On this day...

That's why I'd always encourage people to write content to publish here rather than spinning up things all over the web. There is a benefit to keeping it in one place.

I had a choice years back to follow the crowd and convert into PsPC and then PPC content. I refused because it didn't interest me. Most of the writers and even the owners vanished off into following those interests. After a while, for me, it just became about keeping my promise to continue to support the H/PC.


I'll keep it online as long as possible; but I do need the community to help to do that now. I've singularly funded all operational costs since 2009 - 2018 when I first added donation buttons to the site. 2019 also saw a new server for the site, which I didn't fundraise for like we did in 2009, but again I paid that expense too. I am hopeful that under this model we will be able to stay running pretty much indefinitely as long as the community supports it.

Hey random aside, I was attempting to donate through PayPal, and the links didn't seem to be working for me. It just does a PayPal site with mostly white space.

Hi torch, which page link did you use? A cursory check seem to be OK for me.

Don't mind me, I'm super blonde. I forgot I have horribly capped/limited hotspot tethered internet. It worked and I was able to.

Subscription applied, thanks

Today is actually the anniversary of the day where it all went wrong for Microsoft. Today marks the release dead of Microsoft's first SmartPhone venture with the release of Pocket PC for SmartPhones on 22nd October 2002. It was noteworthy enough back then that I stuck it in my calendar to remind me. Back in the good old days before HPC2000 and the H/PC was officially abandoned in favour of just the CE Core. Back when PPC was only competing with Palm OS some 5 years before the iPhone.

Microsoft sure screwed that one up didn't they?

Oh, such a historic day that sealed the fate of all HPCs.

I was (and still am) a Palm OS lover. But that doesn't preclude me from fancying the HPCs so lately. The PPCs are simply irrelevant to my gadget fetish, though.

Before I discovered the HPCs, for years I'd been sticking with the Alphasmart Dana, my top choice of Palm OS devices, which resemble a HPC more than a PDA in many ways, particularly the widescreen touch display, touchtype keyboard, and multiple expansion slots.

And now here I am, only beginning to appreciate the goodness of the HPCs after its fall two decades ago. Holding the Jornada, my hand tingles with an exotic yet much desired sensation.

Long live the HPCs!

This is a good one.

I still have a handful of cool Palm OS toys, including a few HandEra 330s, a TRGpro, a Sony Clie PEG-SJ22, and a Sony UX40. Ironically, seeing a coworker typing on the tiny keys of a UX50 at several meetings was what initially opened the door to my eventual re-exploration of my old fascination with the Windows CE Handheld PC.

I miss my Palm IIIxe - that was fun hahaha I miss the volatile memory hehe.

I still have my Handera 330. The virtual graffiti and rotated display, in addition to its dual (CF/SD) slot and AAA/rechargeable battery, was really ahead of its time!
Those Sony clie models with thumbboards were more geeky and quacky than practical. It's a missed opportunity for them not to develop a killer handheld with proper form factors like the HPCs.

I really miss CF cards. I checked out your blog, by the way, it's super cool- I'm always amazed at how unique devices were from the late 1990s and early 2000s. I always thought an HP MSDOS palmtop would have been cool. I wish I could find my MobilePro 790 - I've looked around for it - it's probably in a box somewhere.. :/

I wish I could make it to Hong Kong, I had tickets for this month but obviously I had to cancel that...

I think the best part of the old retro devices is the standard use of AA and AAA - makes it so much easier to use in modern day.

I believe that is called a Freudian Slip

Thanks for the scientific explanation. I almost think it's some sort of inside jokes.

Apart from playing with the vintage machines, meeting rare like-minded geeks here is a huge part of the fun here.
Did I say my utopian handheld is the one using a monochrome screen, long-living AA batteries, typable keyboards (NO thumbboard or dead glass), CE-(Pocket)DOS combo, clamshell form factor?
Hong Kong used to be a fun spot, but now ...
Glad to hear that the blog is enjoyable to you, even without the old school easter eggs there (tabletop rpg, anime, etc.).

I've actually seen stuff online about a color version of the HandEra 330 that supposedly was produced in very limited quantities.

What I liked about the PEG-SJ22 was the display: brightly backlit but also reflective in sunlight, and with a high-res display option like the HandEra (but in color). Before Palm OS 5 came out, it was also one of the few Palm OS devices that supported stereo sound output (albeit through a rather expensive adapter). Obviously they were feeling the heat from Windows CE, which supported stereo sound output without external hardware all the way back to 2.11.