Database Users

noob needs some help (long... yawn)

I am sorry that the title is so general but I really do need lots of help with my wizard and don't know where to start.
I have had the thing since xmas and have not used it for a single day ! it was an impulse buy and probably a mistake. I realise that now but I'm stuck with a 12 month contract so might as well try and use it.:roll:
I work a 12 hour day and simply do not have the time to experiment and play with it. I need someone who has considerable experience with the o2 mini s and is able to explain how to set it up properly and use it effectively and has both the ability and patience to explain it to me. I am happy to pay for this as I see it like any other service which we pay for. I do not expect help for nothing.
Is there anyone prepared to help me with this ?
first I would like to know how I can change and improve my desktop.
second I would like to know how I install TomTom
thanks
Nick
peanut

Long yawn answered with enthusiasm
Firstly I have an xdaII + 2i and i'm pretty good with pc's, but there are some glaring holes in my knowledge.
My brother has the phone you have, and on his I have installed ttn5 and stripped the rom back so that the phone works much faster.
There's an awful lot of reading for you to do, so seen as i can prob not help much on this forum i'd be glad to help customise and suggest tools and s/w for your ppc up for you so that you'll find it at least fun and maybe use it.

I am currently on my 4th iteration of a Pocket PC phone. I started out way back with an Ipaq 3650 with a softphone, migrated to the 1st T-Mobile Pocket PC Phone (Wallaby, XDA, ect.), spent a year with the Ipaq H6315, and have now been using the new T-Mobile MDA USA (Wizard).
When I had the original XDA (Wallaby), got lured into the "Fix it 'til it breaks" addiction by this site. The "ROM Kitchen" was just too inticing to resist. That first generation platform in its factory state left much to be desired and the enhancements created by this forum and it's members greatly improved the user expierience of those devices.
Now that I have skipped the XDA II, III, and IV devices and all of the jargin associated with these newer generations of this platform and are now using the Wizard, I find myself relegated back to "Noowbie" status with regard to my knowledge of how, when, & why to upgrade my new device.
The usefulness of this forum and the many contributions of its members have contributed to the dificulty in extracting the information one may be looking for. There is simply so much information here to sift through.
I too find it hard to find the time required to assimilate all of the data here.
My device is in it's stock configuration with the exception that I have run the Lockwiz unlocking program. Until I can get my head around what these varius other rom images will do for me, I am going to use the device as it is now, which is a quantum leap in usability compared to the other devices I have been using for the past 4 years.
It probably already exists, ( although burried in countless 30 page threads) but perhaps a sticky Noowbie section that will help us that are time challanged so that we can someday increase our usefulness to this forum.
:idea:

A problem with your question about your desktop is there is more than one answer.
My answer is to use:
*Wisbar Advanced
--Close apps (you can define exceptions)
--Define a top bar theme
--Define top bar buttons and multiple actions for each
--Show running task icons on top bar
*Wisbar Advanced Desktop plugin
--Define multiple "virtual" taoday screens
--Place shortcuts, buttons and even links to place a phone call on any desktop
--More themes
--Pin items that can be available on all virtual pages
*Pocket Breeze
--A great way to see all PIM items (calendar, task, etc).
--Allows other today plugins to be used in tabs
*Pocket Weather as a tab in Pocket Breeze
*Pocket Alarm
--This does lots of things in addition to phone profiles and includes a today plugin
*SPB Backup and its today plugin
*The SearchToday plugin borrowed from the Treo 700
There is just so much you can do and it has taken quite a while to evolve to this for me. And sometimes I change it
To get the most out of it, you will just need to budget some time.

Wow thanks for the replies everyone.
Phoneguy glad to see that I am not the only one with insufficient time to assimilate all this new technology. So much & so little time ...
Thank you for your offers of help. Perhaps I should make a list of what I would like to do with the mini s and start from there. I'll do that tonight. Perhaps any readers would make some suggestions as to what I can do to make the ppc a more friendly interface

Job offer ......of sorts!

