If you have ever travelled to a foreign country, where English was not the native language of the country, and the language of the country was not your native language, and fumbled with a dictionary or a pocket translator, you know that these devices are less than optimal as language references - especially for real time interaction. A better solution would be a device that could accept spoken or written input and show a translation. Of course, a voice recognizing translator is still some time off. But the Newton MessagePad appeard to be a perfect platform for a handheld translator that could accept written input and show a translation. Thus the idea for AMIGO.

      AMIGO is an application created for the Newton MessagePad as a handheld language reference and simple translation program for English and Spanish. Unlike a pocket translator or a dictionary, there is no fumbling. You write a word or phrase and AMIGO attempts to translate it by looking for the word or phrase in its dictionary. AMIGO can also translate a sequence of words and phrases.