Discusses approaches to Linux interoperability with PDAs
Welcome to ApachePDA - Running Apache on a PalmPilot
April Fools!
PLCT - Palm Command Line Tools
Implemented in Perl, these allow accessing PalmOS databases (notably addresses, todos, and memos) from the command line. Allows updating todo items...
A GTK -based "desktop" application that can sync with various PalmComputing PDAs. It includes the "big four" applications: DateBook, AddressBook, ToDo, and MemoPad. It also allows connecting in "plug-ins" to synchronize other applications. Currently that includes an expense application, a time sync so that you can adjust your Palm clock to match an NTP -synced host, and the GNU Keyring password manager application.
A conduit between jpilot and the Mail application.
Operates as a plugin for JPilot . Before using it, it would probably be wise to sync the server against an NTP time source.
MultiSync is a free modular program to synchronize calendars, addressbooks and other PIM data between programs on your computer and other computers, mobile devices, PDAs or cell phones. MultiSync works on any Gnome platform, such as Linux.
Some tiny machines (not 3Com Pilots) are powerful enough that they can actually run real OSes such as Linux. Recently, people have been working on no-MMU-needed ports of Linux to run it on systems (like PDAs) that typically don't have a MMU.
There are several approaches to the use of Linux with "very portable" computer hardware:
Run whatever proprietary OS was designed by the maker to run on the hardware, and then provide tools running on Linux to "sync" data between the PIM and some repository on Linux.
With PalmOS, there are programs such as pilot-link to move data back and forth between PDA and a Linux host.
With WinCE, it is possible to set up a serial connection and use FTP to transfer data back and forth.
Run a highly customized Linux kernel on the PDA, along with a highly customized user space.
There has been much excitement over the Yopy, running ucLinux on a PalmPilot, VR3, iPAQ , and such.
Unfortunately, while they may be "running Linux," such systems may not interface meaningfully with "general purpose" Linux-based systems such as Red Hat, Debian , or SuSE. And they are not likely to be running much in the way of the rich set of tools associated with the Unix Philosophy.
At most, these systems run terribly abbreviated sets of Unix software, and are generally highly customized embedded systems.
(Abbreviated) Full Scale Linux
Run the Linux kernel as well as a (perhaps somewhat abbreviated) set of Unix -related tools in user space.
If there is enough secondary storage, it may not be too terribly "abbreviated." Unfortunately, the less disk, and the less screen, and the less keyboard, the less capable such systems will be.
GPE: The GPE Palmtop Environment
The GPE Palmtop Environment aims to provide a Free Software GUI environment for palmtop/handheld computers. It starts with GTK+ as the graphical library, and a database library based on SQLite .
They have then started building common sorts of PIM applications including a calendar, contact tracker, time tracker, To Do List manager, and such.
Home of some efforts to run Linux on handheld devices like the Compaq iPAQ H3600 and such...
Linux Agenda VR3
A MIPS-based PDA that looks a lot like the PalmPilot that apparently runs Linux, but syncs with Microsoft Outlook.
The company unfortunately "went bust."
A "Hot-Sync Manager" for the 3Com Pilot that works with the KDE Desktop.
Java Sync tools for PalmPilot
pi-address Pilot Address Book for X11
This package uses the Qt GUI libraries and reads and writes the PalmOS .prc address book data format...
A Debian package may be found here.
See also the FAQ.
XNotesPlus is a non-GPLed-but-nonetheless-free package that provides the following functionality:
Display, edit, save onscreen "sticky notes."
Notes can have audio/visual alarms attached to them, colours, categories
Persistent "display configuration" between sessions
Print/email support
3Com PalmPilot "Memo" support
3Com PalmPilot "Address" support
Can print envelopes using "Nenscript"
Audio alarms using "sox"
Motif and Gtk user interfaces
SYNCAL - synchronizing Ical calendars and Palm devices.
Ical may not use a data format that complies with any IETF standards, but if it potently interoperates with Palm devices, that is cause enough to pick Ical over other Unix-based calendar applications.
XLink/Win - a data backup and data exchange program for Windows which supports both Casio and Sharp electronic organizers. Runs on any version of Windows, including Windows emulators for Mac and Unix systems.
Including a diary upload/download tool for Unix...
ColdSync is a tool for synchronizing PalmOS devices (PalmPilot, Palm V, Qualcomm PDQ, etc.) with Unix workstations.
Or NetBSD ...