from my pocket

Windows MarketPlace for Mobile: Will you shop there?

Prof.Julie@pocketprimer.com (ProfJulie) — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 13:00:00 GMT

After much anticipation and amidst much fanfare, Microsoft unveiled its Windows MarketPlace for Mobile devices last Tuesday. The Windows MarketPlace is now open for business for WM6.5 phones, with plans to make it accessible to WM6.0 and WM6.1 phones by the end of the year (NOTE: If you don't want to wait, you can find a CAB file that can be installed to WM6.0 or WM6.1 phones at the XDA Developers forum).

Over the last year I've read numerous articles that discussed the Windows MarketPlace in regards to software developers, but I have not read any articles that discuss the MarketPlace in regards to end users like me! To get a better understanding of the MarketPlace from an end user perspective I spent several hours reviewing the "MarketPlace for Mobile Customer Service Agreement," the "Windows MarketPlace Frequently Asked Questions for Customers" and the "Windows MarketPlace Frequently Asked Questions for Developers" documents that are located on Microsoft's website.

How the MarketPlace works

According to the Windows MarketPlace for Mobile Customer Service Agreement, "Applications made available through Windows Marketplace are licensed, not sold, to you." To license software through the MarketPlace, all you need is a Windows Live ID. You can't shop online from your computer just yet, but you can set up your billing preferences and view your purchase and billing history from your computer. You can pay for software either with a credit card or by having charges applied to your mobile phone bill (if your mobile operator is set up to do this). Online shopping from your computer will be offered sometime in the future.

Before you can license software you'll be required to sign off on the Windows MarketPlace for Mobile Customer Service Agreement.

MarketPlace Mobile client

You can browse and purchase applications directly from your Windows phone through the Windows Mobile MarketPlace client. After you open up the client, you will login to your Live ID. Then you can browse available applications by selecting the "Showcase," "Most popular," or "What's new" options on the Home page. Tapping the "View All" option (at the top right hand side of the screen) allows you to refine your search to paid, free, or the newest applications that have been added to the MarketPlace.

The mobile client also lets you browse by category, and you can manage applications you've licensed through the MarketPlace.

When you purchase a license to use an application, the application is downloaded and installed directly to your device from the MarketPlace. If you remove an application or perform a hard reset, you can download and install the application again by opening the Marketplace client on your windows phone, and going to the My Applications page (see screenshot below on the right).

Tapping the Menu option on the lower right hand side of the screen allows you to return to the Home screen or to Search for specific applications.

The Marketplace Mobile client is touch friendly and easy to use.

Licensing Applications

You can tap any application you see to learn more about it or to purchase and install it to your phone. Applications are installed directly to the Windows phone's main memory.

Windows MarketPlace for Mobile does not issue or use activation codes (4). Instead, applications are associated with your Windows Live ID account, are licensed to specific devices and can only be installed from the Windows MarketPlace. You can install applications on up to five different devices at a time. Activation and registration codes that have been purchased in other places are not supported in the Windows MarketPlace.

Trial Software, which are described as "limited functionality" versions of applications, will be available for free. (5) This is different than most trial software that is downloaded from other places, where the software are fully functional versions that time out after some period of time.

Are the benefits compelling enough to get your business?

From an end-user perspective, the benefits of shopping at the MarketPlace include:

Convenience: One-stop shopping for software from a Windows phone just doesn't get any easier or faster than using the Mobile MarketPlace client. (well, it could be one-stop shopping once more developers get on board).

Secure Backup: All applications that are purchased in the Marketplace are automatically backed up to your account and you can download and reinstall the software to your Windows phone, as needed. (6)

Microsoft certification: All MarketPlace applications go through a rigorous certification process by Microsoft to ensure the best user experience on their Windows phones, and applications are backed by a simple return policy. (7)

Simple Refund Policy: Credit card purchases come with a no-questions-asked refund policy as long as a refund is requested within 24 hours from time of purchase and you don't ask for more than one refund a month. (8)

Will MarketPlace restrictions leave you cold?

I hold many personal reservations about my loss of control over applications that are purchased through the Marketplace.

Remote Kill Switch: GeekZone, in its "Unofficial Tech Ed Blog," was the first to report the existence of Microsoft's so-called remote kill switch:

"If an application is approved but later removed from the marketplace it will then be automatically removed from all mobile devices"

ars technica received clarification regarding Microsoft's use of the kill switch:

"In the vast majority of instances where an application is removed from Windows Marketplace for Mobile, users of this application will continue to be able to use these applications on their phones," a Microsoft spokesperson told Ars. "In the rare event an application from Marketplace exhibits harmful behavior or has unforeseen effects, Marketplace has the capability to remotely uninstall these applications. While we hope to avoid this scenario, we will make refunds available in such cases."

The Customer Service Agreement states:

"Microsoft may a) close your Windows Marketplace service account for any reason and b) remove any application from Windows Marketplace and/or disable copies of such application on your device in order to protect Windows Marketplace, application providers, its customers, wireless carriers over whose network you access Windows Marketplace, and others."

