Sun Java Wireless Toolkit 2.3 beta

Jonathan Knudsen announced the 2.3 beta release of the Sun Java Wireless Toolkit (formerly known as the J2ME Wireless Toolkit) to kvm-interest along with a link to the release notes. Haven't checked it out yet, but am curious about support for the Location API (JSR 179) which has been three years in coming. Not that any phone I own has GPS. Yet. Here's the archived original message.

Floater

Robert Virkus, the J2ME Polish man, is at it again. On the KVM mailing list he announced a new product called "Floater" that rewrites your floating point code so it will work on CLDC/1.0 devices. He's looking for beta testers:

Floater allows you to use floating point arithmetics and all java.lang.Math functions of the CLDC/1.1 configuration on CLDC/1.0 devices as well. This is not a library, so you can use normal float and long primitives etc in your code. Floater will then process the compiled bytecode and weaves the necessary conversion and emulation code into your application. You can choose between a high precision and a fast performance mode. Since all conversions are done by Floater directly, applications will be leaner and faster compared to the direct usage of floating point emulation libraries. Floater integrates nicely with J2ME Polish, of course, but you can use it standalone or as an Ant plugin as well.

Too bad about the name. I can think of at least two meanings in American English that are not very nice. In any case, I've written Robert to see if I can try the beta.

The Phone Guy

Dug up an old New Yorker article by Michael Specter about Frank Nuovo, "the phone guy" who designs Nokia's phones:

Suddenly, Nuovo stopped speaking, and his breathing slowed. His eyes fastened on a tall woman who had just broken into a run, about fifteen yards away. She was clearly angry. We could see her moving fast in high heels, screaming into her telephone, and carrying a large bag. It's not easy to do all that at once. "Look at her," Nuovo said with genuine delight, as if he were an anthropologist who had stumbled upon some new tribal custom. "She has a 6110 rigged with a strap. I have never seen that in Europe." The 6110 has an illuminated high-graphics L.C.D. display, an infrared link to compatible devices, and thirty-five different ring tones; what it doesn't have is a strap. Yet, as the woman ran past us, we could see it fastened comfortably to the palm of her hand. "I'll be damned," Nuovo said. "The Japanese do this. So do the Koreans. They all have straps, and they decorate them in every conceivable way. But I have never seen that in Finland. I guess I'll have to start paying more attention."

The phones and technology referred to in the article are no longer current, but many of Frank's ideas are interesting and the overall article is very interesting for anyone who cares about mobile phones, or consumer electronics in general.

Can you hear me now?

Older news, but an interesting article about a ride with a Verizon Wireless tester:

Verizon Wireless operates testing teams in major markets all across the US. Levy typically logs 3,000+ miles per month (and that's city driving, I don't envy him). Besides testing their own network, these teams check up on their competitors. Levy's rig was testing Verizon Wireless, Sprint PCS, ALLTEL, Nextel, T-Mobile and AT&T (Cingular). In addition to voice, each company's data service is tested.

So the carriers know exactly what the coverage in your neighborhood is like. Unftorunately they're not going to share that information with you or anyone else. Wouldn't it be cool to know how well all the carriers cover your home and work before you sign up?