webOS SDK/PDK lands for developers; 1.4.5 to bring 3D gaming to Pixi? 37
In late April Palm alerted developers that a new version of the Software Development Kit (SDK) would be landing in "early May." We guess that May 14th still counts, and sure enough emails are going out now to developers to encourage them to download the "webOS SDK/PDK Beta Release" and test their apps against it.
We also got some deets from an anonymous tipster who lets us know that that this OS could be called webOS 1.4.5 and indeed the major change is that Plug-in Development Kit (PDK) apps are properly 'jailed' so they can't muck up the entire device. In other words, 3D games and the like from independent developers can more easily be added to the Official App Catalog since those babies will properly be put in their corner. Hybrid PDK/SDK apps (the sort of access that DataViz says is necessary for DocsToGo) are still going to be a ways off.
More exciting is that the release should bring PDK apps to the Palm Pixi, which up to now has been left out in the bitter, bitter, non-3D gaming cold.
We're expecting this version of webOS to hit in late May or early June (or as the latest email states it, "Several weeks").
Thanks, anonymous tipsters!
37 Comments
1st....
Can't wait for another update...
This is good news for Pre and Pixi owners alike. It would be really awesome for the hybrid PDK/SDK to come out as soon as possible. That'll enable all sorts of apps and should trigger an influx of iPhone app ports over to WebOS.
I'm glad the pixi is getting some 3D, love, but i can't imagine playing Super Boxing 2 on that screen. Its gonna need games tailor made for it...
Excited to see how they're gonna adapt 3d games to the pixi's screen.
Good, now let's open up the mic and camera and get some voice dialing and shazamm action!
Many have been saying that since day 1. Palm has finally said they're expecting to have a major OS update (believed to be including those things) in the fall. Sadly I think that will be too late for a lot of the early adopters, who will more than likely be jumping ship in June to the Evo unless Palm releases some kind of comparable hardware (which seems pretty unlikely at this point).
Still with rumors of a WebOS tablet and HP's financial backing I no longer think WebOS is done for. Still, Palm needs to get on the stick. The market doesn't put up with more than a year between major releases anymore (as they did back in the treo 650 days).
Gamble, do you think when you jump ship in June that everything is going to be perfect. I predict you will still have gitches and issues. In other words. Stop Palm bashing!
Thank you.
Robbins, I love my pre - Ive had it almost since launch, and I dont think any OS comes CLOSE to webOS's elegance when it comes to multitasking. That being said, it's very frustrating when every other OS has a level of polish and features that webOS simply doesnt. Why do we need a patch for so many features that other phones have out of the box? You and I might be OK with that, but most users arent. Having used the iPhone and several Android phones, it's nice when everything just runs smoothly - apps dont crash the phone, regular reboots arent necessary, and the hardware is solid (granted the AT&T version supposedly fixes this, but that doesnt help those on Sprint, like me).
Dont get me wrong - I plan to keep my pre until they release the next weOS device for Sprint, whether it by the Pre Plus, or something else entirely. I can totally understand, though, why others with less patience, or those that dont feel like "hacking" their pre to make things work would jump ship.
I guess it will be about a month until the update gets released. The last developer email said devs will have 1 week to report show-stopper bugs before it's released to carriers. After the release to carriers, it takes another 2-3 weeks for the update to get to us. I hope I can appreciate some of the new changes.
I didn't get an email yet! What kind of developers are getting it?
Edit: Nevermind I Got My Email
the palm pre and palm pixi are equally capable of running open gl and SDL games.
most of the reason the PDK games are only supported on the palm pre is because of the resolution and some compatibility issues with SDL on the palm pixi. we should soon see support for the palm pixi for many PDK applications - palm has done a great job with the SDL implementation within the PDK. this update should bring a new wave of applications.
Oh great!!! Now we can get post upon post complaining the update hasn't been released yet.
offtopic: why are those jpgs (like this above) rendered so blurry in the pres webbrowser?
it's only getting better if ORANGE+Tab and openes in new card
Gee...I wonder why the Pixi hasn't been announced for AT&T yet?.....HMMMMMMMM
It is curious. Also...my friend who works at Palm and is on AT&T told me they weren't getting the Pixi they were expecting to get.
Hmmmmm, indeed.
Ignorance is no excuse for stupidity and/or laziness..
http://www.wireless.att.com/cell-phone-service/cell-phone-sales/promotio...
See that, not too hard to find. Just Google AT&T Palm Pre Plus and it shows up.
Notice the part where it says "We aren't getting the Pixi we expected?" Nope, cause it doesn't exist.
Notice the part where the Pixi Plus specs are identical (except for the phone's radio--GSM vs. CDMA) to those of VZW's? Yup, thought so.
I like the attitude you are giving while at the same time you don't understand what is being said. No one mentioned anything about hardware. This post/article and the comments to it are referring to the SDK/PDK and how it will probably effect webOS, in particular the Pixi. My comment was about how the Pixi hasn't been announced and how that just might have something to do with wanting the AT&T Pixi to not come out until webOS 1.4.5 is out with the ability for the Pixi to have PDK apps on it. That wouldn't be the Pixi people expected would it?
Nope, thought so.
I never said it was what you're saying there either. You said it hadn't been announced, when in fact it was announced, just no date has been given.
Perhaps if you read what I said, you would be able to understand things better before telling people to read better.
I am really glad Palm is taking their time with this update and not rushing it out the door like they did 1.4. I'd rather wait a while but have an awesome performance enhancement than get regular updates frequently and get barraged with new bugs and lag.
Honestly I don't think Palm is taking more OR less time trying to get this update out. I think they are just working on it. Each update has had some bugs that ended up needing a fix shortly after, I think because 1.4 had a "set date" that people want to say it was rushed.
Actually, they are taking less time to get this update out.
"Because the scope of the changes in this update is limited, we won't be going through a full SDK beta cycle"
I'm keeping my expectations low and hoping for the best.
No, they said the scope is limited. The article says limited to pdk. If it is limited to PDK, then there is no reason for a full fledged 2-3 week beta SDK, now is there?
Nobody puts those babies in a corner.
Heh.
Bring on the free 3d games
Don't count on free 3d games.
The Pre owners in the EU got them because they couldn't buy them.
The Pixi owners throughout the world most likely won't get them, because the devs couldn't release the apps as quickly (MUCH smaller RES proportionally; older processor; etc.). Not a limit set by Palm, but one by the devs (trying to get to market ASAP rather than redesigning for 80 pixels less).
all of Mobile 1UP's games would work on the Palm Pixi if the SDL implementation was working correctly; which has apparently been fixed with 1.4.5 - so, it isn't always around resolution :) in applications that request 480x320 - on the pixi they will be presented in letterbox format; completely playable!
I did not know about Palm making the cards go letterbox. Always a nice thing for everybody.
Regardless, I have doubt that EA and party will suddenly release all of their games for free for any amount of time to Pixi users.
bring on the ability to keep the flash on during video too :D
@cmilette - Just a heads-up...there is a patch for that! =) Just check in Preware...homebrew rocks my face off!!!
the more updates the better. Because the HTC EVO 4G is looking good.
Yes, the HTC EVO 4G is looking very good. Having a 4G WiFi Hotspot in your pocket is attractive.
Any bug fixes (like the Luna restart problem) or enhanced (missing) functionality?
It's great the update will be coming. I just hopes it fixes my wifi issues.
haaaaaahaaah we needed this shit!!!1
haaaaaahaaah we needed this shit!!!1
.... when can we expect this dam 1.4.5 update?
I hope when/if we get this update we also get flash.