Excellent Detailed Asus Eee PC 900 Reivew at EeeUser.com
Fri, 09 May 2008 21:55:39
EeeUser.com has an excellent detailed (really detailed) review of the Asus Eee PC 900 at… EeePC 900 in-depth review It is scheduled for release in the US on May 12 (next week Monday). After watching the Eee PC 4G, Eee PC 8G, and HP Mini-note released, I think I am ready to make a purchase of some […]

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Intermittent Problems are the Worst: SIM Problem?
Thu, 08 May 2008 21:54:27
My WiMo smartphone loses all connectivity every once in a while. Once in a while is defined as once every week or two. It has happened three times in the past month. I noticed that a SIM message was on my screen when it happened the other day. I opened the battery cover, pulled the […]

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CHDK Wiki: How to Hack A Canon PowerShot Digital Camera
Wed, 07 May 2008 22:09:16

I really tempted to try a CHDK Wiki Canon PowerShot digital camera firmware hack. But, a big streak of digital cowardice is getting in the way According to their FAQ, the changes are not actually written to the camera in a permanent way. The firmware hack can be reversed by simply removing the […]

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Windows Live for Windows Mobile Not Available Until May 15
Tue, 06 May 2008 20:49:36

Hmm, the Windows Live for Windows Mobile (Windows Live Hotmail, Contacts, and Spaces) download is unavailable until May 15. I wonder why???

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Associated Press Mobile News Network: iPhone vs. Windows Mobile Format
Mon, 05 May 2008 22:04:30

The Associated Press (AP) launched what many are calling a mobile news site for the iPhone. And, while that is true, the site… http://www.apnews.com/ …is actually smart enough to reformat itself for other mobile form factors too. The image on the left above is a screen capture from a TyTn Pocket PC Phone Edition while the image […]

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Yahoo Go 3.0 Beta Earns a Tentative Thumbs Up
Sun, 04 May 2008 21:16:14

I noticed that Yahoo! Go 3.0 Beta became available for two of my Windows Mobile 6 smartphones (non-touch): The Dash and the the Vox. None of my professional edition (touch screen devices) are supported by this beta release. After bad-mouthing the Go 2.0 release and suggesting it go away if the Microsoft-Yahoo merger happened (which […]

Skyfire Beta: Ho-hum Browser Alternative
Sat, 03 May 2008 14:42:31

I received a text message about the Skyfire beta a few days ago. It had been so long since I applied for the beta that I couldn’t remember what Skyfire was. A visit the site reminded me. So, I clicked on the link in the text message and downloaded the CAB file for my Dash […]

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Google News for the iPhone/iPod touch with Associated YouTube Video
Fri, 02 May 2008 06:21:24
Google announced… Google News now available on your iPhone and iPod Touch The site’s URL is the usual http://news.google.com one. It auto-detects the iPhone/iPod touch. One interesting wrinkle described in the announcement is and, where available, relevant YouTube videos embedded with news stories. Nice.

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Microsoft Windows Mobile Connection Site for Mobile Industry People
Thu, 01 May 2008 22:42:42

The Microsoft Windows Mobile Connection site says it is a community site for anyone who sells mobile phones or works in the mobile industry. It looks like a social network for people in the Windows Mobile industry. It let me sign up with my Passport account even though I’m not affiliated with any mobile firm.

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Microsoft LifeCam VX-7000 Webcam Took Pretty Good Conference Videos
Wed, 30 Apr 2008 22:36:33

I bought a Microsoft LifeCam NX-6000 notebook webcam last year (device on the right in the photo above). Its video and audio quality is good. However, the mounting clip is awful. It fits on the top of most notebook LCD lids, but is otherwise useless. So, I bought the newer Microsoft LifeCam VX-7000 notebook webcam […]

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Starbucks WiFi Changes
Tue, 29 Apr 2008 22:58:12
This is a bit dated. But, since I tend to use WiFi at Starbucks now and then, I wanted to make a note for myself to remember where I read this Starbucks blog item about its WiFi hotspot program since they don’t seem to have permalinks for individual blog items. Check out the March 25, […]

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HYmini Handheld Wind/Solar Generator: Does it Actually Work?
Sun, 27 Apr 2008 22:40:07

The Hymini is a handheld wind power generator. There is also an optional solar panel that can be used with it. The company behind both products claims in recharge personal electronic products such as cell phones and MP3 players. The devices look reasonably priced. The wind generator is US$49.95 and the solar panel is $24.99. […]

Emeril Lagasse’s Mobile Friendly Site
Thu, 24 Apr 2008 20:24:42

I had a Banana Foster Cream Pie for dessert as part of my lunch the other day and didn’t know what it was. Searching for the term on the web led to famed TV chef Emeril Lagasse’s website. And, what do you know, it has a mobile friendly version. This was important since I was […]

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Ubuntu 8.04 is Out But Waiting for 8.10 (Ibex)
Thu, 24 Apr 2008 06:22:51
I was just reading the article about the release of Ubuntu Linux 8.04 over on Arstechnica… The Heron has landed: Ubuntu 8.04 officially released …and this comment caught my eye: The next major version is Ubuntu 8.10, which is codenamed Intrepid Ibex and is scheduled for release in October. During the Intrepid Ibex development cycle, the focus […]

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So Long Spot Watches, We Hardly Knew You
Wed, 23 Apr 2008 20:45:12
Wow, just read this over on Engadget… SPOT watches, R.I.P.: 2004 - 2008 I still use my Suuntto n3i Spot watch everyday and subscribe to the service that lets me sync with Outlook’s calendar. According to Engadget the data service will continue on for my watch. I sure hope so since Microsoft just auto-renewed the service and […]

