This is the section of the newsletter in which I will often make random references to life, the universe and everything, and most probably include a few quotes from the odd novel too. However, I'm guessing that, as this is the first ever PsionStyle Indigestion and that most of you have been unwittingly subscribed by vindictive friends who seached the web looking for ways to make you suffer, I'd better explain what we're all about.

PsionStyle itself is the result of the work of two very sad Psion enthusiasts (delusional will probably try to tell you differently, but don't listen to him) who decided that amongst all those many different EPOC websites out there, there was a niche; a space for something *all* Psion, where MC 400s could live in harmony with Series 7s. - This is the dawning of a new era and we want you all to be a part of it! Ok, so I got a little carried away there but that's the gist.... And this is the newsletter. - One and a half long years of being a Lockergnome (www.lockergnome.com) subscriber has reduced me to this level. Lockergnome provides hints, tips and everything else you can think of for Windows and this is our attempt to do the same for EPOC and SIBO. Each week I will include one SIBO app and one EPOC app, and, as with all good traditions, I plan to break this one instantly. My Series 3c, Siena and Series 3 still need to be dusted before I start to get apps onto them...

Credit for the idea to also provide the newsletter in EPOC data file must go to Ewan Spence and Jody Armstrong for the genius that is YourEPOC. These guys spent way too much time reading YourSINCLAIR and decided to produce a similar publication for the Psion. What resulted was an increadibly odd combination of random comments coupled with useful comments - probably one of the best, in my opinion, EPOC publications available!

If you have any comments or suggestions about the PsionStyle Weekly Indigestion, please send them on to us. Anyway - I think Ive made you wait long enough.. read on man!

Inertia : 12/01/01

The future�funny thing isn't it. Hey, you're already there compared to when you started reading this. Anyway, I thought I'd have a look a little further into the future than that, and see what is around the corner. Bluetooth. Yep, I think most people agree this is the technology of the near future, including me. This little shortrange radio gizmology will have some pretty cool applications. The most important will be in allowing devices to communicate data between themselves, creating a chain of devices. Me and Inertia agree on this.

However, we differ on what we think will be the 'brain' of the system, the bit of kit you'll have to keep hold of all the time. Inertia has his money on the PDA, and you'll connect other devices through it. So, for example, youll have a headset for phone calls. I think that the phone will be the centre. What if you want the connectivity, but don't want the power of a PDA? After all, I'd rather have my 3310 in my pocket around town than my Revo!

The phone will provide a gateway to the world outside in the form of a high-speed connection. Many of the apps can be stored remotely and only called upon when you need them, this will allow the handheld devices to be smaller and less power draining, as the processing can be done remotely, either on shared resources, or via a link to a main PC at home. The phone handles the transmitting and receiving of data, and the PDA or other device just has to display the data.

This will require very fast networks, but will put an end to synchronisation problems as the data can be held in a central repository and each device accesses the central store, much like today's local and wide area networks.

Anyway, that's enough for now; maybe I can write a full article if I have enough prompting!

delusional : 26/01/01

The Linux7k Project
http://sourceforge.net/projects/linux-7110/

In which Inertia comtemplates defecting from EPOC.

Chances are, that when you bought your Psion, it wasn't just the gorgeous machine that sold it to you. The opperating system was as important, if not more so. Both SIBO and EPOC satisfy OS criteria pretty well, offering a stable and pretty much fool proof system, whilst not removing functionality. - Well that's my opinion. But for some 'power users' this just isn't enough...

Linux is an open source opperating system, which means that anyone can take the source code for it an add their own tweeks and alterations. It's famed for being ported to virtually every system you could imagine, including .... you guessed it, Psion. It is now, and has been for some time, possible to run an installation of Linux on your Series 5. The project, which is know as Linux7k has been hampered by lack of support from Psion themselves, but the members have been able to get together an installation which works on this solitary machine.

Being a cheapskate, my main machine is a Series 5, and I have successfully installed and run a Linux build on it. I'm a great fan of Linux in principal but, although I've always found that although I enjoy tweeking systems, Linux just required far too much for my liking. I need an OS which just *is*. - Something which is intuitave.. I guess I grew up in the age of GUI (Graphical User Interface), something which I missed when running Linux.

That said and done, if your looking for something more from your Psion, why not give it a go. Just remember to back your system up first!

