I hope everyone has a safe and happy New Year! I posted a podcast summarizing the items below in MobileViews Podcast 2. So, if you want to get an audio summary in a 5 minute podcast instead of reading each blog item, try the podcast.

---

WifiRouter 0.80: Use a Windows Mobile Phone as a WiFi Router?
Fri, 28 Dec 2007 21:58:41
Wow, I didn’t mention anything related to Windows Mobile in this blog this week. So, here’s an interesting freeware utility for Windows Mobile to close out this WiMo-less (so far) week. WifiRouter 0.80 Here’s how its author, Jorrit, Jongma, describes it: WMWifiRouter is a tool to use your Windows Mobile 6 (possibly 5) as a WiFi < [...]

---

Rumored Apple Sub-notebook
Fri, 28 Dec 2007 21:46:08

I generally don’t mention rumors in my blogs. But, like many people, I’m anxiously waiting to see what Apple announces at its Macworld conference in a couple of weeks (Jan. 14-18). One persistent rumor this past year is that Apple is going to introduce some kind of subnotebook sized device. A couple of people are […]

---

New U.S. Fed Spare Battery Travel Rules Starting January 1, 2008
Fri, 28 Dec 2007 21:07:17

The U.S. Department of Transportation has new rules regarding to traveling with spare Lithium-Ion batteries that go into effect on Jan. 1, 2008. Check out the… SafeTravel.dot.gov …site for the details. I wonder how much variability there will be among TSA screeners looking at items like spare notebook computer batteries, spare digital camera batteries, and my power workhorse […]

---

GettingTasksDone Doesn’t Support OpenID on an iPhone or iPod touch
Thu, 27 Dec 2007 20:58:26

Saw a blog post over on jkOnTheRun asking if anyone tried using the iPhone formated website for GettingTasksDone.com on an iPod touch. I figured, hey, I have an iPod touch so I’ll check it out. Given my inability to learn to tap-type on the touch’s screen, I headed over to the normal desktop formatted version […]

---

OLPC Focused Blog: XO Activity
Wed, 26 Dec 2007 21:24:02
I was one of those unlucky people who got a semi-Dear John letter before Christmas telling me that my XO OLPC would not be delivered this year. So, my daughter and I will have to wait at least a few more weeks before we can try out the XO. However, I did run across an […]

---

amazonmp3 Beta
Wed, 26 Dec 2007 20:43:19
The Amazon MP3 Beta download service advertises DRM-free MP3 song files for 89 cents and albums for $8.99 or less. This undercuts Apple’s iTunes prices and one ups them in the bit-rate area by providing 256Kbps files (compared to Apple’s 192kbps). I don’t have golden ears. So, I probably can’t tell the difference. But, the […]

---

MobileViews Weekly Podcast #1
Sun, 23 Dec 2007 22:30:12
I’m testing the idea of a weekly podcast summarizing and commenting on my blog entries here. You can find the RSS feed for the podcast at… MobileViews Podcast RSS Feed The podcast itself with a built-in web audio player can be found at… MobileViews Podcast 1 20071221 I recorded the audio using Vito Technology’s SoundExplorer on an HTC Advantage […]

---

Sony Playstation Portable 3.80 Firmware Upgrade
Sun, 23 Dec 2007 21:59:26
The Sony PSP 3.80 firmware upgrade is available. The update includes the option to listen to Internet Radio. Sony provides what looks like two 3rd party options for this. RSS feeds can be imported using OPML now (good to finally see this given how difficult it is to “type” on the PSP). They also added […]

Jooce: Another Web Desktop
Fri, 21 Dec 2007 22:14:39

read more

---

Microsoft and Samba Working Together at Last
Thu, 20 Dec 2007 22:21:44

Samba is an Open Source suite/protocol that provides file sharing, printer sharing, and authentication that is built on reverse engineering the NetBIOS network protcol used by Microsoft Windows. It essentially allows a server other than Windows (like Linux) appear to be a Windows server.

read more

---

Live Search vs. Google Maps Zoom Feature
Tue, 18 Dec 2007 22:10:07

I’m re-purposing a blog item from my mobile devices blog since it involves freeware for Windows Mobile phones…

Microsoft announced an updated version of Live Search for Windows Mobile…

read more

---

Ulteo Beta: Web Based OpenOffice.org
Sun, 16 Dec 2007 21:20:28

Ulteo (beta) lets you run OpenOffice.org without installing it. It provides a Java powered web-based version with 1GB free storage. Note that you need to a Java runtime 1.4 or newer running to use Ulteo OOo.

