Looks like your webOS Pre can now serve web pages, thanks to Nebula (also recently responsible for porting MAME to the Pre). A how-to guide has been posted on PreDevWiki on turning your Pre into a webserver. By rooting your Pre and installing a few IPKs, you can configure your device under a traditional LAMP setup (Linux + Apache + MySQL + PHP/Python/Perl). Cacti was used as a Network Monitoring System. And how does it perform? "It runs very well", he notes.
By following just a few steps, your Pre can also be a bonafide Linux Apache webserver. Hit up the link below for additional sceenshots and the .ipk downloads. For those desiring additional Linux functionality, a hack was previously detailed to enable the Optware Package Feed on the Pre.
As a good compliment to the Linux-based NES emulator that was hacked for webOS earlier, developer ZODTTD rooted his Palm Pre as soon as he got it, and is now well into work on a PS1 emulator (the program is part of the psx4all project). While still in its early stages (sound, controls and scaling are still being worked on), the graphics are looking quite impressive so far, and he notes that the performance is better than the iPhone 3GS.
In addition, gaming geeks can also look forward to some MAME action, with Nebula coding up an emulator, complete with sound and, of course Contra to boot (the Konami code was previously shown to enter Pre dev mode). From the video it still looks to be a little choppy, but we can definitely see some retro Pac-Man and Galaga action in the near future.
Last week, sales estimates of the Palm Pre totaled about 150,000 units. However, an updated report via Wireless and Mobile pegs the latest number at closer to 370,000 units sold, including 300k units in June and 70k units sold in May. This, in conjuction with many Sprint and Best Buy locations selling out of the initial 120k units, means that the demand is still high for Palm's newest smartphone.
In addition, at the current rate of about 15k devices a day, sales could best one million Pre smartphones in the first quarter, easily making it the most successful mobile launch in Sprint's history. To cope with demand, StreetInsider reports that Palm has doubled its order of the Pre to Taiwan handset supplier Foxconn, from 650k units to 1.2M units.
In conjunction with better Q4 results than expected, shares in Palm Inc. continue to hover around a year-plus high, currently sitting at the $16 mark.
According to a report yesterday by the Guardian, Telefonica-owned O2 has won the exclusive UK distribution rights for the webOS Palm Pre. Palm is expected to confirm the exclusivity by next week. This backs up previous rumors that O2 had bested competitors Vodafone and Orange, and brings the Pre that much closer to Spain and Latin America via Telefonica, and O2 in Ireland.
However, Palm continues to stay tight-lipped about their plans for a GSM version of the Pre, despite a Vodafone SIM being spotted in a Pre at Barcelona in February and other carriers Bell Mobility (Canada) and Teltra (Australia) moving forward on their plans to carry the webOS handset. A couple new sightings of the GSM version have since been reported, this time in Vietnam and London. So at least we know it's out there.
Palm's webOS follow-up device to the Centro, the Eos (Pixie), a thinline smartphone with 4GB internal storage and a 320x400 2.6" capacitive touchscreen, was previously rumored to be available in the second half of 2009 on AT&T. Analysts Tavis McCourt and Justin Patterson of Morgan Keegan & Company have since narrowed down the date, predicting initial shipments of the device to happen sometime between November and Christmas. From a recent research note:
“We believe initial Pixie shipments will begin in the November quarter, although timing is still uncertain (we believe the goal would likely be a holiday launch)."
In addition, the new rumored $99 price point (with 2-year agreement), should drive "substantial volumes", with broader distribution over AT&T and Sprint than the Centro, which peaked at about 1 million units shipped/quarter. "We have the Pixie ramping quickly to these levels in calendar 2010 as distribution ramps.", they note.
As for long-term forecasts for Palm, McCourt and Patterson predict Pre shipments to reach 2.2M by May 2010 (currently headed for 550k units this quarter) and Pixie shipments to reach about 1.2M. If the trends continue, Palm would have obtained a 10 percent share of its North American market by 2011.
Back in Febrary, we covered a series of interviews with webOS developers-to-be, with Palm OS developers such as Resco and Ilium sizing up the new platform. Now that the SDK early access is rapidly expanding and a beta has been leaked, more and more devs are getting aboard the webOS train.
