Malacca is the world's most advanced interface for handhelds, and is based on IML v2.0, the Simputer's XML-based
lingua franca. Proprietary to PicoPeta, it represents an exciting new direction as an interface to small screen, mobile computing devices. It features four revolutionary breakthroughs which will be of immense value to a developer of handheld applications:
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Word Origin: Yes, it is the same as in Malacca Straits. The waterway that controlled and
decided the destiny of spice trade and by extension the history of world
trade. Click here for a historical note.
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1. One space Interface to Sight, Touch, Audio
Small screen faces demand innovative use of space. Malacca is built on XML-based standards especially designed to facilitate content and application creation within the constraints of a small screen device. Its critical success factor is that it allows for native and seamless access through an interactive touch-based interface:
- simple and powerful display (array of icons, widgets, themes, languages)
- a range of audio capabilities (synthesized text-to-speech, mp3 files, raw audio files)
2. Integrated Access to a smart card reader/writer
Malacca is
aware of Simputer peripherals, particularly the smart card reader/writer. It
provides special tags that allow developers to directly read from and write to
smart cards, without the need for any other programming interfaces.
To accelerate development, Malacca on the PC platform also provides a
smart card emulator. This allows the developer to develop and test smart card
applications for the Simputer without actually owning a Simputer.
3. Transparent and Secure Operation of Remote
Applications
Malacca offers transparent access to applications that
reside on remote Simputers. This allows developers to freely communicate with
remote applications without having to worry about protocols and network
interfaces. Malacca also offers native integration with SSL (Secure Sockets
Layer) to facilitate secure transactions.
4. Annotation of IML pages
Malacca is the one of the world's first
commercial interfaces to allow for the annotation of a page, even remote pages! The annotation interface is very simple - just write on the screen. The next time you visit the page, your comments will be there for you to read. This introduces a new dimension to collaborative work. Future versions of Malacca will allow for the sharing of annotations, enriching the user experience even further.
Malacca, which is PicoPeta's implementation of the IML 2.0 specification, provides a simple, unified and rich environment for the developement of software on the Simputer. The typical development cycle using Malacca consists of developing the backend code (much the same way as CGI programs) on a PC platform using a scripting language like Perl/TCL and a backend database like MySQL/SQLite. Just zip the appropriate files and download them onto the Simputer. It moves across seamlessly in an operational mode.
Malacca is a significant move forward both for developers and users of the PicoPeta Simputer, and handhelds in general
SEE ALSO
Download and Test Drive Malacca
Malacca: Documentation
Malacca: User Guide
Malacca: Code Samples
Malacca: A Business Perspective
Things you can do with Malacca
