Rexx Programmer's Reference

Chapter 25. Rexx for Palm OS

Overview

Palm OS is an operating system that runs on a wide variety of handheld, tablet-style computers, such as the Palm Pilot and its many competitors. It also runs on other small devices including mobile and smart phones. Palm OS is among the most popular operating systems for handheld consumer devices.

Rexx for Palm OS is a Rexx interpreter that runs natively under the Palm OS operating system. It enables the creation of scripts and utilities for handheld PCs that extends their usefulness. It accesses all Palm resources and integrates them in unique fashion. This chapter describes the product and presents a brief tutorial with sample scripts.

First, we start by listing and discussing the features of the Rexx for Palm OS interpreter. We describe how to download and install the product. Then, the tutorial takes you through progressive examples that show how to use the product to script Palm handhelds. The first script simply displays a memo on the screen of the handheld. It shows how to access Palm resources. Subsequent scripts search and copy databases, and demonstrate stream I/O and how to control, manage, and search for files. Several scripts present information on how to communicate with the Palm using infrared, USB, and serial ports, and TCP/IP communications. Finally, a rather ambitious script selects and plays a song. This script searches for a music file and plays it through MIDI output.

By the end of the chapter, you'll be able to script almost ...