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All posts tagged "using"


Tuesday, July 10, 2007

Use Caution When Using Windows Live Messenger Mobile

Posted by Mike Temporale in "NEWS" @ 06:00 AM

http://www.theunwired.net/?itemid=3985

"Windows Live Messenger includes one feature I don't get - even after the product manager tried to explain it during the last MVP Summit back in March - and this feature is "contacts sync". Let me explain you what contacts sync does, if you haven't used Windows Live Messenger Mobile yet: Contacts sync synchronizes your Windows Live Messenger buddy list from the Windows Live server to your Windows Mobile device and in worst case it doubles some of your contacts. Let's say you have a contact called Joe User which uses joeuser as his Windows Live Messenger's user name. Then, after the synchronization, you have two contacts in your contacts list - Joe User with all the Outlook details and joeuser with the Windows Live IM E-Mail"

Arne Hess over at The::Unwired sheds some light on a significant risk you face when using Windows Live Messenger Mobile. While the problem isn't described in the quote above, I'm sure it's not hard to guess that it's related to your messenger contacts. Unfortunately, WLMM has this annoying habit of deleting your messenger contacts. You'll have to read Arne's article to find out exactly how he lost all of his contacts twice! I've all but stopped using WLMM because every time I logged in it would tell me I had no contacts online, which I know was incorrect. Maybe that's for the best as I've not suffered the loss of any contacts. I just can't chat with them. ;) Has anyone else had problems with Windows Live Messenger Mobile?


Wednesday, January 24, 2007

Run Your Palm OS Applications on Windows Mobile Smartphone Using StyleTap

Posted by Kris Kumar in "SOFTWARE" @ 09:30 AM

http://blogs.styletap.com/styletapnews/2007/01/styletap-platform-for-windows.html

"StyleTap Inc., a leading innovator in software platforms for PDAs and smartphones, today announced that the preview version of StyleTap Platform for Windows Smartphone is now available. StyleTap Platform enables the world's largest base of mobile applications � the estimated 30,000 applications written to run on Palm OS� � to run on Windows Smartphones, including the new Motorola Moto Q�, the T-Mobile Dash� and the Samsung Blackjack�. These smartphones have experienced very strong sales growth since their introduction last year. However, because they have novel display formats and lack the touchscreens found on traditional Pocket PC devices, relatively little application software is available for these new devices."

User submitted image

Migration from Palm OS to Windows Mobile is now quick and painless thanks to StyleTap. If you were wondering whether you should make the switch to Windows Mobile from a Palm OS device or have tons of Palm OS applications from your prior affair with a Palm device, then you must check out this application. Since I don't have any Palm applications to try out, I would and I am sure our readers too would like to hear more about how this software functions.


Friday, January 5, 2007

Dial Contacts with Ease Using VoiceDialIt

Posted by Mike Temporale in "SOFTWARE" @ 11:15 AM

http://software.smartphonethoughts.com/product.asp?id=9908

"VoiceDialIt� is the premier Treo� voice dialing application for the new Motorola Q smartphone. This simple-to-use application allows you to dial your contacts with ease by simply saying their name. Within minutes you can train multiple contacts and enable quick, easy, and accurate dialing with just your voice."

User submitted image

Looks like the guys over at VoiceIt have been busy working on Smartphone versions of some of their cool apps. VoiceDialIt does just what the name says - it allows you to add voice tags to your contacts and thus dial them quick and easy. I wonder if it's possible to back up and save your voice tags? I always hated having to redo those on my HTC devices. And don't forget - you can win if you buy a copy this month with our charity drive. Trial and full version is available on our affiliate store.


