In this third in our series of interviews, we talk with Shimon Shnitzer. Shimon is TAKEphONE, and today he’s talking to us about developing without a Treo, and the direction his products are taking.

MTDN: So tell me what got you started. What inspired TakePhone?

SS: It all started as a hobby - I bought a Handspring Visor, and decided I want to write some s/w for it. Actually my first idea was to address a need I had - taking quick notes - mainly phone numbers… So - there was created TAKE-a-NOTE. Then - since I was working back then with a firm called Way2call, making telephony hardware, I was drawn into adding telephony features to it - I even ended up making phone calls from my Visor device via our own dialer box (serial).

It was then I had to change the name to TAKEphONE. When the buble burst - I was laid off (along with everyone in the company), so I decided to make my hobby - my living.

MTDN: And it’s been successful enough to do that?

SS: Well - no complaints… When I added 2day to my line of products, it really boosted up sales for both products.

MTDN: When you went from the Visor to the Treo - how difficult was it since you were one of the last people in the world to actually get the handset?

SS: Actually the first SmartPhone (can we call them SmartPhones ?) I supported was the Samsung i300 - a user just sent me a simple interface to make it dial. Then when the Treo came out (actually when the VisorPhone came out) - Handspring were wise enough to publish a real good API, so I could write the code “blinded” and rely on some good people for “remote debugging”

MTDN: Fantastic. How many handsets does TP run on?

SS: Well - Treos 180/270/300/600/650, Samsung i300/330/500 (working on the i550 now), Kyocera 6035/7135, Xplore G18, Tungsten T|W…

MTDN: You must have a great beta team.

SS: I would really like to take this opportunity to thank all those people out there, who were willing to help me test those interfaces - I was able to write such great code for a whole lot of devices - the Treo, the Samsung and Kyocera ones… even before I ever saw a real device.

I must also say - the various forums (present one among the top) were a great place to find those people and to get help, ideas, requests to improve my products.

MTDN: You have always been lightning fast in responding to your users. I can remember your releasing several versions in a row in a day or two. (I know I’ve chided you in the forums about taking a vacation!)

SS: TP can also make calls to standard cellular phones via IrDA or Bluetooth, and even dial using a BeamDial device. And, of course, there is TeleTone - making calls via the device speakers (DTMF)

MTDN: How does that work?

SS: BeamDial ? It’s a box connected between the wall phone line jack, and your telephone set (landline phone), with an IrDA interface. You just point your Palm device (whatever device you have, as long as it has IrDA), and dial via TP - and the box picks up the line and makes the call.

MTDN: Hrmm…that brings up an interesting thought. Will the addition of BlueTooth have any impact on remote dialing? For instance, could I use my TakePhone to dial someone else’s BlueTooth enabled (nonsmart) phone if they don’t have the number and I do?

SS: You mean with the Treo 650 ? To be honest - I wouldn’t know - as always the last to get a real device… I can say with my good old Tungsten-T I can have my Nokia 6310i make calls to any number. If the T650 has the telephony profile - it should work, too. Maybe we can ask someone at the forum to test that for us - the capability is already inside TP.

Regarding getting a T650 - this is a real irritating spot for me - I would get a device as soon as the unlocked GSM ones were available, but for some reason PalmOne will only ship devices within the US/Canada, so all developers from other countries are out of luck…I finally got my Treo 600 when I went to the PalmSource DevCon in Germany, but I dont want to wait till next year for the next DevCon.<

MTDN: When I spoke to Rob from Hobbyistsoftware for the last interview, he mentioned that Tadd (rosenft) was helping him get one. MTDN is offering you the same courtesy. So hopefully you’ll have an unlocked 650 in your hands very soon. I hate seeing the good developers without the tools you need!

SS: Thanks. Any help will be appreciated.

MTDN: You’ve added 2Day to your product line, and all sorts of plugins to go with it. What’s next?

SS: Oh - the list is so long…

1. 2day is waiting for me to be done with the latest release of TAKEphONE, first for some more integration with the Treo 650, and some new features asked by users.

2. Then some plugins are pending - a news plugin, a profiles plugin…

MTDN: I know a lot of people are dying for a profiles plugin for the 650.

SS: 3. Then I am thinking lately of making my own version of “TAKEphONE lite” many people have asked for - it’s not exactly what they asked, but rather a whole new approach to enhancing the telephony experience. I can not go further on this, until I have the whole picture clearer in my head (sorry).

MTDN: That’s ok - we appreciate whatever you’re willing to share.

SS: 4. There are also a whole bunch of small utilities people have asked for, such as the “auto-redial on busy” I have incorporated into TP.

MTDN: How’s it coming on that since the Treo apparently doesn’t give a busy signal?

SS: Regarding the profile plugin - I already have a start in 2day (not published yet - showing the current master volume & vibrate state, but am waiting for Natcho and/or Jeff Gibson (ScheduleCare) to be ready for integration. The plugin interface for 2day is REAL simple, so adopting ANY profile (or whatever) application to have a plugin is really a breeze.

Regarding auto-redial - it’s true, there is a problem with the current Treos (actually it has to do more with the carriers, I suspect) that do not supply the busy detecion in the first place. I have another idea I might try, but I really need a Treo 650 for that…

MTDN: I’m sure that getting you the 650 will be the easy part now!

SS: With regards to the busy detection - I have to agree… But I think it’s feasible.

MTDN: I hope so. That would be a great addition to the Treo.

SS: I know. One of the reasons I like to attend the forums and respond to users, is I get a lot of brilliant ideas for products this way (and people to test them).

MTDN: People are more willing to test when you’re that visible and responsive on the forums too. TakePhone was one of the first pieces of software I bought when I got my Treo 270. It puts the smart in smartphone - I can’t imagine a Treo without it.

SS: Well - Treo was the first Palm I bought after I wrote TAKEphONE. They complement each other.

MTDN: In the immortal words of Forest Gump, they go together like peas and carrots.

SS: LOL

MTDN: Anything else you’d like to share with our MTDN readers?

SS: Well - it’s late… nothing comes to mind. (editor’s note: the current time in Israel is midnight)

MTDN: Alright. I’ll let you get on with your work - or sleep then. Thank you for taking the time to talk to me.

SS: NO problem. Thank YOU for the opportunity!

MTDN: My pleasure. See you on the MTDN forums!

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