Intended to boost Windows Mobile's popularity, third-party facelifts to the smartphone operating system might instead contribute to its demise. At least, that's according to a thought-provoking blog posting by Alex Kac, a mobile programmer and CEO of Web Information Solutions (WebIS), Inc.
Kac and WebIS have been responsible for a variety of Windows CE and Windows Mobile-based applications, ranging from an email client integrated with Intrinsyc's Soleus platform, to Pocket Informant, an award-winning PIM (personal information manager) for Windows Mobile that has been on the market for more than eight years. While not abandoning Windows, WebIS just announced a version of Pocket Informant for the iPhone -- a platform to which many developers will migrate if present trends continue, charges Kac.
Add-ons such as TouchFLO 3D (above) beautify Windows Mobile, but can reportedly break third-party applications Video source: HTC (click to play)
The problem, in Kac's view, is third-party Windows Mobile extensions such as HTC's TouchFLO, seen above in its latest "3D" incarnation. Writes Kac on his blog, "In the past we could write to the Windows Mobile spec and mostly everything worked on any device. But of late I've had things that worked for hundreds of devices stop working for just one, because that OEM simply did a poor job."
Kac adds, "Now HTC is doing so much custom stuff and breaking so many things it's ridiculous. Palm is no better. They write their add-on software without regard to third party developers. They take customizable registry entries and turn them into static ones. They break APIs. They provide broken drivers. The list goes on."
In his posting, Kac cited a list of devices, claimed to have the following problems:
Palm Treo 750v -- includes proprietary threaded SMS that breaks MAPI SMS sending from third party apps
HTC Diamond -- breaks code for copying contact pictures from one application to another
Dell Axim 50v -- GDI (graphics device interface) drivers are broken for offscreen gradient functions
HTC devices with TouchFlo -- "no configuration to work with default applications"
HP iPaq 21x and 11x -- Drivers for both main and SD/CF storage corrupt data
HTC TyTN II (Kaiser) -- the Windows Mobile 6.1 version breaks the GDI creating brush patterns function, which worked fine on Windows Mobile 6.0
In what may be the most controversial part of his posting, Kac fingers HTC in particular for "poor drivers and poor design specs." But, he says, even if third-party operating system extensions are well implemented, they can ultimately hurt an OS by fragmenting the platform.
Such fragmentation was a major factor in the downfall of the Palm OS, charges Kac. Instead of being able to write one program that could run on hundreds of devices, programmers found themselves having to do a custom version for each -- and ultimately found it easier to write for the more stable and predictable Windows Mobile, he says.
Further information
Facing a bevy of potential low- or no-cost competitors in the smartphone operating system space, such as Linux and an open-source Symbian, Microsoft needs to present Windows Mobile as the OS alternative that's worth paying for because it isn't fragmented. At the same time, however, device manufacturers have an understandable desire to make their products more distinctive and easy to use. Therefore, it's certain we haven't heard the last of this subject.
To read Kac's posting, "Windows Mobile is turning into Palm," see his blog, here. To weigh in with your own thoughts on the matter, please visit our Windows Mobile forum, here.
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Intended to boost Windows Mobile's popularity, third-party facelifts to the smartphone operating system might instead contribute to its demise. At least, that's according to a thought-provoking blog posting by Alex Kac, a mobile programmer and CEO of Web Information Solutions (WebIS), Inc.
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