Database Users

KikkerDialer- a new dialer available for Magician (Freeware)

Hi all,
We just released a new dialer (freeware) which you can download from Handango. You can download from
http://www.handango.com/PlatformProductDetail.jsp?productId=152403
Features included in KikkerDialer are:
- The most advanced number dialing system which allows for entry by number panel or keyboard, editing, insertion, copy / paste, etc
- Intuitive and simple UI providing the main functions of a phone such as contacts, dial, access to special characters (e.g. the + sign for international dialing)
- A user interface for selecting contacts which mimicks the most intuitive methods for selecting contacts such as those used within standard mobile phones such as Nokia, Sony Ericsson, etc
- Synchronisation with contacts database (mobile, work, home)
- Extremely fast and responsive to use
- Access to the Windows Mobile clipboard for copy / paste
Feedback welcomed. Enjoy.
Kikker Interactive

I'm sorry, but I really don't see what is so special about this software. Maybe I have got it wrong, but I would say that D9 is better than this, and PhonePlus is much better. I don't want to scroll to the letter J every time I want to call my friend John, and so on.
Copy and paste is nice, but where is the T9 contact selection as in D) and PhonePlus, I think that is a great feature.
The fact that this diealer resembles old standard GSM phones is of no interest.
Sorry for only giving bad feedback, but then again, I might haven't found the cool features.

nteresting… just tried this
First comment - good to see another free dialer out there given what shipped with the jam.
ave only tried this for abt 15 minutes but like it very much so far. Is a lot faster than D9 (my only complaint with that software – I have ~ 1,000 contacts in my jam and the UI is v unresponsive). The thing I like with this new dialer too is the editable text field which seems to be missing on most other apps out there. The ability to edit a number before a call (e.g. insert +44 if not already in international prefix), insert a digit when you have entered incorrectly, etc is just what I was after. Would be nice to see call history in there too btw.

Intuitive and simple UI providing the main functions of a phone such as contacts, dial, access to special characters (e.g. the + sign for international dialing) --->Cool... :wink:

Crashed on my WWE Qtek S100 .. when I try to call ..
Carlis

Hi Carlis,
In the first few hours of release, the first installer required you to have OpenNETCF on your device. It seems not so many people have this so we fixed this issue and now you no longer need this on your device.
You should uninstall the KikkerDialer and run the the new installer file (now setup.exe - ~2MB), downloadable from the same location at Handango. Please give this a go and let us know if any probs - [email protected]
Best rgds,
Kikker Interactive

I'm surprised all of you think different than me, but I will give it another try, I guess. I still don't think it can compare with PhonePlus with all the features it has, but then again it's freware.
/T

Cant downlod the Setup.exe, it still downloads the setup.msi, is this the right version? I'm getting the same crash. Can someone post it here?

ZeroXtreme said:
Cant downlod the Setup.exe, it still downloads the setup.msi, is this the right version? I'm getting the same crash. Can someone post it here?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
for me the download link does not work at all. Page cannot be displayed.

Well, I downloaded the MSI-file from handandgo. Now in can run on my T-Mobile MDA Compact but when I try to dial, it crashes:
KikkerDialer.exe
TypeLoadException
Failed to load type OpenNETCF.Notification.Led from OpenNETCF.Notification, Version=1.2.3346.0, Culture-neutral, PublicKey Token= 30C767B29D52D6E6
Can it be fixed? I wanted to test this application concerning tone dial (DTMF sending).

Anonymous said:
Hi Carlis,
In the first few hours of release, the first installer required you to have OpenNETCF on your device. It seems not so many people have this so we fixed this issue and now you no longer need this on your device.
You should uninstall the KikkerDialer and run the the new installer file (now setup.exe - ~2MB), downloadable from the same location at Handango. Please give this a go and let us know if any probs - [email protected]
Best rgds,
Kikker Interactive
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi
Thank´s for the answer...
but .. hm .. its not an exe on the same location .. its still the MSI ..
Carlis

ZeroXtreme, 718 & Carlis - Our apologies - we actually meant to the setup.MSI - the file you see up there is the right one (it is not an .exe).
However, seems some of you are still getting a runtime issue on your devices. We suspect this is due to a missing DLL - but cannot replicate your issue right this moment. We've just received some more devices now tho and are retesting. Will post a response here shortly. Feel free to email us directly in the meantime.
Iggy - the handango site must have been having problems. You should try again.
Kikker Interactive

Beta testing - never easy. I'm having enough trouble and bugs beta testing Mobi Dial 2.5 right now, so I'll think I'll pass on this one. Someone let me know when there actually is a legit, ergonomically competent and STABLE replacement dialer out there.

