. There has been speculation that Palm would eventually license the hibernating OS 6 (Cobalt) to take advantage of its multi-tasking nature and built-in one handed navigation, or be an early licensee of Access’s next-gen mobile OS, called ALP (Access Linux Platform).</p>
<p>Instead, Palm now has the rights to not just include OS 5 on its snazzy Treo smartphones, but to mess with said OSes guts. The OS is stale by any standards, but this unique deal gives Palm the ability to use any or all parts of Garnet, meaning it might be working to brew its own operating system, an unusual move indeed.<span id=)
As an analog, imagine if Dell bought source code rights to Windows XP. It could then include its own OS with the servers it sells, and make them 100% compatible with Windows software without actually having to install windows (or pay its licensing fees). This, of course, is unlikely, but underscores the noteworthiness of this move.
Palm Signs Perpetual License for Palm OS Garnet [PalmInfoCenter]
I think you mean $44 MILLION dollars.
@Paul: heh, uh, no. No. $44. The original plan was to trade a Wii w/Zelda for the whole company, but this is better long-run. Jay-kay, and thanks.
I find this to be a nice relief. The PalmOS-based Treos are some of the best smartphone on the market. I was getting concerned this platform would just fade away.
People complain about the lack of multitasking in reviews, but on the flipside, I have had issues w/ multitasking on windows mobile devices. Run too many applications at once and the CPU/Ram are taxed and the device becomes sluggish or unstable. So, maybe multitasking creates more potential problems than it solves.
Either way, with Palm OS still in the race, the MS team will still have something besides itself to compete with. Competition leads to better software. Everyone wins.
lmao, “…trade a Wii w/Zelda for the whole company…”
Nice work Palm, you’ve just admitted that selling PalmSource was a mistake and rebought what you’d shed a few years back.
I’ve read a couple of accounts which say the license allows for future development in a fashion that could include a Garnet emulator to run within a different OS (Linux or WinMo?).
I’m glad PalmOS is staying, but it is in desperate need of an update. Yesterday.
Whats the lead time for these OS’s. Palm has really been sitting on its laurels since coming up with the Treos. The market is much more crowded than when Palm entered. Now blackberry and Win Mobile are gaining on them, especially when MS says it will introduce and updated OS once a year. It wont take long for MS to get it right. Blackberry and Symbian both continue to improve with usability and powerfulness. Plus if the rumors are true and apple comes out with a smart phone Palm is dead as a door nail. Wake up Palm, its 2006, our smart phones can multi task, so should yours.