” With its GNU/Linux-based operating system and applications,
Sharp’s new Zaurus SL-5500 palmtop computer is turning heads in the
open source community. Powered by the Qtopia desktop from Trolltech
(the makers of Qt), this is a handheld that’s equally at home
viewing Web pages with its Opera Web browser, running enterprise
C++ and Java applications, or managing your contacts. For people
and companies who are used to programming desktop computers, the
SL-5500 provides an easy way to get those programs into your pocket
and on the road.“But while it’s tempting to focus on the SL-5500’s open source
roots, doing so actually does a disservice to this machine. The
SL-5500 is completely usable by folks who don’t care that they can
get at this computer’s source code. For them, the real strength of
the SL-5500 is not its software, but its hardware.“The SL-5500 is the sort of PDA that James Bond would use:
although it looks small and unassuming at first, each side opens
up, slides away, or unfolds to reveal capabilities that are both
unique and useful…”
Web Webster has more than 20 years of writing and editorial experience in the tech sector. He’s written and edited news, demand generation, user-focused, and thought leadership content for business software solutions, consumer tech, and Linux Today, he edits and writes for a portfolio of tech industry news and analysis websites including webopedia.com, and DatabaseJournal.com.
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