I’m testing the idea of a weekly podcast that provides a brief (5 minute or so) audio summary of the mobile tech blog items summarized here. You can find the MobileViews podcast feed here. The direct podcast entry (I’m using Blogr) can be found here.

---

I hope everyone has a safe and happy holiday season!

---

Zune Diagnostics Tool? What About an ActiveSync/WMDC Tool?
Fri, 21 Dec 2007 14:05:13
Microsoft released a Zune Diagnostics tool yesterday and a Zune media collection reset tool earlier this month. That’s great. But, what about a Windows Mobile ActiveSync/WMDC diagnostics tool? Windows Mobile users (including me) having been asking for one for years. In my case, I’ve asked various generations of ActiveSync product team members face to face […]

---

Back to Basics: Unfocused Smartphone Browser Text Boxes
Thu, 20 Dec 2007 23:38:15

Pocket PC (Classic/Professional Edition) users probably don’t notice any browser text box focus issue because they simply tap text boxes with their stylus and force it into focus. Smartphone (Standard Edition) users, on the other hand, probably have run into the following issue: Browse a web page with a text box entry (say a login […]

---

Wired Vaporware 2007: Windows Mobile 6 for Samsung BlackJack
Thu, 20 Dec 2007 10:41:29
Windows Mobile 6 for Samsung BlackJack came in on Wired’s Vaporware 2007 list at #6. Wired writes: A buggy black-market upgrade for AT&T BlackJacks surfaced this summer, but it’s a far cry from the real deal. Meanwhile, owners of the original BlackJack are stuck in version-5 limbo after seeing their WM6 dreams go up in […]

---

YouTube Demo: Windows Mobile Live Search vs. Google Maps for Windows Mobile Zoom Feature
Tue, 18 Dec 2007 21:59:16
Microsoft announced an updated version of Live Search for Windows Mobile… Live Search for Mobile Updated So, I decided to compare its new Zoom feature to Google Maps for Windows Mobile. You can see the somewhat blurry (sorry about that) but informative (I hope) video on YouTube at.. Windows Mobile Live Search vs. Google Maps for Windows Mobile […]

---

Word Mobile vs. Word Mobile
Mon, 17 Dec 2007 20:28:54

I should actually place this blog item in a category named something like Preparing for Back to Basics. Word Mobile didn’t exist for the Smartphone (AKA Standard Edition) until Windows Mobile 6 devices rolled out earlier this year. For some reason I expected to it be the same as or very similar to Word Mobile for […]

---

Official Google Mobile Blog
Sun, 16 Dec 2007 15:07:02
In case you haven’t already visited the… Official Google Mobile Blog …you might to add it to your feedreader or visit it a couple of times a month. One of the recent announcements is an over the air sync between Google Calendar and Blackberry devices. I wish they would provide that feature for Windows Mobile devices. There’s […]

Microsoft Office Workspace Live Cannot Display PowerPoint 2007 Slide Deck
Fri, 14 Dec 2007 21:47:42

read more

---

Microsoft Office Live Workspace: A Definite Sleeper Hit
Thu, 13 Dec 2007 22:25:41

read more

---

TrendMicro HijackThis: Scan for Malware Windows Settings Changes
Tue, 11 Dec 2007 22:41:59

TrendMicro HijackThis may sound like the name of a piece of malware. But, it is actually a freeware utility from a respected security software firm that scans your Windows computer to find settings that may have been changed by spyware, malware or other unwanted programs. Note that HijackThis is a diagnostic tool that does require a bit of expertise to interpret.

It works on versions of Windows ranging from Windows 98 to Windows Vista.

---

Jaxtr: Post and Route an Alternate Phone Number
Mon, 10 Dec 2007 22:47:29

read more

ClearType Color Artifacts
Fri, 14 Dec 2007 21:20:02

The other day I wondered about whether turning on ClearType on Pocket PCs (Professional and Classic Editions) helped or hindered those of us with aging eyes. Here’s another ClearType issue that I noticed a couple of years. Under certain circumstances color artifacts show up. In the case illustrated above, I was reading an MSNBC news […]

---

Back to Basics: Touch Screen Alignment
Thu, 13 Dec 2007 21:20:13

I had two recent touch screen issues that prompted me to write a bit about screen alignment. The first has to do with the iPod touch. My daughter brought her touch to me and said touching the left side of the screen did not work. After fussing with it for a bit, I peeled off the […]

