Developer: Astraware
Price: $2.99

Astraware Solitaire is a long awaited app for the Touchpad. Well, wait no more! With 12 games included in this one app, $2.99 really isn’t all that expensive. This app has the standard Klondike game (or Solitaire as it is also known as), Free Cell, Pyramid, Spider Solitaire, and many more. Now, let’s dive into this review.

Initial Setup

This app is as easy as 1, 2, 3 to set up. Really. You open the app, and then, BOOM, you’re ready to go! The app has all the games on the one main scene, and from there you can access settings, specific game settings, game rules, and more.

UI

The UI of this app is OK, and could use a little work. It was a little confusing for me at first as to where the specific game options were (as they weren’t all in one place) and when you clicked on the “game rules” button, it would open up a new card with the full game rules. I would like it to be a little more simple, or maybe have a tutorial that brings you through the app and shows you things like that.

Function

This app is a must-have for card game enthusiasts. You might not like Klondike, but I’m sure that if you like playing card games, this app will have something for you. This app is a good way to pass the time, and just plain fun to play.

The bleeding of talent at HP continues with a report today from The Verge that webOS chief architect Brian Hernacki has left the company since joining Palm in 2009. Brian follows in the footsteps of Jon Rubenstein, who left HP late last week after finishing up his 12 to 24 month commitment. Although his name may not stand out amongst the Matias Duarte’s and Rubenstein’s of HP’s hay days, Brian’s exit leaves yet another critical void just as webOS moves to Open Source.

Source: The Verge [thanks Adam!]

AllthingsD is reporting former head of Palm Jon Rubenstein has left Hewlett-Packard, effective today. Jon has apparently completed a 12 to 24 month commitment to stay with HP after it had acquired Palm, with HP spokeswoman Mylene Mangalindan saying, “Jon has fulfilled his commitment and we wish him well.” Jon was assigned to a “product innovation role” within HP’s Personal Systems Group soon after HP decided to kill its webOS hardware business.

Jon reportedly hasn’t been seen around the HP offices since former CEO Leo Apotheker announced the end of any and all webOS hardware, and subsequently killing the company’s fist foray into the tablet space with the HP TouchPad.

In a parting comment to AllThingsD, Rubenstein said, “I am going to take a well deserved break after a four and a half years of developing webOS.” In a follow up interview with The Verge the same day, Jon speaks of not completely retiring, and his plans are to remain in the mobile space to some capacity in the near future.

More details as they come in!

Source: AllThingsD, The Verge

Just when you thought our beloved TouchPad has been wiped from every store and warehouse shelf on the planet, we occasionally see a batch of them pop up from time to time. Today’s Woot! deal of the day just happens to be a 32GB HP TouchPad for $219.99. Although they’re refurbished stock, the deal is too good to pass up!

Even Best Buy is getting into the action. I captured this photo of a full priced 32GB TouchPad earlier this week at a store in the Chicago area.

Don’t want to pay full price? Grab that Woot! deal now before they’re gone!

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in!]

January:

• Enyo 2.0 and Enyo source code
•  Apache License, Version 2.0

February:

• Intended project governance model
• QT WebKit extensions
• JavaScript core
• UI Enyo widgets

March:

• Linux standard kernel
• Graphics extensions EGL
• LevelDB
• USB extensions

April:

• Ares 2.0
• Enyo 2.1
• Node services

July:

• System manager (“Luna”)
• System manager bus
• Core applications
• Enyo 2.2

August:

• Build release model
• Open webOS Beta

September:

• Open webOS 1.0

Developer: datajog.com

Price: $3.59 $2.69 Special Discount / Free 7 Day Trial

DataJog and webOSroundup have partnered together to bring you a discount to DataJog!

Have you been missing Touch-2-Share? Well, with DataJog, you don’t have to! DataJog not only allows you to share links, but it allows you to share contacts, notes, calendar events, addresses, and even allows you to call a number. DataJog has not only the ability to send data between devices, but now also allows you to send data to your PC as well.

Initial Setup

The initial setup of the app is super easy. You just open it up, get your “access code” (or set a custom one like I do), and set a password. Boom, done.

