New HP tc4200!

I finally got my new Tablet PC at work ... a brand new HP tc4200! Once I have completed getting it all configured, updated, and all of my software installed I might even be able to use it ... maybe in a few days. I have to admit that I like the form factor, and the extended travel battery adds just the right amount of tilt to the unit when sitting on a desk.

We have been far too busy here at Agilix Labs for me to spend non-stop time on getting it ready ... but I keep spinning up new tasks on it while doing other work. I'm thinking that I might take it home in the next day or two and see what I can wrap up there.

As we are now thoroughly into our beta testing of GoBinder 2006, and our new release of Backpack, I also want to get going on developing some plug-ins for our new architecture. I have to get Visual Studio installed on this new machine, and then see what I can start to experiment with. I know that many people have started to ask about the beta, and the SDK ... please go and check out our new support forums as http://forums.agilix.com ... and if you want to get on the potential beta list, send an e-mail to: beta2006 at agilix.com

Heading to Singapore

Well ... I'm on my way to Singapore! As part of my work at Agilix Labs I'm going to be attending the e-Agenda International Roundtable. It ought to be a fun trip ... I haven't been out of the country in a while.

It looks like I'll be taking a quick flight to LA, then on to Singapore via Tokyo. I'll be flying Singapore Airlines, and so it appears that I'll have wireless Internet along the way! Woo hoo!

I'll have to see if there is any way to re-charge my laptop batteries along the way ... although Internet access is there for everyone, the power connectors are not in "Economy Class". Bummer.

Longhorn Beta 1 installation update ...

Well ... hours later ... I almost have it working! I was able to get Beta 1 of Longhorn - Windows Vista - installed in Virtual PC. I just added the VPC Additions to get my video driver working. I'm going to shut down and save the image ... it appears to be good enough to have a decent installation to work with.

I'll probably check it out further and play with it over the weekend as I have some time ...

GoBinder 2006 and the SDK are in Beta!

I almost forgot to post it here ... our products have entered into a Beta! We have our GoBinder 2006 product, and the new GoBinder SDK both out in the hands of users and developers, and we are getting a lot of feedback. It's still early, and we are finding bugs ... but that is what Beta is all about.

I'm most excited about the SDK. We are now going to see just how creative the developers are our there ... and what they think our first target market - students - really want. On top of that I am now taking suggestions for what plug-ins people want to see developed ... you can register and chime in here on our Forums.

If you want to check it our Beta, send me an e-mail at Agilix!

Installing Longhorn Beta 1 - Windows Vista

I downloaded the Beta 1 of Longhorn - Windows Vista - and am installing it today. I want to get an idea of what Microsoft has created, and how things are coming together. It's funny ... I don't recall the same for Windows XP, but this really feels like the Beta of Windows 2000 ... so much hype and uproar about the whole thing.

What is funny to me is that it seems that the Linux community it giving Microsoft and Longhorn/Windows Vista the most airplay! They talk about it constantly, they compare their features to it, they continue to frame it as the "thing to beat!"

I'm installing it in Virtual PC as usual ... this is now my preferred platform for all testing, etc. We'll see how it goes ... so far the install is just chugging along.

New Palm Zire 72 ... and new applications!

Well ... my Handspring Edge died. I have now gone over a month without it and I just can't go any longer. I have been using Palm devices for a long time, starting with one of the original Palm Pilots. I find that it is just plain useful.

While growing up my father was always keeping lists. Writing down everything that he wanted to do each day ... lists of errands ... shopping lists. Even to this day when I vist him at his home, he'll have a list of tasks, topics, and questions for us to share. I obviously picked up the habit from him ... but I have to admit that I moved from paper lists to the Palm.

I had to do some looking around, and although I had a lot of people telling my to go with the Treo 650, I just really had no interest in having a larger phone. I also have heard a lot of complaints about the Treo devices. In digging around, I finally chose the Zire 72.

The Zire 72 has got a lot of nice features. First off, it's a Palm device that will do everything that my old Palm did. Plus it has a color screen, is a digital camera, can play MP3 music, and has a SD slot for expansion cards. The one other feature that really hit me was the Bluetooth wireless support. It will actually talk to my Nokia cell phone and allow me to send and receive SMS messages, and even dial phone numbers from my Zire address book.

It is this last feature that really got me excited. While ordering I began to think about what possible applications I might create where I have my Zire sending SMS messages for me ... Hmmm. During the checkout process they of course pushed all of the various accessories that I could purchase ... and I did buy one - a SD GPS! I'm thinking that I want to create an application that allows me to send and receive GPS data via SMS from my Zire 72. I can't wait for it to arrive to begin to explore what is possible ...