Webshell On-screen keyboard

**knightflores** · 07/02/2009, 03:55 PM

how hard would it be to make an app to port the webshell onscreen keyboard that was found not to long ago into webOS and our palm pre???

**knightflores** · 07/02/2009, 04:35 PM

is there even any interest in creating this?

**Binary Tech** · 07/02/2009, 04:58 PM

theirs no point in porting the webshell version since the webshell is running with python i believe, it would be simpler to write one from scratch using Mojo.

**knightflores** · 07/02/2009, 05:03 PM

well thats my question how hard would it be to build one from scratch?? i have minor html css experience and would love to make this app but not sure if it is beyond my capabilities!!!

**CTL Advance** · 07/02/2009, 05:44 PM

There isnt a point as palm will be coming out with one most definately.

**knightflores** · 07/02/2009, 06:35 PM

there are those in this and many other forums that dont believe they will add an on-screen keyboard. not only that look how long it took apple to get the on-screen keyboard work in landscape mode on their iphone... hopefully palm wont take that long, still i would like to know if there is a homebrew app in the works or if this is even possible.

**d3mon187** · 07/02/2009, 06:54 PM

Judging by how long it took Android to come out with an onscreen keyboard, I'm kinda thinking it will probably be a while. Personally, I wish the Pre was thinner and just had an onscreen keyboard. My 2-3yr old htc touch is almost identical in size to the pre but is actually thinner despite its age because of this. I'm probably in the minority on all of that, but that's just what I prefer.

**knightflores** · 07/02/2009, 07:14 PM

well i just want an on-screen keyboard for short texts or web browsing... and your right it did take android a while.

**CTL Advance** · 07/02/2009, 07:20 PM

well then it would be fairly simple to make one, especially with some mojo.

**rboatright** · 07/02/2009, 07:36 PM

palm's style specks suggest that the smallest "reasonable" target on the screen is 45 px.

if that's true, a 4 line qwerty keyboard is 585 x 180 --- wider than the screen is wide, and 2/3 of the screen tall.

a pure alphabet keyboard is still 450 px wide... so, you're talking about a landscape keyboard that entirely covers the screen.

otoh, i'm getting pretty good at typing with my thumbnail while holding the phone in landscape mode. I dont think I would want the onscreen, even if you used the ringer-vibrate to give some haptic feedback.

**rboatright** · 07/02/2009, 07:37 PM

see my scicalc app in homebrew apps for an app with a target NARROWER than 45 px. it's -hard- to use without a stylus.

**knightflores** · 07/02/2009, 07:45 PM

damn you apple you win this battle but the war is not over... anybody else have any ideas on how an on-screen keyboard could be possible?

**knightflores** · 07/02/2009, 08:28 PM

screen shots of the webshell on-screen keyboard

**rboatright** · 07/03/2009, 01:27 AM

knightflores, have you tried to type on that?

those targets are VERY small. The iphone is physically bigger than the pre.

**windzilla** · 07/03/2009, 02:02 AM

Originally Posted by rboatright

knightflores, have you tried to type on that?

those targets are VERY small. The iphone is physically bigger than the
pre.

I have a samsung omnia that I could type on in both portrait or landscape with a screen slightly slimmer and slightly longer than the pre. No real reason why it couldn't be seviceable here, even with differences in touch tech

**knightflores** · 07/04/2009, 09:21 PM

Bump

**roninj** · 07/05/2009, 12:49 AM

Sometimes I just want to quickly type something in (launching a program, looking for an artist in the music player, looking for a contact), and sliding the keyboard out to do that is a lot of extra effort. It would be wonderful if someone could just take this keyboard or some other, chop it up and then make it scrollable. That would solve the size problem, and would still be perfectly functional for typing in a few characters. For anything longer than that, the physical keyboard is probably better anyway.

**knightflores** · 07/05/2009, 12:32 PM

you know i never thought of that but making the keyboard scrollable would solve the size problem.... any body care to brainstorm??? well i dont think that we need the keyboard in portrait just in landscape, but thats just me...

**pychozoundz** · 07/05/2009, 01:50 PM

This was mentioned a few threads down, but if you really wanted to, you could make a T9 keypad for portrait. For landscape you could do one of those keyboards that combine q and w into one key, e and r, etc. Or a variant of a T9 keypad that is vertical. Think outside the box, on screen keyboards will work, just not in a traditional way.

Scrolling keyboard? Sounds counter-productive. Rather flip to portrait.

**mclark2112** · 07/29/2009, 04:55 PM

A keyboard would be the killer app for me. I hate having to slide open the keyboard just for a quick 2 or 3 letters to find a phone number. You could have an onscreen keyboard, and when you open the phone, it goes away.

And landscape would be great too, although I find that I don't use the Pre in landscape that much, even when browsing.

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