The most exciting thing about the MessagePad is Newton Intelligence, one of the cornerstones of the new operating system. It is this aspect of the operating system that interacts transparently across all Newton applications and is the real thrust behind what can make these personal digital assistants successful. The possibilities are nearly boundless. Newton then looks in your Names file and if it finds only one Alice listed, it will place her full name in the schedule. If more than one Alice were listed in your Names file, then you would be presented with an option to choose the one you wanted.
Newton clearly falls short on what was marketed as broad communications capabilities.
But don't sell Newton short. Its introduction has stirred the imagination of a lot of users. What's going to contribute to Newton's success is the eventual attainment of fast and near-flawless handwriting recognition algorithms, something that is still several years away. But I expect these will come as this new model for computing gains acceptance. Turning Newton upside down A joint venture between IBM and BellSouth, announced last November, is challenging the Newton on a conceptual level.