OK thank you all for your patience.
Our new devices arrived and we were able to replicate the issue that some of you were having. This has now been solved with a new version of the setup.msi (now named setup_20050202.msi as Handango doesn't seem to allow overwriting).
You can either download the new app from Handango (http://www.handango.com/PlatformProductDetail.jsp?productId=152403) or we've also hosted it at http://69.20.6.190/KikkerDialer/setup_20050202.msi for your convenience.
If you don't want to go through the process of download + installing the 2MB file again, there is an easier way for those of you who already have the previous version installed. Please follow the steps here:
1. Quit the KikkerDialer
2. Download two dll's http://69.20.6.190/KikkerDialer/OpenNETCF.Notification.dll and http://69.20.6.190/KikkerDialer/OpenNETCF.Phone.dll
3. Copy both files to \Program Files\KikkerDialer on your device (or wherever you installed the dialer)
4. Restart the app
Any problems - please let us know. Again, apologies for the false start for some of you. From those who were not affected however, we had some v positive feedback and to repay all your efforts, will add some more features within the next few weeks
Kikker Interactive

Yes, with the dlls you provided the program starts okay. However, I failed to dial DTMF tones. Sometimes it is necessary to dial extention or enter a PIN-code. Such a pitty!

Exelent .. thx.. it now works on a Swedish WWE Qtek s100 without need of the extra dll´s ..
Only thing that is missing .. DTMF codes .. to use bank transactions and so..
When they ask for my account nr .. and I press the keys.. nothing happends..
And finaly .. how to replace the old dailer hardware keys.. Green and Red phone keys to be using Ur dailer.. it still actiavte the old one..
Best Regards Carlis

Hi - ok glad we got all the installer issues cleared up.
Yep - DTMF tones are not supported currently. As users of the software, here is what we do:
- Make the call using KikkerDialer
- When prompted to enter PIN (etc), press the green call button and the standard windows dialer will appear
- Type in your code using this interface
This works fine against all systems. Obviously not as intuitive. We are however, working on building in DTMF into our next release and have made some progress so far but won't ship till its ready. At the same time, we'll try to address the issue of how to bind KikkerDialer to the green call button.
Keep giving us your feedback in the meantime, v useful.
Best rgds,
Kikker Interactive

Would you manage dialing DTMF tones, you'll be great! But please note that the standard Windows dialer do not work correctly with the DTMF tones. There is something wrong with the duration of the tone, as I suppose. So with that dialer I often reach wrong extention or dial wrong number.

First of all thank you for the freeware.
in spite that, I dont think I would throw phoneplus away yet which serves my every needs.
But it is nice to see some developers trying to give some fight to proffesionals.

Thanks for all your comments. We're still working on getting a v1.0 out there shortly and the latest is good news. From the latest development version of the KikkerDialer, we now have full control of all the JAM buttons such as the direction pad middle button (to select contacts), the green dial button (to open the dialer and make calls), etc. This feature alone allows for complete one handed usage of the dialer (i.e. no stylus).
Now focus remains on adding:
- Call history
- Easier searching on contacts
- DTMF
This last, frequently requested, item is proving to be quite a challenge. We shall persist!
Best rgds,
Kikker Interactive

SMS Notifier released – a great application for PPCPE users!