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Microsoft Research Shift: Finger Touch Technique for Pocket PCs
Tue, 22 Apr 2008 19:23:39

This video demo comes from Microsoft Research. It illustrates how a Pocket PC designed to be used with a stylus can be used with a larger finger touching the screen using a technique they call Shift(not to be confused with the HTC Shift UMPC device). Looks like a good workaround for those […]

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Tiny Twitter for Windows Mobile
Mon, 21 Apr 2008 22:22:10

Quick! Name a web service that is as flaky as a bowl of breakfast cereal that doesn’t seem to generate hate even though it seems to be down half the time. Did you say Twitter? I learned about Tiny Twitter from Mobility Site’s Jack Cook. There are versions for Windows Mobile (native code) and Java-enabled […]

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Windows Mobile’s Weak Week View
Sun, 20 Apr 2008 23:04:53
What happens when a bunch of Windows Mobile enthusiasts (my fellow Windows Mobile MVPs) get together? Well, there’s a lot of talk about mobile devices (no surprise). And, it shouldn’t surprise anyone that the Windows Mobile calendar gets a lot of discussion time since it is probably one of the most used applications on a […]

My Google Docs Offline Feature Got Turned On
Sat, 19 Apr 2008 20:01:20

I noticed that my Google Docs offline feature was turned on today. Google Gears took what seemed like less than a minute to synchronize files. There’s an icon on my desktop to quickly access files in offline mode.

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FYI: OpenDNS and T-Mobile Hotspots Don’t Mix
Tue, 15 Apr 2008 18:56:57

I don’t use T-Mobile Hotspots often. However, I have been using it while in Seattle this week. It was the first time I used the Hotspots since switching my Macbook to OpenDNS supplied DNS servers. Unfortunately, you can’t get to T-Mobile’s proxy on the inside of their network (makes sense) when using OpenDNS servers. So, I removed the OpenDNS DNS entries for now. I should have created a new profile but was in a rush to get things working and didn’t think that far ahead :-)

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IronRuby Meetup at the Microsoft MVP Global Summit
Mon, 14 Apr 2008 20:14:30

Just a quick note that I attended an informal meetup to discuss Microsoft IronRuby during the first day of the Microsoft MVP Global Summit in Seattle. You can find my blog post about it on the O’Reilly ONLamp Port 25 blog…

IronRuby Meetup at the Microsoft MVP Global Summit

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Adobe Media Player: Does the World Really Need Another Branded Media Player?
Sun, 13 Apr 2008 09:16:54

I dunno. Does the world really need another branded media player?

Adobe Media Player

OK, it is a content aggregator. But, doesn’t Joost do this too? Whatever happened to Joost anyway? It was a big deal a year again. Now, no one talks about it.

The HTC Shift: So Close and Yet So Far
Sat, 19 Apr 2008 16:29:18

My old friend and fellow Mobile Devices MVP Arne Hess (the::unwired) brought an HTC Shift ultramobile running both Windows Vista and Windows Mobile to the MVP Summit this past week. You can see it above sitting beside my Dash smartphone and on top of my Apple MacBook. The Shift’s unique design using both Windows Vista […]

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Gerado Dada Points to Windows Mobile 6.1 Standard Edition Video Demo
Fri, 18 Apr 2008 21:01:54
Gerado Dada points to a sleep inducing Windows Mobile 6.1 Standard Edition (produced by marketing) video demo at… Windows Mobile 6.1 Video Demo (Standard Edition) Note that what is shown only applies to the non-touch Standard Edition devices. Professional Edition does not have any dramatic visible changes with Windows Mobile 6.1 on it.

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Last Day of the MVP Summit
Thu, 17 Apr 2008 03:21:18

It’s the last day of the Microsoft MVP (Most Valuable Professional) Summit. It was great syncing up in person with the other Windows Mobile MVPs and Microsoft Windows Mobile team. Lots of good information was exchanged this week. This morning we have two keynote presentations by Steve Ballmer and Ray Ozzie to look forward to. […]

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Redfly for $500, I Dunno
Tue, 15 Apr 2008 20:00:10

A friend and fellow Mobile Devices MVP has a pre-production Redfly Windows Mobile Companion. At $199 this would be a killer product. At $499, I don’t think so. It would make more sense for me to buy an Asus Eee PC even if it couldn’t connect to a mobile phone network.

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The Dash’s Battery Died Faster Than Any Other Phone Battery I’ve Used
Mon, 14 Apr 2008 20:04:34
I’ve had my T-Mobile Dash for about a year now. I don’t switch phones very frequently although I often do have a couple of phones to play with. Why? I usually find a specific phone I like a lot and stick with it for a while. The Dash is a great phone and I haven’t […]

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Northwest Airlines Mobile Friendly Site - Any Other Airlines?
Mon, 14 Apr 2008 04:12:59

I rarely travel these days (having spent the 1990s traveling once a month or so). So, I always need to check what is going on with airlines and other travel entities. Northwest has a mobile friendly website at… wireless.nwa.com Since I’m too lazy to go check the other airlines’ sites, let me know if what other airlines […]

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Definitely Need a ChargePod
Sun, 13 Apr 2008 07:16:30

Fellow MVP Sven Johannsen pointed me to the Callpod Chargepod (Amazon affiliate page) multi-device charger (manufacturer page). I’m traveling to Seattle to attend the Microsoft MVP Global Summit and wish I had known about this thing earlier. The sad thing, though, is that charging six devices at once is not quite enough But, […]

Dell Says it Will Join the Sub-notebook Fray (Bring Back Windows 98SE!)
Sat, 12 Apr 2008 07:04:31
Looks like Dell is playing the me-too catch-up game (from Information Week)… Dell Gears Up To Enter Mini-Notebook Market The first question is what price will the Dell entry be set at and what features will be available. Asus gambled and took the early mind-share. HP seems to have raised the bar (feature-wise) — although some claim […]

