Windows Mobile for Australia : Tips & Tricks

HTC Touch Pro2 – local Oz review

wmOz — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 21:59:41 GMT

If you’re looking for a local (Oz) review of the HTC Touch Pro 2 then head over to Technology at Play – a local forum run by a Windows Mobile MVP, based in Brisbane.

To read the review head to: http://www.technologyatplay.com/forums/showthread.php?p=22587#post22587 – written by the moderator it provides a really good, detailed breakdown from a person who has been using the Touch Pro 2, including the new 6.5 updated ROM for a number of weeks.

DonK

HTC TouchPro2 – 6.5 update for open channel available

wmOz — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 22:24:33 GMT

If you’ve purchased an HTC TouchPro2 via the open channel market in Australia then you can get the official update to Windows Mobile 6.5 for this phone.

Click on this link http://www.htc.com/au/SupportViewNews.aspx?dl_id=790&news_id=393 and follow the instructions that HTC provide.

Q:How do I know if my phone is open channel?

A: If your phone does not have any Telstra logo/branding on it (check the back cover) then it’s open channel.

DonK

HTC Snap – 6.5 Upgrade for Australia available

wmOz — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 08:18:52 GMT

If you’ve purchased an HTC Snap in Australia in the last few months you can now get the official Windows Mobile 6.5 upgrade from HTC - http://www.htc.com/au/supportdownloadlist.aspx?p_id=262&act=sd&cat=all

Before you apply the ROM update I’d encourage you to install the MyPhone client (http://myphone.windowsphone.com) so you can back up your SMS’s, photos, documents, music, videos. Once you’ve updated to 6.5 just run the MyPhone client (it’s native to all Windows phones) and you’ll get all that info sync’d back to your phone. Just make sure you’ve got an appropriate data plan.

So the Snap now joins the HTC Touch Diamond2 from Telstra in the Windows Mobile 6.5 camp.

As soon as we hear of more ROM updates becoming available we’ll blog about it.

DonK

Technorati Tags: HTC Snap,Windows Mobile 6.5,Update

Western Australia – Day Light Savings changes : patch for Windows Mobile

wmOz — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 12:01:58 GMT

Our friends in WA decided that their trial of Day Light Saving was just that, and back in May the referendum decided not to implement it permanently, http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/05/16/2572628.htm?section=australia.

There is now a patch available to bring a Windows Mobile device in line with the decision. Two options;

1. MSI file - which can be installed from your PC can be found here (note, your device has to be connected to your PC to do this, and if you have multiple devices you have to do the same process for each device)

http://download.microsoft.com/download/6/8/9/6892CA30-45CD-40D5-8E14-3A0755A07D00/WindowsMobile-KB975353.msi

2. CAB file (to install it directly on to your device)

http://download.microsoft.com/download/6/8/9/6892CA30-45CD-40D5-8E14-3A0755A07D00/WindowsMobile-KB975353.CAB

If you’re experiencing any “calendar out by 1hr” symptoms in Australia we would recommend you apply this patch first.

DonK

Technorati Tags: Windows Mobile,Day Light Savings

HTC Snap – ActiveSync setup, if not on Telstra MMES Plans

wmOz — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 02:26:51 GMT

The HTC Snap has been out for a while now through Telstra. The default configuration is set to take advantage of the new flat rate data plans – know as Microsoft Mobile Enterprise Solution (MMES) http://www.telstraenterprise.com/productsservices/mobility/officemobility/Pages/MicrosoftMobileEnterpriseSolution.aspx

We’ve been hearing that some customers are experiencing “difficulty” in setting up e-mail with the SNAP, so here’s the guide to getting Exchange ActiveSync setup if you’re not on the new Telstra plans (MMES).

Setting ActiveSync to connect through the “Internet” Connection

Press Start
Select ActiveSync
Press Menu
Select Add Server Source
Enter your Email address
Press Next
Enter your User name, Password and Domain
Press Next

The device will automatically download the Settings from the Exchange Server

Proceed directly to Step 10 if the Auto Configuration is successfully

If the device cannot complete the Auto Configuration, Enter your Server address, ensure “This server requires an encrypted (SSL) connection” is checked and press Next
Press Menu
Select Advanced

Ensure the Connection: sliding panel is set to “Internet”

Press on OK if prompted and once you have read and understand the Warning Message

Press Save
Press Finish

By selecting Internet in Advanced Server Settings, ActiveSync will connect through the Connection which is defined in the Connection Settings of the device to Automatically Connect to the Internet.