Backed up Applications may not be secure after all: If Microsoft closes your Marketplace service account, you will not be able to access any of the software that is backed up there. In the Customer Service Agreement, Microsoft states:

"We may change Windows Marketplace or delete features at any time and for any reason. We may cancel or suspend access to Windows Marketplace at any time. Our cancellation or suspension may be without cause and/or without notice. Upon cancellation, your right to use Windows Marketplace stops right away. Once Windows Marketplace is cancelled or suspended, any data you have stored on Windows Marketplace may not be retrieved later, which includes backup copies of applications you may have downloaded.

An internet connection is required to install applications: There have been a few times when I've had to reinstall an application and did not have easy access to the internet. I generally keep application CAB files backed up to my storage card, so I can always reinstall applications without the need for an internet connection. Unfortunately, this means of application backup is not an option when purchasing software through the MarketPlace.

No direct access to CAB files: Applications are associated with your Windows Live ID and are licensed and installed to specific devices directly from the MarketPlace. Any CAB files that are used to install the software are immediately deleted as soon as the application is installed to the device. Licensed software is maintained in your MarketPlace account. If you need to reinstall the software to an existing device (as in the case of a factory reset), or if you ever want to install the software to a new device, you will do so through the Windows MarketPlace. (6)

Applications are automatically installed to main memory, and you cannot install applications to a storage card except under extenuating circumstances. When a user on the on the Windows Marketplace for Mobile forum asked how they could install software to their storage card, Ronn M responds:

"Currently, there is no means to manually specify an alternative install location for apps. The exception being if there is insufficient space available for installation. When this occurs, the client will notify you that you do not have sufficient memory to store the new application on your device and will present the option to either delete an existing app or to store the app in an alternate location such as a storage card."

Device Restrictions: Licensed software can be downloaded and installed on up to 5 devices at one time.

Trial Software through the MarketPlace is crippled with "limited functionality": I don't usually purchase software unless I can try it before I buy it. When I try out software, I'm not interested in working with a "limited functionality" version of the application and much prefer getting a fully functional version that times out after (usually) 30 days. This gives me enough time to explore all aspects of the software and decide if it is one I want to purchase. I have hardly ever requested a refund after purchasing such software.

Limited Refund Policy: A 24 hour no-questions-asked return policy is quite limited when it is compared to the liberal return policies of many mobile developers and other Windows Mobile software vendors, that often offer a 30 day no-questions-asked return policy.

Conclusion

The Windows MarketPlace for Mobile has a great deal of potential and could be a great place to find and purchase Windows Mobile software. Nonetheless, given its existing restrictions and limitations, I am not convinced it is the best place for me to purchase software.

There are many other places where Windows Mobile software can be purchased, without having to deal with such restrictions. The Marketplace may be the most convenient place to purchase software and there may be a sense of comfort in knowing that an application has gone through a rigorous authorization and approval process before it can be sold in the Marketplace, but as far as I am concerned the loss of control pretty much cancels out these benefits.

I will enjoy window shopping at the MarketPlace from time to time to see what's happening there, but when I am ready to make a purchase, I will most likely drop my cash in other places.

Cloud Computing with Windows Live Mesh

Prof.Julie@pocketprimer.com (ProfJulie) — Sun, 27 Sep 2009 06:47:30 GMT

Windows Live Mesh Beta is one of Microsoft's "cloud" computing services. When you sign up for Live Mesh a small client application is installed in the notification area of your computer's taskbar. You designate folders on your computer that you want to upload to the mesh and then whenever you modify files in those folders, the files in the cloud are refreshed.

Live Mesh gives you 5 gigabytes of free online storage. You can connect multiple computers to your Mesh and share your folders with all your connected computers. Whenever you connect a computer to the Mesh the files in your shared folders are updated to and from the computer.

Live Mesh also allows you to connect remotely to any computer that has an active connection to your mesh. What this means is that you can remotely control and explore any of your connected computers through Internet Explorer.

The Mobile Mesh

There are a couple of ways you can access the files in your Mesh from a mobile device:

Live Mesh mobile website allows you to access your files from any device with a mobile browser.

Live Mesh Mobile client: If you've got a Windows Mobile 6 or 6.1 device, you can install this software to it, add the device to your Mesh and then sync files and pictures to the Mesh from your mobile device.

To set up your Mesh, all you need is a Live ID. You'll sign into the Mesh with your Live ID and select a password. Then you'll add a computer to the Mesh and, at the time you will be prompted to download and install the Live Mesh client to the computer. All you need to do next is right click on the folders on your computer that you want to sync to the Mesh and you'll find a new option there, "Add folder to Live Mesh."

How I'm Using the Mesh

I'm Using the Mesh to keep my computers in sync . . .

I sync the folders that store the data for several third party applications between my desktop computer and my UMPC (as well as to maintain a backup of these files in the Mesh):

Big Oven software stores all my recipes
Media Man: I maintain an inventory of all my books
Windows Live Writer: I compose blog posts with Live Writer, and I sync the Live Writer folder where draft articles are store to the Mesh. Then when I am out of the office, I can continue working on blog posts from my portable computer.

The Mesh simplifies setting up and/or restoring my Windows Mobile devices

I've saved the Favorites that I use regularly on my mobile devices as well as the CAB files for my favorite windows mobile applications to a "WinMo" folder that is synced to the Mesh.

Limitations of the Mesh

Documents that are stored in your Mesh are in the cloud, and you can't edit them directly from the cloud You have to download files to a connected device, edit them and then upload them back to the mesh....

