News Week of July 10, 2005

'Computing science nerd' keeps Bell Canada at cutting edge

Q. Can you impress your own kids?

A. Amazingly, yes. I brought a pen Tablet PC home and my teenage cyberkids, who take for granted what we could only dream of, said: "Hmm ... wicked fresh." I'm not sure what that even means but I think it's good. (Source: Steve Makris, The Edmonton Journal)

Microsoft Agent 2.0 and Tablet PCs

Learn how to use Microsoft Agent 2.0 in a Tablet PC application. Code examples are written in Microsoft Visual C#.

System Requirements

• Supported Operating Systems: Tablet PC

Xplore's Indestructible Rugged Tablet PC

Xplore Technologies Corp., (Austin, TX), a leading manufacturer and distributor of a full range of rugged mobile computing systems with customers in various vertical markets, including field services and law enforcement/fire/public safety, also provides the leading rugged tablet computing solutions to the GIS industry.
 
Xplore will demonstrate their new, indestructible Rugged Tablet PC with sunlight readable capability at the ESRI Conference 2005, Tuesday, July 26 through Thursday, July 28, 2005 at the San Diego Convention Center, Halls C,D,E, and F in San Diego, California  - in Booth #1829.  (Source: Xplore Technologies Corp., GISUser.com)
Posted Friday, July 15, 2005 by ChrisD
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Why Can't PCs Make Good First Impressions?

I'm still getting up and running, so I'll report back when I've actually had time to put this thing through its paces as a tablet. First impressions: Corel Painter and Alias's nifty new SketchBook Pro 2 are a joy to use when you can actually draw right on the screen with a pen. But even though Bill Gates, the Tablet PC's number one proponent, is left-handed, the Tablet PC OS still feels like it was never tested by a southpaw. (Source: Harry McCracken, PC World's Techlog)
Posted Thursday, July 14, 2005 by ChrisD
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If you had $10 million, how would you promote the Tablet PC?

Loren asks, "If you had $10 million, how would you promote the Tablet PC?"

With a $10,000,000 advertising budget aimed at consumers, you can come up with a decent plan for public impact. What would you chose to do? Not as the sole promotion but as a big bang promotion?

This is always a fun brainstorming exercise. You've seen either he, Layne or I go through this in the past. Loren mentions the "Blog for a Chance to Win a Tablet PC" idea that we've tossed around several times over the last couple of years and it's still one of my favorite ideas. I also whole heartedly agree with focusing on the PC sales channel in the U.S. market -- resellers, VARS, system integrators, consultants, etc. I'd like to see part of it go to a 60/40 coop advertising fund with partners. He's learned this lesson well. Good thing he's my brother :)

Essentially the idea can be broken down into: 1) allowing those who already have interest to express their interest, 2) which in turn generates new interest through word of mouth, and 3) developing a sales channel for the new mindshare to be converted to sales.  (Source: Lora and Loren, WhatIsNew)

New Release (FREE) OneNote Toolkit Sampler by abletFactory

The OneNote Toolkit Sampler is a demo version of the OneNote Toolkits. Templates for the EMR Toolkit, Nurses Toolkit, and RealEstate Toolkit are included.  Complete functionality to create a OneNote Template is included.  (Source: abletFactory)

Ahhhhhh ha! I have finally found a reason to get a tablet PC!

PressDisplay.com from NewspaperDirect, Inc. is scanning and making papers from all over the world available for browsing online. I'm just now getting time to play with this (taking a break from Google Earth) and the quality of the application is actually pretty good. And while I cannot get some papers I would like to read (New York Times is missing) there are enough different cities just in the U.S.A. to make the $9.95 monthly subscription worthwhile. (Source: Eric Peterson, Jupiter Research Analyst Weblogs)
Posted Wednesday, July 13, 2005 by ChrisD
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Wellington Tablet PC User Group ahead

The Wellington Tablet PC User Group had its first meeting last night (12 July) and we had a great attendance.

The meeting was organised by Craig Pringle and hosted at the offices of Microsoft New Zealand.

Our sponsors were Mindet (which gave us a copy of MindManager Pro to giveaway) and i-toyz, the local distributors of Fujitsu, iTronix and Motion Computing. (Source: M Freitas, GeekZone)
Posted Wednesday, July 13, 2005 by ChrisD
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How the US military chivvied up Microsoft

"A big military customer saw the fuss and complained," suggests Peter Rysavy, in a nice summary of the saga.

"Bangalore were flown in to fix the problem in two hours flat after a year of lots of empty Starbucks containers and denying the problem to the public," he adds, metaphorically speaking.

But he's also correct, we can confirm.

According to a comment left on Jonathan Hardwicke's blog - he's the brave soul at Microsoft Research who first acknowledged the issue, and pushed to get it fixed - the Tablet developers were itching to fix the problem, but had to fight the notorious Redmond bureaucracy. "The process of getting QFEs evaluated by Dev, Test, Management; then approved by Executive Management, war, etc is a long one," writes a tester who worked on the patch.

