Before General Magic There Was Paradigm
General Magic was the company that created the Magic Cap operating system and hand-held devices including the Sony Magic Link and Motorola Envoy. Many concepts from Magic Cap went on to new lives in …
Magic Cap Resources
This is a collection of resources for the Magic Cap device owner. Magic Cap was the operating system used in several handheld computers including the Sony Magic Link, Motorola Envoy, and General …
Motorola Envoy
Operating System: Magic Cap 1.0, later 1.5. Pros: ARDIS radio modem, sturdy clamshell design, two PC Card slots. Cons: Price of ARDIS radio service, non-backlit screen, slow-mo user experience. …
DataRover 840F ROM Flashing Card
JET very kindly unearthed a treasure chest containing the One True ROM Image for DataRover 840s, a PC Card that will flash a 840’s ROM to Magic Cap 3.1.2j. This card can be used to re-flash a ‘rover …
Magic Cap Developer Documentation
These are documents from the Magic Cap SDK which may be of interest to the community, particularly those into software development and usability. Warning to developers digging for ideas: some topics …
The Future of Magic Cap
Question: Whatever became of Magic Cap? Will it ever be released into the public domain? Is OpenMagic happening behind closed doors somewhere? Answer: Unfortunately, no. Here’s the story according to …
Sony HIX-300: "Bamboo"
Operating System: Magic Cap pre-1.0. Pros: Slim form factor, cool looks (perhaps the coolest). Cons: Awful screen, custom battery, difficult left-handed operation. History Bamboo was a mystery to me: …
CujoChat: IRC for Magic Cap!
CujoChat is an Internet Relay Chat (IRC) client for Magic Cap communicators. IRC is a multi-user, real-time conferencing/chat system running on the Internet. Users talk on topic-oriented channels, …
MagicHTTP: The Portable Web Server
As I was digging through some backup CDs I stumbled onto this little gem from my General Magic days. MagicHTTP was a web server I built in early 1996 that ran on Magic Cap personal communicators. Not …
Magic Cap Device Gallery
This page lists many of the Magic Cap devices which existed at some time or another, including both production machines and prototypes. Sony HIX-300 Sony's first Magic Cap device, never released to …
Zodiac Prototype
Operating System: Magic Cap 3.x (Rosemary), small screen version Pros: Half the size of other units, fantastic keyboard. Cons: Small screen, no PC Card slots, no backlight, no rechargeable battery. …
Apollo Prototype
Operating System: Magic Cap 3.x (Rosemary) Pros: Simply enchanting paint job, second-generation guts, backlit screen. Cons: Fragile prototype plastics. History As mentioned in the DataRover 840 …
Rosemary Software Archive
This is an archive of stuff pulled from kelp.icras.com before it went down. Currently it's (almost) exactly as it existed on kelp, no better, no worse. An invaluable resource for new DataRover owners. …
Magic Cap Mailing List
All Magic Cap device owners should join the mailing list. It’s low traffic these days, and there are several experts who can answer most any question. Join or browse the archives here: …
Updating the Datarover 840F (flash) ROM
Thanks to Alasdair Dunlap-Smith for writing this FAQ entry. Many people (myself included) have reported problems installing packages on the Datarover 840F. It seems lately many people have gotten …
DataRover 440: "Gemini"
Operating System: Magic Cap 3.x (Rosemary) Pros: Clamshell design, hardware keyboard, screen folds completely back for tablet-like use. Cons: Lame keyboard, no PC Card slot, somewhat lame NiMH …
DataRover 840: "Apollo"
Operating System: Magic Cap 3 (Rosemary) Pros: Good screen with cover, great battery, second-generation guts. Cons: Not many. History The saga of getting a second-gen production device seemed to never …
Sputnik Prototype
Operating System: Magic Cap 3 (Rosemary) Pros: Manly paint job. Same fit and finish as PIC1000, but custom second-gen guts inside. Cons: Same awful screen as as PIC1000. History Sputnik is …
Panasonic NeoNet
Operating System: Magic Cap 1.5 Pros: Great form factor – very slim. Cons: No rechargable battery. History Nobody wanted to admit to creating NeoNet. It was the nameless, parentless child of… who? …
Sony PIC-2000: "Oak"
Operating System: Magic Cap 1.5 Pros: Great backlit screen, two PC Card slots, great battery, superb fit and finish. Cons: Faster than PIC1000, but still slow. History PIC-2000/Oak was an eagerly …
Sony PIC-1000: "Cedar"
Operating System: Magic Cap 1.0 Pros: Great battery, great rubberized paint. Cons: Awful low-contrast screen, Extra-slow-mo user experience. History The PIC-1000 has rightfully earned its place as a …
Motorola Envoy Models
Thanks to Wayne Sanderson for writing this FAQ entry. Question: I know there are two kinds of Motorola Envoy. Which is which- How are they different physically? Internally? Question: I want a Motorola …
Importing Text Files into your Magic Link
Thanks to Wayne Sanderson for writing this FAQ entry. Question: I want to transfer text files from my desktop computer to the Notebook on my MagicCap Communicator. What’s the best way to do this? …
Internet Email and Web Browsing
Thanks to Wayne Sanderson for writing this FAQ entry. Question: How do I connect to the Internet, use email, and browse the web? [Magic Cap 1.0/1.5]