The Live Mesh Mobile client is not compatible with SPB Shell, see this forum thread. I am hopeful that the next version of the Mobile client will address and resolve this issue.

I still carry a Windows Mobile 2003 Pocket PC and access my files in the mesh regularly through the Live Mesh Mobile website. When I download files to my Pocket PC, the name of the file is changed to some strange name and extension. I have to rename the file and give it a correct extension before I can open it on the Pocket PC.

Useful Links

Windows Live Mesh Beta

Live Mesh mobile website

Live Mesh Mobile client

Live Mesh Mobile forum

Live Mesh team blog

Live Services blog: Introducing Live Mesh

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Technorati Tags: Cloud computing, Windows Live

A Pocket PC in my Kitchen

Prof.Julie@pocketprimer.com (ProfJulie) — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 13:01:00 GMT

I've got a couple of older Pocket PCs laying around and decided to set one of them up to use in the kitchen to help me organize household tasks and as a "recipe box." This article discusses how I am using PhatNotes and Adobe Reader to organize recipes, menu plans, kitchen tips & tricks and user documentation on my Pocket PC.

Pocket PC as Recipe Box

Instead of writing recipes down on index cards, I'm typing my recipes into PhatNotes. PhatNotes provides a simple user interface which makes it really easy to create and organize recipe cards (notes), and it also includes some great options that enhance its usage as a recipe box. PhatNotes lets me:

Schedule and post recipes or menus to Outlook
Set timers to fire when recipes are finished cooking
Create and and save menus
Search for names, ingredients or any other text that is keyed into a recipe card (note)

Create & Organize Recipes on a Pocket PC

I've got PhatNotes installed on my computer and on my Pocket PC. I've created a Recipes Database, where I've set up a few categories which are also color coded: Recipes (Yellow), Tips & Tricks (Green), and Menus (Blue).

Schedule & Post Recipes or Menus to Outlook

PhatNotes helps me plan my meals for the week. I can assign recipes or menus directly to my Outlook Calendar by selecting a recipe or menu, then tapping Insert > Appointment. To facilitate this, I've set up the icons that run along the bottom to include the Calendar icon (see the last icon on the right hand side in the above screenshot on the right).

Recipe or Menu titles show up as appointments in the daily calendar with an assigned category of "Recipes" or "Menu" (the PhatNote category).

Set Timers to Fire

After I've prepared a recipe and put it into the oven to cook, I can set a reminder to fire when the food is done by tapping Insert > Reminder. To facilitate this, I've included the timer icon in the icons that run along the bottom of the screen (see the 4th icon from the right in the above screenshot on the right).

Create & Save Meal Plans & Menus

If I put together a really nice meal or plan a party, I like to save my menus for future reference. I have scraps of paper tucked in recipe books and kitchen drawers that I am now organizing into PhatNotes. Because I've already input the recipes into PhatNotes, I can create links to the individual recipes by tapping Insert > Link > scroll through the recipes to highlight a specific recipe > then tap the link icon on the lower edge of the screen.

Now when I am ready to prepare my Thanksgiving meal or that next party, I won't have to spend any time looking up recipes.

In addition to my PhatNotes Recipe Box, I'm also using PhatNotes to keep track of Kitchen Tips & Tricks and to organize my various appliance user guides.

Maintain Tips & Tricks

I've set up a category in my Recipe Box called "Tips & Tricks" where I am logging all kinds of information that I refer to regularly, ranging from topics such as the best way to clean my drip coffee maker to the proper way to use the temperature probe in my Convection Oven.

Organize Appliance Manuals & User Documentation

Most appliances come with some kind of paper manual, but if you look around the internet, you can usually find electronic copies of manuals and appliance guides (usually in PDF format). So instead of keeping all my appliance guides stashed in my kitchen junk drawer, I've gathered together PDF versions of the guides and copied them over to my Pocket PC (for backup purposes, I also maintain copies of these documents on my computer).

I've installed Adobe Reader for Pocket PC on the device and I've set up a "Household" database in PhatNotes with a "Manual" category. Within my Household database I've created index cards for each appliance user guide and posted links on the cards to the PDF files. (Tap Insert > File > navigate to the folder on the device where the user guide is stored and select the guide).

Tapping the link opens the PDF file in Adobe Reader:

Now instead of digging through a pile of user guides (and other junk), I can quickly and easily find the guide I need to consult right on my Pocket PC.

As a precautionary measure, whenever I use my Pocket PC in the kitchen, I'll put it inside a ziplock baggy to keep it clean and dry.

Technorati Tags: kitchen organization, recipes, pocket pc

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IPAQ Voice Messenger & Adaptxt

Prof.Julie@pocketprimer.com (ProfJulie) — Sun, 28 Jun 2009 13:25:00 GMT

I've recently been using an IPAQ Voice Messenger. It is the first Windows Mobile Standard device (no touch screen) I've used and I must say it is a really fantastic device.

Something unique about the Voice Messenger is the Adaptxt Options which are buried in the Voice Messenger's Settings (select Start > Settings > 0 More > Adaptxt Options to find them).

Quoting from the Help file for this software:

"Adaptxt is intelligent language software which provides text entry assistance. As soon as you start typing Adaptxt intelligently makes suggestions."