DonK

My Phone – public beta now open

wmOz — Thu, 21 May 2009 14:16:00 GMT

In an earlier post (Windows Marketplace for Mobile – Open for Developer registration) I touched on two services that were announced in February in conjunction with Windows Mobile 6.5. One being Windows Marketplace for Mobile and the second My Phone.

My Phone is a cloud based service, with a client supporting Windows Mobile 6 and above, this syncs information between your Windows Mobile phone and the cloud based service.

On Monday the My Phone team upgraded the Microsoft My Phone web site to support 19 additional languages and made other improvements based on existing beta user feedback.

Finally, with this release My Phone was opened to all users. Promotional codes are no longer needed to signup – so now you, your friends, family and colleagues with Windows Mobile phones can use My Phone.

Head to http://myphone.microsoft.com to register today.

DonK

Technorati Tags: My Phone,Windows Mobile

New msdn forum for Marketplace

wmOz — Tue, 19 May 2009 02:18:47 GMT

If you have registered as a developer for Windows Marketplace for Mobile then you should check out the new forum @ msdn:

http://social.msdn.microsoft.com/Forums/en-US/mktplace/

The Marketplace for Mobile team posted this “Welcome” announcement:

“Welcome to the Windows Marketplace for Mobile developer forum. This forum is the resource for developers’ Marketplace application submission and certification questions.

The Marketplace delivers an end-to-end solution for end-users to discover, purchase, and download Windows Mobile 6.5 applications. This includes an end-user experience on the device, a PC website, as well as a self-service portal for developers to submit their applications for listing in the Marketplace.”

DonK

Technorati Tags: Windows Marketplace for Mobile,msdn,Windows Mobile 6.5

Windows Mobile Facebook app – now available

wmOz — Fri, 08 May 2009 06:44:12 GMT

New from Windows Mobile: a Facebook application for your phone – Windows Mobile 6 and above. Here are some of the call out’s of what you can do from the Facebook client on Windows Mobile;

Send messages to any of the people in your Friends list.

Take pictures and videos on your phone, then upload them right to Facebook.

Send messages or call people in your Friends list.

Manage your profile and post anytime, anywhere

Here are some screen shots from the Facebook on a Windows Mobile Std (non-touch) device;

You can download the application

From your PC head to http://www.microsoft.com/windowsmobile/en-us/downloads/facebook.mspx
From your Windows Mobile browser head to http://www.windowsmobile.com and look in the downloads section.

DonK

Technorati Tags: windows mobile,facebook

Daylight Savings – specific devices guidance

wmOz — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 05:00:04 GMT

In our posting last week Daylight Savings - Readying you WM phone we planned to provide an update once we’d tested some of the WM6.1 devices in market. We’ve run through a bunch of WM6.1 phones, and our guidance still remains the same – all Windows Mobile 5.0, 6 and 6.1 phones need to have the March 2008 patch applied (see Day Light Savings – install the March 2008 DLS patch for instructions).

If you have an HTC Touch Diamond or an HTC TouchHD, you will need to perform these steps to have your calendar entries fall into sync with the time zone.

1. Disable Automatic change time zone and clock

Tap on “Start”
Tap on “Settings”
Tap on the “Phone” icon
Tap on the “Time Zones” tab at the bottom of the screen
Uncheck “Automatically change time zone and clock “
Tap on “OK”
Press the “End Key” to return to the Home Screen

2. Manually Adjust and Re-Adjust Time Zone

Tap on “Start”
Tap on “Settings”
Tap on the “System” tab
Tap on the “Clocks & Alarms” icon
Set the Time Zone to an alternate “Time Zone” (for example set it to GMT +12 New Zealand )
Tap on “OK”
Tap on “Yes” to Save changes to the Clock and settings
Tap on the “Clocks & Alarms” icon
Set the Time Zone to the correct “Time Zone” (this must be the actual Time Zone you reside in)
Tap on “OK”
Tap on “Yes” to Save changes to the Clock and settings
Press the “End Key” to return to the Home Screen

DonK

Day Light Savings – install the March 2008 DLS patch

wmOz — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 00:27:02 GMT

Technorati Tags: Windows Mobile,Daylight Savings

We posted last week about readying your phone for Day Light Savings, but we wanted to re-iterate what is needed.

