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Introduction – Sony PEG-NZ90 User Manual

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Picsel Excel File Format Support

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Introduction

On handheld computers, traditional applications typically rely on

synchronization with a PC to convert content from the original
document format into a simpler format used by the device. This creates

at least three problems. Firstly, some visual integrity is inevitably lost in
the conversion process from a rich format to a simpler one, resulting in

documents that do not look exactly like the original. Secondly, the
reliance on a PC for synchronization means that direct network access is

difficult, and the device is severely hampered when untethered from the
PC. Thirdly, traditional applications take a monolithic approach,

converting only a single format so that separate applications are needed
for each different document type.


Picsel’s ePAGE applications present a new concept in document

viewing software. Unlike traditional approaches, the viewer can access
native files, so synchronisation is not necessary and files can be grabbed

straight off PC filing systems, flash cards and networks/internet without
the need for pre-conversion. ePAGE deals directly with the original

document in its native format, and aims to faithfully represent all of the
features of the original. Moreover, the novel software architecture

based on Picsel’s ePAGE technology enables multiple format types to be
richly supported in a single application.


ePAGE achieves a breakthrough in its ability to interpret and render

complex file formats. Many apparently straightforward formats have in
the past encountered difficulties even when used in their original

application software on a different platform, for example when going
from a PC to a Macintosh. Sometimes these files assume characteristics

of the computer on which they are used, such as the screen size or byte
order, and such assumptions have to be unravelled when using them on

a different device. To compound the challenge, some formats may
contain proprietary features which are not revealed to the public, and

which even have been forgotten within the originating company.
Others, such as HTML, have written standards yet are still subject to

differing interpretations as evidenced by the varying treatment of web
pages in proprietary browsers.