Palm and Treo Hacks

Palm and Treo Hacks

by Scott MacHaffie
Released October 2005
Publisher(s): O'Reilly Media, Inc.
ISBN: 9780596100544

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Book description

Palm OS is one of the most popular handheld operating systems on the planet. From the newest Tungstens and Treos all the way down the family tree, Palms are everywhere. Although the Palm OS is simple to learn and use, there is more to it than meets the eye--from new features in the Palm to capabilities you can get with add-on software, the Palm can be made to do quite a lot.

Palm and Treo Hacks gives you tips and tools that show you how to make the most of your Palm. A few minutes spent reading some of the hacks in this book will save you hours of research. Inside this book, you'll learn how to:

  • Find great applications for your Palm and make the most of the ones you're using now

  • Get super-organized, getting more from the built-in Personal Information Manager and learning how to manage complex projects with your Palm

  • Extend the Palm with must-have software and hardware add-ons

  • Take your Palm online, reading email, surfing the web, and sending instant messages

  • Get some rest and relaxation with your Palm, whether it's listening to music, playing classic games, or watching video

Written for beginning to experienced Palm users, Palm and Treo Hacks is full of practical, ingenious tips and tricks you can apply immediately. Whether you're looking to master the built-in applications or you want to trick out your Palm to its fullest extent, this book will show you how.