---

Sony Playstation Portable 3.73 Firmware Update vs. WiFi Settings
Wed, 12 Dec 2007 22:26:29
I read somewhere that the Sony PSP 3.80 upgrade might be out soon. So, I fired up my PSP for the first time in a long time and checked for system upgrades. 3.80 is not out but 3.73 was available. So, downloaded it over a WiFi connection and upgraded the PSP’s firmware. After rebooting, I […]

---

Back to Basics: Is Turning ClearType On Actually Useful?
Tue, 11 Dec 2007 22:17:18

It was, I believe, at the 1997 Fall Comdex that I first saw Bill Gates announce ClearType technology for notebook LCD displays. The ClearType anti-aliasing technique’s purpose was to render easier to read text on LCD displays. I looked down at my HP 320LX and wondered if we would ever see this technology trickle down […]

---

Morning Sky Capture by an HTC Advantage
Mon, 10 Dec 2007 22:17:08

I recall reading somewhere that many (most?) people consider photos taken with cameraphones to be throw away items. I don’t happen to one of those people. I stepped out to head to work this morning and wanted to take a photo of the sky. I didn’t have a real camera. But, I did have an […]

---

Weather.gov Mobile Friendly Sites (U.S.)
Sun, 09 Dec 2007 21:58:00

To say the weather has been whacky recently is, at best, an understatement. If you are in the U.S. and want to get a better handle on the weather situation, the U.S. National Weather Service has two mobile friendly sites: mobile.weather.gov is for devices with mobile web browsers cell.weather.gov is for devices with WAP browsers

Ruby on Rails 2.0
Sat, 08 Dec 2007 22:58:32

Ruby on Rails 2.0 is out. This web development framework written in the Ruby dynamic programming language was the hot web dev topic for the past year or two (is it still a hot topic?).

read more

---

Flickr Integrated Picnik Web Photo Editor
Wed, 05 Dec 2007 21:52:53

read more

---

Notepad++ 4.6: Windows Programmer’s Editor
Tue, 04 Dec 2007 23:03:37

Here’s an update to a small handy Open Source programmer’s and text editor for Microsoft Windows…

Notepad++ 4.6

I find it amazing that this one-person project has been so frequently updated.

---

DLO OpenFM: Find Open FM Frequencies
Mon, 03 Dec 2007 21:53:40

DLO is an iPod peripherals retailer. However, they do provide one very handy web application on their website…

DLO OpenFM

…finds open FM frequencies in your area (US only) by ZIP code or City/State. If you use a DLO (or any other) FM transmitter with your iPod or MP3 player, this can help find an unused frequency in your area to use.

I’ve created a couple of custom VBA functions for Outlook 2007 from some snippets at www.outlookcode.com and thought that someone else may find them useful. The first allows you to create a task from an email and modify the Update List recipients (something that you cannot do manually). This also works in Outlook 2003. The second is a timestamp that allows you to inject a timestamp into a task body without modifying the format of the body (using the Word object library).

Create a Task from an Email with the Ability to add Update List Recipients

Instructions: Copy the code below and paste it into the VBA editor in Outlook (access the editor by pressing ALT+F11 in Outlook). Then create a button on the Quick Access Toolbar for mail messages that accesses the MakeTaskFromEmail() function.

Sub MakeTaskFromEmail()
   Dim strID As String
   Dim olNS As Outlook.NameSpace
   Dim olMail As Outlook.MailItem
   Dim objTask As Outlook.TaskItem
   Set objMail = Outlook.Application.ActiveInspector.CurrentItem

   strID = objMail.EntryID
   Set olNS = Application.GetNamespace(”MAPI”)
   Set olMail = olNS.GetItemFromID(strID)
   Set objFolder = olNS.PickFolder
   Set objTask = objFolder.Items.Add(olTaskItem)
   objRecipients = InputBox(”Please enter any additional users to Update separated by semicolons:”, “Update List Users”)
    With objTask
      .Subject = olMail.Subject
      .Body = olMail.Body
      .StatusUpdateRecipients = olMail.SenderEmailAddress & “; ” & objRecipients
      .StatusOnCompletionRecipients = olMail.SenderEmailAddress & “; ” & objRecipients
   End With

   Call TaskAttachments(olMail, objTask)

   objTask.Display

   Set objTask = Nothing
   Set olMail = Nothing
   Set olNS = Nothing
End Sub

Sub TaskAttachments(objSourceItem, objTargetItem)
   Set fso = CreateObject(”Scripting.FileSystemObject”)
   Set fldTemp = fso.GetSpecialFolder(2)
   strPath = fldTemp.Path & “\”
   For Each objAtt In objSourceItem.Attachments
      strFile = strPath & objAtt.FileName
      objAtt.SaveAsFile strFile
      objTargetItem.Attachments.Add strFile, , , objAtt.DisplayName
      fso.DeleteFile strFile
   Next

   Set fldTemp = Nothing
   Set fso = Nothing
End Sub

TimeStamp Using WordEditor in Outlook 2007

Instructions: Copy the code below and paste it into the VBA editor in Outlook (access the editor by pressing ALT+F11 in Outlook). Then create a button on the Quick Access Toolbar for tasks that accesses the TimeStamp() function. You will also have to enable the Word object library in Tools -> References in the VBA editor.

