[NTLK] Recap of the Michigan Newton Gathering

From: mkow1234_at_aol.com
Date: Mon Apr 18 2005 - 05:44:56 PDT


April 18, 2005
 
 
Hello Everyone,
 
 
Folks who could have made the drive to be at the Michigan event but for one reason or another passed on attending should be kicking themselves by now. Or maybe they don't realize what they missed? Here goes:
 
 
* Excellent Wi-Fi access, made even better through the tech-wizardry of Mr. Gerry Felipe, for anybody within our meeting area!
 
 
* IrDA-to-printer (HP DeskJet 340) communications demo!
 
 
* Mr. John Charleton stole the show with his new 'low power consumption' Newton prototype!
 
 
* Guest visitors included smart Newton users as young as 13-years old Thanks, Ian and Devon!), doing everything from eMate journal writing to playing games, to exchanging (copyright-free) applications!
 
 
* .MP3-to-.PKG conversion demo!
 
 
* A short-lived contest to see who could draw the best Newton logo on the dry erase board!
 
 
* Mr. Glen Givens only needed about two minutes to figure out everything within the eMate-connected eProbe Scientific Test Kit. He soon had the device taking automatic test samples at one-second intervals and graphing TWO separate sets of readings (temperature and light) simultaneously. Brilliant!
 
 
* Mr. Cliff Lawson took a glance at the eProbe documentation, which convinced him that the device could easily be adapted to work with a number of different diagnostic testing probes specific to the automotive industry!
 
 
* Ms. Jettie Hall made sure that the Starbucks coffee and Coca-Cola flowed freely, while still playing drawing games with her grand-daughter -- between two Newtons, using the VideoOut IrDA data sharing app!
 
 
Other happenings:
 
 
  - Some very cool merchandise changed hands, and a few of us scored great deals on various products to increase the functionality of our Newtons!
 
 
  - Dueling PowerBooks!
 
 
  - Attendees came from as close as Royal Oak and from as far away as Akron/Cleveland!
 
 
  - Mr. John Charleton showed off a prototype design that may do away with the eMate hinge spring problem; he also let us try out a space ship game that he is developing in his spare time. This guy is really doing some impressive stuff! Thanks, John!
 
 
  - We tested the bar code scanner with an MP 130, and even though the bar code wand appeared to be functioning, the MP did not record a number reading from the test bar code. It was theorized that since this particular MP 130 had the Newton OS 2.0, that perhaps the device could not communicate correctly. More testing will need to be conducted with an MP 110-130 running the original OS.
 
 
  - A brief discussion led to the consensus that the most vital future hardware upgrade needs to focus on increased functionality of the PCMCIA slots. The dream question: Can a USB device ever be developed for the Newton?
 
 
  - It was agreed with much enthusiasm to make the Michigan Gathering into a quarterly event, possibly to be held in the vicinity of Ann Arbor (Note: we can probably also get the Library meeting room again for future events).
 
 
Though many questions were answered, some attendees still seek answers to questions:
 
 
  - Is it still possible to purchase a Tibet-compatible camera?
 
 
  - Is a Newton PrintPack connector needed to print to a StyleWriter 220?
 
 
A nice get together with many nice people, and I felt privileged to meet each and every one of them!
If somebody can steer me in the right direction, I'll have some pictures to upload very shortly; please contact me directly.
 
 
Thank you to all of those who attended! :O)
 
 
Matt the K.
 
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