Tour of App Search Widget for quick app launching
Nicolai Hess has released App Search Wdiget, which is a desktop widget for Maemo5 that shares many similarities with application launches like QuickSilver, Launchy, and GNOME Go. In most areas the N900 supports the ability to start typing to automatically search for the relevant content. [...] The one place that the N900 does not do this is the menu, and if you have a lot of applications installed searching for the one that you are looking for quickly becomes a pain. Enter App Search Widget by Nicolai Hess that lets you search for the relevant app right from the desktop. App Search Widget is currently available from Extras-testing.
Using Monorail and Maemo's open nature to share via IM networks
Alban Crequy has put together a set of improvements to the libsharing API to allow Monorail to send files over IM using the standard Maemo 5 "Sharing" dialogue. Jonny Lamb wrote Monorail, a file transfer application for the N900. Monorail is a standalone application using the Telepathy frameworkbut so far it does not integrate with libsharing-dialog. Libsharing-dialog is supposed to be extensible by plugins (see the Sharing Plug-in documentation). Unfortunately the API is more suitable for web services than for file transfers through instant messenging so it makes the work more difficult. So I implemented that fourth button with some hacks to workaround the limitations of the libsharing-dialog API. Monorail is currently available from Extras-devel (standard warnings and disclaimers apply).
Update for Advanced Geocaching Tool brings bug fixes
Daniel Fett has released a new update of Advanced Geocaching Tool which brings with it a series of bug fixes, including working fieldnote uploading, improvements in position indication, and last state-saving of "follow position". The update is currently available in Extras-testing.
headphoned update and gPodder roadmap
Thomas Perl has released a new headphoned update which brings with it support for MediaBox and other improvements. The beloved Headphone Daemon, who usually sleeps in the darker corners of your N900 and makes sure that you do not embarrass yourself in front of other passengers or pedestrians with whatever kind of experimental music you happen to listen to when the headphones are accidentally unplugged (also known as public transport situations) got a small facelift (also known as code change). The update is available from Extras-testing.
Mappero gets numerous routing improvements
Mappero, (formerly "Maemo Mapper"), has received another round of updates thanks to continued efforts from Alberto Mardegan. The new release, version 3.0 beta 11 contains a series of improvements and bug fixes: Google routing works: direct and faster, a new widget for inputing addresses, with history-based auto-completion, Bugfixes: POI edit/view screen doesn't destroy your data, fix some crashes introduced with 3.0+beta9, fix Yandex router, screen unblanking works again, and some other minor corrections. The latest release is currently available from Extras-testing. Interested contributors should download and test it (although the usual warnings and disclaimers, as always, apply).
fMMS hits 500,000 downloads
Nick Leppänen Larsson's MMS client, fMMS, has recently passed the 500,000 download mark on maemo.org, making it one of the most downloaded applications from Extras. I recently pushed 1.2.2 to extras-testing which has the option to “Save attachments” from the application menu when viewing an MMS, which should help everyone do whatever they want with the media they receive. [...] In closing I’d like to thank everyone for downloading and using this application! Just another 500,000 downloads to the first million! fMMS repressents a runaway success story for community-provided feature support, and serves as an example to us all of how to go about stepping up where Nokia either can't or wont. Of course these download numbers are likely inflated by Nick's rather active development cycle. ;)