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Evernote: Notes on your Desk and Phone without Syncing
Thu, 10 Apr 2008 22:11:28

Anything that lets me avoid depending on ActiveSync or WMDC is a good thing. So, I was pretty excited to try Evernote’s desktop (Windows and Mac) client, free web service, and Pocket PC client that lets me access my notes everywhere without depending on ActiveSync. You can read my commentary about it on the O’Reilly […]

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More HP 2133 Mini-Note Reviews: Brighthand and PC World
Wed, 09 Apr 2008 20:41:42
I’m still debating whether to buy the Asus Eee PC 900 (unreleased) or the soon-to-be-available HP 2133 Mini-Note. Here are two more good reviews for anyone else considering the HP Mini-Note. Brighthand’s review… HP 2133 Mini-Note Review …includes some interesting benchmarks against other sub-notebooks as well as a video comparing an Asus Eee PC running Windows XP […]

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jkOnTheRun has a Detailed Hands-On Review of the HP 2133 Mini-Note Eee PC Competitior
Tue, 08 Apr 2008 19:39:14
I’m still trying to figure out which mini-notebook to buy. The Everex Cloudbook was eliminated a while back based on initial negative reviews. The FlipStart looked interesting. But, it looks like its firesale price was because it is discontinued. I actually bought an OLPC XO. But, while it probably meets the needs for which it […]

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The iPod touch Paradox: It is Easier to Control a non-touch iPod by Just Touch
Mon, 07 Apr 2008 22:03:16
The funny thing about the iPod touch is that I use it for everything except listening to music and podcasts. Why? Touch devices like the iPod touch and Pocket PC are two-handed devices. Both require you to cradle it one hand and manipulate it with the other. Non-touch iPods, like non-touch Windows Mobile smartphones, are […]

Google Gears and Picasa Web Doesn’t Work on an HTC Advantage
Thu, 03 Apr 2008 22:00:34

Google announced a beta release for offline viewing of photos on the Picasa web site using Google Gears. Picasa Web Albums for Windows Mobile This release only works on Pocket PC type devices (Classic and Professional Editions). I tried it on an HTC Advantage 7500 running Windows Mobile 6. Google Gears installed fine on the device. But […]

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Windows Mobile 6.1 Mutterings Part 2: Smartphone Copy and Paste
Wed, 02 Apr 2008 22:42:48

Windows Mobile 6.0 Amateur, um, Standard Edition (formerly known as Smartphone) doesn’t let you copy and paste text. This is fixed in Windows Mobile 6.1. Pocket PC/Classic/Professional Edition users have always had this feature and may now issue a smug look of superiority at Smartphone users who will need to wait a while more before […]

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Windows Mobile 6: Application Sampler
Wed, 02 Apr 2008 21:45:42

Another article I wrote for Microsoft.com’s Windows Mobile section went live. This one can be thought of as a kind of applications sampler. Despite my many (many many) complaints about Windows Mobile, it direction (or lack thereof), and basic platform design issues, one thing that is undeniable is that it probably has the richest set […]

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Windows Mobile 6.1 Mutterings Part 1: Internet Explorer’s Brain Transplant
Tue, 01 Apr 2008 22:39:19

I haven’t played with Windows Mobile 6.1 myself. So, I’m not sure how much Windows Mobile 6.1 muttering I have to,um, mutter. But, here’s the first thing about WiMo 6.1 that interested me: Internet Explorer. The word is that WiMo’s brain-dead web browser is getting replaced by a browser that can deliver desktop experience (or […]

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Leaving Windows Mobile 2003 2nd Edition and WEP Behind
Mon, 31 Mar 2008 23:12:18
I’ve been running two WAPs (Wireless Access Points) for a while now. The second WAP is an old Linksys 802.11b with WEP to let older WiFi devices like my trusty Dell Axim X50v connect to the net. The real issue was the OLPC XO that didn’t have any connectivity except for WiFi. However, with the […]

Don Syme’s WebLog on F# and Other Research Projects : Tackling the F# Productization

be matched by a draft of the F# Language Specification

Emphasis mine.

Back to Basics: The Subtler Differences Between Cameraphones and Digital Cameras
Sat, 29 Mar 2008 15:42:32

Discussions (and sometimes rants) about camera phone photos usually steer towards pixel count, clarity, and color. However, there are subtler differences between camera phone photos and digital camera photos. Take the two photos above taken using a T-Mobile Dash cameraphone (left) and a Canon Powershot A710IS point-and-shoot digital camera. I’ve resized both photos from their […]

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OLPC XO Build 656 and WiFi WPA
Sat, 29 Mar 2008 10:39:56

I finally got around to playing with the OLPC XO in an effort to get it to work with WPA on a wireless LAN. It turns out that the build 656 update back in January added WPA support. The OLPC wiki has detailed instructions at… Olpc-update …but here’s the condensed version. Open up terminal window (scroll right to […]

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Windows Mobile 6: Connected Applications
Wed, 26 Mar 2008 22:33:58

Did you know that there is an Encarta encyclopedia bot that you can talk to on Windows Live Messenger? That’s just one of the tips I wrote about in this new article on Microsoft.com’s Windows Mobile website area. Introduction to Connected Applications: Applications That Plug You in to the Wireless World

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Windows Mobile 6 Excel Mobile: Transform Your Day with Top Spreadsheet Tips
Tue, 25 Mar 2008 22:55:43

Here’s another article of mine that is now live in Microsoft.com’s Windows Mobile area… Transform Your Day with Top Spreadsheet Tips In addition to some basic and tips, I spent a bit of time to discuss the differences between the versions of Excel Mobile available on Windows Mobile 6 Standard Edition and Professional/Classic Edition devices.

