From: anthony@csd4.csd.uwm.edu (Anthony J Stieber)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.palmtops
Subject: Re: CallForDiscussion: A*BETTER* HP95LX?
Date: 7 Oct 1992 16:02:15 GMT
Organization: Computing Services Division, University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee
NNTP-Posting-Host: 129.89.7.4

In article <1992Oct7.091236.19716@abo.fi> MLINDROOS@finabo.abo.fi (Marcus Lindroos INF) writes:
>I really like my 95LX, it is an excellent product and truly deserves
>all praise it has received from the computer press. It is
>undoubtedly the best palmtop currently on the market and looks

The HP has several limitations, however it's the only MS-DOS palmtop in
its size range.  No other MS-DOS machine can fit in my shirt pocket,
except perhaps for the more expensive, less compatible, and harder to
get industrial MS-DOS pocket computers.

>While some people might argue that the keyboard is the 95LX's
>weakest spot, I am actually more upset about the display. Oh, oh,
>oh . . . *WHY* didn't Hewlett-Packard opt for 320 pixels per row
>please!

[many good reasons why 40x16 is inadequate deleted]

I suspect it was a compromise as always.  The 95 display has excellent
contrast and is highly readably in even low light, the larger character
size helps as well.  Their is a possibility that the LCD used was an
off the shell part that had multiple sources, was cheap, and was
already field proven.  Mature technology is what gives bleeding edge
technology a bad name :-).

>This is what the HP96LX mk.II should be like, if it ever is
>built;
>1.A LARGER CLAMSHELL:
[..]
>larger. At 17.5x9.5cm (6.9x3.75 in.) the Sharp Wizard is very [...]
>for a decent keyboard. If we enlarge the HP95LX by 1.5x1cm, there [...]

>2.A BETTER KEYBOARD:

>Still, a slightly larger unit would make it possible to replace 
>the tiny 95LX QWERTY keys (four rows in all) with an Atari
>Portfolio-style enlargened rubber keyboard. Hardly a drastic

>3.MORE RAM MEMORY:
>1Mb is a decent compromise between performance and price here.

Do know about the 1MB model and the upgrade path? (US and
Canada upgrades only, unfortunately).  I suspect that anyone
could send in their machine to be upgraded but the upgraded
machine would be the English version.

>4.A LARGER DISPLAY:
>A 160x70mm screen (6.3x2.8 in.) would be the ultimate achievement
>as we could fit a 320x200 CGA display inside, but space

>5.INCLUDE SEVERAL GRAPHIC MODES IN THE SETUP:
>--------------------------------------------
>With a 320x168 screen, you could choose between an 80x14
>character display (4x12 matrix), an HP95LX emulation 40x21 mode
>(6x8 matrix), a condensed 80x21 character mode (4x8 matrix) or
>even 80x24 columns, although the characters would be extremely
>small and blocky (4x7 pixels). While the 80x14 mode sounds like

Condensed modes are available right now.  There are some programs on
Compuserve that do this.  I don't know what limitations they have if
any, they may only for certain MS-DOS applications.  Unfortunatly the
author of this software doesn't want it distributed anywhere but
Compuserve, the Palmtop Paper, and ACE Technology as he will eventually
be selling it as a commercial product.

A greeking option in a text editor or word processor would be nice.

>6.DROP LOTUS 1-2-3:
>software. A better way would be to include Lotus as an optional
>ROM card (see below).

I use 123 often myself, but I agree, an optional product would
cut costs and open up the whole third party spreadsheet market
on the 95.

>Summary:
>The basic unit would be a slightly larger souped-up 1Mb 95LX with
>improved keyboard and display,  upgraded built-in organizer
>software but minus the Lotus 1-2-3 system. All this would cost
>about as much as the current model. The buyer chooses what
>additional RAM cards or ROM software he or she needs according to

>1) SYMPHONY: This version of Lotus 1-2-3 with built-in word

>1980s. Having it (or Microsoft's Works) on ROM would be great.

What you've described is rather like the Memorex Commuter Computer,
Poqet PC (available since 1989), Sharp PC-3x000, and Zeos Pocket PC.
The Zeos even has Microsoft Works, the Poqet PC was bundled with 123
for a while.  I don't know if the 123 card that Lotus sells for the
Poqet PC would work on any other machine.  All of the machines are are
bit larger, a Sharp Wizard is about inbetween these machines and the
95.  All have full CGA displays and large keyboards (which I can touch
type on).  Such an intermediate machine would be nice, but the market
is already getting crowded.  HP's marketing is so good however, that
many people think it's the only making of a palmtop MS-DOS machine.
Perhaps they can use that (and good engineering I hope) to produce a
larger machine.  I personally would have prefered a 95 with a larger
QWERTY keyboard and no numeric keypad, rather like the Psion Series 3.
I'm begining to like having a decent keypad though.

>long bus rides. A slightly better, Portfolio-style keyboard would
>be enough, especially if HP would sell a full-size, lightweight
>and inexpensive "work while at home" desktop keyboard capable of

Genovation sells serial keyboards and keypads.  They may or may not
work on the 95.

>5) ENTERTAINMENT SOFTWARE: an HP palmtop equipped with an
>enlarged screen and improved graphics (four grayscales) would be
>a great games machine! I would love to have games like Tetris,
>Chessmaster, Windows-style card games and arcade games like Super
>Mario Bros. While program availability should not be a problem as

There are a couple versions of Tetris, chess, some card games and
assorted arcade games available free for the HP from
eddie.mit.edu:/distrib/hp95lx/games.

>soon as third-party vendors start writing software for the HP, I
>feel Hewlett Packard should produce a cheap card with old 
>entertainment programs. Another less expensive possibility would

ACE Technology sells a game card with Tetris, blackjack, craps,
adventure, reversi, go, poker, and others.

>6) PALMTOP-SPECIFIC APPLICATIONS: Anything that would come in
>handy while "on the move" is a potential palmtop task. The HP95LX
>already comes equipped with an organizer and a phone book, and a
>card-based thesaurus is an option. Other potential software
>includes translators and reference books. An HP version of PC

HP sells a dictionary/thesaurus card (English), another company
sell a physicians reference cards and databases.  There are
also English-(German,French,Spanish) translation cards.

>The HP95LX was a landmark in palmtop computing. A new, improved
>yet equally inexpensive model could revolutionize MS-DOS
>computing like no other model has done since IBM launched the XT
>a decade ago. We are waiting anxiously for HP's next move . . .

I don't think the 95 is a landmark, it's just another MS-DOS palmtop,
albeit small.  The Poqet PC has been around for years, the Sharp has
been available in Japan for some time, only a few months in the US.
--
<-:(= Anthony Stieber	anthony@csd4.csd.uwm.edu   uwm!uwmcsd4!anthony
Newsgroups: comp.sys.palmtops