. That's the wrong multitasking model for a handheld with limited screen space.

I'm thinking more something like McPhling, but without shutting down the app you switch away from, so when you switch back to it, you are exactly where you left off. Some programs do that now, but it requires that the program handle saving its state and restoring by itself.

One thing to be aware of is that pre-OS6 programs aren't taking over the whole screen, they're creating forms, which are analogous to windows in MS-speak. They just don't have the window move/resize/minimize functionality as part of the (usually hidden) frame, and most programs create forms which match the size of the screen.

On the other hand, programs that know about OS6 could open less-than-fullscreen forms and function like DAs do now, without being anything other than a normal program.

Then, the only functionality that would have to be added to PalmOS6 would be:

Obviously, the ability to run more than one program at the same time. This doesn't even have to be preemtive multitasking.
A way to switch between running programs when none of the forms for a specific program are visible
Make it so that unless program A has a modal form open, tapping on a form for program B makes that the active form (it just about does that now, except for the multitasking interaction).

[foghead]

Originally posted by ArK
As for more memory os5 can handle more just clies can't.
Actually, talking to a friend at PalmSource, I learned that OS5 as shipped only supports 16 MB of RAM. Since the OS is 32-bit, there is nothing to prevent OEMs from making the changes to support more memory. This is what Garmin has done.

There is no reason that Sony or Plam couldn't come out with a 128 MB (or more) device.

I suspect that OS6 will have this limitation removed when it leaves PalmSource.

[OcellNuri]

Originally posted by Molerat
While this is obviously a MS pissing match, I should point out that, from a software engineering perspective, Windows NT/2000/XP is far superior to the 9x branch. Protected memory, premptive multitasking, the hardware abstraction layer, and modularized processes all make the NT branch of Windows far more robust than its predecessors.

That said, Kazaa, Bonzai Buddy, and all the other spyware/malware out there have no problems bringing even the best-designed OS to its knees. When you have malicious (and they are) third-party programs adding hooks and extensions everywhere, often competing with one another, the results are going to be messy.

While it is fashionable to blame Microsoft for every computer crash, the advent of Windows XP as the prevailing MS consumer OS goes a long way to correct many of the BSOD-class computing annoyances. It is just as important for the user to practice "safe computing" (that is, know what they are installing on their system, keep the anti-virus software up-to-date, etc.) as it is for Microsoft to weed out their unchecked buffers.


I agree with you 100%. I'm running XP on a clean machine with no problems.