Now a really cool thing about Adaptxt is that you can buy inexpensive dictionaries for it. Adaptxt sells professional dictionaries and language dictionaries that are seamlessly integrated into the software. The dictionaries only cost a few dollars (well, I only reviewed the language dictionaries). You can purchase the dictionaries directly from your device! From this user's response (which is really what directed my attention to Adaptxt), you can see it's a great solution for users who are multilingual.

Adaptxt has devoted a page of its website to showcase this software on the IPAQ Voice Messenger. Here are several YouTube videos that are posted there that you may find interesting:

Adaptxt - Accessing the Add Ons Portal

My initial reaction is that Adaptxt is a fantastic, rich solution that can address many different user needs.

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A portable scanner in my pocket! (or faxing from a mobile device)

Prof.Julie@pocketprimer.com (ProfJulie) — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 23:45:54 GMT

I've been exploring creative ways to use the camera on my Windows Mobile device to boost my productivity. Qipit provides a way to copy and email or fax documents to anyone at any time. Qipit is almost like having a scanner in my pocket.

Click a picture from your cellphone camera (or any digital camera)

The quality of the processing is dependent on the quality of the picture that is emailed to qipit, so make sure the lighting is good and set the resolution on the cellphone camera accordingly. Qipit's website provides the following recommendations:

"For your mobile phone: You need a camera that has at least a resolution of 1 MegaPixel. For creating copies of documents you will need to make sure your camera phone has auto-focus or a macro-mode and it is turn on. You do not need this for making copies of whiteboards and flip charts. Set the resoution to High quality to get the best results. Also, turn off MMS or picture resizing if your carrier give you the option.

For your digital camera: You don't need to use the maximum quality because you would generate pictures that need to be sized down. For example a resolution of 5 mega pixels is not required. Set the quality of your digital camera to 3 mega pixels and you will get a very good result."

Email the picture to your qipit account.

Qipit processes the picture and turns it into a PDF file. It takes a few minutes for qipit to do this, but once completed Qipit will send you an email and let you know it's done.

Share the file with yourself, friends, family, clients!

Once the file is processed, you can download (view), email, or fax the file directly from qipit's website or you can go to qipit's mobile website from your mobile device

Qipit from your computer

Qipit from your Mobile Device

Qipit sends an email to let you know the file is ready to go once the file is processed. If you've got email set up on your mobile device, you can select the link in the email to go to qipit's mobile website.



From Qipit's mobile website you can:
Download the file (PDF)	View the original image (Image),


Email the file	Fax the file

Automatically fax or email files

If you include email addresses or fax numbers in the body of your email to qipit, qipit will email or fax the files to those folks as soon as the files are processed into a digital PDF file. See "Why wait to send an email or fax? Qipit right from your phone!" for more information.

Qipit is free! Go signup and see for yourself how great it is!

To start using qipit, all you need to do is register for an account and start taking pictures.

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Technorati Tags: Windows Mobile, Fax, Email, Qipit

Flickr is an ideal Windows Mobile Companion

Prof.Julie@pocketprimer.com (ProfJulie) — Fri, 15 May 2009 21:18:57 GMT

Lately I've been trying to simplify and consolidate some of my online web activities, and so I've been looking closely at Flickr. I've dabbled with a Flickr account for a couple of years, and I've discovered that Flickr works very well with Windows Mobile devices. In this article I share some of the useful and fun things you can do with Flickr from a mobile device. From any internet-enabled mobile device you can:

1) View flickr photos

Flickr's mobile site (http://m.flickr.com) is optimized for viewing on mobile devices.

Flickr's mobile site uses the same account settings as those of your main flickr account, so you'll set these options on your computer through your main flickr account.

If you have a WM5.0 or WM6.x device, you can also use Yahoo! Go to view and comment on flickr photos

2) Post pictures directly to flickr

There's no way to upload pictures from a mobile device to flickr through its mobile website, but if you have the right software installed on your Windows Mobile device, you can post pictures directly to flickr:

Resco's Photo Viewer 2007 has an option that allows you to publish photos to the web. To do this, you'll open up the application, select the photo you want to upload, then tap Action > Send To > Publish to the Web. You will be prompted to choose a Web Album service, but the only web service that Resco Photo Viewer currently supports is Flickr.com. You can specify picture resize options (this can be a percentage of the original picture, pixel size or "best fit predefined size")

See this link for detailed instruction on how to set up Resco Photo Viewer to upload photos to flickr. This method works well, but the initial connection to flickr (screenshot 3 above) is rather slow. Also when you post pictures to flickr, no information (title, description, tag) is posted along with the picture, so if you want to title, tag and post a description of the picture, you'll need to do that later from a computer.

Yahoo! Go can be installed on WM5.0 or WM6.x devices and provides a way to upload pictures directly to flickr. Yahoo! Go also allows you to add a title, description and tags to the picture and set privacy options at the time you upload it to flickr.

3) Email photos to flickr

You can email photos directly to your flickr account but first you need to find out what your unique email address is:

Login to your flickr account

Go to flickr.com/tools/mobile to find your unique flickr email address.

