10-19-2005, 12:00 AM
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Contributing Editor Emeritus
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 8,228
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Textware Halts Development of FITALY for PalmOS
http://fitaly.com/board/palmfitaly/posts/5082.html
"We are terminating all Palm OS Developments as of today, October 17, 2005. Our future PDA developments will all be based on the Pocket PC operating system. This is where we are likely to meet Palm devices again -- such as the Treo 700w. In Addition, we will concentrate on the Tablet PC and continue to expand our very successful Instant Text business on the PC."
I am sure much of this has to do with Palm continually changing how the soft input panel works with little or no documentation to developers on what the changes are, meaning it is a lot of trial and error and essentially a new code for each and every device Palm puts out. This has been brewing for a while now and seems to have finally come to a head when the same FITALY that had worked on all other Palm brand PalmOS devices would install on a LifeDrive and continually soft reset. In stark contrast to that, I think the Textware team simply has to make sure FITALY works OK on a given Windows Mobile OS (2003, 2003SE, WM5, etc.) and then knows it will work on every device using that platform.
I am sure there are some that will not buy the new T/X because of this. I know if Textware said that they would refuse to support Windows Mobile 5 for similar reasons, I'd be very hard pressed to upgrade. There are some apps that are just key to the device and FITALY is one of those apps for me for which there is no substitute. What about you? Do you have that one or two killer apps that if they stopped development for a next generation platform it would make you seriously consider not upgrading?
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10-19-2005, 12:43 AM
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Pupil
Join Date: Jul 2005
Posts: 39
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I'm out!
Ed, you and I have had some "spirited" differences over the relative value of POS and WinMob, but we have always agreed 100% on FITALY. I simply won't do without it.
Right now, I am doing a LOT of looking over the fence. I want an X51v with a built-in camera. I was considering a TX. But, if FITALY doesn't ship for it, I will never get one. Same if they update the Zire 71 (my current sollution) the same way they did the TX, I will not be getting one without FITALY. I will limp along missing the multi-tasking, true fonts, and real files that my Zire 71 lacks in order to continue using the inferior but workable FITALY sticker that covers the hard grafitti area on my Zire 71 that should never have been there at all. WinMob is built just perfectly to support the huge diversity of text imput schemes. It is baffling to consider the wealth of options you have, but choice is fine as long as the one choice I want is one of them, I don't care if someone else is addicted to another sollution.
This is especially sad for me as FITALY was so nice on my mono Ipaq 3100 that it was about the first program I sought out for my Clie NR70V and I actually helped beta test this version that was the first software version as that NR70V was the first.....oops, the Handera 330 might have had FITALY and Virtual Grafitti first....anyway, Textware did a superb job with FITALY. It even premiered the icons for instant launches along the bottom of the HVGA POS screens. I bet POS would never have thought of using that extra space. The POSs have those extra pixels because Palms dedicate 1/3 of the screen to the text imput area whereas the PPCs only use 1/4 for this.
Yep, if I upgrade it won't be for any model that doesn't have FITALY.
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10-19-2005, 02:05 AM
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Intellectual
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 157
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As a bigtime FITALY user, (Palm Tungsten T3, T5, HP 4155, Dell x50v,) it would seriously affect my decision on whether to purchase a given device if this software was not going to be available for it. (Unless, of course, it had a thumboard.)
While, I'm sure that there is two sides to this story, it sure sounds like Palm is going out of their way to make it hard for third-party developers, like the folks at Textware.
Dumb, dumb, dumb...
TMann
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10-19-2005, 02:14 AM
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Intellectual
Join Date: Mar 2004
Posts: 172
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I do wish they would do a WM5 version. There are a number of softwares that do not work [or work satisfactorily] on my x51v, and FITALY is the one I'm missing the most. However I am refamiliarizing myself with Calligrapher [after upgrading to version 8], and it is neat. I still really miss FITALy, though, and had been using it since my Palm days.
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10-19-2005, 02:39 AM
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Pupil
Join Date: Mar 2002
Posts: 27
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Man, now maybe, just maybe they will FINALLY have more time to finish and release FITALLY 4. I have been waiting FOREVER!
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10-19-2005, 03:28 AM
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Intellectual
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 157
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I obviously missed the Fitaly news updates...what does version 4 offer that 3.5 doesn't?
TMann
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10-19-2005, 03:44 AM
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Thinker
Join Date: May 2006
Posts: 367
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by bvkeen
I do wish they would do a WM5 version. There are a number of softwares that do not work [or work satisfactorily] on my x51v, and FITALY is the one I'm missing the most. However I am refamiliarizing myself with Calligrapher [after upgrading to version 8], and it is neat. I still really miss FITALy, though, and had been using it since my Palm days.
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Huh? In my brief stint with WM5 on my hx2415, Fitaly worked just fine. The only caveat was that it could not be selected as the default SIP, else on a soft reset, you'd get NO SIP! (At least that was my experience).
I've since reverted back to WM2003SE on my 2415, but not because Fitaly doesn't work - it does.
I will ABSOLUTELY not buy any device on which Fitaly doesn't work unless it has a thumb board. End of story.
Don
__________________
XBox 360 S, 16GB iPhone 4S, iPod Classic 160 GB, Dell Inspiron Mini 1018; Macs: Mac Mini 2.4 GHz 6 GB RAM; Macbook 2.0 GHz 3 GB RAM; MacBook Air 11", 24" Cinema Display
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10-19-2005, 03:53 AM
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Pupil
Join Date: Mar 2002
Posts: 27
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by TMann
I obviously missed the Fitaly news updates...what does version 4 offer that 3.5 doesn't?
TMann
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They haven't released 4 yet. THey always have delays, yada, yada. Anyway, 4 will have additional features like better text expantion that include keys like ctrl, shift, backspace etc.
It seems like I've been waiting for years ;-)
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10-19-2005, 04:33 AM
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Neophyte
Join Date: Oct 2005
Posts: 1
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Being a fitaly owner in both PocketPC and Palm, I don't have to explain how essential this keyboard is for me. Sadly, the cease of development on the palm has finally prompted me to switch to MessagEase. I don't know why, but every time there is a new palm model i really like and makes me switch from pocket pc, (the Zodiac and the T3 being the latest examples) textware has trouble with the new version, while Exideas MessagEase is more quick to have the software ready.
I really enjoyed using fitaly for the past few years and wish them the best of luck. It's just that I value choice more than learning a new input method.
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10-19-2005, 08:29 AM
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Pupil
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 39
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Fitaly does work (more or less...)
I have to agree what Crimsonsky has said. Fitaly 3.5 does work on my K-Jam. The only thing is that it should not be set to be the default input method. Other wise big, big trouble.
Just choose it after every soft reset and you're fine. No problems and everything seems to work as on a 2003 machine.
Wouter
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Linear Mode
