Comments on: What wasn't so great about the Newton?

Glaskowsky beats a dead horse.

[kpuder]

software is still available

There is a third-party software package that does the "emergency backup" you
requested, though I don't have the reference handy. Once you set it up, you
just insert the PCMCIA card into the Newton and it does a backup.

A large archive of Newton software and other documents is still available at the
United Network of Newton Archives <http://www.unna.org/>.

[VegasIT]

Why can't PDAs get it write...

Long live the Newton! For its time, it was well ahead of the pack. let's not forget that Apple also ahd voice-recognition in its computers as early as 1992 either.

I had a Newton for 2 years back in the pre-Internet Bubble days of the mid-90's. It worked well until it was dropped one too many times. I kept contacts, calendar, notes, and crucial info needed on the go (I was an IT mgr. and kept IP addresses, PWs, and other vitals on it to aid in troubleshooting/configuration on-the-go). Handwriting, while not perfect, was so good and useful that the few times it needed correction were overlooked.

The handwriting recognition feature worked quite well if your handwriting was clear. I fully agree with the article above in that there were still improvements to be made. However, I later tried using a Palm and never was happy with having to learn a new "language" to write in (which still work all the time either). Future PDAs never did the PDA justice like a Newton. Even though there is much to loathe about Apples original PDA, in many ways it is superior in design thinking than current units. Apple always does out think their competitors and certainly outdoes everyone for desirability. Even if they do get a few key features wrong, you just want their stuff so badly and are willing to overlook a few shortcomings for the whole experience.

After many years of trying various incarnations of PDAs I have finally succumb to the Blackberry's charm. It does everything I need a pocket device to do and it has some design appeal in the guise of the Pearl.

I finally gave up trying to find a device that would do handwriting well. Why can't anyone figure that out?

[HUNGSO]

Hi Peter, thanks for writing such a well rounded though sometimes not fully researched article on the Newton. I appreciate every word penned good or bad because it tells others what was already available back in the hey day when PDAs surfaced.

A few comments on your second half about the bad side of the Newton.

? Today, the comparable requirement is for WiFi

The Newton is able to do WiFi :)
http://www.ff.iij4u.or.jp/~ngc/eng/newtwave.htm
http://www.flickr.com/photos/sonnyhung/sets/72057594059413570/

In addition there has been BlueTooth connectivity
http://www.notwen.com/bluetooth/

Nokia Card Phone - pre iPhone cellular function
http://www.flickr.com/photos/sonnyhung/sets/72157602213525074/

? Unfortunately, neither of these provides the secondary function of USB-- that of providing power.

There is a USB option now available for the Newton
http://www.notwen.com/sync/

Regarding power, the Newton can be charged via USB too!
http://www.notwen.com/power/

? Apple offered a separate keyboard for users who wanted to do a lot of typing on the Newton. It was basically a laptop-style keyboard, but with fewer keys than most. Still it was much bigger than the Newton, and couldn't fold or roll up to save space. Unlike a PC or Mac keyboard, the Newton keyboard output straight serial ASCII characters, so you couldn't just borrow a keyboard at your destination; if you needed one, you had to bring it with you. (Oddly, Newton keyboards briefly found another life during the heyday of the Palm PDA, which also supported a serial ASCII keyboard.)

There were other options such as the Palm Stow-Away-Keyboard. All you needed was an adapter :)
http://www.flickr.com/photos/sonnyhung/sets/72157594316756775/

Khyber Technologies Corporation (made for an earlier Newton) which one user modified for use with the MP2000
http://www.flickr.com/photos/sonnyhung/sets/72157594303273379/

FreeKey (which would have allowed you to use a regular PC or Mac Keyboard wherever you were located)
http://www.flickr.com/photos/sonnyhung/sets/72157594469875671/

? Apple gave the MP2100 the ability to record and play back audio, but there was never any MP3 support, the speaker was weak, and Apple never supported the audio in/out connections it designed into the serial-port connector. Even just a headset-jack dongle would have been really useful.