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Windows Mobile 6 Word Mobile Tips: Write Down Great Thoughts While They Are Fresh
Mon, 24 Mar 2008 17:25:32

One of the articles I wrote for the Microsoft.com Windows Mobile site just went live. This one has tips and information about Word Mobile for Windows Mobile 6. Write Down Great Thoughts While They Are Fresh Let me know if there are other aspects of Word Mobile you’d like expanded on for a future article.

CNET’s Matthew Miller Posted a Redfly Video Demo
Wed, 19 Mar 2008 21:47:39
CNET’s Mobile Gadgeteer Matthew Miller posted an informative video demo of the Redfly Windows Mobile Smartphone Companion at… Can the REDFLY Windows Mobile Smartphone Companion succeed where the Foleo couldn’t? The Redfly is actually LESS than what the never-launched Palm Foleo was supposed to be. The Redfly does not have any internal functions. It is just an […]

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Website Exploit Can Freeze or Crash iPhone/iPod touch
Wed, 19 Mar 2008 21:47:27
According to CNET… A new exploit will either lock up your iPhone or iPod Touch or crash your Safari browser on your PC or Mac OS desktop if you simply visit a maliciously coded Web site. Web code locks up iPhones and iPod Touch The current workaround is to disable Javascript in the Safari brower. Yuck. CNET’s […]

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ActiveSync/WMDC and Zune Sync: Birds of a Sync Feather
Tue, 18 Mar 2008 21:35:09
The Zune 2 firmware upgrade turned my 1st generation Zune from a moderately useful MP3/video player to a decent media player with a screen I prefer to my iPod video’s screen (though nothing can touch the iPod touch’s display - pun intended). With its 30GB hard drive (compared to my iPod touch’s 16GB) and the […]

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Notebook Too Hot? Try a Newer Notebook Model
Sun, 16 Mar 2008 19:05:38

My old Dell Latitude D600 notebook was too hot to work on the keyboard all day long. I bought a USB keyboard to use with the D600 to avoid touching it during the day. As you can see, the hottest area on the keyboard side of the D600 got up to 109 degrees F. The […]

SmartPhoneThoughts.com: Paul Thurrott to the Windows Mobile Team: “Screw ‘em!”
Fri, 14 Mar 2008 06:12:29
Found this reference one SmartphoneThoughts.com (I’ve been telling Jason over there that he needs to rename it StandardEditionThoughts.com to stay in line with Microsoft’s branding SmartPhoneThoughts.com: Paul Thurrott to the Windows Mobile Team: “Screw ‘em!” …to a statement made in the Windows Weekly podcast by Paul Thurrott and Leo LaPorte. I guess I’m not the […]

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Back to Basics: Assigning Apps to Buttons
Wed, 12 Mar 2008 22:16:21

The blog item I wrote earlier about Google’s tip for assigning Google mobile applications to a Samsung Blackjack’s key pointed out that not all Windows Mobile Smartphone (AKA Standard Edition) devices have this feature. However, all Pocket PC type devices (Professional Edition, Classic Edition) have this feature baked in by Microsoft. The problem is that […]

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One-Click Access to Google Mobile Apps
Wed, 12 Mar 2008 06:23:12
The Google Mobile Blog has a tip for Blackberry 8800, Samsung Blackjack, and Nokia N95 owners… Fast tip: one-click access to Google mobile applications on your phone My Dash (Windows Mobile 6 Standard Edition) does not have the option to assign buttons or other physical inputs (volume slider) to applications. However, all Professional Edition (Pocket PC Phone […]

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Sprint HTC Mogul EV-DO Rev. A Upgrade
Mon, 10 Mar 2008 06:30:40
I don’t have an HTC Mogul. But, if I did, I’d be pretty happy after reading this report on Wired. Sprint Phone First to Use Fast Network Sprint said Monday it was releasing a software update for the Mogul phone, made by HTC Corp. of Taiwan, that will enable the phone to connect at Rev. […]

ActiveSync for the iPhone? Keep in Mind it is Exchange ActiveSync, Not Desktop
Thu, 06 Mar 2008 20:16:32
Apple announced that they licensed ActiveSync from Microsoft to let the iPhone directly sync with Microsoft Exchange. I could make some snide remarks about ActiveSync here (all well deserved). But, the thing to remember is this: They are NOT talking about syncing an iPhone to a PC using ActiveSync. This is purely an over-the-air sync […]

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Google Greasing the Path from Windows Mobile to Android
Wed, 05 Mar 2008 22:14:21

No one has ever accused the folks at Google of being dumb. And, despite their stock (along with nearly every other firm’s stock) tanking lately, the Googlelonions are still a smart bunch. On Tuesday, they provide Google Gears for Windows Mobile. This sure looks like a testing ground for preparing people for working with Google’s […]

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Zoho Writer + Google Gears Mobile + Windows Mobile = Winner
Tue, 04 Mar 2008 20:37:36

I installed Google Gears for Windows Mobile today and tried out the Gears-enabled Zoho Writer on a Windows Mobile 6 Professional Edition (an HTC TyTn) device. The result is not perfect but is far far ahead of what anyone else (including Google and Microsoft) have available for Windows Mobile. After installing Google Gears Mobile, I went […]

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Google Gears for Windows Mobile 5 and 6 (this is huge!)
Mon, 03 Mar 2008 22:39:05
This is huge news in so many ways… Google Code Blog: Power up your mobile web applications Google Code: Google Gears on Mobile Devices Google Gears is an API for creating rich web applications and provides the ability for taking those rich web applications offline. Google Gears on Mobile Devices supports Windows Mobile 5 and 6. A […]