Wednesday, December 20, 2006

Reset Smartphone using Hard Reset .NET

Posted by Kris Kumar in "SOFTWARE" @ 06:30 AM

http://www.gpcarreon.com/?p=493

"This is the Smartphone version of the hard reset desktop utility I posted days back. Purpose: hard reset Smartphone using 1 button click. File is independent of Clear Storage utility which comes only to Orange handsets. A hard reset process will revert Smartphone settings back to factory default. All informations stored on the phone�s internal memory (\Storage) will be erased. To cite few examples�System settings, Inbox messages, phonebook entries, homescreens, programs installed, registry keys/ tweaks, etc. You may need to backup contacts and other important files before a doing a hard reset. A network-unlocked phone (openline) will remain network-unlocked after a hard reset. An application-unlocked phone will not retain its unlocked/ decertified state though."

User submitted image

Everyone dreads it, but sometimes you have no option but to do it. Yes, hard reset is a painful step that most of us are forced to perform at some point in our Windows Mobile's life. Usually it is for routine maintenance, but sometimes it is because of a weird problem. All HTC manufactured Smartphone have a utility called Clear Storage to make this task easy for us. In case your Smartphone does not have a similar utility then here is one tool for you.


Wednesday, August 16, 2006

What Standard are you Using for Mobile Internet Access?

Posted by Mike Temporale in "OFF-TOPIC" @ 06:45 AM

http://www.theunwired.net/?itemid=3257

"Ok, we have 2.xG mobile data standards like GSM, CSD, HSCSD, GPRS and EDGE and 3.xG standards like UMTS, HSDPA and EVDO available and operational as well as competing standards like W-LAN and WiBro and WiMAX but which standard do you use for the mobile Internet access with your (Windows) Mobile device? I've started with CSD (which was the reason why I've created my first Windows CE homepage back in 1997) and upgraded later to GPRS. Two years ago, I've upgrade agin, this time to UMTS to upgrade to HSDPA this year but what's your current standard/technology you are using to go online on the road?"

Arne Hess from the::unwired has an interesting poll about what type of connection you're using for accessing the mobile internet from your phone. For me, UMTS is not even an option here in Canada. So most of the time I'm using EDGE or if I'm outside of the city it seems to drop to GPRS. :( What about you? And don't forget to head over to the::unwired and answer Arne's poll.


Friday, July 28, 2006

Introduction to Managed Device Development Using Visual Studio 2005

Posted by Kris Kumar in "DEVELOPER" @ 10:30 AM

http://msdn.microsoft.com/msdntv/episode.aspx?xml=episodes/en/20060720MobileMS/manifest.xml

"Microsoft Embedded MVP Maarten Struys shows how to create an application for a Windows Mobile 5.0 device using Visual Studio 2005. Learn how Visual Studio 2005 helps you to create user interfaces that will run on different devices with different display orientation modes and form factors."

User submitted image

Another helpful video to learn Windows Mobile 5.0 application development. If you want to learn more about display resolutions and how to adapt your application then check out this post.


Monday, May 8, 2006

Programmatically Rotating the Screen using the .NET Compact Framework

Posted by Kris Kumar in "DEVELOPER" @ 04:30 AM

http://blogs.msdn.com/davidklinems/archive/2006/04/17/577897.aspx

"Several months back, I wrote about how to determine whether or not a device supported screen rotation. This post prompted the question of how to programmatically rotate the device..The snippets below check the device's current display orientation. If portrait (Angle0), the orientation is changed to landscape (Angle90). If the device has any orientation other than Angle0, it is changed to portrait. ... For more information on this and other cool settings provided by the Microsoft.WindowsCE.Forms namespace, check out the MSDN documentation for SystemSettings."

David Kline has posted a handy code snippet to rotate the Windows Mobile device's screen orientation. I was hoping to try it out myself but the lazy side of me overpowered me. :) I wonder if triggering this code snippet can permanently change the screen orientation for all the applications or only for the application that calls it. It looks like it will do for all applications. I want to try it so that I can rotate the screen to make my email screen more readable. ;-)


Monday, April 24, 2006

Creating and Migrating Smart Device Custom Controls by Using Visual Studio 2005

Posted by Kris Kumar in "DEVELOPER" @ 01:30 PM

http://msdn.microsoft.com/netframework/default.aspx?pull=/library/en-us/dnnetcomp/html/Create_Migrate_Designer_Controls_VS2k5.asp

