Registered: Oct 1999
Location: Atlanta, Georgia, USA
Posts: 8

OK, the Visor does not have Flash memory so the OS is not upgradable (except for patches held in RAM). Seems like the current OS in the Plams may not really be upgradable since any new OS will likley support USB, Color, etc., this the current Palms don't support.

So then to what extend is anybody out their really concerned about the Visor lacking a Flash OS? Was this a marketing mistake by Handsprind? Anybody just going to sit by the sidelines for six months and wait for the Flash?

Registered: Sep 1999
Location:
Posts: 81

Non-issue for me. Oh, I'll miss being able to load apps into flash, but with 8meg to play with I won't miss it a lot.

I doubt it's a marketing mistake, as most buyers (a) won't know or (b) if they do know, won't really understand. Flash is really a power-user thing.

Whoa, hey, I'm a "member" now. BFD.


[This message has been edited by bearpaw (edited 10-07-1999).]

Registered: Oct 1999
Location: GR, MI, USA
Posts: 8

The first news story on the news page states:

"Although the Handspring Visor cannot be upgraded to Palm OS 3.3, we know that many of our readers have Palm organizers and are interested as to when the next revision of the OS is coming out. The latest E-mail from Palm simply says the following:

"The release of the latest version of Palm's operating system is imminent."

I would speculate that Palm OS 3.3 will be released by the end of next week. We shall see. -JH- "

My question is: So what's in PalmOS 3.3 that we won't be able to use (or won't need) on the Visor?

[This message has been edited by meeters (edited 10-07-1999).]

Registered: Sep 1999
Location: Indianapolis, IN, USA
Posts: 36

I'm new to this whole pda thing, but I thought I read somewhere that the Visor will be able to upgrade to palm os 3.3 by way of software patch. Is this true or not?

Registered: Sep 1999
Location: Texan in Calgary for a while
Posts: 1361

Basically OS 3.3 adds the following:

-Faster cradle HotSync(R) operations - up to twice as fast (115,200 bps).
-IR HotSync
-Implementation of the IrCOMM standard (lets you IR to other devices besides Palm)
-Euro currency symbol support in the OS, applications, and Palm Desktop organizer software.
-Improved serial manager (see all available COM ports, new preference panels)
-Enhanced login scripting for token-based authentication systems
-System patch 3.1.1, to fix problems with screen refresh and clicking noises.


Most of these items are included (or better) in the Visor. The only things missing are Euro support, IRSync (which you can get for free elsewhere) and the IRCOMM support.



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James Hromadka
VisorCentral.com
Personal Website: http://www.geocities.com/jehromadka

Registered: Sep 1999
Location: Midland, TX USA
Posts: 95

All most users will really care about is that their Springboard modules continue to function without the need for an OS upgrade (read new model purchase). So long as that holds true, the OS upgrade is a non-issue, since Palm has already proved they can patch minor/medium level problems.

Registered: Sep 1999
Location: San Francisco, USA
Posts: 75

I checked out the user's guide for the Visor that Handspring posted online. In the Graffiti guide, they show the Euro symbol and the little squiggle you write in order to create it.

So even though the Visor isn't PalmOS 3.3, it *does* support the Euro.

Registered: Sep 1999
Location:
Posts: 179

Its possible they didn't bother with Flash because they have inside scoop to PalmOS 4.0. So they decided to save us all some money by leaving it out of the Visor. If PalmOS 4.0 is a major change (color screen, larger screen support etc...) then it won't work with the Visor anyway...

Registered: Sep 1999
Location: Texan in Calgary for a while
Posts: 1361

Nice catch Mportuesi!! It is on page 32 for those of you who are interested.

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James Hromadka
VisorCentral.com
Personal Website: http://www.geocities.com/jehromadka

Registered: Sep 1999
Location: Spokane, WA, USA
Posts: 114

For me, Flash isn't an issue either. 8MB is more than my IIIx with FlashPro... And I've posted enough messages here to explain why I think it shouldn't be an issue as far as OS upgrades are concerned (i.e. future, more-advanced hardware necessity).

Registered: Sep 1999
Location: Midland, Texas
Posts: 231

Isn't all this paranoia fun?! I waste a few hours each night reading this group's thoughts on what's right and wrong about the latest gadget we all are dying to receive, and of course, the ironic clencher is that none of us actually have one right now! (PUG presidents excluded of course ) None of us really know what is right or wrong, what OS 4.0 will and won't have, or if a SmartHand (or what ever they'll call it) is about to make our highly anticipated Visors look old and clunky. But it sure is fun to worry, moan, and wait with bated breath about.

Won't it be a let-down once they actually arrive?......NAH! We'll find other things to talk about.

Oh yeah, I started this post to say that at first I was a bit concerned about the lack of a flash ROM, but after this discussion I am much more at ease. I certainly haven't flashed my Palm III with anything other than FlashPro. All of my OS updates reside in RAM . Any new updates of significance have been for new hardware support, and it seems resonable that it will stay that way.

I guess I'll have to move on to another worry, maybe...is the case any good, is ice the right color, will the ice-colored cradle clash with my office furniture...

tyler



[This message has been edited by tyler (edited 10-07-1999).]

Registered: Oct 1999
Location: SF, CA USA
Posts: 26

Per the interview with Hawkins, HS didn't go the Flash BIOS route because less than 5% of Palm owners have ever flash upgraded their OS's, and because it would have added significantly to the cost of an item that's intended for low- to mid-end users and therefore have an easy entry price. For all of the negative commenters here that really do believe they need/want to flash upgrade when available, face the fact that you're part of the 5% and that maybe you should just chill on the Visor and wait for one of the other 3, all to be better/more expensive than the Visor, HS products to come out. This product isn't intended for you so quit slamming it.

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Richard

Registered: Oct 1999
Location: Atlanta, Georgia, USA
Posts: 8

I started this thread in the hopes of resolving, at least for myself, the Flash issue. If I may sum up:

Flash adds cost and was rarely used

The Visor OS is patched in the same way as the Palm OS, so minor issues can be addressed.

Major OS updates have been for hardware changes and so, any major OS update will not likely be of any value.

And finally, with 8 Meg of RAM, even if the worst happened you could still load an entirely new OS into the Visor and still have more RAM than all Palms, except one.

For me, the Flash is now a non-issue. Thanks to all!

Registered: Oct 1999
Location:
Posts: 1

hell if you can store the os upgrade in ram, sign me up. i thought that it had to overwrite the existing version for any changes to take place ....
hopefully ill be getting a visor deluxe before chirstmas. after that all i'll want is to be able to sync in BeOS. then ill be set.

Registered: Oct 1999
Location: Louisville, KY, USA
Posts: 4

Check out the follwoing URL for an interesting twist on the OS issue -- an OS on a Springboard module. Maybe Linux or BeOS?
http://www.palminfocenter.com/articles/linux_visor.asp

Registered: Oct 1999
Location: Sunnyvale, CA USA
Posts: 2

Where the heck is the 5% flash upgrade number coming from? I know Hawkins said it in an interview, but what version of the Palm OS was this? I don't remember any previous flash upgrades available for any Palm. Or am I just totally clueless?