Chapter One: Handheld Operating Systems

Handheld computers come in many forms, one of which is referred to as a PDA or personal digital assistant. From 2005 onward the PDAs evolved rapidly into the smartphone concept merging cell phone and PDA ideas.

How does one work with a computer when there is no keyboard, mouse or reliable voice activation? All operating systems by definition require some method of entering commands to direct the computer's activity. To be able to hold a computer in one hand and communicate with quickly using the other hand appeared to require a handwriting recognition program. These were also referred to as pen computers, because of the need for stylus to enter data. Later models dropped handwriting recognition in favor of thumb keyboards or thumbpads. Some of the early work on handwriting recognition was done by Xerox Corporation but they never developed a viable commercial computer product. Later, companies such as Palm and Symbian (released in 1996) developed their own handwriting recognition operating systems. Microsoft (Windows CE, released in 1996, a title that has evolved into Windows Mobile for what it calls Pocket PCs) and Linux (handhelds.org) altered their existing operating systems to incorporate handwriting recognition and thereby work on handheld computers. By 2004, state of the art PDAs included wireless communication for data and telephone including Bluetooth and Wi-Fi, slots for memory and compact flash cards, color screens with 320x240 pixel resolution and a wide range of applications similar to those found on desktop computers. In 2007, Apple, Inc. announced the iPhone product with finger and finger movement recognition.

Click these links to see a wide variety of different types of handheld or PDA computers in the frame below: Google handheld ; PDA; thumbpad; All the Web "handheld computer" ; PDA.

Since the release of the first PDA in 1996, development of PDA technology and operating systems has been swift and rich with modern features. For example, "PalmSource has fulfilled its commitment to deliver the next major release of the Palm OS before the end of 2003. Palm OS 6, shipped December 29, 2003, combines the flexibility, simplicity and ease of use that we believe are the hallmark of today's versions of Palm OS with the emergent operating system requirements that meet the demands anticipated for tomorrow's smart mobile devices. These requirements include modularity, multi-tasking, memory protection, robust security and state-of-the-art multimedia capabilities. Palm OS 6 enables the development of a new class of Palm Powered mobile products and strengthens PalmSource's position in the wireless and telephony markets." (PalmSource, 2004). However, there are legal battles underway in the courts over a number of patent and other issues related to PDAs (Bush, 2003). The good news though is that prices have been steadily dropping. Counting the used PDA market, prices range from $30 to several hundred dollars for a device that slips easily into a pocket or purse. In probably the best buy to date, Dell has a color wireless handheld, the Axim X3i,  for under $300. Classroom sets of thirty are bringing the prices of such units down and close to $200 per unit. But handheld or pocket computers are just one step in the evolution of shrinking computers. Next generation development is already underway on wearable computers, eliminating the handheld box and distributing computer functions within our clothing.

Triple A (AAA) batteries will be used to power handhelds running the Palm operating system, version 3.x, a design of the 1998 era. Later chapters will dig deeper into the features of such systems.

Open Handheld Parent Frame | Open Chapter One Parent Frame | Printer friendly view of text page | Updated 1/15/2008  |  Page author: Bob Houghton