Palm has finally made their Web OS software development kit (SDK), including a device emulator, available for free download. As such, I am now initiating official Off on a Tangent support for the Palm WebOS web browser.
Palm launched the ‘Pre’, their first phone running the new operating system, on June 6 without a publicly available SDK or emulator, which prevented me from supporting it at the time. I initiated preliminary support on June 22 after messing around with a demo unit at a Sprint store.
I have to say, I’m very glad to be seeing some convergence in mobile web browsers. The included browsers on Apple iPhones, Palm WebOS devices, Google Android devices, and Nokia (Symbian) S60 devices all run browsers based on the same WebKit display engine. This makes support very easy, since if a site works in one there’s a good chance it works on the others.
I’m also a long-time Palm fan, and am thrilled that the company has started to make itself relevant again. I’m looking forward to the proliferation of WebOS to other carriers and other form-factors (I’m a fan of the ‘Treo’ or ‘BlackBerry’ arrangement with a front-facing screen and keyboard with no sliding or opening required).