Finnish Aali Alikoski, Academic Developer Evangelist of Microsoft Finland, has just released a highly useful application, SMS Notifier, along with its source code.
The application offers some really nice and, up to now, to my knowledge, on the Pocket PC Phone Edition platform, unprecedenced functionality: it waits for unanswered incoming calls and, depending on the configuration settings, it either sends an SMS message to the caller (with configurable contents), possibly containing also the end time of current appointment (this is also configurable) or adds an item to the system-level Windows Mobile calendar (containing the caller info).
The latter functionality is nothing new – you can check the caller's identity and the call date/time in any low-end mobile phone. The former – that is, the SMS feedback –, however, is really long-awaited!
Downloading and Installation
You can download the application here. Transfer the CAB file to your PDA and execute it there.
If, after installing and upon starting SMS Notifier, you're presented this error message, make sure you download and install .NET CF 2.0 from Microsoft. Make sure you install it in the main memory. Also note that, as the application heavily relies on the new, connectivity/database-related libraries of .NET CF2, it's not very easy to port it to run under the earlier Compact Framework library. (For CAB lovers, you will only need c:\Program Files\ Microsoft.NET\SDK\CompactFramework\ v2.0\WindowsCE\wce500\armv4i\NETCFv2.wm.armv4i.cab ; you can also download it from here (to avoid having to download the 24 Mbyte-long MSI installer).
Configuration
On the main set-up screen, there're some checkboxes in AND relationship. The first one, Send SMS to unanswered callers, instructs the application to send an SMS to everybody that tries to call you but his or her calls remain unanswered. Using (not disabling) the second two checkboxes, however, you may make the application not send a SMS to anyone that calls you, just to the ones that call you during an active/busy appointment.
The checkbox/text input area at the bottom makes it possible to report the end of the current appointment so that he or she can know when you are reachable again.
The Calendar tab contains only one checbox, which instructs the application to enter all the incoming calls into Calendar.
Note that the configuration settings are not correctly saved/restored, as the author also points out.
Usage
To use the application, just start and configure it to your liking. Do not click the Quit button – then, it won't send your callers any SMS. Just let it run. You can, of course, suspend the PDA while you do so and also minimize the application. This also means you can safely start it from \Windows\Startup (just like the other highly recommended application, PMRecorder – please see this article on it if interested) – if it's running in the background, it'll safely catch all unanswered calls.
Other stuff
I also recommend the author's blog here. Don't be taken aback of some of the material's being in Finnish: there's nothing really interesting in them for non-Finns (the Finnish blog posts are only about local, Finnish meetings, conferences). Unfortunately, some of the other Finnish .NET bloggers (see the links in the lower left of the page) post exclusively in Finnish, even highly technical stuff that would be interesting for non-Finnish speakers too. (Feel free to ask me in my blog for a public translation for some of them if really interested.)

thanx man .. jus tried it . this application actually works .rockinnn

I can't seem to be able to install the .net Framework 2.o on my new T-Mobile MDA - USA (Wizard)
I get the same error from .cab install or activesynch install:
"Installation error. Stop all applications and processes, maximize all available storage space, and run installation again. Support info:4"
Any suggestions?

oops

PhoneGuy said:
I can't seem to be able to install the .net Framework 2.o on my new T-Mobile MDA - USA (Wizard)
I get the same error from .cab install or activesynch install:
"Installation error. Stop all applications and processes, maximize all available storage space, and run installation again. Support info:4"
Any suggestions?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Did you try to install it in the main storage or the storage card? Only install it in the main storage.

Yeah, the options were "Device" or "Storage Card".
I tried Devicce but no luck...

PhoneGuy said:
Yeah, the options were "Device" or "Storage Card".
I tried Devicce but no luck...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've encountered the same when I first tried to install it on a storage card. Then, subsequent installs to the main memory didn't succeed either. A hard reset helped.

I have installed it and it seems to work well. My only concern is that it seems to use the notification application of the phone rather than the call list of the phone. The reason I say this is because it puts a calendar entry in when I miss a call then adds another entry when I check the notification of missed calls.
is this what is supposed to happen? would it send 2 text messages in this case (when the call comes in and when I check the notification that the call did come in)?
thanks,
Edwin

also, it seems if I am on the phone when I miss a call it uses the name of the person I was on the phone with and not the person I missed.

Ruttensoft also has a similar program call minder - works well but not as many features as above program but you don't need NET thing - hate those addons

ethorn said:
is this what is supposed to happen? would it send 2 text messages in this case (when the call comes in and when I check the notification that the call did come in)?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's what happens for me... I stopped using it because of the duplicated sms's...

meschle said:
Ruttensoft also has a similar program call minder - works well but not as many features as above program but you don't need NET thing - hate those addons
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Tried it. Keep getting "Cound not find resource assembly" error.

