Palm Computing Introduces PowerInk Technology for PDAs
CHICAGO — June 3, 1993 — Palm Computing Thursday introduced a new user interface technology for pen-based PDAs.
Palm computing applications incorporating PowerInk technology will first appear in the Zoomer PDAs being introduced this week at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) by Casio Inc. and Tandy Corp.
The new technology, dubbed PowerInk, allows users to enter electronic ink or text interchangeably everywhere within an application. PowerInk technology allows the user to choose at any time whether they want the convenience, flexibility and speed of unrecognized ink or the compactness of recognized handwriting. The technological breakthrough is that ink and text are handled identically, giving ink entries all the advantages of computer text.
According to Donna Dubinsky, chief executive officer of Palm Computing, ''PowerInk technology permits ink entries to be indexed, moved and acted upon just like text. For example, a calendar entry written in ink can be moved to another day, alarmed, or made into a repeating event. The steps a user takes to perform these actions are identical regardless of whether the user scribbled the entry in ink or entered it in text.''
PowerInk technology also incorporates several innovations that make it possible to write effectively on small display screens. ''PDA displays present a real challenge,'' Dubinsky continued. ''Digitizer and display limitations force the user to write fairly large, however a PDA display is fairly small.
''PowerInk tackles this problem by letting the user write over most of the display area. The ink is then reduced for display. At the same time, the page expands to accommodate however much ink was written.''
Bruce Mendel, director of marketing in the Personal Communications Division of Casio Inc., sees Palm Computing applications and in particular the PowerInk user interface as a key differentiator.
''Other vendors of PDAs and pen-based computers have consistently relied too much on handwriting recognition. Users get frustrated and disappointed when they have to use recognition for all entries. Palm's applications and the PowerInk interface not only avoid this problem but users find it fun to use. We think it really sets Zoomer apart.''
''The promise of using a pen interface to create truly portable computing devices has proven to be far more difficult than technologists had originally thought,'' said Palm Computing founder Jeff Hawkins. ''By developing PowerInk, we have overcome the obstacles associated with the pen interface. We believe PowerInk could become a standard paradigm for pen-based PDAs.''
Headquartered in Los Altos, Calif., Palm Computing is the leading independent software vendor in the growing field of PDAs and palmtops. Its products include personal information management applications, reference and calculations programs, and the PalmPrint handwriting recognizer which are included in ROM in the Zoomer PDAs. Palm is also developing a range of applications software and services for PDAs and palmtops.
note to Editors: PowerInk is a trademark of Palm Computing. Zoomer PDA is a trademark of Tandy Corp.
CONTACT:
Palm Computing, Los Altos
Kate Purmal, 415/949-9563