Nothing concentrates the mind like the prospect of a terrible accident.(Source: Andrew Orlowski, The Register)

Why does anyone list on Handango.com?

I got an email a few weeks ago from Handango informing me that they were preparing to launch their Tablet PC marketplace which is something that has been announced before but apparently they're very close to launching it. They wanted me to list with them so that they have a nice catalog of apps for when the shop opens up in a few weeks. I'm sure they are actively going out and seeking the Tablet PC developers because I didn't initiate the conversation with them.

So anyway, I asked a very simple question and got a very prompt and simple answer (thank you, Emily) but the answer was astonishing. They want 40% commission for apps sold through their web site Handango.com, 40%-50% for “value added channels”, and 10%-20% for their commerce engine (basically you sell the app, use Handango as a shopping cart - much like PayPal does for alot less).

Why on earth would anyone willingly subject themselves to this? And who does Handango think they are? In the Tablet PC space, they have little relevance and they think they are going to build it by raping ISV's who are already not making enough money because the Tablet PC platform has yet to surge the way we all hope it will someday?? (Source: Josh Einstein's Web Log)

Rochester NY PD Expands Base of Xplore's Rugged Tablet PC

Xplore's iX104C(2)D(TM) Tablet PCs with Dual Mode(TM) Technology Help
    Improve PD's Efficiencies, Communications and Safety

    AUSTIN, TX, July 12 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ - Xplore Technologies(R) Corp.
(TSE:XPL; OTC:XLRTF), a leading international rugged Tablet PC provider, today
announced that the company has received an order for an additional 66 rugged
Tablet PCs for Rochester Police Department. The order was secured by one of
Xplore's key channel partners in the public safety market, Brite Computers,
based in Rochester, New York. This brings the total number of Xplore rugged
Tablet systems being used by Rochester PD to more than 200.

    "The Rochester Police Department decided to continue our efforts with
Xplore through Brite Computers because of their continued team responsiveness
to our specific needs," says Lt. Michael J. Kozak of the Rochester NY Police
Department. "The Xplore Tablet PC is completely hardened and is able to
withstand extreme climates and rough handling with no moving parts such as
hinged keyboards found in laptops that can be damaged. Hardware deployment
consistency with Xplore's rugged Tablet PC is important to us for a variety of
reasons including cost, ruggedness and reliability."

    Rochester PD uses Xplore's rugged iX104C(2)D Dual Mode Tablet PC
computers as part of a comprehensive Computer Aided Dispatch, inter-vehicle
communication, incidence and administrative reporting system. Officers use
Xplore's Tablet PC system to check computer aided dispatch calls and dispatch
locations, run license plates, record checks and access maps and geographical
assignments. In addition, traffic citations and accident reports are logged
electronically via the New York State Traffic and Criminal Software (TraCS)
e-ticketing and electronic motor vehicle accident reporting application.

    Xplore's rugged Tablet computers are mounted safely and securely in
Rochester PD's police vehicles using Xplore's durable X-Dock public safety
mounting system. The iX104C(2)D Dual Mode provides both finger touch and
active digitizer inputs which allows officers to utilize digital inking and
other Microsoft(R) Tablet PC features. The agency previously tested rugged
notebook options, and selected Xplore's rugged Tablet PC system based on its
versatility, ease of use, durability and in-vehicle safety. (Source: Press Release, PRNewswire)

Digital Ink in Avalon

It's been a while since the May CTP of Avalon went out the door.  We called it "Beta 1 RC" whatever that means -- I rather expected a true "Beta 1" would soon follow, but apparently the doc folks are still catching up -- it's beginning to look like we'll fork a build for the PDC (based on much newer bits!) before "Beta 1" sees light of day.  Oh well, would a CTP by any other name not smell as sweet?

Back in March, I promised new and better things for Tablet PC application developers targeting Avalon.  So, I guess I'll go ahead and start blogging about it...

The big news in Beta 1 (aka the May CTP) is that InkCanvas and its associated object model are now all part of the mainline Avalon assemblies, PresentationCore and PresentationFramework -- TabletCore and TabletFramework no longer exist! (Source: Windojitsu.com)

Motion LS800 Tablet PC: a first look

With its highly portable case and its high price tag, the Motion LS800 is most likely to appeal to workers in the medical, manufacturing and utilities industries -- or any specialised field that requires employees to fill out forms, take handwritten notes and send data back to a central office. Still, its small dimensions and full Windows XP functionality will certainly catch the eye of gadget enthusiasts and other everyday users with special needs. We look forward to evaluating it in more detail, and will post a full review soon. (Source: Michelle Thatcher, ZDNet.co.uk)

Bauhaus Software Introduces Mirage Nomad

New Tablet PC-based Animation and Storyboarding System Changes the Rules for 2D Artists 

Bauhaus Software Inc. today unveiled Mirage™ Nomad, a new, breakthrough tablet PC-based animation and storyboarding system for 2D artists. Combining the power of the Motion Computing LE1600 Tablet PC with Mirage, Bauhaus Software’s industry-leading paperless 2D animation system, Mirage Nomad frees artists to draw, paint and animate anywhere their lives may take them. From storyboards and pencil tests, to fully-colored final animation and special effects, Mirage Nomad is a powerful, portable 2D animation studio that easily fits in a backpack.