Strange works sweet for me.
this is the link I used
http://www.freewareppc.com/communication/callassistant.shtml

meschle said:
Ruttensoft also has a similar program call minder - works well but not as many features as above program but you don't need NET thing - hate those addons
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
after using the Ruttensoft on my Qtek, i can no longer creat SMS, when I click on new, only a while screen appear, cannot input both phone number and Text.... did anyone meet the same ???

meschle said:
Strange works sweet for me.
this is the link I used
http://www.freewareppc.com/communication/callassistant.shtml
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No it didn't... you didn't use this program. we are trying to give feedback to the author of this program which has so much more potential than the limited software you used.

No sms works for me even when activated. my qtek rom is 1.6.7.1 maybe that's the diff. Sorry ethorn could start a new thread if you like but may help some people if the other prog don't work for them.

Hi
I have a XDA 2i & a XDA Mini S and use a program called Do Not Disturb by Jguisoft, a very small footprint and easily configurable

no I am all for putting ideas of other products, but the way you worded it sounded like this program that Menneisyys worked on worked on your phone and that the version of his program you used was at another link.... my problem is that neither are true. Software Guru did things right and just introduced another alternative.
thanks guys

Software Guru said:
Hi
I have a XDA 2i & a XDA Mini S and use a program called Do Not Disturb by Jguisoft, a very small footprint and easily configurable
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can you provide a link? Did a google and no results found.

Cannot download the SMSNotifierSetup cab
Can someone please post this as i cannot seem to download it.
thanks

CellTracker Alternative

I don't know where else to post this....I found this while looking for an alternative to the SPV Developers CellTracker app. It's an app called NiceTrack...the screenshots tell the rest of the story:
http://www.nicecuppa.com/nicetrack.asp
Background info: http://www.ascendingangels.com/nicecuppa.com/nicetrack.asp?story=1
Screenshots: http://www.ascendingangels.com/nicecuppa.com/nicetrack.asp?story=2
Download: http://www.ascendingangels.com/nicecuppa.com/nicetrack.asp?story=3 (Version 1.2)
The source code for that app can also be downloaded from the Background Info link.
The SPV Developers CellTracker app (Beta version only, hasn't been updated since December) for PocketPCs is located at the way bottom of the page:
http://www.thelogster.34sp.com/celltracker/
NiceTrack updates the tower changes in real-time whereas CellTracker does not. NiceTrack also shows the dbm signal strength on a cool chart and it also includes a logging function that allows you to rename the cells your phone has connected to while the app is active.
Signal strength chart: http://www.ascendingangels.com/nicecuppa.com/images/nicetrack/main-page.gif
Here are a couple hints based on my experience so far:
1) In order to fully save the renamed/logged cell sites, you must first tap Save next to where you renamed the cell site. Then you must also tap Options/Menu --> Save (extreme lower left) to save all changes since the app was launched.
2) Use Menu --> Exit to completely close the app.
I have tested this for use on my MDA II w/Windows Mobile 2003. I don't know if the app is compatible with WM5 PPCs or regular Windows Mobile smartphones.
Enjoy

Thanks for posting.
This software has been discussed before, and it is great:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/viewtopic.php?t=3347&highlight=nicetrack
However, I believe people are having difficulty converting it to WM5 (when I last checked). But great stuff either way.
V

Hi there,
Sharpstuff (NiceTrack author) here..
I've just bought a T-Mobile MDA Vario and have managed to get it working on that ( WM2005 )
The problem was that in the older phones the GSM modem was on COM2 and on my Vario it's now COM9. I've made the Com port configurable now, but it's still not 100%.
You can download it from my site www.nicecuppa.net
Let me know how y'all get on.
Cheers
-sharpstuff

