Palm has announced a new applications framework called Enyo which it will release to developers next year. The new framework is intended to attract developers to the latest version of the vendor’s webOS operating system. The first webOS 2.0-based device, the Palm Pre 2, has just launched and the operating system will run a range of new devices, including smartphones and tablets, to be launched by Palm next year. The new application framework promises to load apps faster and will have the flexibility to work across various form factors. Palm announced the framework at its webOS Developer Day in New York.

The newly-released Palm Pre 2 is not just the first handset based on the webOS 2.0 operating system, it’s also the first new handset launched by the company since it was taken over by HP earlier this year. HP plans a series of device launches in 2011 to reinvigorate Palm and hopefully claw back territory lost to smartphone rivals. Key to the success of the Palm Pre 2, and to later devices, will be how quickly the company can build up its base of developers. Currently, it lags a long way behind its rivals. The new Enyo framework is designed to aid that rebuilding process. It is the successor to the company’s existing Mojo framework. But Mojo is not about to disappear, the company says, which will reassure its existing loyal band of developers.