"By now, every developer, in some way, has experienced the productivity enhancements that the modern rapid application development environment offers. Developers use these environments to build different applications for different reasons. Some applications are structured only for the internal use of business. Some applications are sold commercially. Yet other applications are developed and freely distributed by hobbyists that enjoy contributing to the software community. No matter what the intent, the basic building blocks of each application's user interface are the elemental pieces referred to as controls. ... When a developer uses Microsoft Visual Studio .NET 2003 to create custom controls for smart device applications the process is tedious and error-prone. Creating a custom control that functions solely at run time almost seems trivial. Unfortunately, getting that custom control to properly integrate with the designer can be frustrating for Visual C# developers, and it is not possible for Visual Basic developers. But that was then; now, Visual Studio 2005 has changed the way that developers build design-time support for custom controls."

User submitted image

Do want to learn how to create custom controls for your mobile applications? Then this article might help you out. :)


Monday, April 3, 2006

Forget Using Your Storage Card as RAM - Mike Calligaro Tells us Why

Posted by Mike Temporale in "ARTICLE" @ 03:00 PM

http://blogs.msdn.com/windowsmobile/archive/2006/03/31/566187.aspx

"What people would really like to do is use their storage as RAM. "I may only have 32M of RAM, but I've got a 1 Gig SD card that's mostly empty. It would be cool if I could use that SD card to run more programs." At first blush, this can't work at all. The SD card is made of NAND flash and flash is just too slow to be used as RAM. But hard drives are also too slow to be used as RAM. Yet, the desktop system manages to extend its RAM with clever use of the hard drive. Why can't Windows Mobile do the same thing with the SD card?"

Mike Calligaro has posted another great article providing great insight into the world of Windows Mobile devices on the Windows Mobile Team Blog. This time, he explains why we can't use your storage card as RAM. Well worth the read, especially if the different types of memory don't confuse you! ;)


Monday, March 27, 2006

Environmentally Friendly Phones Now Possible Using a New Kind of Bioplastic

Posted by Kris Kumar in "NEWS" @ 06:30 PM

http://www.japancorp.net/Article.Asp?Art_ID=12143

"NEC Corporation and UNITIKA LTD. today announced the joint development of bioplastic reinforced with kenaf* fiber, which is expected to contribute greatly to environmental measures for mobile phones. NTT DoCoMo, Inc. (NTT DoCoMo) is already using this new material in the entire casing of its new FOMA(TM) "N701iECO" mobile phone, which it launched on the Japanese market on March 10, 2006. Biomass-based bioplastics, such as polylactic acid (PLA)** that is made of corn, have been drawing attention in recent years as new materials to replace conventional petroleum-based plastics, amid increasing interest and concern over environmental problems such as global warming and resource depletion. However, application of regular PLA to electronic devices is difficult as it has insufficient heat resistance and strength. NEC succeeded in improving the heat resistance and strength of PLA by adding kenaf fiber to it, one measure for the prevention of global warming. Then together with UNITIKA it realized the durability of the new material by applying it to the components of a PC."

User submitted image

Hurray to NEC and UNITIKA for taking the right steps towards reducing the environmental burden. :)


Monday, January 30, 2006

Using Balloons For Cellular Coverage

Posted by Mike Temporale in "NEWS" @ 05:00 PM

http://www.breitbart.com/news/2006/01/30/D8FF53180.html

"Why put up costly cell phone towers in thinly populated areas, when a few balloons would do? In North Dakota, former Gov. Ed Schafer is backing a plan to loft wireless network repeaters on balloons high above the state to fill gaps in cellular coverage. "I know it sounds crazy," said Schafer, who now heads Extend America Inc., a wireless telecommunications company. "But it works in the lab." Extend America and Chandler, Ariz.-based Space Data Corp. are developing the technology, which is believed to be the first to use disposable balloons to provide cellular coverage. A trial balloon will be launched in the next few weeks to test the idea, said Schafer, who left office in 2000 after eight years as governor. "To cover every square mile of North Dakota, it would take 1,100 cell towers," Schafer said. "We can do the whole state with three balloons."