Sub TimeStamp()
   Dim strText As String
   Dim objItem As Object
   Dim objExpl As Outlook.Explorer
   Dim objInsp As Outlook.Inspector
   Dim objDoc As Word.Document
   On Error Resume Next

   Set objNameSpace = Application.GetNamespace(”MAPI”)
   MyName = objNameSpace.CurrentUser.Name
   strText = “>> ” & Date & ” ” & Time & ” ” & MyName & “:” & vbCrLf & vbCrLf & vbCrLf

   Set objExpl = Application.ActiveExplorer
   Set objItem = objExpl.Selection(1)
   If Not objItem Is Nothing Then
      Set objInsp = objItem.GetInspector
      If objInsp.EditorType = olEditorWord Then
         Set objDoc = objInsp.WordEditor
         objDoc.Characters(1).InsertBefore strText
      Else
         MsgBox “Cannot insert text in a formatted message unless Word is the editor”
      End If
   End If

   Set objInsp = Nothing
   Set objDoc = Nothing
   Set objExpl = Nothing
   Set objItem = Nothing
   Set objMsg = Nothing
End Sub

Download Google Spreadsheet to Windows Mobile
Sat, 08 Dec 2007 22:38:54

I only noticed this Google Spreadsheet feature today. But, it may have been available for a while. If you use a Windows Mobile Pocket PC or Smartphone with Google Spreadsheet, it gives you the option to download an Excel XLS file. This worked fine for me. The XLS spreadsheet opened up in Excel Mobile right […]

---

Back to Basics: What Apps Run on Windows Mobile? Part II
Thu, 06 Dec 2007 22:59:01
Windows Mobile devices are not limited to the native or managed (.NET Compact Framework) code for applications. Although Microsoft does not provide a Java runtime, many manufacturers add a Java Midlet Manager to their WiMo products. You’ll need this if you want to use products such as the Operamini browser or some (but not all) of […]

---

Back to Basics: What Apps Run on Windows Mobile? Part I
Wed, 05 Dec 2007 22:39:13
You might think this a trick question. How could figuring out what applications run on a Windows Mobile device be difficult? You run Windows Mobile software on Windows Mobile devices, right? Kind of… There’s a number of factors that makes answering this question a bit more difficult than it ought to be. First, there’s the Professional […]

---

New Google Interface for iPhone/iPod touch
Tue, 04 Dec 2007 22:29:37

I just read on TechCrunch that Google quietly launched a new interface for Apple’s iPhone (and iPod touch too by default). If you have your iPhone (or iPod touch with WiFi turned on) handy, just head over to google.com. You don’t need to type a special URL. Your iPhone will be autodetected and sent to […]

---

iPhone Browser Marketshare Greater than Windows Mobile
Mon, 03 Dec 2007 18:06:54
According to the Gartner data reported in this Computerworld blog item… iPhone browsing marketshare closes in on .1% … the iPhone browser marketshare eclipsed the total Windows Mobile browser marketshare in less than half a year. That is pretty impressive considering that Windows CE/Windows Mobile has been around since late 1996. The iPhone checks in with 0.09% […]

Track Santa Using Google Earth on Christmas Eve
Sat, 01 Dec 2007 21:26:49

If your child (or you for that matter) want to track Santa’s progress in style on Christmas Eve head over to read the Official Google Blog item…

Tracking Santa, then and now

read more

---

HubbleSite Gallery: Put the Universe on Your Desktop
Thu, 29 Nov 2007 22:34:56

It doesn’t get much more amazing that this… Images from the Hubble Telescope…

HubbleSite Gallery

Be sure to check out the Wallpaper section of the site for free downloads of truly amazing images.