Good stuff sharpstuff Wish I had a gps!
V

sharpstuff said:
Hi there,
Sharpstuff (NiceTrack author) here..
I've just bought a T-Mobile MDA Vario and have managed to get it working on that ( WM2005 )
The problem was that in the older phones the GSM modem was on COM2 and on my Vario it's now COM9. I've made the Com port configurable now, but it's still not 100%.
You can download it from my site www.nicecuppa.net
Let me know how y'all get on.
Cheers
-sharpstuff
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sharpstuff, you have an excellent app here. I had to search for a bit to find it but in the end, I'm quite glad to have it . I also like the pun you have for your site...it's quite distinctive since even as a German-American, I know when someone says "cuppa", they normally mean the cup of tea .
Keep up the good work and thanks for taking the time to develop such a great and invaluable app .

oooh.. *bookmark*
Do you have a regular Donate button somewhere? I see the shop, but I'd rather just get X amount straight to you, and not have to be awoken by some crazy delivery guy at 8am for a mug

Thanks for the kind thought...
But, I enjoy doing this stuff, so just click my google ads and I'm happy!
;-)

Got this to work on my 8125, almost... Clicking on 'add' under events causes it to crash with the following error:
NiceTrack.exe
NullReferenceException
Application::Run+0xf
MainForm::Main+0xa
....bummer - so close!

You need to select an event type eg. "Flash backlight" then click "add"..
Needs some validation there.. Plus, the events side of things isn't very useful at the moment, I need to implement some more event types.
Cheers

I installed it on my qtek9100 but it doesn't find a GSM-modem at all.

Also a Qtek9100, EN - found it on COM9 just fine

What would be really neat would be an event "Show Picture". That way it would be easy to make a make-shift map tracking thing. Simply grab a picture of the map off the internet, plunge a big dot on the map where you got the cell, save as image, and have that image displayed when entering that cell %) GIF files on the storage card, shouldn't take up too much space
Alternatively a full-fledged mapping thing could be developed, but that's a lot more work *nod*

@sharpstuff hey I installed it on my XDA EXEC, but when it scans for com and reaches com9 it just freezes...any ideas?

Hi there,
I'm having some problems with the detection code, and general functionality on WM5.
I am looking into it and will post a new version up ASAP, sorry for the problems..

stop being sorry and add that donate button *keeps clicking google ads once a day but hopes google won't start ignoring his IP address for excessive clicking...*

N!co said:
I installed it on my qtek9100 but it doesn't find a GSM-modem at all.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
After a soft reset its working fine on COM9. Nice app.!

sharpstuff said:
Hi there,
I'm having some problems with the detection code, and general functionality on WM5.
I am looking into it and will post a new version up ASAP, sorry for the problems..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So is Release 1.3b a partial fix for WM5 users? I installed it on my MDA II and it detects my modem on COM2 without any problems. Both 1.2 and 1.3 seem to work on WM2003 PPCs.
http://www.nicecuppa.net/
http://www.nicecuppa.com/download/NiceTrack_Release_1_3.zip
TIA

Yep, it's an intermediate release. Basically, it reminds the user on startup to set the Com port in settings
I'm working on v1.4 at present, this has more error checking on the GSM code, and multi-threaded com port detection so the whole app doesn't hang

For what it's worth - it seems to randomly lock up on me - requires an 'end task'. Sometimes when this happens, and I try to fire it back up again, I just get an empty message box dialog; no title, just the close button.

ZeBoxx said:
For what it's worth - it seems to randomly lock up on me - requires an 'end task'. Sometimes when this happens, and I try to fire it back up again, I just get an empty message box dialog; no title, just the close button.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I get that messagebox at random even after I closed the app and its not in the list of running programs. Strange...

[release] PhoneContacts

This is my first project for PocketPC. It's a simple Contacts replacement with search keypad.
PS: .NET CF 1.1 is required.
16/9/2006
- WM5.0 version added (category filter, contact update, contact delete bugs fixed)
11/9/2006 - 1.1.3.0
- Contacts list loads more faster on large amount of data
- Name filter and back button improved
3/9/2006
- Load Categories bug fixes
14/7/2006
- Added .NET 2.0 version
5/07/2006 - 1.1.2.0
- Added category filter
13/06/2006 - 1.0.1.6
- Some bug fixes
- Added Tools - Save Config
- Added Name [display] format

any screen shots of usage screens and config screens?
tested with which models?
tested with which os? wm5 or 2003se or?
Size of program after install?

