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This site is no longer maintained.
My current weblog.
Tuesday, April 16, 2002Random .NET Thought
In Palm's recent testimony against Microsoft, it was alledged that MS tried to require Palm to support .NET in order to enter the Visual Studio Integration Program. Seems to me that .NET is the entire purpose of VSIP. It would be like partnering with Sun to extend their Java IDE to support C++ code destined for compilation into a native Palm application. That may seem like a convoluted example, but it's exactly on-point.
Now, think about Microsoft offering to help support .NET on Palm devices. That's like a free gift to them. Palm would instantly gain access to Microsoft's entire developer audience. Developers wouldn't have to learn Palm's environment, and likely be limited to using C/C++, because Palm OS would simply be another .NET target.
Microsoft's MO has long been "Embrace and Extend." Microsoft sees something big coming, like Java, XML, or web services. Do they run scared? Bah! Microsoft may be slow to catch on sometimes, but once they do, they turn around and make Java the best environment for writing Windows apps, bake XML support into everything, and make the development of web services as simple as COM.
Companies trying to compete with Microsoft need to understand and adopt "Embrace and Extend" strategies of their own. Palm was offered the chance to co-opt .NET, and instead of laughing all the way to the bank they chose to refuse and testify about it in court, as if it Microsoft had done something bad.
Palm will be on life support in a few years, barely hanging on to a rapidly declining marketshare, and Microsoft offered them a chance to save themselves.
Look at it another way: Palm asked Microsoft to scratch their back, to allow them to add Palm OS support to Visual Studio. Microsoft wanted their back scratched too. Just because Microsoft is a convicted monopolist they're supposed to become altruistic towards competitors? Ha!
To those that view Microsoft and/or .NET as evil, getting .NET on non-Windows platforms reduces the Microsoft threat. Once Mono is fully implemented, millions of Windows developers can instantly target Linux. Miguel de Icaza understands how to beat Microsoft at their own game.
News.com has a story about the OQO, a PDA-style device a bit thicker than a Pocket PC, running Windows XP on a Crusoe processor. Supposedly it will come out in the second half with a price of around $1000.
I keep eyeing the old Palm Vx LE laying unused on the back of my desk, wondering why no Pocket PC manufacturers are building devices of that size.
Staples is selling the Audiovox Maestro for $299. [via Pocket PC Thoughts]
Picked mine up when CompUSA was offering the same price. The Maestro is no longer listed on their web site, further fueling my suspicion that channel inventory is being cleared.
Pros: CF Type II and MMC/SD sockets. Lightweight compared to other PPCs. Supposedly the sound quality is excellent. Pricing makes it competitive with the cheapest color Palm OS devices.
Cons: only 32MB ram, weak battery compared to more expensive Pocket PCs.
PS: I've found 32MB to be plenty on the Maestro. Wish that the same could be said for my Zaurus SL-5000D. Fortunately 128MB SD Cards aren't very expensive.