It comes at a good time then, that Ars Technica interviewed webOS developer Ed Finkler, whose popular Spaz Twitter client is one of the first third-party app to be available through the App Catalog (which just passed a million downloads). And whether you're already expecting your app to reach the top of the App Catalog or just testing the waters with your first scene, it's always good to hear from someone who has already been there, done that.
Although still under a strict NDA, Finkler had some insights to share from porting Spaz from the desktop to the Pre.
"Anyone who has done some significant rich application work in either the browser or a Web runtime like AIR or Titanium should be fairly comfortable with webOS. I'd say that getting used to the way applications are structured in mobile is more of a challenge, with the separation of functionality into different scenes and passing data back and forth between them."
Developers accustomed to JS frameworks such as YUI or Dojo, will have little difficulty with webOS, he notes. Also, the HTML from Spaz is heavy on nested div elements (with a few Palm-specific attributes throughout), and uses the open source jQuery library extensively. This is a sign that Pre developement model is conducive to reusing JS code, making it ideal for existing web developers. More after the break (including source code).
The beta version of the Palm Mojo SDK leaked last weekend gave eager devs a head start on their webOS Pre apps before the public SDK hits later this summer. The package was Windows-only. However, Mac users no longer have to feel left out, with a link to the OSX version of the SDK leaked today on IRC. The devkit for Mac weighs in at 159MB (just shy of the Windows version), and requires VirtualBox 2.2.4 to get the emulator up and running.
As usual, the SDK should be downloaded at your own risk, as it is an unofficial beta version. It should therefore be treated as a preview of, rather than a substitute for the upcoming public SDK. Feel free to discuss your experience with the SDK in the forums.
Palm just released a new update for webOS, with a 12MB OTA download bringing the version up from 1.03 to 1.04. This comes just 10 days after the last update.
According to Palm's update information page, the latest version adds no new applications; rather, "addresses several security issues with Palm webOS software." A post on the Palm forum is more specific, citing:
Fixes:
Unauthorized applications could be installed without having physical access to the device.
So far, the most obvious patch has been found to close the workaround allowing users to install homebrew apps without rooting the Pre. While this keeps malicious software from the hands of inexperienced users, we can no longer rely on easy e-mail installs to get homebrew apps out into the world.
Non-rooted homebrew apps installed before the update will still be there, so better to postpone the mandatory update if you still want to e-mail yourself some apps. Otherwise, homebrew can still be loaded by rooting your Pre, starting with dev mode via the Konami code.
Looks like you may not have to wait until the end of summer to get your hands on the Palm Mojo SDK, at least in beta form, reports Gizmodo. The devkit was apparently leaked by a rogue member of the Mojo SDK Early Access Program, one of many developers let in with the latest batch of invites. The story was picked up on twitter, and the file has since spread like wildfire to eager devs and curious Pre enthusiasts. Palm has not yet responded to the leak, but we can gather they can't be too happy with an unofficial release making its way into the wild so soon.
Accordingly, the download should be treated as an unofficial preview of, rather than the actual public SDK release. The 167 MB file is windows-only at this point, and of course the SDK and subsequent Pre apps (before the public release) will be unsupported by Palm; however, feel free to discuss your experiences in the forums. With the homebrew scene already bustling, it's about time to bring on the apps!
Looks like your webOS Pre can now serve web pages, thanks to Nebula (also recently responsible for porting MAME to the Pre). A how-to guide has been posted on PreDevWiki on turning your Pre into a webserver. By rooting your Pre and installing a few IPKs, you can configure your device under a traditional LAMP setup (Linux + Apache + MySQL + PHP/Python/Perl). Cacti was used as a Network Monitoring System. And how does it perform? "It runs very well", he notes.
Last week, sales estimates of the Palm Pre totaled 
According to a report yesterday by 
Palm's webOS follow-up device to the Centro, the Eos (Pixie), a thinline smartphone with 4GB internal storage and a 320x400 2.6" capacitive touchscreen, was 
Back in Febrary, we covered a 