UI

The UI of this app is really simple, but nice. When you open the app, you will find the main page which holds all of your “data that has been jogged.” At the top of the screen, there is s text input box that allows you to send some text or a URL to your desktop. Below that are all of the things that you have sent to the device. At the bottom left of the page, you have a few buttons. You have the “DataJog” button that allows you to see some extra data, change the layout, get help, and now allows you to access the “RSS” feature (as long as you are on a TouchPad). Next to the “DataJog” button, you have the “Restore” button. This button allows you to restore anything that you have sent to DataJog before. On the far right, you will find the “Delete all” button. This button, yes, delete all the things that you have sent to DataJog. The nice thing is, that data isn’t gone forever! It is, and always will be, in the “restore” section if a time arises that you need it again.

Function

This app serves a major function. With this app, you can send yourself a contact card from your computer to your mobile phone or tablet, without ever having to touch the device itself! You can also do this with URL’s, calendar events, and many other things.

DataJog is a must-have for the person who is always on-the-go, and has need for information on both their computer and their phone or tablet. Some people use Google for their contacts/calendars, but others don’t. This app makes it very easy to set a reminder without having to use Google (or any other service). Overall, I love this app and the function that it serves.

See the below video for how it works. We dare ya not to get a bit misty-eyed.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Source: YouTube via webOSNation

• Fix kernel crash that happened most frequently with Titanium Backup but also many other apps(fix found by verygreen)
• Touchscreen fixes by Dees_Troy(helps with rapid distinct touches being interporated as a single motion)
• Fix graphics corruption that was happening in some games
• CM9 changes from Flemmard
• CMStats added
• Browser: open link in incognito mode: http://review.cyanog…m/#change,11894
• Change needed for fsck replacement(was in alpha0 but wanted to make it explicit here until it is merged): http://review.cyanog…m/#change,11875
• Other general changes that were merged since alpha0

You can find the download links at the RootzWiki forum here.

If you are wanting a stable build of CyanogenMod to run, then this build is not for you. If you are wanting to run the latest and greatest, then go have fun!

Source: RootzWiki Forum via Tablet Support Forum and Liliputing (Thanks for the tip @jcampanale)

All entries received (or will soon) a promo code for the Pre version of Picsel’s SmartOffice!

Without further ado, here are the top 5 entries for the contest!

Alex:

Isaac Sahalon:

Jarell Jose:

matchqq:

Michael Roney:

Congrats to all of the entrants!

Developer: Inglorious Apps
Price: $4.00

Have you been looking for a good app to sync with Google Docs or SimpleNote? Well look no further! Notes HD, the award winning notes app for webOS has made its debut on the big screen! That’s right, Notes is finally available on your TouchPad. It’s a little more pricey then its predecessor at $4 instead of $3, but in my opinion, worth it for a good note taking app. Enough here, lets get in to the review.

Initial Setup

The app is very easy to set up. This app can be used with or without a Simple Note or Google Docs account (I chose to sync with Simple Note.) To set up with Simple Note or Google Docs, you just enter the preferences scene and input your log in information, click log in, and then return to the main scene. Once you get the accounts set up, it’s really easy from there. You can choose (from the app menu) to download the notes from either service. Once you choose to download the notes, you can then choose what notes in the cloud to download (which is really nice.)

UI

The UI of this app is pretty good, but lacking in some areas. The one thing that I want when I use this app is more colors to choose from with the coloring of folders. Other than that, the UI is pretty clean and straight forward. You have the first pane, which houses all of your folders and the ability to create new folders. If you hold+tap on a folder, a menu comes up which allows you to set a password for the folder (don’t forget the password though, as it isn’t recoverable), change the name of the folder, and change the color of the folder. The second pane shows the notes in the current folder. It has inline previews of the notes title and first few words, and an image preview if you attached an image to the note. The third pane is where the editing of the current note takes place. You cannot only edit, but you can attach pictures (like previously mentioned in the second pane with the preview), you can tweet/email/upload the note, and you can even redo/undo text that you just wrote.

Function

This app serves a nice function. There are a lot of choices when you want a notes app, including the stock and free one. This app has a few things over the stock app, like syncing with a cloud-based system for access to the notes anywhere. And it also has the ability to password-protect folders, which can come in handy for the security-conscious. Another thing that this app has is the ability to attach a photo to a note, which can be a great way to remind you why the note was written.

