How To Run J2ME Programs on Palm Devices
Palm products are very popular mobile communication tools which have a large number of properties. Because of the properties that these devices have, they have been combined with programs such as Java.
Products such as the Palm Treo are being used to run a number of Java MIDP programs. Runtime support is provided, and it will allow these systems to work together. It is possible to combine your J2ME programs with the Palm operating system by using WEME. To do this, you will need to have knowledge of Java MIDP.
If you want to use J2ME programs, you will first need to setup a device which will serve as the target. This device must have the Java Virtual Machine along with the libraries which can allow it to use the J2ME classes. The runtime for Java was first created by Sun in the late 1990s. The implementation of Java on Palm products has existed for quite some time. At the same time, it was difficult to get a Java runtime to work on Palm products which could work effectively for certain applications. Many of these programs had stability or performance issues.
The creation of the IBM WEME has effectively solved these problems. It has created a sophisticated runtime that will work well for a large number of Palm products. Some of these Palm products are the Treo and Zire. The WEME has a number of elements that can work for Palm devices. It has the Java MIDP, the localization overlays for multiple languages, and the use of PIM and FileConnect. In addition to this, it can also use a panel which will work well for the Palm operating system. These elements can be acquired from two places. If you are only interested in doing basic things with J2ME applications, you can install the handheld packages.
If you want to do more advanced things like create J2ME programs, you will need to get some components from IBM. The products that you can get from IBM are built with Windows DLLs, and they can work with the Palm Stimulator. This will allow you to test your J2ME programs on your computer. The first thing you will want to do is study the internal portion of a basic application. J2ME programs are released as two pieces, and these pieces are the Java program description and the Java archive. The Java archive has the code for the Java program, while the Java program description can be found with a .jad file.
The division between these two pieces will make it easier for your J2ME products to figure out what is necessary for running a program without wasting a large number of resources in the process. It can also solve the problem of downloading a J2ME program which is too big for the device you want to put it on. Every J2ME program you work with will utilize what is called a MIDLet class. The constructor will be named after the class. The goal of the J2ME runtime is to generate an instance of your program. The constructor will perform the creation of the necessary objects.
The J2ME runtime can use the startApp to start the programs. It will also need you to provide it with the pauseApp method. This will occur if the runtime decides to pause the program. An example of this would be if you are getting an important phone call. In addition to this, you will also have to give the J2ME runtime the destroyApp method. The runtime may request this when the program ends. Another method that you will want to become familiar with is the commandAction method. The commandAction method will study commands that are received and will also close the program.
A JAD file may also need to be used with your applications. The JAD file is a key/value pair that will provide a description for the program. If you are not building your J2ME program from scratch, you will need to pick the environment that you want your program to be created in. The environment that you choose should be dependent on the properties you choose to use. It should also be dependent on the JAR file that will be created when you design your program.