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Bind Bluetooth to MyBlogLog? Sounds Scary
Mon, 03 Mar 2008 21:56:23
If you head over to the mobile version of Yahoo!’s MyBlogLog service (I use the regular web version of their service here — look at the left sidebar)… http://m.mybloglog.com/ …you will find they say this about their mobile service: Bind your Bluetooth address to your MyBlogLog account and discover others nearby and find out if you have […]

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HTC Advantage 7500 Camera Went Bad
Mon, 03 Mar 2008 21:50:44

The main camera in my HTC Advantage 7500 (1st generation) went bad about six weeks ago. The rest of the system is fine including the secondary camera next to the LCD. I’ve tried the obvious remedies like wiping the camera lens area and performing a hard reset. Never seen anything like it before. Switching to […]

via Tim Sneath,

Secondly, the real Scott will be sharing Wednesday’s MIX keynote with Ray Ozzie and Dean Hachamovitch (GM for Internet Explorer). If you’re into web development at all, that keynote is going to be required viewing - we’ve got lots of new announcements, some great demos, and one or two surprises. You can watch the keynote live at 9:30am Pacific / 5:30pm GMT by clicking on one of the following three streams: 750kbps, 300kbps, 100kbps.

So as many of you will know I’ve been a *HUGE* fan of both Peter Fisk and his Vista Smalltalk project here on this blog. The problem is that, as some of you will have noticed, as of July 5th, 2007 there’s been no sign nor trace of Peter OR Vista Smalltalk. Well, that’s not completely true. I did exchange a few emails with Peter in or around August of last year, all of which seem to have suggested that both he and Vista Smalltalk would reappear after he finished a “move to a new city” and the next release of Silverlight came into being.

But that release came and went with September of last year, yet no sign of Peter or VST resurfacing for air. When I queried the Vista Smalltalk list on September 19th regarding the whereabouts of Peter, I got the following in reply a day later from Gal Zsolt, another VST list member,

2008 Daylight Savings Time Fixes for Windows Mobile 5 & 6
Sat, 01 Mar 2008 11:30:15
I thought this Daylight Savings issue was fixed in last year’s patch. Guess not. Here are the links for the CAB file download as well as the desktop (setup.msi) installer version. Update for Windows Mobile for PC (KB949168) (SETUP.MSI) Update for Windows Mobile for PC (KB949168) (WMDST2008-1.CAB) FYI: I just installed the CAB file installer version on my […]

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MSNBC Reports AT&T Wireless & Sprint As 2 & 3 in U.S. ID Theft Victims Numbers
Sat, 01 Mar 2008 11:09:30
MSNBC: Which firms have the most ID theft victims? MSNBC reports that Bank of America is #1 in U.S. ID Theft victims. But, what interested me was that A&T Wireless was #2 and Sprint PCS was #3. Verizon Wireless checks in at #7 while T-Mobile USA is at #11.

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WiFi Shirt
Thu, 28 Feb 2008 22:12:09

Someone I know won one of those WiFi detecctor t-shirts as a door prize the other day. The plate on the front of the shirt (the detector itself is a little box connected via cables to the front plate) actually works. It went all blue (no WiFi) in a known dead-spot and lit up (four […]

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US-CERT: WinCE/InfoJack Trojan
Wed, 27 Feb 2008 08:58:02
Hmm… US-CERT has an advisory about a Windows CE Trojan. Here’s the list of things it is said to do on a Windows CE device: spreads via seemingly legitimate application installation files installs as an autorun program on the memory card installs itself to the device when an infected memory card is inserted protects itself from deletion by copying […]

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Ubuntu Mobile
Tue, 26 Feb 2008 22:45:36
Ubuntu announced their mobile version of Ubuntu Linux Ubuntu Mobile …targetted at the UMPC sized devices with flash storage (instead of spinning hard drives) that started to gain popularity with the release of Asus Eee PC and OLPC XO last year. Microsoft needs much lighter weight version of Windows Vista if they intend to stay in the […]

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If Microsoft Buys Yahoo!, Yahoo! Go Must Go Away
Tue, 26 Feb 2008 22:45:17

Yahoo!’s mobile sites are great. But, for some odd reason, its Yahoo! Go Mobile client for Windows Mobile is just awful. Its navigation is non-intuitive and it is unbelievably slow when it actually works. If Microsoft acquires Yahoo!, I sure hope they keep its mobile-friendly websites which are more content rich than Microsoft’s sites. But, […]

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Linkedin Mobile Looks So Much Better on an iPhone/iPod touch
Mon, 25 Feb 2008 21:24:21

Linkedin is the latest big social network site to mobile enable itself. You can find the mobile friendly site at… mobile.linkedin.com It would have been nice if they adopted the “m.” prefix to reduce the amount of tapping on a small keyboard or screen. But, oh well… The real story here though is that once again the barebones […]

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Motorola T305 Bluetooth Hands Free Speaker
Sun, 24 Feb 2008 17:36:54

I really don’t like using phone headsets. I’ve bought a couple of and have used them sparingly. But, they are just plain uncomfortable in warm weather environments. And, I can’t hear my podcasts clearly when listening to them in the car with one ear blocked. So, I finally got around to buying the Motorola T305 […]

Microsoft Sync: Business Week Dissects this Car System
Sat, 23 Feb 2008 12:50:49
Just found this in Business Week… The Secrets of Microsoft’s Sync Sync is is a Microsoft car product found in Ford cars that lets you control the stereo and your phone (via Bluetooth) using voice commands. Microsoft tried this several years ago with their Windows CE Automotive products that never really caught on. Given Ford’s slipping sales, […]