Pros

HP announced today that Bill Veghte has been appointed to chief strategy officer. Veghte is not new to HP as he currently has a roll as executive vice president of HP Software after joining in 2010. He also spent close to two years at Microsoft. Veghte will continue to hold that title in addition to his new responsibilities that HP states will include being responsible for keeping HP on the cutting edge of innovation.

It is said that Veghte will be working with the senior business and technology leaders to drive HP’s leadership and innovation. It’s an area HP needs help with after its recent misteps.  The press release quotes Meg Whitman in saying that “Every 10 to 15 years, fundamental shifts occur in the IT industry that redefine how technology is delivered. From mainframes to client/server to the internet, companies that identified the opportunity first and developed the right strategy came out on top. As we move forward, HP intends to stay on top, and I believe Bill has the knowledge and vision to keep us there.”

What does this all mean for webOS? Well, in addition to driving the company-wide strategy stated above, HP has also indicated that Veghte will be leading their cloud and webOS open source initiatives.  Unfortunately, there wasn’t much else to be said about what those initiatives will be. One thing that has been missing from webOS recently has been a solid plan. We all know that for webOS to have a future while being open source, there needs to be a solid plan and organized structure in place to continue development. This is needed to help it gain traction in hopes that there will be interest in creating future hardware. It is good to see webOS being bundled in with the management of a company-wide strategy.

Source: HP

ALL DISCLAIMERS FROM CYANOGENMOD 7 ALPHA 1-3.5 APPLY EQUALLY TO THIS VERSION. BE SURE TO REVIEW THEM. THE USE OR ATTEMPTED USE OF CYANOGENMOD 9 ALPHA 0 MAY RESULT IN VERY BAD THINGS TO YOU, YOUR TOUCHPAD, YOUR DATA, YOUR FRIENDS, FAMILY, AND LOVED ONES. TRY CYANOGENMOD 9 ALPHA 0 ENTIRELY AT YOUR OWN RISK!

I recommend that you read the entire forum post a few times before installing this to make sure you understand the risks with this alpha version of ICS. Once you understand the risks, enjoy Ice Cream Sandwich on your TouchPad! If you don’t like the risks that this version of ICS and Cyanogenmod presents, then I would wait for a later alpha. The Cyanogenmod Team did a very good job of releasing newer builds of Cyanogenmod 7 fairly frequently. So if you don’t like the risks, then just wait. It’ll be stable soon enough.

Source: RootzWiki Forum via engadget

I really enjoyed using my Veer to take and share photos at CES this year. If you like to snap lots of pictures with your Veer there are some good things to know and you can hear about it on this week’s preNote.

You can listen to this and every preNote in the following ways:

• Subscribe to our Feed: use your favorite Feed Reader
• Download it directly
• Sign up to be notified: text “prenotes” to 41242
  - You’ll get a text alert when the next preNote is ready (US only).

What are preNotes?
preNotes are short audio clips (typically between 5 – 10 minutes) that give you tips on how to better use your Palm Pre. They are released each week and cover a wide array of helpful tips so that you too can become a webOS ninja.

• Convert
• Search
  • Google Top Result
  • Google
  • Amazon
  • Google Image
  • Bing
• References
  • Google Definition
  • Wikipedia
  • Wolfram Alpha
• Share
  • Email
  • Google Mail
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
• …

• Convert
• Search
  • Google Top Result
  • Google
  • Amazon
  • Google Image
  • Bing
• References
  • Google Definition
  • Wikipedia
  • Wolfram Alpha
• Share
  • Email
  • Google Mail
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
• …

• Convert
• Search
  • Google Top Result
  • Google
  • Amazon
  • Google Image
  • Bing
• References
  • Google Definition
  • Wikipedia
  • Wolfram Alpha
• Share
  • Email
  • Google Mail
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
• …

• Convert
• Search
  • Google Top Result
  • Google
  • Amazon
  • Google Image
  • Bing
• References
  • Google Definition
  • Wikipedia
  • Wolfram Alpha
• Share
  • Email
  • Google Mail
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
• …

• Convert
• Search
  • Google Top Result
  • Google
  • Amazon
  • Google Image
  • Bing
• References
  • Google Definition
  • Wikipedia
  • Wolfram Alpha
• Share
  • Email
  • Google Mail
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
• …

