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Why does a smaller screen/body rule out real handwriting?
"Because there isn't enough space, unless your handwriting is really tiny.
The screen space of the MP2100 is OK in this respect, and certainly better than the MP120 I used before. With the 160 x 160 pixel space of the Palm, enabling real HWR doesn't help much. Printing single letters in a small space is actually the best you can do when you have to live with these limitations."
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Well, yes and no. For the last 5 months or so I have been using a Jornada Pocket PC and have found the HWR experience surprisingly good.
From a size point of view the Jorndada has a screen that is 58mm (about 2 1/4 inches) by 78mm (3 inches). I have been using Calligrapher from Paragraph software the same people who developed the cursive HWR on the Newton. Indeed, I remember reading somewhere that the version number used for the Calligrapher software (currently at 6.01) takes account of the versions developed for the Newton. The lineage is very obvious when you go into the options and letter shape screens. Calligrapher allows you to write anywhere on the screen and is pretty well integrated into the OS.
While I cannot pretend that the significantly Smaller screen makes writing less comfortable it is not too bad. In fact I am writing this email on the Jornada using the HWR. The only real complaint I have with the combination is a software one. Calligrapher uses a form of delayed recognition were it does not do the conversion until after you have stopped writing - say at the end of a sentence. Given the small screen size it would definitely be more convenient if it was instant as on my uMP2k. I am not sure why Calligrapher does this, I presume it allows better recognition results but given the relative processor speeds etc I would have thought that if the New could do it then so could a Pocket PC.
Actually the one thing that I really miss most from my Newton is being able to scribble out mistakes (and the accompanying puffs of smoke!) and the delete animation. It will not surprise any of you to hear that Pocket PC is lacking in the 'humour' department!
Stephen Beesley
(owner of a uMP2K, MP130 and now a Pocket PC)
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This archive was generated by hypermail 2.1.2 : Sat Dec 01 2001 - 20:01:59 EST