Actually there was MP3 support eventually :)
http://40hz.org/MADNewton/

Audio In/Out was out:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/sonnyhung/sets/72157594477688779/

But there were some new developments recently
http://www.notwen.com/newtcast/
http://www.notwen.com/audio/bluetooth/
http://www.notwen.com/ipod/
http://www.notwen.com/ledlight/
http://www.notwen.com/labo/

? Lesson: if you go to the trouble of designing in a hardware feature, do it right, and support it with software.

Well that's a possibility if they had not axed the Newton of course.

Apple in house development
http://www.flickr.com/photos/sonnyhung/sets/72157594303233982/

Of course the prior listed items above address some of the weaknesses of the Newton.

? Generally, Apple made it really difficult for third parties to support the Newton with hardware add-ons.

Maybe, but there were a lot of third party licensees whom were developing things in the pipeline also that got canned after the Newton got axed. I am only able to list the few that I've discovered. Of course in addition to these the US Army was using them for purposes that were never fully disclosed to the public though I do own two cases which were used by them which I acquired.

SIEMENS
http://www.flickr.com/photos/sonnyhung/sets/72057594059547504/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/sonnyhung/sets/72057594061321300/

Schlumberger
http://www.flickr.com/photos/sonnyhung/sets/72057594061117289/

Digital Ocean
http://www.flickr.com/photos/sonnyhung/sets/72157594302155471/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/sonnyhung/sets/72157594303238800/

Harris
http://www.flickr.com/photos/sonnyhung/sets/72057594059400967/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/sonnyhung/sets/72057594059402659/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/sonnyhung/sets/72157594484703781/

Petrosains Project - this was a project in the works during the cancellation of the Newton. Due to the lack of available units they placed an ad which I answered to purchase Newton for up to $1000/Newton . I sold two units to them and some how ended up with a copy of a check for the amount of the shortage they left out in their original payment to me.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/sonnyhung/sets/72157594495244546/

? Synchronization with a desktop Mac or PC was always a pain, and just got worse and worse during the lifespan of the MP2100.

This has been address in part by new developers writing new Sync Applications but would have been a simple fix possibly if a driver been developed that corrected for the communication issues between the Newton and Desktop if they were investigated and properly developed in the first place - as I recall NCU was given out to Newton MP200 users in beta not as a full release version when you purchased the MP200.

? The MP2100 would have made a fine eBook reader, but Apple never gave that application more than cursory support. It's such a useful feature that it ought to be regarded as absolutely necessary. And once that feature is present, every machine ought to come with a complete, easy-to-read user manual for itself, every available accessory, and as many compatible peripherals as possible. All this documentation may require another few dollars worth of flash memory to hold it, but it would probably pay for itself by encouraging accessory purchases.

There was a third party book creator for the Newton written by one of their developers.

PaperBack by David Fedor who I believe entually moved on to Palm like many of the Newton Team.
http://web.archive.org/web/20071015034553/www.thefedors.com/pobox/

A version of this has also been implemented online so you can produce books on the fly through the weblink. (unsure if this is up and running at this time)
http://misato.chuma.org/paperback/

Newt's Cape - this web browser can also make books from web pages IIRC.
http://saweyer.freehostia.com/newton/newtscape.htm

? At one point, I broke the surface glass on my MP2100's LCD. The LCD itself was cracked but most of the screen was still visible. I wanted to do a backup before sending the unit off to be repaired, but the broken glass under the digitizer film kept that from working properly, the Newton keyboard couldn't do much, and there was never any such thing as a Newton mouse. I was able to perform the backup by swapping logic boards with a borrowed Newton, but that's not going to be an option for most people.

Data Rescue 2.0 - this is the application you would need for this situation.
Installed nd configured properly it will allow for your Newton to connect to your PC or Mac when the communications cable is installed and an automatic backup would be initiated.
http://www.unna.org/view.php?/utilites/DataRescue

Well, that's enough about the Newton for now.

And remember some of these solutions were developed by people who did not know about the intricacies of the Newton and often way after it's cancellation. Also some of these new features include technologies developed way after it's demise.

Of course this posted reply is way late but now that I've got time I'm posting it so others who read this will be aware of where the Newton is even after it's cancellation.

Enjoy!