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08/04/2002 Interview with Mike Rohde- founder of The Palm Tipsheet
Why did you decide to start the Palm Tipsheet, when did you first start it and how many subscribers do you have at the moment?
I decided to start the Palm Tipsheet because I've always enjoyed finding gems of information and sharing those gems with other people. As a kid I enjoyed creating my own newspapers and selling drawings I'd done, so this was a natural thing for me. My interest in handhelds, writing, the Internet and email all converged to provide the basis for the newsletter. I first started the Tipsheet in late 1997 as a little email newsletter written and sent to about 10 handheld using friends and family members. It was a fun, easy, inexpensive way to share the latest software and hardware announcements as well as the new ways I'd found to use my Pilot 1000. It was quite irregular at first, then I made it a quarterly and finally, in May 2000, I began publishing the Palm Tipsheet on a monthly basis. At this time I started heavily promoting each Palm Tipsheet issue on mailing lists and popular Palm-related websites like PalmStation, Palm Infocenter, PDA Geek and Visor Central. I began with about 10 subscribers to my personally-sent email version; currently the email newsletter has 10,790 worldwide subscribers and that doesn't take into account readers of the HTML, mobile, Doc, iSilo and Plucker versions of the Tipsheet.
What were your original intentions for it and do you think it has been successful?
My original intentions were to inform a few good Palm-using friends about the latest updates and share cool things I'd learned about my Pilot 1000. However, as it progressed, I realized the newsletter could easily be expanded (via the Internet) to a much larger international audience. When I realized this, I began a little PR work and it's been growing ever since. I write and publish the Palm Tipsheet to help other Palm handheld users make the very most of their Palm handhelds, and I think it does just that. I feel great satisfaction in squeezing every ounce of capability from the things I own and this is part of my drive to help others do the same. If I can help someone else to feel they have fully explored, used up and sucked dry their current handheld by upgrade time, I'm a happy guy. Because I have many international friends, I also had the intention of reaching an international audience. I wanted to keep in mind the international perspective, since the US perspective is already well covered by Palm-related sites. This evolved into each month's international Palm user interviews, which I really love. I've learned of so many new Palm apps this way and I especially enjoy hearing what Palm use and acceptance is like in other countries and how each user applies a handheld to their needs. Financially, I'm not so concerned about what profits come from the Tipsheet as that's not the point for me. I write because I love to write -- it keeps my mind and thinking fresh and helps me to grow and learn more about handhelds. I do earn a few dollars from affiliates, reader donations and targeted banner ads, but it doesn't even start to cover the hours invested. But I'm ok with that because it's fun to do and I'm bringing enjoyment, help and delight to others through my work. As far as I'm concerned, that's a success.
If you could have done something different what would it be?
Maybe I would have started writing and promoting the Tipsheet much sooner. I had a gap between early 1998 and early 2000 where the newsletter and site languished a bit and now I wish I'd have started going sooner... but I have no regrets.
Why did you decide to buy a Clié and when did you buy your first PDA (and > what machine was it)?
Oddly enough, I was a pretty happy Handspring Deluxe owner since May 2000, until we bought a Clié 610 series for my wife in January 2002. At the time, I felt I didn't need the upgrade, as the Visor worked fine. I had all my accessories organized and had the machine setup and tuned perfectly. Well, I should never underestimate the power or Clié using family and friends, nor close proximity of a nice new Palm handheld! After playing with Gail's Clié and talking with my friend Andy in London (a Clié 770 user) I became curious. When I began seeing the difference between my muddy green screen and Gail's bright, hi-res color one... well, I thought maybe a Clié might be my next step. Then I realized that writing with WordSmith and a foldable keyboard would be much easier on a Clié with the hi-res screen. Also, reading with iSilo would improve, especially in less than perfectly lit environments. I then heard the 610 had great battery life for a color machine. Lastly, I was interested in an intermediate handheld which could meet my needs until it's time to upgrade to a handheld with OS 5. So, I found a refurbished silver Clié 610 on eBay and bought it. My very first PDA was a Pilot 1000, bought on sale for $100 in June 1997. I had been given a demo of a Pilot 1000 by a friend of mine while in Germany and was interested in Newtons prior to that (but never bought one). I fully intended to use the Pilot's 30 day money back guarantee offered with it if the novelty wore off -- but within 3 days I was completely sold! :-)
Do you have plans to make a tipsheet for any other platforms such as > Pocket PC etc.
Nope. I'm a dedicated Palm OS guy and haven't the interest, time or energy to expand into the Pocket PC or any other areas.