It' tested only on O2 XDA mini, WM2003.

can you please upload it here. it says the file is corrupt if i download it. thanks

Here it is...
... moved into the first post

does this work with WM5?

Installed on Qtek 9100 WM 5. It works perfectly.
The only defects are:
When it is exited from the program loses the formulations of the English language and the dimension of the font.
Is not possible to set up the order of reading of the contacts 1°/2° or 2°/1° name.

dborello said:
Installed on Qtek 9100 WM 5. It works perfectly.
The only defects are:
When it is exited from the program loses the formulations of the English language and the dimension of the font.
Is not possible to set up the order of reading of the contacts 1°/2° or 2°/1° name.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
About configuration(lang, font...): I dont know how program works on WM5. I'll try to correct it as soon as possible and i will add order of reading ( <FN MN LN> and <LN, FN> ).

thanks CDK. ill post it on my blog http://oldsap.blogspot.com

Great job - really. I love it. it works perfectly on my QTEK9100 as posted already. This is one tool which will replace the built in contacts.
Some more suggestions and hints:
- Program loading lasts very long - maybe it is decreasable??
- If i write a name the tool greps for all matches in the first and the last name. That is great. I love it. Is it possible to search also in the middle of the string. Example: Alex and i type lex
- Is it possible to grep not only first and last name but also the other fields which are defined in the Pocket Outlook Object model?
- Is it possible to have more search boxes or filter for the categories?
- Maybe it is possible to have a WM05 compile where for example a context menu pops up with all the selectable categories
- The russian/english problem posted already is also on my device
A lot of requests. Let me know if you find some useful.
Thanx anyway for this great app.

how do you install this? just copy all the files into a folder and run?

topcaser said:
Some more suggestions and hints:
- Program loading lasts very long - maybe it is decreasable??
- If i write a name the tool greps for all matches in the first and the last name. That is great. I love it. Is it possible to search also in the middle of the string. Example: Alex and i type lex
- Is it possible to grep not only first and last name but also the other fields which are defined in the Pocket Outlook Object model?
- Is it possible to have more search boxes or filter for the categories?
- Maybe it is possible to have a WM05 compile where for example a context menu pops up with all the selectable categories
- The russian/english problem posted already is also on my device
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ok. I give some explanation. This program is written for my request and with my collaboration. That's why i try to answer some questions and I will post, sometimes, new release.
1. This is .NET :-( Here is a "hide"-feature added to solve (temporary) this problem. I think F.T.D. post here the source code as soon as possible. May be someone rewrite this on native C.
2. May be. But this may be unusable with huge contacts lists...
3 & 4. Describe, please, what you want to see. Perhaps this will be added in the hext releases.
5. ... requires WM5 device... :-(
6. This is corrected and will be posted today (if we understand the problem correctly)

ikkoku said:
how do you install this? just copy all the files into a folder and run?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes.

topcaser said:
...
- Is it possible to have more search boxes or filter for the categories?
- Maybe it is possible to have a WM05 compile where for example a context menu pops up with all the selectable categories
...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I will be VERY appreciate if you show me how to get available categories in system (it might be as well in .NET)

good job
have sudjustion.. i think it's beter to put the keys in ordenary like on the keybord .. it will be faster to tape for users how know where is every key in the keybord
thanks

miky420 said:
good job
have sudjustion.. i think it's beter to put the keys in ordenary like on the keybord .. it will be faster to tape for users how know where is every key in the keybord
thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think it will become customizable in the next releases.
For example:
- main file is a list: [picture name=text file (symbols code list)]
- every keyboards are: picture itself and text file with symbols code.

updated. see first post for details.

that's really gr8.... i like it......

is there a way this can work with .net cf2 because i have a .net cf2 loaded rom on my 8125 and when i try to run this it gives me an error

cybiker123 said:
is there a way this can work with .net cf2 because i have a .net cf2 loaded rom on my 8125 and when i try to run this it gives me an error
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
uploaded