Lets see, that's 3 balloons per state, multiplied by 50; means only 150 balloons for the whole US. Seems like a good idea. Wait a second... What happens if one of the balloons go pop? That sure is an expensive amount of equipment to go crashing back down to earth. :? Maybe he should rethink this a little... ;)


Wednesday, November 30, 2005

Mike Calligaro Helps to Answer the Question: Who's Using My RAM?

Posted by Mike Temporale in "ARTICLE" @ 07:45 AM

http://blogs.msdn.com/windowsmobile/archive/2005/11/29/498154.aspx

"The general consensus among the commenters was that WM5 took three times as much RAM to boot as WM2003 SE. This was shocking to me, because I know the steps we took to keep that from happening. WM5 is a massive upgrade, with a new OS, new apps, and a ton of new features. We were very worried about bloat, and did a number of things to combat it. We funded a group whose sole job was to analyze performance (including RAM usage) and keep it under control. Those folks did a bunch of work to reduce RAM usage. We also purposely limited the amount of RAM available on the devices our developers used. Almost all of our devices only had 32M of RAM, and the one device that had more, we artificially limited to only use 32M. We didn't want anyone to get lazy."

There's an interesting post from Mike Calligaro over on the Windows Mobile Team blog. The examples that Mike uses are Pocket PC related, but it's still interesting to see the steps that Microsoft took to ensure the latest version of Windows Mobile hasn't become bloated.


Tuesday, November 1, 2005

Build a .NET CF Application for a Windows Mobile Using Visual Studio 2005

Posted by Mike Temporale in "DEVELOPER" @ 07:30 AM

http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/default.asp?url=/library/en-us/dnppcgen/html/med201_msdn_netcf_app_vs2005rtf.asp

"Learn how to reuse your existing Microsoft Visual Studio and Microsoft .NET Framework skills to develop a line-of-business (LOB) application for a Windows Mobile�based device in this self-pace, hands-on lab. You will begin with the basics of building, deploying, and debugging a Windows Mobile application by using Visual Studio 2005. By using the .NET Compact Framework and Windows Mobile SDK, you will then be led through the steps of developing the application to effectively address LOB business needs on a mobile device. You will complete the application by using SQL Mobile to provide persistent storage and query capabilities."

Are you looking to get started in the world of Mobile development using the latest and greatest tools? If so, the latest article on MSDN is your friend. Work your way through this 56 page step by step guide and you'll be off and running in the wonderful world of Windows Mobile development. :D


Friday, October 14, 2005

UTStarcom to Stop Using the Audiovox Name

Posted by Mike Temporale in "NEWS" @ 05:31 AM

http://www.phonescoop.com/news/item.php?n=1418

"UT Starcom today unveiled a new logo with the intent of making their brand known in the US. Although they purchased Audiovox some time ago, UT Starcom has continued to market devices in the US under the Audiovox name or as carrier-branded models. Like Pantech and BenQ, UT Starcom hopes to extend their brand recognition beyond Asia and into North America."

User submitted image

Personally, I think UTStarcom is not as nice a name as Audiovox is for the customer to remember. I guess we'll be watching the carriers this fall for the new UTStarcom Tornado. You see, it just doesn't flow. :? Oh well, as far as Smartphones are concerned, it doesn't really matter what name they go by, the phone is still just a re-branded HTC device and that's fine with me.


