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Java(TM) Development on PDAs: Building Applications for Pocket PC and Palm Devices Review by Charles Ashbacher
All the basics of programming PDAs
While I do not currently write anything for PDAs, it is clear that the majority of the growth in the use of new computing devices will be in handheld devices. This will of course require an enormous amount of new software to be built. While the power of the handheld devices continues to grow, convenience, if nothing else, will demand that the size remains small. This will limit the size of the screen and the amount of memory available. Therefore, while it is possible to port software used on desktop platforms to handhelds, it is not an easy task and even in the best of circumstances, significant changes have to be made.
In this environment, it seemed logical that I learn the basics of how to program PDAs. Since I am now primarily a Java programmer, this book seemed like a logical place to start. From reading it, I learned a great deal about how the programming of PDAs is done. The book opens with a description of how the Java standards relate to PDAs as well as the availability of Java implementations on the most popular PDAs. This is followed by a list of ways to obtain the software needed to start developing software for PDAs. Chapter four covers some of the major restrictions encountered when programming PDAs. This chapter is essential and was the most interesting. The remaining chapters contain demonstrations of programs that create screens displaying the usual range of user interfaces. Buttons, checkboxes, filedialog boxes, alert boxes, textboxes and the various layouts are illustrated with code. Some of the common actions, such as serializing object data, accessing JDBC databases and using Internet protocols are incorporated into the programs. As an experienced Java programmer, I found the programs fairly routine, although there were some differences that needed to be understood.
There are no great revelations in this book, just a solid introduction to one area of computing where the growth over the next decade could be incredible. I have elderly relatives who have never touched a computer, and yet they have cell phones and are learning how to use some of the advanced features.