Table of contents

  1. Palm and Treo Hacks
    1. Credits
      1. About the Author
      2. Contributors
      3. Acknowledgments
    2. Preface
      1. Why Palm and Treo Hacks?
      2. How to Use This Book
      3. How This Book Is Organized
        1. Conventions
      4. Using Code Examples
      5. Safari Enabled®
      6. How to Contact Us
      7. Got a Hack?
    3. 1. Managing Information
      1. Hacks 1–10: Introduction
      2. Maximize the Date Book
        1. Use the Today View
        2. Create Repeating Events
        3. Track To Dos with Floating Events
        4. Just Start Writing
        5. Purge Events
        6. Alarms
      3. Get the Most Out of the To Do List
        1. Use Priorities for Grouping
        2. Priorities in Action
        3. Use Security as Another Filter
        4. Create a New Item Fast
        5. Comparison with the Date Book
        6. Customize the Today View
        7. Purging Completed Items
      4. Extend the Address Book
        1. Find Jobs and Chase Prospects
        2. Find Your Doctors Fast
        3. Alternate Business Cards
        4. Use Titles as Short Descriptions
        5. Select Which Number to Show
      5. Add Pictures to the Address List
        1. Image Converter
        2. Direct Copying
        3. Address Book
      6. Get More Out of MemoPad
        1. Phone Lookup
        2. Capital Letters
        3. Writing Text
        4. Cheap Spreadsheet
        5. Templates
        6. See Also
      7. Show Palm Desktop Who’s Boss
        1. Reinstall Applications
        2. Useful Views
        3. HotSync Preferences
        4. View Deleted Items
        5. Import Data
        6. Use MemoPad as a Data Viewer
      8. Find Anything
        1. BeiksFind
        2. FindHack
        3. superFinderHack
        4. Use Wildcards
      9. Annotate Everything
        1. Why?
        2. How?
      10. Become a Better Student
        1. Agendus
        2. ShadowPlan
      11. Keep Track of Your Collectibles
        1. MemoPad
        2. ShadowPlan
        3. HandyShopper
        4. Database
        5. Conclusion
    4. 2. Palm Applications
      1. Hacks 11–17: Introduction
      2. Manage Projects
        1. Simple Projects
        2. Binary Tracking
        3. Moderately Complex Projects
        4. Complex Projects
        5. Instructions
          1. Spreadsheet.
          2. To Do List.
          3. Project management software.
      3. Lose Weight the Palm Way
        1. Calorie and Exercise Counters
        2. Info on the Go
        3. Entertainment on the Go
        4. Use the Built-in Applications
      4. Watch the Stars
        1. Astro Info
        2. Astromist
        3. Planetarium
        4. Astronomy Guide Pocket Directory Database
        5. Star Pilot Platinum
      5. Get Creative with a Spreadsheet
        1. Calculator
        2. Web Layout
        3. List Manager
        4. Write Poetry
      6. Replace the Calculator
        1. powerOne Scientific
        2. APCalc
        3. EasyCalc
      7. Turn your PDA into a Flashlight
        1. FB Hi-Light
        2. TealInfo/Teal Light
        3. Hacking the Hack
      8. Run Linux on Your Palm
        1. Boot Linux on Your Palm
          1. Setting up the serial connection.
          2. Installing Palm Linux.
          3. Booting Linux.
        2. Roll Your Own Palm Linux Distribution
    5. 3. Play Games
      1. Hacks 18–22: Introduction
      2. Master the Dungeon
        1. TS-ShadowDice
        2. DicePro
        3. Gamer’s Die Roller
        4. Cartoforge
        5. Dungeon Delver
        6. ShootStraight
        7. MemoPad
        8. TS-Apprentice
        9. The Dungeon in Your Palm
          1. Lay out a campaign with an outliner.
          2. Simplify ShadowRun.
          3. Track character changes with MemoPad.
          4. Map your dungeon.
      3. Discover the Best Palm Games
        1. Role-Playing Games (RPGs)
          1. Ultima.
          2. Acedior.
          3. Strange Adventures in Infinite Space.
          4. Legacy.
          5. Space Trader.
          6. Kyle’s Quest.
        2. Strategy
          1. Chess (various).
          2. Strategic Commander.
          3. SimCity.
        3. Puzzle Games
          1. Tetris.
          2. Bejeweled.
          3. Vexed.
      4. Play Multiplayer Games
        1. Infrared
        2. Direct Bluetooth Connection
        3. Internet
        4. Multiplayer Games
      5. Play Classic Games
        1. Emulators
          1. CaSTaway ().
          2. Kalemsoft ().
          3. vPCB Arcade Emulator().
          4. xCade ().
          5. Liberty ().
          6. Little John PalmOS ().
          7. PalmMame.
        2. Remakes
          1. Ultima series ().
          2. Archon ().
          3. Atari Retro ().
      6. Boost Your Online Gaming
        1. Storing Information in MemoPad
        2. Track Quests with the To Do List
        3. Look Up Information on the Web
        4. Calculator
        5. Game-Specific Tools
    6. 4. Multimedia
      1. Hacks 23–28: Introduction
      2. Read Books and Articles
        1. Document Readers
          1. Picsel File Viewer (included on some Palm devices).
          2. TealDoc ().
          3. iSilo ().