For all Windows Mobile 5.0, 6 and 6.1 phones we recommend you apply the March 2008 patch, containing the latest Australian Day-light Savings changes, is WMDST2008-1.CAB and can be downloaded directly from your phone via; www.windowsmobile.com or http://mobile.microsoft.com/en-us/windowsmobile/updates/dst.aspx.

What is the process to follow?

Via the browser on your phone go to www.windowsmobile.com
Select Check for Updates on that page
Select Download
Select Accept for the Terms & Conditions
Select Download for Windows Mobile 6 devices (if you are running a WM6 or WM6.1 phone)
Select Yes to download WMDST2008-1.cab, ensuring Open file after download is ticked.

This will commence the install, when complete your phone will restart – this is part of the install process.

DonK

Daylight Savings – readying your WM phone

wmOz — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 13:59:00 GMT

For many of us in Australia we heading to the end of Daylight Savings, and in many states the end of DLS changed last year, here is the latest summary information as published on http://www.bom.gov.au/climate/averages/tables/dst_times.shtml

Year	State	Start DLS	End DLS
2008-09	TAS, VIC, ACT, NSW, SA	5/10/2008	5/4/2009
	WA	26/10/2008	29/3/2009

This post is intended to be a summary of what the current patch status is, so you can check your phone configuration & setup.

Why you may not have the latest Daylight Savings Patch;

You have purchased your Windows Mobile phone since October 2008,
You have have hard-reset (Cleared Storage) your device recently,
You have not applied the March 2008 patch to your phone.

The March 2008 patch, containing the latest Australian Day-light Savings changes, is WMDST2008-1.CAB and can be downloaded directly from your phone via; www.windowsmobile.com or http://mobile.microsoft.com/en-us/windowsmobile/updates/dst.aspx

Our recommendation to install this patch:

Via the browser on your phone go to www.windowsmobile.com
Select Check for Updates on that page
Select Download
Select Accept for the Terms & Conditions
Select Download for Windows Mobile 6 devices (if you are running a WM6 or WM6.1 phone)
Select Yes to download WMDST2008-1.cab, ensuring Open file after download is ticked.

This will commence the install, when complete your phone will reboot – this is part of the install process.

We @ WMOz are running through some of the WM6.1 phones that we know are in market, and checking what needs to be applied, once we’ve finished we’ll put and updated post.

At this point we believe that Samsung i617T and Samsung Omnia do not require the patch.

DonK

Technorati Tags: Windows Mobile,Daylight Savings

Tips & Tricks - Hint #1

wmOz — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 05:53:46 GMT

Well here goes my first entry. The Windows Mobile Australia gang was sitting around a meeting table discussing the need for getting some useful information up on a blog in order to spread information that would be beneficial and interesting to you - the owner of a Windows Mobile device :)

I talk to folks all day long on the subject and often come across little gems that I will put in a Tips and Tricks section. I suspect a lot of our devices today are used for both personal and business purposes so these hints will span both worlds.

Hint #1

Have you ever been on the road and had to log into a conference call? Searching for the number and the pass code at 60km is not only illegal but also an adrenaline rush topping your first jump out of a plane.

How can connecting to a conference call be made easier?

The answer is to format the number in the location field of the calendar invite in the following way

tel:phonenumber then a p for pause, then the pass code and if needed a # to enter the number into the conference call facility

this will look like the following

tel:1800000000p555555#

Calendar invite sent from the PC

On the day open the reminder / calendar appointment on your device

Tap / select the conference call number

Confirm

And then talk away

If you want to get sneaky here are some bonus ideas

1) Change your signature to reflect this format and use the full international dialing codes so it always works for the dialer no matter where in the world they are.

+(country code)(area code)(number)p(pass code)#

2) If the sender does not use this format and you know you are going to be in transit then email yourself the dial in numbers to make it easy when you are away from your desk.

3) If you know the conference call facility will ask for your name add an extra p and a # so it will automatically record a blank name announcement and you will enter the meeting without any other touches. Also this practice always comes in handy to avoid the situation where your call drops out while driving in the underground car park and your name is announced as "exiting the call" which of course appears as if you were not interested in the next speakers thoughts!

Tested on Exchange 2007 and the HTC TytnII Windows Mobile Professional device

Enjoy more with what you have

Technorati Tags: Conference call,number format,tips & tricks,calendar invite,rick anderson

Windows Mobile for Australia