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Microsoft TechNet: Intro to System Center Mobile Device Manager 2008
Thu, 21 Feb 2008 19:59:07
If you’ve been looking some info about scmdm (System Center Mobile Device Manager) 2008, Microsoft TechNet has a 23 minute video interview about it at… Intro to System Center Mobile Device Manager (scmdm) 2008

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Tiny-Code.com Now Redirects to Apple iPhone Dev Center
Wed, 20 Feb 2008 21:00:01
While reading a PC World blog entry about Apple’s upcoming iPhone SDK, I learned about the Tiny-Code.com site for people interested in unofficial iPhone installers. When I tried to visit the site, I was redirected to Apple’s official Developer Connection… iPhone Dev Center It (the official site) only has information about Webkit (browser) development now. But, we […]

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iFrogz Vibez: The Little Speaker That Could
Tue, 19 Feb 2008 20:40:26

I bought this little Vibez speaker from iFrogz on a whim during their post-holiday sale period. It listed for $34.99. I bought it for $19.99. And, it currently lists on their site for $24.95. This thing is not going to give your high-end or even decent portable speakers any competition. However, despite its relatively low-fidelity, […]

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Engadget Describes the Limits of Verizon’s Unlimited Plans
Tue, 19 Feb 2008 06:08:29
Engadget points out the limits of the new Verizon Wireless Unlimited Plans. It looks like the way to read the three offerings are: Somewhat unlimited, sort of unlimited, and unlimited but pricey. These plans can also have two-person and three-person family plans (Sprint and T-Mobile family plans include up to 5 phones if I recall […]

Microsoft’s announcement of “broad-reaching changes to its technology and business practices to increase the openness of its products and drive greater interoperability, opportunity and choice for developers, partners, customers and competitors” is certainly an interesting development. Although most of my career experience has involved Unix/Linux platforms, lately I do quite a lot of experimentation on Windows, in my role as open source community manager for the cross-platform Threading Building Blocks (TBB) project.

In fact, I’m hoping to present a 45-minute session at this year’s Open Source Convention (OSCON) that will involve an application I’m working on that integrates Python, Boost.Python, Visual C++, and TBB. So a statement by Microsoft that talks about interoperability between the Microsoft platform and open source (one aspect of the new initiative is “fostering more open engagement with customers and the industry, including open source communities”) is quite interesting to me.

Threading Building Blocks (if you haven’t heard of it) is a C++ template library that simplifies the development of multithreaded applications, by abstracting the details of low-level thread management behind constructs such as parallel_for, parallel_reduce, parallel_scan, etc. TBB also includes thread-safe STL-like containers (concurrent_vector, concurrent_queue, concurrent_hash_map), scalable memory allocators, mutexes, a well-developed task manager, and quite a lot more.

In this sense, Threading Building Blocks is “like” Microsoft’s Parallel Extensions (ParallelFX) — though a major difference between the two is that TBB has several years of development behind it and is already a fully-functional library, while ParallelFX is a new initiative announced just this past November. Hence, as you’d expect, ParallelFX is currently fairly slim in terms of capability compared with TBB.

What grabs my attention in this Microsoft press release is the stated objective to “drive greater interoperability … and choice for developers”. As I said, Threading Building Blocks is a cross-platform library. You can apply it to multithread your Windows applications without spending a dime, using the following free software packages:

• Threading Building Blocks open source
• Visual C++ Express Edition
• Microsoft Assembler
• Microsoft Platform SDK

(See my recent post about how one developer accomplished this.)

One question, though, is: do Windows developers really want to integrate non-Microsoft libraries and applications into their Windows projects? Doing so carries some risk (given Microsoft’s past), should the development path of Microsoft’s own platform diverge from the newly declared commitment to openness and interoperability.

Then there’s the convenience aspect. When I was a Windows development manager a few years ago, we didn’t use anything outside of Microsoft’s own platform. But the truth is, as good as the Microsoft development platform is, in some instances there are other products that are better for accomplishing a specific task. We seriously considered offering customers the option of using SQL Server or Oracle, for example.

When it comes to multithreading C++ applications on Windows, developers have an already-solid (on Version 2.0+ at this point) open source choice in Threading Building Blocks. Yet, thus far, it seems to me (from the anecdotal evidence, talking to people who visit the #tbb FreeNode.net IRC channel, etc.) that TBB has been embraced primarily by developers who prefer other (primarily open source) operating system platforms.

As expected, the Microsoft announcement has received plenty of negative press and commentary (doesn’t that happens with every Microsoft announcement to a certain extent?). I happen to like the Microsoft platform — it’s development tools are stellar in my opinion. I’m also a great fan of open source, and indeed I have a vested interest in open source through my involvement in TBB open source.

It’s going to be very interesting to see if Windows developers and software companies will take advantage of Microsoft’s new encouragement for them to explore integrating open source libraries into their Windows applications.

iPhone Searches on Google 50x More Than Other Phones
Fri, 15 Feb 2008 17:30:32
Saw a reference to this on the AppleInsider site and followed the link to… Google homes in on revenue to phones …The key quote from the article that AppleInsider pointed out is: Google on Wednesday said it had seen 50 times more searches on Apple’s iPhone than any other mobile handset, adding weight to the group’s confidence […]

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PIM Backup: Free Windows Mobile Pocket PC Backup App
Fri, 15 Feb 2008 17:29:58
Just read about this free Windows Mobile backup software… PIM Backup 2.8 …on the Inside Microsoft blog. Note that this software only works with the Pocket PC or Pocket PC Phone Edition (Classic or Professional). Standard Edition users need to look elsewhere for a free backup solution (let me know if you find one) or use a […]