Then you can go to flicr.com/account/uploadbyemail and input the tag(s) you'd like flickr to automatically add to any emailed photographs. You can also input tags into the body of the email address, by adding a line in the body of your email, as follows:

tags: twitter, windows mobile

Once you know what your unique flickr email address is, just create a contact (called something like "flickr email photos") in your Windows Mobile contacts list. Then when you want to post a picture to your flickr account, you can open up whatever picture viewer you use, select the picture you want to send, and find the "Send To Email" option. Select the flickr contact from your contacts list and send the email. When you email pictures to your unique email address, flickr posts the email subject line as the title of your photo, and posts the email body as the description.

4) Automatically share your flickr photos on Twitter

You may already use services like twitpic or mobypicture to share photos on Twitter, but if you want to maintain all your pictures in one web location, you can use Twittergram, another free web-based service, to share your flickr photos on Twitter, as follows:

Post your picture to flickr either by posting the picture directly to flickr (see 2 above) or by emailing the picture to your special flickr email address (see 3 above)

Be sure to assign a "twitter" tag to the photograph.

For emailed pictures you can
- Input "twitter" in the tag field (if you want to post a link for every picture you upload to flickr via the email account to Twitter) or
- Input the following line in the body of the email: tag: twitter
For pictures you post directly to flickr from Yahoo! Go, you can designate "twitter" in the tag field at the time you upload the picture.

Use Firefox to go to Twittergram (this link will not work in Internet Explorer). Then enter your flickr username and your Twitter username and password in the spaces provided.

Twittergram checks your flickr feed every 10 minutes and automatically posts a link to the most recent photograph to twitter.

5) Post articles and related flickr pictures directly to your weblog

If you maintain a weblog, you can use another unique email address that flickr provides to post pictures and text directly to your blog. Any photos that you email to that address will be posted to your blog automatically. Flickr posts the subject line of the email as the blog title, and any text it finds in the the email body along with the picture as the new blog entry.

Go to http://www.flickr.com/blogs_add.gne to designate your blog's specific parameters. Flickr supports the following types of weblogs:

Blogger

Typepad

Movable Type

LiveJournal

WordPress

Manila

Atom Enabled

BloggerAPI Enabled

MetaWeblogAPI Enabled (this is the one I chose for my blog)

Vox

You will be prompted to input the API Endpoint for your blog (for this blog, the API Endpoint is http://frommypocket.pocketprimer.com/metaweblog.aspx) as well as the username and password you've designated for remote blogging to your blog (this is an option I had to set up with my blog services).

You can designate the size of the picture you'd like to be posted to the blog: Thumbnail (100x75); Small (240 x180); or Medium (500 x375).

In addition to posting the picture to your blog, you can set an option in flickr to post any text it finds in the body of the email. Flickr will use the Subject line as the title of the blog entry and the email message and attached picture will be the included as the actual blog entry.

Once you've set up the blogging options, flickr will provide a unique email that you can use whenever you wish to post a picture and blog entry to your blog. Just create a contact (called something like "flickr email blog") in your Windows Mobile contacts list. Then when you want to post a blog entry to your flickr account, you can open up whatever picture viewer you use, select the picture you want to include with your blog entry, and find the "Send To Email" option. Select the flickr contact from your contacts list, input the subject and blog text in the email body and send the email.

NOTE: Emailed content inherits whatever default privacy settings you've set for your flickr account. So if you plan to use either of the unique email accounts for public viewing, you'll need to set the default privacy setting to "Anyone (Public)."

Software & Services to Enhance your Flickr/Windows Mobile Experience

Yahoo! Go: a free software that allows you to browse, search, upload, and share digital photos on flickr, among other things
Resco's Photo Viewer 2007: third party photo management application that allows you to edit pictures and to upload them to flickr
Twittergram: a free web-based service that allows you to tweet links to flickr photos

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Technorati Tags: Flickr, Windows Mobile, Resco Photo Viewer, Yahoo! Go

Exploring WIFI and Internet Explorer under WM6.1

Prof.Julie@pocketprimer.com (ProfJulie) — Thu, 14 May 2009 23:02:36 GMT

The WIFI connection settings options and input screens for WM6.1 devices are fairly similar to those on WM5.0 devices, with a few notable differences: WM6.1 allows you to connect to a network that uses WPA2 or WPA2-PSK authentication and AES data encryption.

To get to the device's WIFI configurations, Tap Start > Settings > Connections tab > WIFI. You'll be taken to the main Wireless Networks screen, which should look familiar to you if you have ever owned a Windows Mobile device.

Wireless tab

Tapping Menu on the lower right hand side of the screen yields the following options:

Add New
Remove Settings
Edit
Advanced, and
Turn Off Wi-Fi.

Most of these options are self explanatory so do not provoke any further discussion, but the Advanced option is new and different:

Network Adapters tab

The network adapters tab shows all the adapters that are installed on the device. I have never configured any of the network adapters on any of my mobile devices - the default settings work just fine for me.

If you tap an adapter and then select the Edit option you can change some IP address and some name server addresses. These screens are similar to those you'd find on a WM5.0 device.

Add New... or Edit Wireless Network Configurations

Setting up my wireless network on the IPAQ 910c was very easy. When I turned the WIFI radio on, the IPAQ 910c detected my network and prompted me for my WEP encryption code. As soon as I entered the encryption code, the device was connected. I had hoped that I could copy and paste the WEP code from a note I have stored on the device (I can do this on my windows mobile 2003 device), but copying and pasting the encryption code didn't work on the IPAQ 910c.

