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| Palm webOS by O'Reilly - Chapter 1 Summary - Part 1 |
| webOS User Interface |
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Page 1 of 2
This is part 1 of the "cliffs notes" version of Chapter 1 of Palm webOS "Rough Cuts" by O'Reilly Media. We're going to be summarizing each chapter as it's released, in case you don't have time to read the whole (in this case, 26-page) doc. We will also be leaving out stuff that you probably already know (e.g. "Palm webOS is Palm's next generation operating system.")
Tomorrow we'll be posting the rest of the Chapter 1 summary, which gets into more technical details of the Mojo framework. Update: Posted.
Chapter 1 - Overview of webOS
Introduction
- webOS designed around multi-tasking: background processes, event handling without losing context.
- Integrates power of a window-based operating system with the symplicity of a browser.
- Designed to run on variety of hardware with different screen resolutions and aspect ratios, with or without keyboards and works best with a touchpanel though doesn't require one. [devices without keyboards would provide on-screen keyboards?]
- Because UI and application model built on web browser, range of suitable hardware platforms is wide.
- webOS applications built following typical practices for AJAX applications.
Application Model
- Typical native application model: data, logic, UI integrated within executable installed on native OS; direct access to OS services and data.
- AJAX apps deliver richer experience than standard HTML apps; responsiveness is enhanced by feedback provided in close-to-real time as opposed to traditional web apps that must refresh to provide feedback.
- Connected applications that leverage dynamic data or web services are becoming predominant form of modern application.
- webOS app model combines ease of development and maintenance of a web application with deep integration available to native apps.
- [Take-away: Palm is telling us that these are not stunted, limited "web apps" (a la iPhone web SDK). They are as powerful as native apps.]
Application Framework and OS
- Apps can embed UI widgets with editing, navigation and display features.
- Framework includes event handling, notification services and a multi-tasking model.
- Create and manage persistent data using HTML5 storage functions
Access data from:
- webOS core apps including Contacts and Calendars
- basic system services including Location services, Accelerometer data, XMPP messaging
- webOS System manager provides range of system UI features:
- navigation
- app launching and lifecycle management
- event management and notifications
- system status
- local and web searches
- rendering HTML/CSS/JavaScript code
- Don't have to build webOS app to make your content available to webOS devices; can use standard web page/web app
- Other applications included with webOS: contacts, calendar, tasks, memos, phone, browser, email, messaging
- Included in "initial release": camera, photo viewer, audio/video player, map application
- App suite will vary depending on model and carrier
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