Wednesday, September 14, 2005

Downloading Applications Using Your Smartphone - Let the Adventure Begin

Posted by Mike Temporale in "THOUGHT" @ 08:00 AM

In todays world of mobility, we should all be able to pull out our Smartphones, dial in a mobile software site and download the latest and greatest game, PIM tool, utility, or whatever suits your fancy. That seems like a reasonable level of expectation, right? Well, apparently that's asking too much. Recently I attempted just such a thing with the two largest online retailers of software for Windows Mobile Smartphones. I was just looking to download the trial version of a new application. I knew the application was listed on both sites, and was available for download in a CAB format. What follows is what I experienced while standing on the platform waiting for my train to arrive using my C500 Smartphone.
Company A
For some reason, the mobile version of this site is one of the biggest and most bloated things I have ever seen. In fact it was utterly disgraceful. They sell software to mobile users, yet their mobile web site is slow, graphic heavy, and requires a lot of scrolling to find things. When I pulled up their site in Pocket IE, I had to scroll down past a large logo, numerous "tabs" that just don't line up correctly to be useful, past a couple links for logging in or creating an account, before I hit the search box. Just past the search box is the new software link that I'm looking for. In total, it took 34 down taps on my phone before I got to the new software link. 8O Alright, I'm this far along, lets click the link and view the new titles, right? Well, it's not that easy. Once the new page loads, I have to scroll all the way down, past all the same things as before, past a rather large full screen designed for Windows Mobile logo :? and past a couple more site specific links before I see the 10 newest applications. Finally! I click on the application I was looking for and once again I need to scroll past all the same crap, big logo's, wasted graphics, poor layout, etc, etc, etc... Until I finally get to the applications description. I find the download link and hit it. After all that, I was really looking forward to getting this application and getting off that site. However, the fun doesn't end there. I got an error saying the file type is not supported by my device. :evil: I know it's a CAB file since I checked before I left the office. At this point, I'm frustrated beyond belief, so I pack it in and move on to Company B. Hopefully things will be different with them.

Company B
The mobile version Company B's web site was actually very nice. It was light on graphics, the font was easily readable, and it was very easy to navigate. So what's the problem you ask? I really only had 1 small problem with this site. For some reason, it detected that I was on the Verizon network and would only let me see applications for the Verizon network. For those of you that don't know, I'm not in the US. Verizon doesn't even offer service here. I'm on Fido's network, and I'm using a C500 which is possibly the most popular Smartphone on the market. The only links presented to me were: browse the catalog, best sellers, my account, and my basket. While the browse link sounds like it might offer some hope, it doesn't. It lists a total of 80 applications (10 per page for 8 pages) and they don't appear to be in any sort of order. :( Of course the best sellers link wasn't going to help me since the application I was looking for was new. That's where my adventures ended with this company. They didn't offer me anyway to select a different network or device.

The Solution
By now I was totally fed up with the whole process. Do these people even try to use the mobile web sites they have created? My last hope was to check out the developers web site. The developers web site was very nicely formated for mobile devices, but they didn't have a local download link. They had linked the downloads back to the two online retailers that I have already been too. :( On the off chance that the download link might get me past the Verizon network sniff, I thought I would give it a go. Besides, finding the application on company A's website wasn't the problem - downloading was. My guess worked out and I was finally able to download and install the application.

Conclusions
It appears that the top online mobile software retailers have not taken the time to ensure that the mobile version of their web sites are usable by their customers. They're selling software to help us enable our mobile lifestyle, yet their web sites are so awkward and painful to use that it's just not worth doing. Does anyone have a nice story about searching for applications from your Smartphone? Maybe that will lift my spirits. :?


Tuesday, September 6, 2005

Using the Talk button in Your Application

Posted by Kris Kumar in "DEVELOPER" @ 02:30 AM

http://blogs.msdn.com/windowsmobile/archive/2005/09/02/460327.aspx

"Ever wanted to use the phone's green Talk key (sometimes called the Send button) in your application? You can, but the docs are pretty well hidden, ... Basically, your app sends a SHCMBM_OVERRIDEKEY message, once, to its own menu bar telling it "When the user presses the Talk button (when my app is foreground) I want to recieve that as a WM_HOTKEY from now on." Obviously, the most common use for this is to initiate a phone call to a specific number from within your app (using PhoneMakeCall()). I wouldn't recommend using it for something non-phone-related. On Smartphone, you can also override some of the other hardware buttons like Volume Up and Down."