Manually adding a network or editing an existing WIFI connection is similar to how you'd do it on most other windows mobile devices:

Tap Start > Settings > Connections tab > WIFI

Tapping Add New . . . or tapping any networks that are displayed in the screen take you though a series of Configure Wireless Network screens:

The ability to designate a network as hidden is new to WM6.1.

Tapping Next takes you to the Configure Network Authentication screen where you will select the type of authentication and data encryption used on the wireless network and where you can enter required encryption keys or passphrases.

The types of Authentication that are supported under WM6.1 are:

Open
Shared
WPA
WPA-PSK
WPA2
WPA2-PSK

Data Encryption options that are supported under WM6.1 differ based on the type authentication selected for the wireless network:

If Shared or Open Authentication is selected, you can select Disabled or WEP data encryption
If any form of WPA Authentication is selected, you can select TKIP or AES data encryption

WPA2 and WPA2-PSK authentication and AES data encryption is new to WM6.1

Tapping Next takes you to another Configure Network Authentication screen

If you use IEEE 801.1x network access control, you can select Smart Card or Certificate or PEAP and set up any related properties by tapping the Properties button.

Internet Explorer

Internet Explorer runs much faster on the IPAQ 901c than on my IPAQ hw6925, but the application itself hasn't changed much from WM5.0. There are a few nice additions to Internet Explorer on this WM6.1 device.

The Menu option has been changed to include more efficient access to commonly used options:

The Zoom Out option is new and seems useful

All in all, other than moving options around and changing some of the menu options, nothing seems to have changed much from WM5.0.

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Technorati Tags: WIFI, IPAQ 910, WM6.1

Exploring Bluetooth under WM6.1

Prof.Julie@pocketprimer.com (ProfJulie) — Thu, 14 May 2009 20:06:29 GMT

Compatibility between a Windows Mobile device and other Bluetooth enabled devices is dependent on the Bluetooth profiles that are included on the Windows Mobile device. Most Windows Mobile devices share core Bluetooth compatibilities, but you can not assume that just because you have a Bluetooth enabled Windows Mobile device you will be able to connect to all other Bluetooth enabled devices. You can see the Bluetooth profiles that the HTC Fuze, the IPAQ 900, the IPAQ hw6925, and the IPAQ hx2415 have in common and the profiles that are unique to each device in the following table:

	IPAQ hx2415	IPAQ hw6925	IPAQ 900	HTC Fuze
Windows Mobile Operating System	Windows Mobile 2003se	WM5.0	WM6.1	WM6.1
Bluetooth Stack	Widcomm	Widcomm	Microsoft	Microsoft
Generic Access Profile (GAP)	x	x	x
Generic Object Exchange Profile (GOEP)	x	x	x
Hands Free Profile (HFP)		x	x	x
Handset Profile (HSP)		x	x	x
Headset Profile	x
Human Interface Device (HID) Profile Host			x	x
Object Push Profile (OPP)	x	x	x	x
Personal Area Networking (PAN) Profile	x	x	x	x
Serial Port Profile (SPP)	x	x	x	x
ActiveSync Over Bluetooth			x
Advance Audio Distribution Profile (A2DP)		x	x	x
Audio/Video Remote Control Profile (AVRCP) Client		x	x	x
Generic Audio/Video Distribution Profile (GAVDP)			x
Phone Book Access Profile (PBAP)			x	x
File Transfer Profile (FTP)	x	x	x	x
Basic Printing Profile (BPP)	x	x	x	x
Basic Image Push Profile (BIP)			x
SIM Access Profile (SAP)				x
Dial-up Networking (DUN)	x	x		x
Service Discovery Application Profile (SDAP)	x	x		x
LAN Access Profile	x	x
Hard Copy Replacement Profile (printing)	x

Bluetooth is enabled on a device through the inclusion of a Bluetooth radio (hardware) and a Bluetooth stack. A "Bluetooth stack refers to an implementation of the Bluetooth protocol stack" or, in my probably not completely accurate words, a Bluetooth stack are the cluster of drivers that are loaded on a device that support the various Bluetooth profiles.

The two most common Bluetooth stacks you'll find in a Windows Mobile device is the Widcomm stack (Widcomm was acquired by Broadcom in April 2004) and the Microsoft stack. You will encounter varying degrees of compatibility with other Bluetooth enabled devices depending on the stack that is installed on the Windows Mobile device since there seem to be fundamental differences in the way Bluetooth services are delivered on a Widcomm stack versus a Microsoft stack. Many believe the Microsoft stack is somewhat crippled, but I don't have an opinion or preference for either since I have never encountered limitations using either of these stacks on my Windows Mobile devices.

