Open Source vs. Closed Source

[Christopher Schmidt]

On Tue, Jan 24, 2006 at 09:19:38AM -0500, Fred wrote:
> On Saturday 14 January 2006 16:33, Christopher Schmidt wrote:
> > The other languages that run on the phone -- Java and C++ -- would allow
> > this to be an option, but both make coding much more difficult, and it's
> > way out of my realm of possibilities for this reason :) I don't know
> > either Java or C++, and the idea of doing bluetooth socket programming
> > in either scares me.
> 
> I know Java, C++, and Python (and a score of other languages to boot), but I 
> would prefer using only one language and API that would work across *all* 
> PDAs. Python is very appealing, but is there a consistent API to work on 
> Palm, Blackberry, and (ugh) Windows CE-based PDAs?

There doesn't exist any existing language, API, or anything similar.
However, Symbian's APIs will work across all the Symbian platform
phones, and those are all the ones I care about. Java (MIDP?) is probably the
closest you'll get to what you want, but what you want is nowhere near
what I want: I want hacks that work on *my* phone, that I can share with
other people.

> And while we are on the subject -- some PDA "smart phones" come equipped with 
> their own GPS chip, but it seems this is never made use of by mapping 
> software, forcing one to buy a separate GPS device anyway. Is there a way to 
> access the built-in GPS chip for application use? Or are the manufactures 
> deliberately closing off or restricting access to it?

You've already got some responses on this, the basic summary of which
is: "There's no chip."

> Yes, I would prefer not to have to drop another $500 or so for a separate GPS 
> device and the associated software. Besides, kinda bulky to have to carry 
> all that mess around everywhere, and defeats my push to have *one* device do 
> everything.

Part of the reason I wrote this program is to kill the "$500" myth:
There are quite nice bluetooth GPSes available for sub-$100 (In the
$70-$80 range at the moment) which is much more affordable. With a
display hooked up to my cell phone (wirelessly, naturally) I don't need
another display, and it also gives me the ability to hack in whatever I
want to as far as a display goes, something that most GPS devices
wouldn't let me do.

I don't believe in one device doing everything, or even nearly
everything: I don't leave the house without a backpack, which typically
has:

 * 60GB iPod -- this is music, but also (one of) my remote backup(s) of my 
   laptop. (This was a Christmas gift from my employer. Gotta love
   Silicon Valley.)
 * Canon Digital Rebel XT
 * Nokia 6600
 * GPS Device
 * Sometimes my laptop

All in all, if someone were to mug me, I'd be out about 3 grand in
hardware if I was fully loaded. Makes carrying around cash seem like
chump change.

-- 
Christopher Schmidt
Web Developer