---

My Cool Button: Create Web 2.0 Candy Buttons
Wed, 28 Nov 2007 21:46:56

Although I believe in all the Web 2.0 hype, on bad days I may respond to the “what is Web 2.0″ question with: It’s all about candy colored buttons! If you want quickly build some of your own Web 2.0 candy colored buttons, head over to…

My cool button

Its single page menu driven service is so simple even I could build a button :-)

---

Google Maps Terrain View
Tue, 27 Nov 2007 22:51:20

Google Maps’ new Terrain View kind of looks like a blueprint to me (maybe it’s the colors). You can see buildings in a 3/4 3D-ish relief view with hills looking like a big smudge (see that thing between the Street View and Traffic buttons above?). Terrain View also doesn’t let you zoom in as close as the Map or Satellite views do. BTW, the pure Satellite view with no street labels is gone. Satellite gives you what used to be called Hybrid.

read more

---

Firefox 2.0.0.10
Mon, 26 Nov 2007 22:51:50
NOTE: 2.0.0.11 was released after this blog item was originally posted

Mozilla released Firefox 2.0.0.10. According to the release notes, it provides three security related fixes. I will say this about Firefox though. Although it has been mostly stable on Mac OS X, the Windows versions have had a lot of big memory leaks in previous versions. The memory leaks seem less severe starting with, hmm, maybe 2.0.0.8. It still seems a lot slower to me that Firefox 1.5 on both Mac OS X and Windows to me though. I haven’t tried the Firefox 3 betas yet.

read more

IEBlog : Internet Explorer 8

Just as he was the first to talk about IE7, Bill Gates kept the tradition alive and discussed IE8 at the Mix ‘n Mash event here on campus yesterday. Bill was talking to some bloggers about IE.Next and called it IE8, the same way we do here in the IE team hallway.

So, yes, the version after IE7 is IE8. We looked at a lot of options for the product name. Among the names we considered and ruled out:

IE 7+1
IE VIII
IE 1000 (think binary)
IE Eight!
iIE
IE for Web 2.0 (Service Pack 2)
IE Desktop Online Web Browser Live Professional Ultimate Edition for the Internet (the marketing team really pushed for this one ;-)
Ie2.079 (we might still use this for the Math Major Edition)

It’s good to see that if nothing else, the IE team still has a good sense of humor (of course, many would argue that after releasing IE 7, their sense of humor became immediately obvious, but as usual, I digress ;-)

On a serious note, how about we all join in on the fun: If you were in charge of coming up with the name+version number for the next version of IE, what would you choose?

To get things started, here’s my choice,

IE 8 w/ Integrated Support for XSLT 2.0+XQuery (A man can dream, can’t he?!)

Now you try, (this aught to be good ;-)

An Actual Mobi Site: ESPN.mobi
Sat, 01 Dec 2007 22:42:07

Ok, despite my comment a while back that there aren’t any dot-mobi sites, I guess there are a few. Here’s one you might find useful as holiday basketball tournaments and college bowl games approach. ESPN.mobi

---

Windows Mobile Office Mobile 6.1 Can Read and Write Office 2007 Files
Thu, 29 Nov 2007 21:48:19
After a false start a few months ago, the Office Mobile 6.1 update is finally available. Well, at least it hasn’t been pulled back again so far. You can find information about the upgrade at… Microsoft Office Mobile Upgrade For the first time it is also possible to purchase a package. You can find this on Handango […]

---

Google Maps Mobile vs. Microsoft Live Search Mobile
Wed, 28 Nov 2007 22:53:20

Google and Microsoft both recently released new mobile mapping services: Google Maps Mobile and Microsoft Live Search Mobile. Google Maps seems to respond and refresh the screen faster (compared on the same device using the same network). But, its new My Location feature that tries to figure out your location without a GPS didn’t […]

---

PowerPoint for Mac 2008 Exports to iPod and iPhone
Tue, 27 Nov 2007 23:05:21
Microsoft Office 2008 for the Mac is due out early next year. The Office 2008 for Mac team blog let us know about a very interesting feature that PowerPoint 2008 for Mac will have: The ability to export PowerPoint slide decks as pictures to iPods that provides photos viewing (all current models except the Shuffle […]

---

Back to Basics: Dialing a Windows Mobile Smartphone
Mon, 26 Nov 2007 22:26:54
Little known fact: One of the Windows Mobile Smartphone’s (Standard Edition) features that rarely gets featured is its ability to make a voice call. Really. No kidding. Open a second tab in your browser and go visit a bunch of great sites that discuss Windows Mobile devices and take a look at the articles. Heck, […]

---

Back to Basics: m. Trumps .mobi
Sun, 25 Nov 2007 22:35:10

One of the truly bad recent web-ideas was the so-called dot-mobi (.MOBI) top-level domain that became available just over a year ago in September 2006. Its purpose was to create a top-level domain where mobile friendly sites would live. You can only who came up with the bright idea to force mobile device users to […]