Saturday June 9, 2001 - 6:20 PM EST - By Scott Hanselman

The Software

The MemPlug for CompactFlash is a true Springboard module; it has the software you need to use it built-in. These apps reside in Flash memory that is inside the module, they don't use any memory on your CF card. What's truly amazing is that the software that comes with the MemPlug for CompactFlash is the SAME software that comes with the MemPlug for SmartMedia! That means it's just as slick and cool as the original SmartMedia software, and that includes MOVIES on your Visor! :)

The MemPlug includes these very cool software applications:

	PiBackUp Simple, one tap backup of the entire Visor memory onto the removable CF card. This software is very similar to the HandSpring Backup Module's software. It doesn't include a lot of options (any) but it's an excellent app, and works as advertised. This is a must-have app for a Memory Adapter and is a great value - it's almost worth the cost of the adapter
	PiMover Complete file management for the removable CF card as well as internal memory. Create an arbitrary depth of sub-directories on the CF card. The interface for the PiMover is very intuitive and easy to use. I prefer it to the typical Flash FileMover applications that we see elsewhere.
	PiPrefs Quick formatting of CompactFlash cards, and manages other preferences
	PiViewer Direct decoding and viewing of JPEG images from removable CF cards in 16 bit color or 16 grey scale display. This is where the MemPlug really shines. If you have a Visor and a Digital Camera that uses CF, this app allows you to preview all your JPEGs - even LARGE ones! I'm so used to looking at 30K images on my Visor, but when I saw a 400K JPEG being decoded and viewed on my Visor, I was impressed.
	CSpotRun for MemPlug (free download separately) Read ebooks directly from Compact Flash
	gMovie Player Easily playback rich media, including video and animation directly from CF cards. When you see a Movie running on a Visor, you realize how we've subconsciously bought into the "superiority" of the PocketPCs with their 150+ Mhz Processors. I was amazed. The quality of the image and frame rate isn't as good as TealMovie, but gMovie allows you to play movies directly from the memory card! I was able to play a number of 12meg+ Movie Trailers that lasted several minutes in full color. The gMovie Player also runs on my black and white Visor Deluxe! That's impressive. There is no sound yet, but it's a start. Let's hope that products like TealMovie are extended to support play directly from a CF card!
	PiDirect (sold separately and coming on 6/15/01) Seamlessly access read-only Palm applications and databases stored on the memory card.

Portable Innovation Technology, Ltd. has chosen to bundle Generic Media’s leading rich media creation and playback tools for the Palm OS with the MemPlug for CF Adaptor. Together, these two technologies allow users to play up to 1 hour of video using a standard 64MB CF card. The gMovie Maker, also included with the MemPlug for CF Adaptor allows users to easily convert video, animation and still images into the gMovie format using Macintosh or Windows-based computers.

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