> I'm interested in this topic too and would like to hear from > developers working in both platforms.
I've completed two large commercial applications on Palm, Windows Mobile/Pocket PC, and Windows Mobile/Smartphone. I'm currently working on a third and adding Symbian into the mix. Here are some general things that I've found: 1. It is better to start on Palm and move to the other platforms. The Palm has a more restrictive environment (memory, resources, segments, etc.) than either of the other two platforms. Starting there is much easier than starting in the WM environment where you tend to be sloppier because things are easier. 2. If you don't know Windows programming, start there before going to Windows Mobile. The best background (IMO) is good Windows API knowledge in C. I'd definitely stay away from MFC for now. In a related manner, stay away from any of the Palm libraries, especially the C++ ones. There is a good match up between the architectures of Palm and WM if you use straight C to start with. 3. Going from WM/PPC to WM/SP is very easy programmatically but very difficult with user-interface issues because you lose the touch screen. If you built your app to make good use of the 5-way navigation pad on later Palm's, you'll be in better shape because you're closer to a non-touchscreen UI. Again, start on the Palm and get everything solid with key navigation before moving to the other platforms. 4. Symbian has some nice tools and documentation. They even have a developer document called something like "Symbian Development for Palm Developers". I don't think that Symbian should be ignored. Their platform is very similar to Palm in many ways. If you're interested in applications outside the US, you can't ignore Symbian. The development environment for the WM platforms has gotten pretty good. I still prefer the Palm developer tools but that might just be because I've been using them for longer. ...Jeff -- For information on using the PalmSource Developer Forums, or to unsubscribe, please see http://www.palmos.com/dev/support/forums/