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Is T-Mobile USA Going to Survive? Should Microsoft Help Them Stay Relevant?
Thu, 14 Feb 2008 22:53:41
I mentioned earlier this week that T-Mobile USA customers will still have WiFi access in Starbucks coffee shops due to a WiFi roaming agreement between T-Mobile and AT&T Wireless. Then, I learned that this agreement ends after 5 years (early 2013). It is possible they could renew their agreement at that point in time. But, […]

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Microsoft Posts: Troubleshooting BCM for Pocket PC/Smartphone
Wed, 13 Feb 2008 22:43:00
Just noticed this blog post over on the Microsoft Business Contact Manager (BCM) Team Blog… Troubleshooting BCM for Pocket PC/Smartphone If you are using BCM, you probably want to bookmark this blog entry. And, I continue to be amused when even Microsoft forgets the whole awful Classic Edition (Pocket PC), Professional Edition (Pocket PC Phone Edition), and Amateur […]

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Social Micro Presence Sites for Windows Mobile
Wed, 13 Feb 2008 22:22:19
I’ve become a fan of social micro presence sites over the past year or so. I think Twitter and Tumblr were the two that showed me the way and their value. Although all the good mobile web designs are being developed for the iPhone Safari browser, there are a lot of social micro presence sites that […]

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OEDb: 100 Ways to Use Your iPod to Learn and Study Better
Tue, 12 Feb 2008 21:16:50
I don’t know anything about the OEDb (Online Education Database) site. But, someone associated with them pointed out this useful looking iPod resource… 100 Ways to Use Your iPod to Learn and Study Better I thought it looked useful enough to spread the word. The resources are categorized as study guides, podcasts, tutorials, applications, tools ad sites, […]

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MSN Direct for Windows Mobile Standard Edition
Mon, 11 Feb 2008 22:43:53

I read about the MSN Direct beta release for Windows Mobile before heading to work this morning. So, as soon I got in, I point my T-Mobile Dash at http://phone.msndirect.com/ and downloaded the installation CAB file. To make a long story short, MSN Direct was removed from my phone within 20 minutes. Here’s what happened… The […]

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T-Mobile Customers Still Can Use WiFi at Starbucks
Mon, 11 Feb 2008 17:47:44
As a T-Mobile customer the first thing that came to mind when I read the headline that Starbucks is switching WiFi providers (from T-Mobile to AT&T Wireless) was… well, I won’t write them in a G-rated blog. However, if you read the Starbucks press release about this switch, you’ll see that they say: In recognition […]

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Are the HTC Shift and Sony Ericsson Xperia X1 Too Little Too Late?
Mon, 11 Feb 2008 06:19:09
I read somewhere that the HTC Shift is near shipping and that the Sony Ericsson Xperia X1 was announced. (the first Windows Mobile device from a firm that normally uses their home-brewed Symbian OS). Both devices are amazing pieces of ultra mobile technology. The question is: Are they still relevant? We already know that the […]

In Sunday’s NY Times (February 10, 2008) Tim O’Reilly is quoted as saying

Popfly shows me that Microsoft still thinks this is all about software, rather than about accumulating data via network effects, which to me is the core of Web 2.0…They are using Popfly to push Silverlight, rather than really trying to get into the mashup game.

This raises a host of interesting questions for me as a long time author for O’Reilly Media and as “Silverlight Geek” for Microsoft.

As a start, I decided it was time for me to turn my attention to writing a bit more about Popfly, and I invite you to join me if you’d like to know more about this interesting, if now somewhat controversial, technology.

Thanks.

-Jesse

Manufacturers Can’t Build Linux Based Ultraportables Fast Enough
Fri, 08 Feb 2008 06:23:38
The Wired article Linus Torvalds on Why Users Aren’t Flocking to Linux has the Linux creator rationalizing why Linux hasn’t been accepted on the desktop. My message to Mr. Torvalds: Dude, don’t worry about the desktop - Linux has conquered and cornered the ultraportable market! I just went over to ZaReason to check on the […]

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Does Mobile Device Ecosystem Matter?
Thu, 07 Feb 2008 22:48:30
While syncing my Zune with a bunch of video podcasts, I began thinking about the fact that my iPod is usually what travels with me because of all the eco-system infrastructure I have to support it: FM transceiver dock for the car, battery powered docking speaker, belt cases, etc. The Zune 2 firmware transformed my […]

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HanDBase 4.0 Available
Wed, 06 Feb 2008 22:27:05
When HanDBase was only available for the Palm OS, I remember wondering if it would ever be available for Windows CE devices. I remember how excited i was to get an early Windows CE version of it to write the first review of it for Microsoft.com. Here’s a republished version of it that is still […]

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Apple Bumps iPhone to 16GB and iPod touch to 32GB
Tue, 05 Feb 2008 06:00:53
Just read an MSNBC article that Apple increased the iPhone to 16GB ($499) and the iPod touch to 32GB (also $499). I wonder: (1) Why didn’t they announce this during Macworld? It might have prevented some of their dramatic stock price drop since then. (and) (2) Shouldn’t the iPod touch price be down around $449 […]

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Pownce Mobile
Mon, 04 Feb 2008 22:43:15
Hmm, I think I’m asking for information tonight instead of providing it Pownce switched from its invitation beta phase to public beta a few weeks ago. They also brought out a mobile friendly site you can find at… http://m.pownce.com/ So, here’s the thing. I like Twitter a lot. I like Tumblr a lot. Jaiku, um, […]

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DPreview.com Mobile Friendly Site
Sun, 03 Feb 2008 22:44:07

My favorite digital camera review site recently created a mobile device friendly website. You can find the Digital Photography Review mobile friendly site at… http://www.dpreview.com/mobile/