User submitted image

Jason Fuller has posted a handy tip for overriding some of the special function buttons on the Smartphone in your application.


Thursday, September 1, 2005

Track your Blood Pressure Using your Smartphone

Posted by Mike Temporale in "SOFTWARE" @ 02:15 PM

http://www.smartphone.net/smartphonethoughts/software_detail.asp?id=1636

"Measuring your blood pressure can help you and your doctor prevent or control hypertension and its many complications. Blood pressure readings in the doctor''s office may be higher than at other times. The use of home blood pressure monitors can more accurately measure one''s overall, or average, blood pressure level. We suggest that persons over age of 40 begin keeping a daily log of their blood pressure readings. Measuring your own pressure is neither expensive nor difficult. It''s a good idea to take readings at different times of day, in case there is a difference between morning and evening values. The Blood Pressure Tracker simplifies blood pressure and heart rate data logging. The software automatically saves systolic and diastolic blood pressure, heart rate, and time of measurement."

User submitted image

I don't really have much knowledge in this area, but it sure sounds like a useful application. You can download a demo version, or purchase a license for $9.99 from our affiliate store.


Saturday, July 9, 2005

Unlock your House using your Mobile Phone

Posted by Mike Temporale in "OFF-TOPIC" @ 05:26 AM

http://www.i4u.com/article3806.html

"A Japanese Apartment complex is installing a door lock system that works via mobile phone. It is not based on RFID like the locks we reported about recently. The door opens via a code typed into the mobile phone. The key code is apparently managed centrally by the company. So the code needs to be transmitted somehow. The article is not going into details here. Such a system is more expensive to install, but saves money on the long run, because locks do not have to be exchanged and no keys have to be made."

Does this sounds like a bad idea to anyone else? I understand the savings that they are talking about, but what happens when you change cell phones? or you loose your cell phone? or the battery runs dry? Too much chance on you getting locked out. :( Thanks, but I'll take a key, voice activation, or finger print reader first. :mrgreen:

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  • Source: Gizmodo


Monday, April 18, 2005

Live Webcast from Runners in London Marathon using Bluetooth Heart Monitor, Smartphone and GPS

Posted by Jerry Raia in "ARTICLE" @ 05:00 PM

http://www.geekzone.co.nz/content.asp?ContentId=4369

"Alive Technologies will stream a live webcast from runners in the London Marathon, using their Bluetooth heart monitor, Windows Mobile Smartphone and GPS platform. The system uses the Alive Bluetooth Heart Monitor, a Bluetooth GPS and Microsoft Windows Mobile Smartphone worn by each runner. It can be used to monitor the progress and physical condition of marathon runners."

Interesting, will the runners be stopped if any parameters get out of line? I wonder what phones they will be using.


Tuesday, April 12, 2005

CellTrack Beta: Track Your Location Using GSM Cell Tower Information

Posted by Kris Kumar in "SOFTWARE" @ 04:40 PM

http://celltrack.spv-developers.com

"CellTrack is free and open source utility for tracking the location of GSM cellular phones. Currently C500 smartphones running Windows Mobile are supported. A free CellTrack client can be downloaded and installed on your phone. This runs in the background and collects information on the GSM cell towers in your phone's vicinity. This information can be used to estimate the geographical location of your phone. The client can be configred to automatically perform certain actions when the phone location changes. For example, CellTrack can be configured to automatically switch your phone to silent when entering work, or to divert all calls to your home line when you are at home."

User submitted image

CellTrack is a software that can run on HTC Typhoon (C500/SP3i/SMT5600) based Smartphones and report your location using the GSM cell tower information. The beta version of this application does not have all the features implemented yet, but I love the concept and its potential. 8) You can configure this application to report your location information to the central cell tower database and soon you will be able to do cool things like displaying your current location on your blog, website, or forum signature. And one piece of advice, don't let your spouse find out about this application. ;-)

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  • Source: MS Mobiles


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