[New release] Registry display plugin

Ok, most of you may find this totally useless as a plugin, but it was a combination of a request by user Treo_newb and a desire to create a sample plugin project that could be used as a base / example for plugin writers (I plan on doing an article on codeproject.com and this will be the source for it).
What does it do?
This plugin displays a string stored in registry.
The path is:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\RegDispPlugin
Value name: DisplayString
It checks if this string has changed several times per second when today screen is shown (as the system sends refresh message to all plugins) and displays the updated message if a change occurred.
What is it good for?
First, if you write apps using mortscript or similar like the user who requested this it will let your script display stuff on today screen.
Alternatively it could be used to mark your device today with a string that isn't as easily changed as user info.
The source is basically a skeleton plugin you can use to build your own plugin on (no license / copyright to limit you) and it already has several tricks needed for the plugin to display correctly:
VGA compatibility
Text size matching system settings
Proper header in settings dialog (like on system plugins)
Proper text color when selected (according to theme)
No blinking all today screen on change
Proper resize when switching between landscape and portrait
When I was writing my first plugin I could not find all these little fixes concentrated in a single article so I had to fish for each one as the bug reports came in.
Hope you will find this little project useful.
The plugin:View attachment RegDisplay.CAB
The source (eVC 4 project): View attachment RegDisplay.zip

Thanks for this!

Thank You Lev.
Thanks, Thanks, Thanks,
You are a legend.
I was almost through with my today plugin and was trying to figure out reading registry values and all of a sudden I get a PM from u about the plugin !!!
Very Cool !!!
OK a few questions,
1. I know that WM_TODAYCUSTOM_QUERYREFRESHCACHE is called for refreshing the today plugin, any ideas about when is it called.
I read somewhere that it was 2 seconds. Is it true?
2. I saw ur code and u have exposed CustomItemOptionsDlgProc in RegDisplay.def, but when I installed the cab file the 'options' is not enabled.
I manually changed the resistry and changed options to dword = 1 and saw ur name and email address.
u might want to enable that by default so that people can notice ur work.
I am planing a commercial release of a new project on basis of this.
Thanks again,
Shailesh

First, you're welcome.
shaileshashar:
1) I ran a debug print on this message once on an iPaq 1710 and it seems to be sent several times per second. This could differ from OS to OS or even from device to device, I am not sure.
If you need specifically timed refresh, or you have an event triggered on new data, I suggest using a timer or maybe a thread that will wait on an event. You can refresh your plugin from anywhere in code by calling InvalidateRect with your window handle.
2) I messed up the cab at first, forgetting to add the Options reg value. Then when I went to upload the fix, I couldn't access the site for about an hour (no idea why, I even rebooted the PC to Ubuntu). Should be fixed now, but I will check it later again (I have to go back to XP for that).
Good luck with your program.

Suggestion
levenum said:
First, you're welcome.
shaileshashar:
1) I ran a debug print on this message once on an iPaq 1710 and it seems to be sent several times per second. This could differ from OS to OS or even from device to device, I am not sure.
If you need specifically timed refresh, or you have an event triggered on new data, I suggest using a timer or maybe a thread that will wait on an event. You can refresh your plugin from anywhere in code by calling InvalidateRect with your window handle.
2) I messed up the cab at first, forgetting to add the Options reg value. Then when I went to upload the fix, I couldn't access the site for about an hour (no idea why, I even rebooted the PC to Ubuntu). Should be fixed now, but I will check it later again (I have to go back to XP for that).
Good luck with your program.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the help, will check the fixed cab.
Also a suggestion:
A custom icon could also be incorporated. You can give a option to load a custom icon next to the text in the today plugin.
I know anybody can modify ur code and do it but still.

Actually, I probably should have mentioned this in the original post but I have no intention of adding options to this thing.
This would only complicate the code and turn it in to an actual app instead of a sample project.
But by all means feel free to make suggestions. If this thing does become popular, when I am done with my other projects (like LVMTopBat) which won't be any time soon (unfortunately) I will release a separate version of this plugin with all kinds of options that can be controlled both by user (form the options dialog) and by other apps through registry.
Maybe things like text alignment, size, bold / Italic / underlined.
P.S.
The reason I put the string this plugin loads under HKEY_CURRENT_USER instead of the HKLM where the rest of the plugin registry resides is because by default the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE on WM 5 and higher has a security restriction. For example you can not write to it using RAPI, only by authorized (or signed) app on the device. The HKEY_CURRENT_USER on the other hand is open for all.

levenum said:
P.S.
The reason I put the string this plugin loads under HKEY_CURRENT_USER instead of the HKLM where the rest of the plugin registry resides is because by default the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE on WM 5 and higher has a security restriction. For example you can not write to it using RAPI, only by authorized (or signed) app on the device. The HKEY_CURRENT_USER on the other hand is open for all.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the info, I never knew that.