Solun by PieCafe

In which Inertia looks to the heavans.
S3, S3a, S3c, S3mx, Revo, S5, S5mx, S7
http://www.piecafe.demon.co.uk
http://www.freepoc.org/download/solun5a.zip

Do you remember being taken to the Planetarium when you were young? After much oohing and ahhhing, you'd emerge with hundreds white dots burnt into your retina and a stiff neck. Solun offers the same awe inspiring experience without all the pain.

Solun is an increadibly well written and intuitive application. This is ideal for all you stargazers offering a variety of comprehensice views ranging from a world map, showing night and day, to diagram showning the positions of Jupiter's four moons.

If you've ever looked up at the heavens and wished that you knew the names of those odd clusters of stars then this is a must have. The only snag is that, when you consider the calculations required, Solun is more suited to the Series 7 or the netBook than its slower cousin the Series 5.

FrotzS5 by PalmTime

In which Inertia realises that imagination does have a use.
Revo, S5, S5mx, S7
http://www.shoresystems.net/palmtime/
http://www.shoresystems.net/palmtime/files/FrotzS5_sis.ZIP

Gone are the days when text was in, and encountering a Barry Mannilow was a fate worse than death. FrotzS5 offers a chance to return to those good olde days when the word imagination actually meant something. Although this text based game interpreter doesn't offer support for graphics, it will play most other games and I have had no problems with any of the ones I have tried.

This iccle app is worth a go. In my opinion there are *far* too many puzzle games for the Psion and not enough 'deep' games. - If you get my drift. FrotzS5 is a nice balance. It offers a great amout of game play without pushing most Psions beyond their capeablities.

Control+Function+Shift+S - EPOC
Control+Psion+Shift+S - SIBO

Maybe I just get annoyed far too easily, but the number of times I've visited Psion websites where the author of some application has interpreted 'screenshot' as exactly that, a photo of the Psion, drives me to insanity. Its fair to say that I'd pretty much reached the exit sign in the room labled sane. But this particular one can be avoided. All releases of both EPOC and SIBO allow you to take a screenshot, which is then saved in the native image format of the OS. When running SIBO, the screenshot is saved in the root of the internal drive in *.pic format, which is recognised by applications such as Draw and Firepic. In EPOC, pressing the hotkeys brings up a save-as dialog, allowing you to select where to save image. Screenshots in EPOC are saved as MBM files, which can be imported into sketch, or converted using popular conversion tools like nConvert.

Now its time for a collection of all the random comments which were made on the PsionStyle website over the last week. - If you're lucky some of it might make sense...

Retro Games

Simon Quinn, of Palmtime, has again been busy porting. New to hit the EPOC scene, are Hugo v2.5.03a, Level9 v.20, Magnetic v1.0 and TADS v.2.5.5. These applications are text based adventure interpreters, in line with Simon's previous release of FrotzS5 which offered Infocom adventure support. The four new apps provide interpreters for the corresponding formats. For more information, go to EpocZone.

Provided by EpocZone.

Inertia : 10:24:43GMT : 1/28/01

OK, so when I read over the last post I realised that I don't! Or I can't write it at least...

What I meant to say was that a new version of MenuS5 has been released. This offers an improved printing function and Italian language support. For more information, go to EpocZone.

Inertia : 10:08:09GMT : 1/28/01

MenuS5, which is a 'launcher' application, providing a base from which you can run applications, documents and folders, has been updated to version 2.4. This release offers an improved 'print' function along with a version in Italian.
More Information

Provided by EpocZone

Inertia : 9:53:52GMT : 1/28/01

We'd all be out of a job if a machine like this existed. That said, you can tell from the fact this was posted on the Dilbert website that the author has little confidence in its existance!

Lazy Entrepreneur (www.dilbert.com)

Inertia : 20:05:38GMT : 1/26/01

As well as nICQ, you can also get a version of AOL instant messenger for the Psion, called AOL Messenger Force.
You can download it from TuCows here.
There's also a new version of ABP, freEPOC's banking software at freEPOC
I apologise for the dire heading for this item.

delusional : 18:46:40GMT : 25/01/01

Good news for SIBO lovers

For all of you out there who prefer the traditional approach of SIBO and find it more efficient, I have just been informed that POS (www.posltd.com) have a fresh stock of reconditioned Series 3mxs.

On a more general note, its worth brusing the dust of that Series 3x and starting get back into it. They may be superceeded now - but they're still little gems!

Inertia : 8:26:43 PMGMT : 1/24/01