webOS 2.0 Overview
by Mithun Chandrasekhar on February 3, 2011 6:05 PM ESTUniversal Search Made More Useful: Just Type
The next major, and what I feel is the biggest, update to webOS is the universal search system. Branded “Just Type”, universal search already existed in previous iterations of webOS and worked quite well in itself. But with webOS 2.0, HP has extended its utility from a simple search mechanism to a very powerful tool. The idea itself is very simple, and yet no one seems to have thought of or implemented it this way.
With Just Type (now prominently displayed on the home screen), you just need to start typing out whatever it is that you want. Contacts, texts, emails, addresses…just start typing them out. As you type out the text, webOS tries to figure out what it is that you’re planning on doing and suggest applications and actions accordingly. Now the applications part of it is quite straightforward; you type out "movie" and it suggests the Youtube application (or other related apps you may have installed) and also displays emails and calendar events related to the search term; type out an address, and select Google Maps from the suggested list to get going.
Universal search re-done, well done
However, the actions part of it is quite nifty. Just type out a message in the search bar, select “New Message” in the Quick Actions list, and your text is now copied into the text app, ready to be sent out as a new message! The same can be done for Calendar events, emails, tasks, and memos. You can also add or select the default application you want associated with an action.
Although it sounds very simple, it was brutally effective in how I started interacting with the phone. No longer did I have to open an app, select compose, and type out an email before sending it out. Instead, I could just start typing out the email itself, right from the home screen and select the “New Email” quick action at the end of it.
The Just Type and Quick Actions functionality can be exploited by developers and websites
And it doesn’t just end there; developers can integrate Just Type functionality in their apps and expose their apps to Just Type’s list of applications to search as well. In addition, webOS 2.0 now makes search engine suggestions when you visit a website that it feels could be added to the suggested search list. I found the last bit to be hit or miss, at least in its current form, as it would suggest I add a particular site to my list just because the site/forum had a search bar.
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ssj4Gogeta - Thursday, February 3, 2011 - link
Well, that sounds pretty bad. Google needs to advertise Android as a Google product. That will definitely help.Belard - Friday, February 4, 2011 - link
"4 OS Smartphones"? Uh, theres more than 4 on the market. But if WebOS(HP) can make a dent in the market place, it would be 6th major contender. Linux would be 7th and its dying out - killed by Android (Which is based off Unix).Around 2010, the smart phones :
1 - 36% = Symbian (Nokia - blah)
2 - 25% = Android (Samsung, Motorola, LG, HTC, SONY)
3 - 17% = iPhone
4 - 15% = RIM (Blackberries)
5 - -3% = Windows Mobile
6 - 2% = Linux (and getting smaller)
7 - -1% = WebOS 1.x and everything else including Sony's old system.
WebOS 2.0 is competing with 4~5 solid major competing systems.
A bit of fun. First SMART Phone is by IBM. The Simon from 1994. It has a huge mono-LCD touch screen, no actual buttons. Use your finger or a stylus to operate.
Looking at the screensshots, it looks great. Clean and simple. In ways, there are still issues with Android. I'm still on 2.1 with my Galaxy which isn't perfect, other than its screen.... and there are some interface issues that are harder than it should be.
Setting up an alarm, in which the screen button display is alpha numeric?!
rhangman - Friday, February 4, 2011 - link
Don't forget Samsung Bada. Surprisingly decent OS and the hardware is essentially the same as their Android/WM7 phones.Conficio - Thursday, February 3, 2011 - link
I like webOS too. sounds quite a bag of good ideas.But the hardware spec seems to be last years boat. by the time that hits the networks we are talking about dual core A9, etc.
The interesting part would be if HP could use this to build UIs for all its devices: phone, tablet, printer, scanner, monitor/TV remote, monitor OSD, cameras, notebook instant on, netbook instant on, etc.
Ahh, and make it open source and engage many hardware manufacturers. Google has done it, webOS does need too.
One more question, what is the app install story/marketplace? That is key for developers, isn't it?
Cyborg7th - Friday, February 4, 2011 - link
The pre's specs are last years boat... or more to the point, mid 2009. But at the time of release it was just as powerful, and in some areas better, than the other phones on the market.HP does plan on using webOS on tablets and printers so far that I know of, and possibly more in the future.
As for open source, webOS has Android blown away in that department. I have full access to everything on my pre, including a terminal interface which I can run shell commands on. Thanks to the homebrew guys/gals you can change almost everything on the phone, including overclocking it. My pre is curretly clocked at 1 ghz with custom voltages.
The last question is where I feel HP needs to step up their game on the software side of things. The current app store sucks to be blunt. I never use it anymore after loading preware onto my phone. But while webOS doesn't have a ton of apps available, a lot of them are free.
ChronoReverse - Friday, February 4, 2011 - link
That seems like a curious thing say about "blowing away Android" when the examples you provided are all possible on Android as well. Perhaps you meant to say iOS?Cyborg7th - Saturday, February 5, 2011 - link
Possible on Android... sure... now get back to me when you can do it without rooting your phone first.tenkom - Saturday, February 5, 2011 - link
It is not exactly officially supported on webos either and over clocking does require you to flash a new kernel. Many android phones are very easy to root so I don't think that is a very good argument.Cyborg7th - Saturday, February 5, 2011 - link
That was the arguement to begin with. My statement was about webos being more open than android. Out of the box, webos on any of the phones does not have to be rooted.Conficio - Thursday, February 3, 2011 - link
I'd think that many of these app features would be great as kind of a dashboard on Windows/Linux as well.So make a virtual phone as a dashboard (many laptops have multi finger mousepads and desktops start using it too - Apple?). Then sync the the phone and the dashboard app, allow any sort of sizing, make it a screensaver, etc.
Same for media access on your media settop box?
HP has the ability to do it, especialy if they OSS it.