Smartphone Thoughts - Daily News, Views, Rants and Raves

"Publicly disclosable details about the future of Windows Mobile are still sparse, but we can let the door open a bit wider on what was shown at this year's Mobius with regard to the next two versions of Windows Mobile. We all know that 6.1 is around the corner, but it's the next two versions beyond that which are really interesting. Post-6.1, WinMo will indeed have its app suite revamped, including a desktop-grade port of IE to Windows Mobile, which Microsoft is replacing pocket IE with and directly targeting mobile Safari. Likewise, the rest of the consumer-centric apps (photos, media, etc.) as well as the messaging suite will be upgraded to be a bit friendlier. This whole experience won't be too foreign to long-time users, but is the next step in the right direction."



Ryan Block of Engadget fame has given us a little of the inside scoop of what to expect from the upcoming releases of Windows Mobile. Besides the replacement of Pocket Internet Explorer, which was long overdue, it appears that Microsoft is finally starting to take the pleading cries of their customers seriously. For years we have been begging for "duh"-like features for the Standard platform and for years Microsoft has slowly trickled them out in the most sub-par ways possible. A perfect example of this would be Office Mobile. While Office Mobile throws us miles ahead in the right direction of where Windows Mobile Standard users have wanted to be for years, Microsoft still managed to shoot the application in the foot by removing the ability to actually create new documents. It seems as though Apple's iPhone has managed to finally light a fire under the rump of Microsoft in the same ways Netscape did many years ago. Whether or not Microsoft actually pulls through with these pseudo-promised changes to our favorite mobile operating system is still up in the air, but so far the future looks auspicious.

"Explorer Mobile, by Orneta is a simple and easy to use file viewer and manager for Windows Mobile based devices. Browse, Open, Copy, Move, Rename and Delete files with ease -- and more! -- without the need for a personal computer."



Is this the beginning of a trend? Application developers racing to get out WM6 software? I hope so. Last time with WM5 it started out looking good and then we ended up waiting almost a year for some things. Nice to see this available now for the 10 people who actually have WM6 devices already. It even works on the lowly Professional devices.

"Sprite Explorer provides you with the flexibility of viewing, browsing and extracting files and folders from your Sprite Backup or Sprite Clone images from your PC. Recovering individual files or folders has never been easier or more intuitive. What�s more, Sprite Explorer is free! ... Have you ever had a situation where you have accidentally deleted a file, or over-written a key document. You know that you have a copy of the document in your last backup, but the only way to access that document would be to restore your image to your device, erasing anything that you have updated! Now with Sprite Explorer, you can explore your images, and extract individual files and folders. Recovery has got even easier."



Kudos to the folks over at SpriteSoftware for releasing this handy utility. I have faced the situation where the file I need is on one of the backup files; but to get to it I had to take a fresh backup, restore the old backup, recover the file and then restore the latest backup. Not anymore, thanks to this tool. What amazes me is that this tool is FREE for the Sprite customers. 8)

"We recently made a change in the next version of IE Mobile for Windows Mobile, regarding the IE Mobile User-Agent string. It was a little (ok - a lot!) out of date, and it really didn't suit our needs. It was a relic of a long ago fragmented product that just didn't reflect the current state of the browser. What we discovered as we updated the string was that many sites that thought they were properly detecting IE Mobile really weren't doing it the right way. Our own MSN sites had a few problems, which they're updating, so that they'll be ready to go when the new crop of devices hits the market. We've even talked to some very friendly fellows at a big, popular rival search engine company and made sure their seach page will render right when these devices ship. In the interests of helping fix the broken sites out there now, and getting people ready for the future, we're releasing our new User-Agent string right here, along with a pointer to some other information."

Here's some news for anyone that is offering mobile content over the internet. Future releases of Windows Mobile will have some changes to the User Agent string in Internet Explorer Mobile. For a full breakdown of the changes, check out the IEMobile Team Blog.

