Access to the Palm webOS ROM has thrown up its next significant milestone, and users won’t even have to have jailbroken their Pre in order to take advantage of it.  Three coders – xorg, spotter and simplyflipflops - have found a method whereby emailing a link to an app can allow it to install on even a box-fresh Pre.

The link points to a .ipk file which, when accessed with the Pre’s browser, installs the app on the user’s phone.  Right now the only software publicly available is a proof-of-concept that installs a non-functional shortcut icon to the Pre’s menu, but there’s no reason why it couldn’t be used to load any number of third-party software.

Palm have been quietly forgiving to those trying to hack webOS – so far only the threat of unofficial tethering has prompted them to quietly request the tinkerers desist – but it remains to be seen whether the company continues this approach when complete software distribution is possible.  This system entirely bypasses the Pre’s application store, meaning Palm would make no revenue from paid-apps, and also opens up the possibility of users inadvertently loading malware from spam messages.  We wouldn’t be surprised to see Palm release another webOS firmware update that closed off this loophole, citing the latter as their primary reason.