The clipboard-sized Mirage Nomad is based on the award-winning Motion LE1600 Tablet PC, weighing only 3.1 pounds and featuring a Low Voltage (LV) Intel® Pentium® M processor running at 1.5GHz. Mirage Nomad includes 1GB upgradeable RAM, a 30GB upgradeable hard drive (shock-mounted for enhanced durability), the View Anywhere™ display and WiFi connectivity. Combining the Motion LE1600 with Mirage enables artists to create any classical or digital style of 2D animation – from cel animation and anime, to rotoscoping, cut out animation, and more.

“Mirage Nomad ushers in a whole new era of opportunity for 2D animators,” said Dan Kraus, CEO of Bauhaus Software. “Now, rather than being constrained to a desk or a light table, animators can work anywhere and have studio-quality tools at their fingertips.”

"The LE1600 is great for creative industries like 2D animation that need pressure-sensitive digitized pen input,” said Valerie Walden, Motion Computing vice president of marketing. “The LE1600’s computing power and large, bright 12.1” display provides Mirage Nomad users with a workstation-class system they can take anywhere.”

Bauhaus’ Mirage software is a powerful, creative environment for the production of 2D animation and special effects. Designed for professional studios and freelancers requiring a maximum level of flexibility and productivity, Mirage combines real-time paint, animation and special effects functionalities into a single product. A true paperless digital animation system, Mirage dramatically broadens the capabilities of traditional 2D animators, and is proven to save up to 50% in production time compared with traditional 2D pipelines.

Pricing and Availability
The Mirage Nomad is available immediately through the Bauhaus Web site www.bauhaussoftware.com, Complete Tablet Solutions www.completetablet.com, and CTS-authorized resellers at a suggested MSRP of $2,995 (USD). Further information on the Mirage Nomad system can be found at www.bauhaussoftware.com/nomad.  (Source: Press Release)

City intends to give a 'sign' to businesses

David Neelands is an example. Neelands is a programmer-analyst who sometimes must do graphic design for the county. In his free time, he used a laptop to make a drawing of County Manager Randy Reid.

"I like to draw and the manager - he has a face that is kind of infectious for some people. I wanted to try to capture that," Neelands said. "I used a tablet PC. It's like a laptop, except you flip it around and it becomes like a slate notebook. You draw with a magnetic computer pen. It started as a digital image and ended as a digital image."

Reid liked the portrait so much he included it as art for the 2006 budget message he presented to the commission last week. "I was surprised. He presented it to me as a gift and I just wanted to use it in the budget message because it was nice of him to draw it," Reid said. (Source: Cindy Swirko and Jeff Adelson, Gainsville.com)
Posted Monday, July 11, 2005 by ChrisD
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The Tablet PC Show #16 - Marc Orchant

Join me as I spend another lovely morning chatting with co-host Marc Orchant about a wide range of topics, some of them even related to the Tablet PC. You never know what you’ll hear us talk about and we have a good chat about the Denver Broncos and the Albuquerque Isotopes and even get a history of the fine city of Albuquerque. Marc wipes his Tablet clean and rebuilds it and shares that lovely experience with all of us. The new Motion LS800 mini-Tablet PC was released and we can’t help sharing our thoughts and opinions about this innovative little slate. Enjoy the show and let us know how we’re doing. (Source: The Tablet PC Show)

The Tablet PC Show #15 - Interview with Josh Einstein

Welcome listeners joining us from the iTunes Podcast library! You’ll find a great source of information about the Tablet PC here on The Tablet PC Show on The Podcast Network. This is a very special Tablet PC Show #15 as Josh Einstein of EinsteinTech, the developer of the Tablet Enhancements for Outlook (TEO) joins us for a fun discussion about his program, his Tablet PCs and a host of other topics. TEO is a program that corrects a function missing from Outlook by adding natural ink capability that turns Outlook into a totally ink-enabled program for the Tablet PC. Josh bit the bullet and even installed Skype so we could do this interview and we thank him for that, even though he is not a fan of Skype. Marc and I do our best to embarrass Josh with gushing praise for the program that both of us use daily and Josh gives us insights into his development of the next version of TEO, version 3.0, and shares some of the upcoming goodies he is adding to an already solid program. Josh tells us what it was like to leave his “real” job and develop software full time, something that TEO users are already benefiting from. Sit back and enjoy the show and listen carefully if you are looking for information about the timing of the next version of TEO. Think voice recording, Skype integration and auto call logging in Outlook Journal. Oh, Marc challenges Microsoft to buy TEO and roll it into native Outlook. Bring it on! (Source: The Tablet PC Show)
Posted Monday, July 11, 2005 by ChrisD
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