"With the latest Windows Mobile 5.0 AKU 2.3 release for Smartphones, Microsoft added some useful features to its Smartphone platform, including a file explorer and a slightly modified Start menu. Microsoft always uses these AKU releases to either fix bugs or to add new features and while most stuff and changes are under the hood, these two new features can be seen and used by the users and both adds more convenience to the Smartphone use."

One of the things I like about my Q is being able to scroll through all the programs in the start grid view. Until now you had to "more" your way through it on all the other Smartphones. Some enhancements to the built in file explorer are also included. The catch here of course is will you be able get your hands on this latest AKU. Here is a list of them so you can see where you are. :)

"Here�s something for WM5 Smartphone users out there. What the tweak will do is to allow you to use keypad buttons to scroll up or down PIE instead of using the joystick/ action button. Thanks to �dq366� of MoDaCo for the instructions."



MVP gpcarreon has posted what I think is the best tip ever. The tip solves my biggest problem: I have QVGA screen + EDGE + pIE on my Smartphone but browsing is still a pain. To scroll the page I have to use the joy stick which is slow. :evil: This tip overcomes the problem by creating keypad shortcuts for page up, page down, page top and page bottom etc. 8) Thanks encece, for pointing out this tip. So get your mobile registry editors out and add these settings. Since backup tools are not available, please be careful while modifying the registry. And gpcarreon has a solution for the Windows Mobile 2003 SE users also, check out the Windows Mobile 2003 SE fix over here.
I added the following KeyMaps on my Smartphone:
� Key pad button 2 (Value name: 50) -> Page up (DWORD value: 1)
� Key pad button 8 (Value name: 56) -> Page down (DWORD value: 2)
� Key pad button 3 (Value name: 51) -> Page top (DWORD value: 3)
� Key pad button 9 (Value name: 57) -> Page bottom (DWORD value: 4)
� Key pad button 5 (Value name: 53) -> Full screen toggle (DWORD value: 12)

"Smart Explorer lets you manage the files and folder on your phone. Using an original system, you can do operation such as cut-copy-past on several files/folders at a time. You can also search for a file or folder, send a file by email, via infrared or bluetooth."



Since the Smartphones nowadays come bundled with a simple file explorer, I haven't experimented with third-party file explorers. I have heard lots of positive comments for Smart Explorer, and it is QVGA and Windows Mobile 5.0 compatible. :-) Smart Explorer costs only $8.99 and is available here. [Affiliate]

"The Internet Explorer Mobile default layout fits the page content to the Windows Mobile-based device screen. The Internet Explorer Mobile default fit-to-screen layout can be changed. The Windows Mobile-based Smartphones have a Layout menu that enables users to select the Internet Explorer Mobile layout they want....Web developers use the MOBILEOPTIMIZED meta tag to control the Internet Explorer Mobile layout. Setting the MOBILEOPTIMIZED meta tag is equivalent to the Layout menu Desktop selection. When the MOBILEOPTIMIZED meta tag is set Internet Explorer Mobile does not modify the layout at all for the page containing the meta tag. With the meta tag, the screen width, minus margins, and scrollbars, is used to determine the width for rendering with fit-to-screen"

If you're developing a Windows Mobile-friendly site, this is a good bit of info to have. We'll be implementing this on our site as well, because it drives me nuts to see our carefully designed layout broken by IE Mobile because it's in one-column mode.

"If you were to look at my inbox you'd see around 5000 emails asking.... "How do I send files over Bluetooth with my Smartphone?" My answer is always the same. Go to Binarys.com and download SmartExplorer. If you want a file explorer for your Smartphone then this is the daddy. Sure, the new version (2.1.2) doesn't currently support bluetooth on Windows Mobile 5.0 devices like the C600, but 2.5 will be fully compatible when it arrives. Get the new spanky version of SmartExplorer here. You can also get the new version of Task Manager here which improves compatibility with QVGA and Windows Mobile 5.0 plus fixes some bugs."



Well there is always room for one more task manager and explorer program I always say. This task manager looks like it will let you shut down system processes and really crash your phone! I'm on board for that! You can get the latest incarnation of the explorer here or the task manager here.