• Convert
• Search
  • Google Top Result
  • Google
  • Amazon
  • Google Image
  • Bing
• References
  • Google Definition
  • Wikipedia
  • Wolfram Alpha
• Share
  • Email
  • Google Mail
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
• …

• Convert
• Search
  • Google Top Result
  • Google
  • Amazon
  • Google Image
  • Bing
• References
  • Google Definition
  • Wikipedia
  • Wolfram Alpha
• Share
  • Email
  • Google Mail
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
• …

• Convert
• Search
  • Google Top Result
  • Google
  • Amazon
  • Google Image
  • Bing
• References
  • Google Definition
  • Wikipedia
  • Wolfram Alpha
• Share
  • Email
  • Google Mail
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
• …

• Convert
• Search
  • Google Top Result
  • Google
  • Amazon
  • Google Image
  • Bing
• References
  • Google Definition
  • Wikipedia
  • Wolfram Alpha
• Share
  • Email
  • Google Mail
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
• …

• Convert
• Search
  • Google Top Result
  • Google
  • Amazon
  • Google Image
  • Bing
• References
  • Google Definition
  • Wikipedia
  • Wolfram Alpha
• Share
  • Email
  • Google Mail
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
• …

Is it real? What does it do? Can you buy it?

While we were at CES we trekked over to their booth to find out. We answer all of these questions and more over on our sister site mobileRoundup.

We also plan on following up with the company to get some of the outstanding questions we have answered. If you have questions, feel free to ask below and we will do our best to get them answered.

Join us for a live podcast from CES 2012 as we wrap up the final day of our adventures at the worlds largest technology conference!

Stream and chat with us live beginning at 10 p.m. Eastern tonight, 1/12/2012

Click here for the live UStream.

• Faster switching between Day, Week, and Month views, and faster event display in Calendar.
• Faster scrolling when reading an email message.
• Email attachments are now saved with draft messages.
• Added sender photos and IM presence indicators in Email.
• Improved stability when watching video in the Web app.
• Improved handling of MP3s that are transferred from a computer using USB Drive mode.
• Added a dedicated view of contacts available for a video call, for quicker setup of a video call.
• New alert when video quality might be lower because of network issues.
• When typing, pressing the space bar twice inserts a period. This can be toggled on and off.
• Auto-correction can be turned off directly from the onscreen keyboard.
• Added support for HTTP Live Streaming.

So go, download this update now!

UPDATE: As always, we recommend that you wait approximately 24-48 hours before installing any webOS update if you rely on patches/kernels. If you do not rely on those things, then it if fine to install the update.

Source: @jaaksi, The Official Palm Blog, and The Official Palm Support Site

First up…3pm (Pacific) we will be going to the Nokia press conference where we will be schmoozing with our old friend Richard Kerris (hey! we spoke to him once!). We will, of course, be live blogging the event.

After that our very own Rich Dunbar will continue the shmooze by attending the “tailgate” party that Nokia will be holding after the press conference. We are hoping to get our grubby little hands on some of those sweet devices we are expecting them to announce. We also are working to get some interviews at the event so stay tuned for more on that!

While Rich is tailgating Jesse and I are gonna head on over to stand in line in order to get up close and personal for Steve Balmer’s last CES keynote. We will be holding a hanky for him as we live blog every little thing he says 

Finally…once we catch our breath we are hoping to have the first of our live podcasts this evening at our hotel. Since we are flying around right now we don’t have an exact time, but be sure to pay attention to our twitter @mobileroundup for details.

So stay tuned to webOSroundup and mobileRoundup for news on CES!

Source mobileRoundup

UPDATE: Turns out it was a fake. Someone made an app and called it “Twilter for webOS”. False alarm everyone. @ArthurThornton even commented on it here.

Source @ArthurThornton (Thanks for the tip Mr. XYZ)

Go to Preware, and get it now!

Source: @AppTuckerbox (Thanks for the tip @jcampanale)

Just about a month ago now Meg Whitman announced to the world that webOS was going to follow in Android’s footsteps and go open source. Much of the tech world rejoiced…us included, but what does that mean for the short term? What about further out?

Being the EiC of a webOS focused site I get asked a good bit as to what my thoughts are about it and whether or not 2012 is going to be “the year” of webOS [Don't we ask that every year? - Ed].