          4. CSpotRun ().
          5. Weasel Reader ().
        2. Finding Documents to Read
          1. MemoWare ().
          2. Project Gutenberg ().
          3. Baen Free Library ().
        3. Creating Your Own Documents
      3. Improve Text Entry
        1. Decuma Options
        2. Virtual Keyboards
        3. Physical Keyboards
      4. Listen to Music
        1. Copy Music from Your PC to Your Palm
          1. Sony Clié.
          2. Palm-branded device.
        2. Listening to Music
      5. Record Voice Memos
        1. Software Solutions
          1. Personal Audio Recorder PRO.
          2. Palm Dictate.
          3. mVoice.
          4. SoundRec.
        2. Hardware Solutions
        3. Hacking the Hack
      6. Take Great Pictures with Your Palm
        1. Framing
        2. Action
        3. Three Shots
        4. Change Your view
        5. Hacking the Hack
      7. Watch Videos
        1. Setting up Your Palm and PC
        2. Sony Clié
        3. Palm-Branded Device
        4. Conversion Software
          1. VirtualDub.
          2. DivX.
          3. LAME.
          4. XviD.
        5. Palm Playback Software
          1. MMPlayer.
          2. Kinoma Player.
          3. Pocket-DVD Studio.
    7. 5. Treo
      1. Hacks 29–33: Introduction
      2. Take Charge of Ringtones
        1. Converting Sound Files
        2. Installing Ringtones
      3. Dial with Your Voice
      4. Use Your Treo as a Modem
        1. Treo 650 Bluetooth DUN
        2. PdaNet
      5. Join Conferences on the Move
        1. Web Presentation
        2. VNC Conference
        3. WebEx
      6. Set Up a Master Application
        1. Phone
        2. Date Book
        3. Contacts
        4. Web
    8. 6. Communications
      1. Hacks 34–41: Introduction
      2. Connect to the Internet
        1. Modem
        2. Serial Cable or Cradle
        3. Infrared (IR)
        4. Bluetooth
        5. Wi-Fi (802.11b)
        6. Smartphone
      3. Get Your Email on the Road
        1. Web-based Email
        2. IMAP
      4. Receive Alerts on the Go
        1. The Code
        2. Running the Code
        3. Hacking the Hack
      5. Surf the Web On- and Offline
      6. Read Syndicated Content
        1. mNews
        2. Quick News
        3. Sunrise
      7. Post to Your Weblog
        1. Remote Access to Desktop Blogging Software
        2. Palm-based Blogging Software
        3. HBlogger
        4. mo:Blog
        5. Plogit
        6. SplashBlog
        7. Vagablog
      8. Control Your Computer Remotely
        1. Set Up VNC on Your Desktop
        2. Set Up PalmVNC
      9. Control Your Home Theater
        1. Hardware
        2. Detailed Instructions
    9. 7. System
      1. Hacks 42–49: Introduction
      2. Simulate a Palm
      3. Make Upgrades Less Painful
        1. New Palm Device
        2. New PC
        3. New PDA Step by Step
        4. New PC Step by Step
      4. Reprogram the Hardware Application Buttons
        1. ButtonLauncher
        2. TealLaunch
      5. Improve the Launcher
        1. See More Applications
        2. Easy Hotkeys
        3. Choose a Better Launcher
          1. ZLauncher.
          2. MegaLauncher.
          3. FacerLauncher.
      6. Tweak Every Setting
        1. Launcher
        2. Sony Clié Standard Launcher
        3. Clié Launcher View Settings
        4. Date Book
        5. Address Book
        6. To Do
        7. MemoPad
        8. Preferences
        9. Treo Preferences
      7. Extend Your Palm
        1. HackMaster
        2. X-Master
        3. TealMaster
        4. pToolSet
      8. Investigate Your Palm’s Databases
      9. Write Your Own Programs
        1. Palm OS Developer Suite
          1. Testing and debugging.
          2. Further information.
          3. Distributing your software.
        2. NS Basic
        3. Pocket Smalltalk
        4. DragonForth
        5. Pippy
    10. 8. Hardware
      1. Hacks 50–55: Introduction
      2. Find Cheap Palms
        1. eBay
        2. Amazon Auctions
        3. Freecycle
        4. Government Surplus
        5. Computer Swap Meets
        6. Electronics Stores
        7. Non-Profit
        8. Palm PluggedIn Developer Program
      3. Find a Better Stylus
        1. Laser Pointer
        2. Cross MicroPen
        3. Lighted Stylus
        4. Comfort Stylus
        5. Voice Recorder
        6. acura Stylus Tool
        7. Infiniter XP Stylus Duo
        8. Swiss Army Pen/Stylus
        9. S+ Nitespot
      4. Find the Perfect Keyboard
        1. Stowaway Keyboard
        2. Happy Hacking Cradle
        3. Micro Datapad
        4. Twiddler
      5. Must-Have Accessories
        1. Wi-Fi Card
        2. SD Backup Card
        3. UniMount
        4. CardScan
        5. Presenter-to-go
        6. Kirrio Navigation Pack
        7. GPS Navigation Kit
      6. Repair Worn Contacts
      7. Replace Your Batteries
        1. General Notes
        2. Replacing Rechargeable Batteries
        3. Finding Replacement Batteries
    11. Index
    12. Colophon

Product information

  • Title: Palm and Treo Hacks
  • Author(s): Scott MacHaffie
  • Release date: October 2005
  • Publisher(s): O'Reilly Media, Inc.
  • ISBN: 9780596100544