"Smart Explorer lets you manage the files and folder on your phone. Using an original system, you can do operation such as cut-copy-past on several files/folders at a time. You can also search for a file or folder, send a file by email, via infrared or bluetooth."



Smart Explorer has been updated with many new features and bug fixes that included faster Bluetooth transfers, QVGA support, and improved ZIP handling, to name a few. You can view the complete list on the Binarys website. It looks like the upgrade is free to all existing customers. If you don't already have a copy, you can buy a copy from our affiliate store for $8.99 and then download the upgrade from the Binarys website.

"As T-Mobile announced earlier this year, the carrier plans to equip the "web'n'walk" ready devices with special "optimized Internet browsers" and now it seems we know what T-Mobile means. It looks T-Mobile will use Opera Mobile - at least for the Windows Mobile Smartphones as we can read now on T-Mobile's updated SDA II specification page: "Includes 64MB Mini-SD card with preinstalled Opera-Browser, SD card adapter to use the Mini-SD card with a card reader". So T-Mobile will definitively prefer the Opera Mobile Browser for Windows Smartphone over the original Internet Explorer Mobile (with Windows Mobile 5.0, Microsoft renamed the previously known Pocket Internet Explorer) which comes preinstalled with every Windows Mobile (5.0) device."



Our friend Arne Hess over at the::unwired is reporting that T-Mobile prefers Opera browser for its Windows Mobile devices. I like Opera but not sure if it has a really big edge over the Internet Explorer Mobile. What I am looking for in a mobile browser is support multiple browser sessions or tabs. ;-)

"Security firm Airscanner released information about several weaknesses in Pocket Internet Explorer, the standard web browser that comes pre-installed on Windows Mobile Pocket PC and Smartphone devices. These flaws can be used together to trick end users into submitting local and/or sensitive data, such as usernames and passwords. The potential for exploiting these vulnerabilities are restricted only by an attacker�s imagination. The research firm says that Pocket Internet Explorer is not as powerful as its big brother Internet Explorer, and as such, an attacker is limited in what techniques can be used to launch an attack."

While it doesn't open up your device to a virus attack, it does allow you to be fooled into a false sense of security while filling out an online form. However, I think this is just the start of things to come. :( Get your virus scanners ready...

Now they aren't making a big deal about it yet. In fact there is no mention of it on the product page at all! Thanks to an astute source we find that the new version does indeed have a registry editor add on just like the Pocket PC version has always had. You have to go here to get it. The download link on the product page doesn't even get you the new version yet. I'm sure that their front page will catch up with their back page but until then you can check this out now. I have already downloaded it and it is a pleasure to use. :)

"Smart Explorer let you manage the files and folder on your phone. Using an original system, you can do operation such as cut-copy-past on several files/folders at a time. You can also search for a file or folder, send a file by email, via infrared or bluetooth. The upgrade to version 2.0 is free for all users of version 1.0. You can use the same registration code."



Smart Explorer supports both 2002 and 2003 devices. You can download a trial version or purchase the full application for $8.99 here.

"Photo Explorer is the best choice for high-quality pictures display, album management & slide show software for your smartphone.The user-friendly interface is good for the beginner. And the quality is superior to any other similar products in the market. Photo Explorer is especially useful in making a brief. It is not only the best tool for image processing, but it is also the personal/family album. It is the best image assistant for smartphone users as well.

� It supports the most popular image formats, such as BMP, JPEG and GIF.
� It supports 24-bit true color images. You can browse the picture with zoom in/out, rotation in full screen.
� You may browse through the pictures in four different modes, file explore mode, thumbnail mode, full screen mode and slide show mode.
� You may define the "Home" key by yourself to switch back to any default directory.
� You can save your favorite folder in a list. So you may go back to the directory much fast and conveniently.
� It provides more than 15 different page-switching effects and three synchronizations modes. It makes your slide show much more outstanding.
� You can record your voice into the picture to make your album extraordinary.
� It provides three formats for thumbnail, either in 2x2, 3x3 and 4x4.
� High-quality image display makes your pictures much more beautiful even in the small thumbnails.
� It supports infrared function. You can exchange photo with your friends.
� It supports email function. You can send your ideal photo via email.
� You can save your beautiful photo as Home Screen in three mode (Center, Fit to Screen and Tile)."