Will the fact that webOS is now open source change how the world sees our beloved framework? The answer could be yes…but there is a tough climb ahead. At WOR we are known for not pulling punches and we aren’t about to start now. So without further ado…here is what I believe it will take to make webOS a contender in the OS wars.

We need hardware. Period.

Here is the unvarnished truth: an OS that doesn’t have hardware isn’t an OS at all because it isn’t actually operating anything. HP has said very clearly that it is out of the smartphone business for at least the foreseeable future if not forever (probably forever). They have further said that they might make tablets sometime in 2013…that isn’t good enough. Not by a long shot. By 2013 webOS will be a distant memory.

In order to become more than a has been one or more major manufacturers need to embrace webOS this year. Now I am not saying that they need to focus purely on webOS and forsake all others, but a company like HTC, Samsung, or even one of the many Chinese companies that are beginning to flex their muscles will need to release a few models that have webOS as the primary operating system.

Is this likely? Hard to say. On the positive side, we have Googlerola out there. This merger ticked off a lot of the major Android brands because it is hard to see a future where Motorola isn’t going to get favored treatment.

Could this be enough to push them over the edge to try out webOS? In all honesty, the fact that Android is such a powerhouse makes this seem unlikely. Being a second class citizen to the biggest of the big is probably more enticing than being the champion of a brand that most people have never heard of. However, stranger things have happened.

Another possibility is that HP pulls a Microsoft and throws gobs of money at a respected manufacturer in return for them putting webOS on their devices. This strategy is just getting up and running with Nokia so it is hard to say whether this tactic works at all. Regardless, the real question there is whether HP has any interest in such a strategy.

Realistically the best chance of webOS getting its own hardware lies in some of the smaller, or less prominent brands, such as Huawei or even Lenovo (they like Android right now, but they are really just getting started in the smartphone market).

Why do I say that? Let’s jump to part 2.

Software

When webOS came out it truly was way ahead of everyone else. It may not have been the fastest on the block, but functionality like cards, synergy, etc. put it above everyone else. Fast forward to now and the things that made webOS unique are ingrained in every OS out there (except perhaps iOS).

Both the latest versions of WP7 and Android have a respectable implementation of cards. Android 4.0 also has, for all intents and purposes, synergy through their people functions.

So the playing field is basically leveled in terms of functionality, so where does webOS go from here? It has to innovate again. In an open source environment is that possible? That will really depend on HP.

When HP released webOS to the world what did that really mean? Did that mean that they washed their hands of it and were done? Or, perhaps, did it mean that they were going to be like Google and be its champion by improving on it constantly and making sure that the app store was up and running for all those who use it?

We don’t know the answer to that yet, but my big question is, why would HP spend millions or billions of dollars on improving it? Google has a lot of incentives…ads mainly and a lot of app sales. Does HP have some? It very well might. Having a top tier OS that they can leverage in their consumer and enterprise products could give them a competitive advantage when fighting with Dell, Lenovo, etc. Another possibility is that they could use webOS as the glue between their servers, printers, laptops, and other doodads that they produce. Having custom apps could allow these devices to talk to each other in completely new ways. More importantly these “new ways” would belong to HP.

The only hint as to the direction HP is going is the fact that they have kept a reported 600 people who are focused on webOS in some capacity. This includes the SWAT team that exists to build apps for corporations. Both of these are good signs and show that, at least for now, HP is content with being the overseer of development.

Hardware and software truly go together here. No manufacturer is going to put out a device for a dead OS, but if they are convinced that HP, and the avid community, is behind it, then they very well might take a risk and see if they can set themselves apart from the Android army.

Bringing it home

So will webOS take the world by storm in 2012? Not likely. The days where we dreamed that webOS would become number one, second, or even third in the smartphone wars are most likely behind us; however, if some hardware comes out this year and HP really does get behind the software, then it is entirely possible that webOS could have a small, yet profitable, place in the smartphone arena.

Selling 50 million devices a year is not required to be profitable. What needs to happen is that webOS needs to find its niche this year. Will it be the tinker toy for the super geeks like Linux has been for all these years? Will it be home to a new brand of business device championed by HP?

What do you think? In your estimation, where do you think webOS will be a year from now?