Gartner Says: More Macs, More by 2012
Sat, 02 Feb 2008 21:28:48
Information Week quotes some Gartner predictions in the article… More Macs, More Mobile, More Open Source, Gartner Predicts They predict mobile workers will abandon the notebook form factor in favor of what they term new classes of Internet-centric pocketable devices at the sub-$400 level. Believe it or not, people have been making this prediction since the early […]

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PayPal Security Key: Part 2
Fri, 01 Feb 2008 21:59:39
I received my replacement PayPal Security Key and went through the activation process again. Fortunately, the process went smoothly this time. I made a small purchase to test the purchase process and it also went well. Here’s something to note though. After completing the activation process, PayPal instructs you to use the system by logging […]

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Windows Mobile Calendar Weirdness: Outlook Overrides Smartphone Changes
Thu, 31 Jan 2008 22:12:08
This Windows Mobile Calendar problem happens all the time to me ever since Microsoft removed the two-way conflict resolution option. Here’s the scenario. 1. Create an appointment on a WiMo smartphone 2. Sync it to Outlook 2003 (or 2007) 3. After syncing, edit the appointment and change it to a different day (i.e., reschedule it) 4. Resync it with […]

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Why Do US Cell Phone Companies Hate Text Messages?
Thu, 31 Jan 2008 17:41:15
An article over on ABCnews.com talks about the high cost of text messaging and calculates some interesting comparisons based on AT&T Wireless’ upcoming increased charge of 20 cents per text message and 30 cents per MMS message. Based on the assumption of a cost of 1 cent for every 7 bytes (characters), AT&T’s text messaging […]

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The Mysteries of Windows Mobile Battery Problems
Tue, 29 Jan 2008 22:38:00

Of all the problems a Windows Mobile smartphone might have, battery problems rank somewhere in the top three if not number one. Why? If your battery dies at an inopportune time, it doesn’t matter how good the rest of the phone is, you have a paper weight. Having a spare always helps, of course, but […]

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iZoho: Zoho Web Office Suite for the iPhone/iPod touch
Mon, 28 Jan 2008 22:43:03

Cool sites designed specifically for the iPhone (and by side effect the iPod touch) just keep on coming. I’ve been using the Zoho Creator web database product for almost a month now because it works well both on the desktop as well as mobile devices (not just the iPhone). However, Zoho created a very nice […]

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Sync Windows Mobile with a Mac?
Sun, 27 Jan 2008 22:58:55
I installed Microsoft Office 2008 for Mac this weekend and have been giving some thought to syncing my Windows Mobile smartphone with a Mac instead of Windows XP (I have Vista running but don’t want to use WMDC). Unfortunately, all of the solutions have issues. Here are my options. Sync my smartphone with Mac OS X’s […]

FixMyMovie.com: Enhance Your CameraPhone Video Recordings
Sat, 26 Jan 2008 22:58:10

FixMyMovie.com uses the MotionDSP (which is funded by Q-Tel) video enhancement technology to enhance digital video. I uploaded a few seconds of video recorded by my T-Mobile Dash (Windows Mobile 6 smartphone) to see what it could do with the normally fuzzy video produced by this cameraphone. You can find my video test at: Test […]

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Instructions for Submitting Podcasts for the Zune
Sat, 26 Jan 2008 06:19:14
From what I’ve been reading the Zune has been picking up its pace as a podcasting device. So, if you are a podcaster and want it to be available on the Zune, head over to this Zune.net web page that provides the information need to know about submitting Podcast content for the Zune. Provide Content for […]

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atlarge.com: Airport WiFi Access Point Locator
Thu, 24 Jan 2008 21:20:28
atlarge.com provides information about wireless LAN access in airports around the world based on user contributed information. It also provides ratings for power outlets, comfort, and other features. So, if you’re traveling by air, you might find useful information from this site. And, if you are so inclined contribute some information.

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Disney Testing Nindendo DS as Park Tour Guides
Wed, 23 Jan 2008 22:22:39
ds fanboy and other Nintendo DS and Disney focused blogs are reporting about Disney testing the idea of providing guides to their theme parks on the Nintendo DS. Taking a Closer Look at the Disney DS Guide Before you pooh-pooh (pun intended) the idea, consider this. I recall hearing or reading somewhere that the Nintendo DS Lite […]

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New Microsoft Windows Mobile Marketing Corp. VP (Breath of Fresh Air?)
Tue, 22 Jan 2008 21:25:22
CNET reports that Microsoft just brought in a new Corporate VP for Windows Mobile Marketing named Todd Peters (good first name . Microsoft aims to add ‘easy’ button to Windows Mobile The article quotes him as saying: From my perspective, it’s not the marketing of Windows Mobile that needs work. It’s the software. After having […] CORRECTION: I incorrectly attributed the quoted comments to the new VP instead of the blog entry’s author. Ack…

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iPhone AT&T Corporate Accounts Now Available. Windows Mobile Team: Need ActiveSync/WMDC Tools
Mon, 21 Jan 2008 17:32:01
Just read over on Engadget that… AT&T rolls out iPhone plans for business customers Hey, I commented just yesterday that Microsoft needs to fix Windows Mobile’s Internet Explorer browser to let it render iPhone-specific sites because business customers and service providers are now looking at the iPhone as a business device. Now, they have an official mechanism […]

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Windows Mobile 7 Request: Let IE Render iPhone Sites
Sun, 20 Jan 2008 20:52:13

There is nothing wrong with your display. This is what the Digg.com site formatted for viewing on the iPhone (digg.com/iphone) looks like when rendered on a Windows Mobile Pocket PC Phone Edition (AKA Professional Edition). The Windows Mobile product people always ask people to give them examples or use-cases of issues outsiders bring to them. […]