Are you looking for a file manager, text editor, FTP client, task manager, and battery status indicator? Even if you are only looking for one of these, why not get them all in one application. Sympasoft's Phone Explorer bundles all these applications into one. Check out our affiliate link for a demo version, or you can buy the full product for $19.99

A new version of Resco Explorer was released yesterday. Changes include user interface enhancements and added support for sending files over IR. Combined with the encryption and ZIP compression capabilities that the previous version had, this is one very powerful tool to have on your Smartphone. Check out the free trial or get the full version for $14.95 [Affiliate]

Three registered readers will each be receiving a full set of the great Smartphone applications from Resco: Photo Viewer, System Toys, and Explorer 2003. These are must-have applications which elegantly fill gaps in the Smartphone operating system while going far beyond what anyone would expect to get for their prices.

The list of features in these applications is just too long (and VERY impressive) for us to list on the front page. Click the "more" link to see everything these do.
Explorer 2003
Resco Explorer 2003 is a powerful file management utility for your SmartPhone. It implements all standard features such as file/folder manipulation. Thus, you can copy, move or delete files, create folders, run programs with arguments, and search for files or folders. File Explorer 2003 is a complex solution of the following modules:

• File Manager is the HEART of the Explorer 2003. It is stable and efficient and it provides the most comfortable way for file operations such as copying, moving, deleting, renaming, etc. It is great when you search for files or file content. It speeds-up your work by using Favorites folders. The system info keeps you informed about your system resources usage at all times.
  
  
• File Encryption is one of the most powerful features of Explorer 2003. You can encrypt your files with algorithms such as RC2-128, DES-56, 3DES TWO KEY-112, 3DES-168. Additionally, you can also install a Windows 95/98/NT/2000 shell extension to use the encryption/decryption process on desktop PCs.
  
  
• ZIP Compression can be used to increase the storage space of any storage device. Use of this handy tool is the simplest and cheapest way to save significant amounts of storage space. The used ZIP algorithm is PC compatible, so you can extract archives created on a desktop PC and vice-versa.
  
  
• The built-in Viewer can be used to view files in TXT, BIN or HEX format, as well as JPEG, BMP and PNG graphic formats. The built-in viewer implements a very comfortable text search function. Viewing files has never been so easy.
  
  
• The Registry Editor is for power users only. It allows you to export, import, view or modify the registry keys. The interface is very simple and very powerful at the same time.

System Toys
Resco System is a set of 2 useful and easy to use tools. One is Battery state and second is Task manager.

Battery State is small utility which display the

• state of your battery
• state of your internal memory
• state of all storage cards

Task Manager is

• the way to control your SmartPhone applications
  
• the tool to easily close or switch to any running application

Photo Viewer
Turn your SmartPhone into a Digital Photo Album. It is now easier than ever to view and modify your photos taken by your digital camera. Moreover, you can now optimize your photos and create very nice family albums by using new desktop Album Generator.

Digital Photo Album is the main feature of Resco Photo Viewer. You can use our new desktop Album Generator to easy prepare albums optimized for your device. You can also easily:

• add, insert, remove, sort any number of photos
• zoom, rotate any photo in album
• send photo by email
• view photo properties
• play albums as slide show
• and much more...

Desktop Album Generator is a Windows Desktop application that is distributed as part of the Picture Viewer. Beyond its primary function - generation of (.rab) albums - this package extends the set of supported formats to Microsoft PowerPoint presentations. It offers basic image editing techniques as well as color transformation schemes suitable for devices with reduced color palette.

Your Microsoft PowerPoint presentations can be now viewed by Photo Viewer. Just use the Desktop Album Generator to convert the presentation into an album and copy to your phone. Transition effects can add the professional look to your presentation.

Pictures from your family holiday are no longer locked in your Flash Card . Browse them with a single tap, sort them and arrange in any form you like. This feature is the most advisable for those who adore making a lot of photos with their digital cameras.