Thank you so much! This was exactly what I was looking for!

levenum said:
...But by all means feel free to make suggestions.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As a frequent mortscript user I think, this great app might be even more usefull, if the string was shown in an "allways on top" message box instead of the today screen. The Today screen might be obscured by other active windows during the scripts runtime and the plugin eats precious today screen estate also while being unused, doesn't it?
In that case (of a standalone application) I would furthermore introduce some kind of termination string (or reg. value) to end the display application.
Code:
- start mortscript
- writes first string to registry
- starts display application (run)
- updates string in registry whenever appropriate
- ...
- writes termination string to registry
-> display applications self-terminates
- ...
- end of mortscript
Honestly, I already do use something comparable with mortscript (employing a conditioned sleepmessage loop and reading from the registry too), but this could be much nicer and more elegant.
Just my 2 cents... What do you think?

I think something like that would be better implemented by the mortsrit program it self.
It could be a function like MessageBox API in windows which you could then command on and off. Having it built in would save precious resources on the device that would be wasted by having an extra app run constantly in background.
This is just my thought though.
I'd suggest contacting the developer of mortscript and discussing it with him.

levenum said:
I think something like that would be better implemented by the mortsrit program it self.
...
I'd suggest contacting the developer of mortscript and discussing it with him.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Mort knew about that request and by chance just announced to so.
Thanks anyway.

Hello levenum,
I just joined the community. Reason being, I found your RegDisplay plug-in
You call it a sample project, but the impact is that of an awesome solution.
Great for MortScript, but equally useful in BASIC applications that write
messages to the registry which is show upon screen minimization.
I regret not being a C programmer (mainly BASIC), else I'd love to further
develop this jewel.
Your plug-in runs flawlessly in an iPAQ 210 under WM6 Classic.
Cheers and Respectful Greetings
Robert

CLSID for registry display plugin
What is the CLSID for the Registry Display Plugin? I am going to have to edit the XML file that defines my home screen in order to get the plugin to show up. I am using Facade to control my home screen, and the only plugins that it will show in its list are those currently in use in one of the XML files in the Application Data\Home folder. All other new plugins require editing the XML. Thanks for your help.

levenum said:
Ok, most of you may find this totally useless as a plugin, but it was a combination of a request by user Treo_newb and a desire to create a sample plugin project that could be used as a base / example for plugin writers (I plan on doing an article on codeproject.com and this will be the source for it).
What does it do?
This plugin displays a string stored in registry.
The path is:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\RegDispPlugin
Value name: DisplayString
It checks if this string has changed several times per second when today screen is shown (as the system sends refresh message to all plugins) and displays the updated message if a change occurred.
What is it good for?
First, if you write apps using mortscript or similar like the user who requested this it will let your script display stuff on today screen.
Alternatively it could be used to mark your device today with a string that isn't as easily changed as user info.
The source is basically a skeleton plugin you can use to build your own plugin on (no license / copyright to limit you) and it already has several tricks needed for the plugin to display correctly:
VGA compatibility
Text size matching system settings
Proper header in settings dialog (like on system plugins)
Proper text color when selected (according to theme)
No blinking all today screen on change
Proper resize when switching between landscape and portrait
When I was writing my first plugin I could not find all these little fixes concentrated in a single article so I had to fish for each one as the bug reports came in.
Hope you will find this little project useful.
The plugin:View attachment 41592
The source (eVC 4 project): View attachment 41583
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is great! I was asked if I could write a today screen plug-in for my weather application (http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=445576) - I couldn't since I don't have the skills and I'm writing .NET code - but this is exactly what I needed.
I'm adding support for this plug-in and will of course give credits to you.