I've written a few articles that profile how to use Bluetooth on a windows mobile 2003 or WM5.0 device and you can find them here:

The Bluetooth settings under WM6.1 are quite a bit different than earlier Windows Mobile operating systems. Setting up partnerships is much simpler, requiring a minimum of screen taps, but I found the simplified settings a little disorienting. So far I've set up the following partnerships on the IPAQ 910c:

Two different Bluetooth headsets - one is a very basic Motorola earpiece and the other is a Sony A2DP headset.
Bluetooth ActiveSync partnership with my laptop (using a Bluetooth dongle)
With my IPAQ hw6925 to exchange information between the two devices

Bluetooth under WM6.1

To access Bluetooth Settings, tap Start > Settings > Connection tab > Bluetooth. Within Bluetooth Settings, you'll find tabbed options. These options vary, based on the WM6.1 device you have. For instance:

IPAQ 910C: Tabbed items include Devices, Mode, COM Ports, Printer, File transfer, Security, and Image transfer.
HTC Fuze: Tabbed items include Devices, Mode, COM Ports, SIM Access, FTP, Timeout, Profiles, Security

The screenshots in this article were made on the IPAQ 910c.

There is no Connection Wizard where you choose the type of device or connection. Instead the Bluetooth manager searches for Bluetooth devices, automatically determines the type of connection and chooses the appropriate profile (assuming the Windows Mobile device supports it).

Devices

Tapping on a device shows the Partnership Settings that can be used on the device. For instance, if I tap the DB-BT10CX device (which is my Sony A2DB headset), I see these Partnership Settings:

Mode

This tab is self-explanatory. When you connect other Bluetooth devices, you'll need to make sure you turn Bluetooth on and make the Windows Mobile device visible to other devices.

COM Ports

So far I have not set anything up on this screen. These COM Ports were automatically assigned when I created partnerships with these devices. The Avalon partnership refers to my IPAQ hw6925 and the Motorola HS820 refers to my very basic earpiece.

Printer

WM6.1 includes native Bluetooth printing capabilities which I have not yet explored because I do not have a Bluetooth enabled printer. But if you have a Bluetooth enabled printer, you can print from a WM6.1 device to the printer without having to purchase additional third party software.

File transfer

This tab simply allows you to change the default folder where Bluetooth transferred files will be placed on the device.

Security

The Security tab is self explanatory. Setting an authorization password here prevents anyone from secretly transferring files to your device. [what do you think of the typo on this page?]

Image transfer

Another self-explanatory tab, but a new setting that is unique to WM6.1.

Setting up a Bluetooth partnership

Setting up Bluetooth partnerships on WM6.1 devices is easier than it has been for any of my older devices. For the purposes of demonstrating how you would create a Bluetooth partnership, I deleted the existing partnership with my Sony A2DP headset and recreated it here. All you need to do is:

Place the device you wish to connect to into discoverable mode,

Then on the WM6.1 device:

Turn on the Bluetooth radio

Open up the Bluetooth Settings Devices screen tapping Menu > Bluetooth Settings > Devices tab

Tap the Add new device.. option. The mobile device will search for Bluetooth devices and return the devices it finds in the next screen:

Tap the device to set up the device you wish to connect and tap Next. Enter a Passcode that will be shared between the devices (if appropriate) and tap Next.

You will receive confirmation message that the connection was successful and then be prompted if you want to connect with the device.

About Bluetooth headsets

On conventional cell phones, pressing a button on a Bluetooth headset activates voice command software so you can issue commands directly to the device without having to touch the cell phone. Previous to WM6.1, voice commands could not be issued in this way and so you could not make truly hands free calls through a Bluetooth headset. Under WM6.1, you can now place handsfree calls through a Bluetooth headset.

Setting up a Bluetooth ActiveSync Partnership

Setting up a Bluetooth ActiveSync partnership was easy but required a different approach. See "Using Bluetooth to sync your WM6.1 mobile device" for detailed instructions on how to create a Bluetooth ActiveSync partnership.

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Technorati Tags: Bluetooth, IPAQ 910, ActiveSync, WM6.1

Rearranging Applications on a Mobile Device

Prof.Julie@pocketprimer.com (ProfJulie) — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 02:40:45 GMT

Used to be if you installed an application to main memory and then needed more storage space on the device, you'd probably wind up uninstalling applications and then reinstalling them to a storage card. SKTools now includes an easy way to move data, including applications, around on a Mobile Device.

Open up SKTools, tap Category > Files	Tap Move Data


Tap Move Application	Scroll down and find the application you want to move


Tap Action > Move Application	Navigate to the location where you want to move the application > tap OK


SKTools prompts for confirmation. Tap Yes to move the application	SKTools relocates all files and modifies the registry to relocate relevant references to the software


SKTools will request final confirmation. Tap OK	After all files have been relocated and registry entries redirected to the new location, SKTools reports the end result

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Technorati Tags: SKTools, windows mobile, move applications

Recreate ActiveSync Notifications

Prof.Julie@pocketprimer.com (ProfJulie) — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 21:16:49 GMT

If your Windows Mobile device has encountered the notification issues that were detailed in this article, Notifications & Alerts, you may have been able to fix them by deleting erroneous or duplicate notifications in the device's notification queue. When I was working out the solution to these types of problems, I accidentally deleted some important notifications and was not able to sync my device to my computer. At the time, the only way I could restore the device to syncing order was by performing a factory reset (OUCH!).

After I performed the hard reset on that device, I discovered that SKTools provides a quick and easy way to rebuild these important ActiveSync-related notifications.

