Yesterday, PyMaemo support was added to Fremantle (instructions available), and I couldn’t wait anymore…

1. PyMaemo installed
2. sympy downloaded
3. 
[sbox-FREMANTLE_X86: ~] > python2.5
Python 2.5.2 (r252:60911, Mar 27 2009, 18:30:12)
[GCC 4.2.1] on linux2
Type “help”, “copyright”, “credits” or “license” for more information.
>>> from sympy import *
>>> x,y,z = symbols(’xyz’)
>>> Plot(x*y**3-y*x**3)


And here is the result:

Who wants to create a powerful scientific calc for Maemo 5?

Today I was reading about Texas Instruments Zoom(TM) OMAP34x-II MDP, the first hardware reference design for Symbian^3 (future opensource version of SymbianOS). And I’ve found that it seems some parts in common with new maemo hardware platform:

• OMAP3 based
• 4.1″ LCD WVGA LCD
• keypad
• accelerometers
• etc…

But one of the funniest thing is that it has a capacitive touchscreen! Many people have told me that iphone/ipod touch devices are better because their capacitive screens, but finally we will see a symbian phone using same hardware technology.

Now the question are:

• Will Maemo be supported too by Zoom2? (at least Linux is supported)
• Or even better, how similar are new Maemo5 based devices to Zoom2? I hope not too much, because this development platform starts from $1150!! (maybe because the debugging parts and the 8MP camera!)

Maemo 5 alpha SDK has arrivied, and with it a new UI framework! Reading the overview, it is sure that it won’t be exactly how new maemo based devices UI will look like, but it gives and idea. And it is definitely more finger friendly!!

Congratulations to the Maemo team!!

It seems that (rumor mode: ON) Nokia is working on a Linux based device that is using latest ARM multicore processor called Sparrow(rumor mode: OFF)

I’ve seen this in a post from Unwired about Secrets at Mobile World Congress 2009. There is even a mockup for the device and it seems very promising. If someone understand Russian, extra info can be found on Eldar Murtazin’s blog

Ok, ok, most of us are still waiting for next Maemo based devices that are surely being already tested (I envy testers), but it is always good knowing that Nokia is working on the future (even if it is only for internal research), and since there weren’t many news about Maemo in MWC09, rumors keep us alive

As many people should know, today Nokia has released Ovi Store and Ovi Publish, its own marketplace for developers to monetize their apps. There is nothing related with Maemo on the site yet, but it has been said that Maemo platform will be suported (not in May but on the shorter term roadmap). So, think about it, because this will add another chanel for third-parties to increase the number of apps for our beloved platform, and make it competitive. So, at least, there were Maemo related news from Mobile World Congress.

After seeing Axel’s Meyer interview (youtube’s video), could new maemo device look like, or be, one of the “leaked phones” on the designer table? If this is the form factor, it would be wonderful.

There is more info in GSM Areana website… Time for rumors until Nokia press releases something.

I’ve been invited to talk about mobile technologies for an ICT Promotion Initiative called Asturias, territorio TIC (Spanish website), that mixes technology and tourism (showing wonderful places of our region). In my case, we went to Cabo Peñas, and all the posts and videos are under “Web en tu móvil con Manrique” category. But I would like to remark the videos about Maemo and Elisator, because it isn’t very normal seeing an N810 in this kind of initiatives in Spain:

• Explaining what a Maemo device is: Dispositivo móvil de acceso a internet (youtube video)
• Explaining Elisator: Detección de animales enfermos (youtube video)

It’s been long time since my last publication about using Giac/XCAS in embedded devices (in 2002 HPCC archive) and my presentation about the idea of a linux handheld calculator at HPCC Conference (see image of 16MB monochrome ipaq running it). But today, Nokia Beta Labs has turn one of my dreams true. They have released a handwriting calculator for Nokia’s touchscreen devices (Maemo devices and Nokia 5800 Xpress Music Edition).

I’ve tested it, and it looks nice, but I miss a lot of mathematical features. I hope I could join the project somehow, because I have several ideas about how this can be improved

Nokia is well known as creating killers for their phones. For instance, they released the wonderful N96 at the very same time as the N85.

Now they release the best phone ever: the Nokia N97. But do not tell me you maemo lovers that the concept of that phone does not remind you of our beloved N770, N800 and N810.

Of course, we maemo (and, in general, Linux) freaks are waiting for the promising evolution of the N810 and the next step of our favourite mobile OS (maemo Fremantle) and, if we find the money, we will buy it. But it is not a phone, while the N97 is… and besides, it also has a touch screen (with more resolution), it also has HSDPA access (as the next Nokia MID will have), it also has a QWERTY keyboard… and it will also allow to run an open-source OS.

What do you OMAG people and rest of the maemo community think about that? Feedback wanted

Reading Symbian-Freak about next nokia full touchscreen device, I’ve found a presentation from Nokia for Capital Markets Day showing a N810 but with different UI. Nice conceptual user interface… It seems a promising 2009!