Do you have any specific plans for Clié related articles in the future?
Yes, in fact I'm planning an article about my transition from a Handspring Visor Deluxe to Sony Clié 610 in the June 2002 issue. 2 years ago, when I converted from a PalmPilot Pro to the Visor I wrote an article about the experience and thought it would be interesting to do the same for my Visor to Clié transition. I'll likely be mentioning Clié-related items a bit more in the Notable Links area, as that really reflects not only the news, but what I find interesting in the Palm handheld community.
Where do you see the PDA industry going- will one platform become dominant and if so who?
I think the PDA industry is still very much in its infancy and will grow significantly in the next 5 years. Just look how much growth and change we've seen in the last 5 years! I see PDA makers beginning to specialize -- in other words, there will not be one device that holds the market, but many devices holding the market together. One size fits one rather than one size fits all. Michael Mace at PalmSource, Inc. spoke about this trend in his keynote speech at the PalmSource conference in February 2002. I think he's right on. In fact, we're already seeing evidence of this. Handspring, Kyocera and Samsung are aiming at phone-plus-pda users; HandEra is focused on business and super-users, Sony is clearly aiming at consumers and Palm is looking to enterprise. This is completely different from Microsoft's one size fits all approach with the PocketPC. Certainly the devices may look a bit different cosmetically and offer a few differing options, but essentially Pocket PC handhelds are all the same -- same screen size, hardware specs and prices. As far as who will be dominant -- I'm optimistic about the Palm OS and believe it will hold on to the majority of the market. Why? Let me share my reasons: 1) Sony. I think Sony saved Palm, coming up with a great line of handhelds at just the right time (remember the dim-screened m505?). Sony's handhelds seem able to match and exceed the flash factor that Pocket PC devices rely on, while maintaining the solid organizer core of the Palm OS. Sony is also able to evolve handhelds incredibly quickly -- faster than any Palm OS or Pocket PC maker can -- and each handheld they release is better than the last! Finally, Sony has the money, market presence and insight into the consumer's mindset which keeps them on top in all other areas -- a real key to defending the Palm OS from Pocket PC assaults. 2) Palm OS 5 and ARM chips. While I think the OS 5 upgrade is late, Sony's presence in the Palm OS market has allowed OS 5 and ARM chips to sustain a delay and still have a significant impact. Developers are excited about OS 5 and ARM because of the power and relative ease of porting apps to the new hardware/OS. I think once this phase is in full swing, things will get really interesting. 3) I think the multi-faceted approach by various licensees is a good thing for the Palm OS, as it makes a defeat by Microsoft much harder to attain. Many targets exist, rather than one larger target. This seems most apparent when you compare the single-minded focus of MS compared to the multi-focus of Palm handheld makers. This is also an advantage because Palms have low and high price points, while Pocket PCs are all at high price points. 4) Software. I'm constantly surprised by the amount of creative, high quality software solutions available for Palm handhelds. Palm's open door approach toward developers is the reason why thousands of cool apps for Palm handhelds exist. I think this trend will continue to bolster Palm's development dominance against Pocket PC. 5) Palm 'gets' organizers -- Microsoft doesn't. Palm OS devices work much better as full-time organizers you can (and want to) take everywhere, because the Palm OS is an organizer at its core. The Palm's combo of powerful PIM tools, long battery life and the option to expand, in a small, simple to use package are still very attractive features for many people. I think these reasons give the Palm OS an edge. I suppose we'll see how things shake out, but I think Microsoft is beatable. Even though MS has oodles of cash to throw around -- people tend to use what works well and I think Palm handhelds work well.
What specific feature would you like to see in the next generation PDA's?
I'm excited by wireless technologies like Bluetooth and Wi-Fi 802.11b for HotSync and wireless web access. I think these two protocols built into new handhelds would offer many new options for users, not to mention, limiting the number of ugly cables connected to my Mac Powerbook!
What's you favourite music artist and song?
I like all sorts of music, but love especially love Jazz. In particular, I would choose Miles Davis and the song 'All Blues', from his album 'Kind of Blue' as my favorite song. Excellent stuff.
How long do you spend on the tipsheet on average per month?
I figure 20-30 hours, but it depends on what's happening in the Palm community and if I or a guest writer are writing for the issue. I've been trying to streamline the process -- I hope to shave 2-3 hours off my time. Shaun, thanks so much for the opportunity to interview with Clié World! I hope your site continues to grow and prosper.
Great interview! This man really knows his stuff which explains why the Palm Tipsheet is such a good read- visit the Tipsheet web site to sign up (it's free to do so by the way).