Open up SKTools, then select the Maintenance tools Category	Tap Notifications Queue


Select the Action link on the left hand side of the screen, then tap Recreate ActiveSync

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Technorati Tags: SKTools, windows mobile, ActiveSync, notification queue

Odds & Ends: PocketPrimer.com, Microsoft MVP Summit, & Links to Free Stuff

Prof.Julie@pocketprimer.com (ProfJulie) — Sun, 29 Mar 2009 23:17:29 GMT

I've been blogging here at From My Pocket for just over two years now. When I set the blog up, I also licensed the pocketprimer.com domain name. My intention all along has been to use the pocketprimer website as a landing page for the blog.

Late last week, I finally got around to creating the pocketprimer.com website. It is still under development, but check it out (www.pocketprimer.com) and then post a comment here, letting me know what you think.

A few weeks ago I was in Seattle attending the Microsoft MVP summit. It was great to meet other Windows Mobile enthusiasts (aka MVPs), and I got pretty pumped up at what I learned there. Microsoft's got a lot of neat things in the works and we all have a lot to look forward to. Some things you can check out now include:

Microsoft My Phone beta

Here's a new free service that is in beta testing and is only available by invitation. You'll have to sign up for the service and wait for an invitation from Microsoft. My Phone syncs the data from a windows mobile phone (contacts, appointments and tasks) to a secure website that only you can access. Once the data is synced from your windows mobile phone to the web you can sync it to a new device. I don' think you'll have to wait too long for an invitation.

I've used My Phone to sync my data to the web and it works great. I am looking forward to Microsoft's continued refinement of this service in the coming months. You can check out Microsoft's My Phone forum here.

Live Mesh beta

Another free service that is in beta testing. You may have already used live mesh to link together your multiple computers to keep them in sync with one another, but did you know that you can also connect a windows mobile device to the mesh? This is a fantastic way to keep things in sync, and also to access important files from any other connected computer on the web.

I've recently been giving Live Mesh a test drive and I'm liking what I've seen so far. I've set up my mesh to sync my desktop computers with my UMPC (this is the computer I carry to work and travel with). I've hooked my windows mobile device into the mesh too. I'm still feeling my way around this service, but see lots of potential here. Check out Microsoft's Live Mesh Mobile forum here.

Microsoft Tag beta

Microsoft Tag provides a way to create and read two dimensional bar codes that can be used in numerous scenarios. I'll admit, I'm not sure how much I'll use this software, but I see lots of potential. Here's what Microsoft says about Microsoft Tag:

"Microsoft Tag creates unlimited possibilities for making interactive communications an instant, entertaining part of life. They transform physical media (print advertising, billboards, product packages, information signs, in-store merchandising, or even video images)—into live links for accessing information and entertainment online.

With the Microsoft Tag application, just aim your camera phone at a Tag and instantly access mobile content, videos, music, contact information, maps, social networks, promotions, and more. Nothing to type, no browsers to launch"

Microsoft Recite

Here's a neat free application that allows you to record short notes to yourself and then search through them later on (verbally). I am intrigued by this software and look forward to installing it on my handheld and playing around with it some.

Things to Look Forward To This Year

Windows Mobile 6.5

Of course, you've probably all heard about Windows Mobile 6.5 and maybe seen some screenshots and early videos of it. I can't say much more about Windows Mobile 6.5, but I think you'll like it once it's finally released.

Windows Mobile Marketplace for Mobile

Windows Mobile Marketplace will be a place that users can go to purchase and download certified software for their mobile devices. You can learn the specifics of the Marketplace on the Windows Mobile Team Blog.

Windows Mobile Widgets

Windows Mobile 6.5 will include a widget platform that will provide an easier (and prettier) user interface. You can learn more about Windows Mobile Widgets and see some sample screenshots on the Windows Mobile Team Blog.

I returned home energized and enthusiastic about Windows Mobile and my blog.

Lately I've been thinking about the blog and where I'd like to take it over the next year. You may have noticed that over the last week I've been posting a series of short articles about SKTools. I think I can post useful content in regular, short articles like these while at the same time I work on the longer more meaty articles that I've typically written for the blog.

Thanks to you all for reading my blog!

Format / Rename a Storage Card

Prof.Julie@pocketprimer.com (ProfJulie) — Sun, 29 Mar 2009 13:38:00 GMT

The last time I purchased an SD card, the card was not formatted. For some reason, I could not format the card in my computer - the formatting utility errored out each time I tried. Luckily, I remembered that SKTools provides an option to format storage cards.

Format a Storage Card

You'll find this option to format a storage card under the Maintenance module	Scroll down to the Storage Cards option

Select the Storage Card. You'll notice that you can also view information about the storage card in the lower window	Choose Format (choosing Empty will simply delete the contents of the storage card without formatting the card)

Rename a Storage Card

There have been a few occasions when I needed to rename my storage card. Thankfully, SKTools makes it really easy to rename a storage card.

While you are here, you can tap the Tools option on the lower right hand side of the screen and then tap Settings	In this screen you can change the default formatting options: Format with options include FAT32, FAT16 or FAT12 Cluster size options range from 0.5K to 64K

Scroll down the page and you see a list of potential storage names	If you want to rename a storage card, tap the card and enter the new name in the space provided

After you've changed the storage card name, Exit SKTools completely and perform a soft reset to apply the settings.

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Technorati Tags: SKTools, windows mobile