Hey guys I hope you dont have any objections to this, if it is against any policies you have just let me know.
Ok the meat is, I am forming a very early stage start up.
I am UK based with (sadly!) no language skills so youll have to be English speaking.
I am seeking a developer to help me put together a prototype software suite.
I do not know this platform AT ALL, so youll have to know how to acces databases via vpn.( may need knowledge of the server side too) youll also have to understand the operations of the bluetooth stack with regards to sending print files.
And lastly you will need to be able to implement and debug a visual input sytem.
Its actually quite basic stuff, but I have no time to learn it as my bank wants to see a prototype ASAP.
Again I apologise if this is against your policy, but I need to get the ball rolling.
To clarify, as I am currently in patenting process I cant discuss much yet, but this can go two ways;
1: If you have the skills I need and spare time we agree on a price and timescale, I pay you for your work, then you walk away.
2: We discuss the project, you come on board with skills provided in return for a percentage of company.
This could be a great oppurtunity either way.
Thanks for listening.
I would prefer an email at [email protected]

What will it take?
I was disappointed to see no responses but oh hey!
SO? what am I doing wrong? what would it take to get some development skills in my pocket?
I would offer a go on the missus but shes not speaking to me right now for ignoring her.
Any advice pos' or negative would be cool.
Cheers guys.

If I were you I'd scan the Development forum and look at our community developers to see what they have done. Some of the more popular and highly respected are
A_C for S2U2 and S2V
Tene for PocketCM and PCM Keyboard
Thundershadow14 for PocketMelody and PictureFlow
DotFred for TaskManager and PPCPIMBackup
Vijay555 for (too much to name)
Slither2006 for SCLPC++
Grumps for iPhone App
I'm sure I missed out a lot of others with some real quality stuff. But I'm just naming off those who has produced software that I use most frequently and/or always see at the top of the Development forum cause the thread is so active. Sorry if I offended anyone by not naming them.
So check out the guys that I listed above and see if they have exhibit the skills that you need require for your project. Also if you need help with the design-side we also have plenty of good GUI/skinning guys.

Appreciated.
I will go check the area you suggested, so thanks for the heads up.
At the moment I am just interested in a rough and ready usable system to show the bank, but Ill definately remember your offer if they like what they see.
Again, thanks bud. And wish me luck.
PS If I wanted to learn the coding myself, do you think it would be completely improbable to do so myself in say 4 weeks?
(I am a mechanical engineering student so not completely dense but pretty busy).
And where would be a good place to start?
Thanks in advance.

You have to find a C++ book and get comfy with that. Then you'd have to look at the Windows Mobile SDK and combine the knowledge of both. Plus its trial and error because its running on different hardware.
Its a daunting task. It took me a good year fulltime to become a decent website developer. The hard part is thinking like a "programmer". Otherwise it'll look like its an alien language
Good luck with it.

Hey Mate,
I'd love to help although I've never worked in the areas you require. I'd recommend posting a slightly more detailed job requirements criteria so you may attract the right young budding enthusiast.
If you're creating software a bank will wish to use then the security side of the VPN will need to be top notch along with the methods in which the app will access data.
Unfortunately I'm more of a GUI designer and the only databases I access are the MS POOM databases for Outlook.
Good Luck!

Can I add I'd _never_ take someone seriously who's asking to reply to a hotmail.* / gmail.* / yahoo.* etc etc, address.

kirstan said:
Can I add I'd _never_ take someone seriously who's asking to reply to a hotmail.* / gmail.* / yahoo.* etc etc, address.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Erm Ok !!! I dont know what to say to that. That is the account I use most often. I didnt claim to rep IBM! This is a personal project and Im just trying to make contacts.
Regarding an other post above, The VPN is further down the road and not needed yet. Also the software will not be USED by a bank just shown to them as a proof of concept.
At that point I would be able to go beyond an overdraft to an actual business loan and be able to contract a developer.
It is hard for me to Give much detail without an NDA as my idea is not revolutionary but the application is novel.
If I were to discuss openly I would lose the ability to patent down the line.
It is essentially A GUI that I need, and a simple underlying app which will give me the ability to enter a small description in 30 odd fields.
When each field is selected a score of -1 is applied (the field value is initially zero).
At the end of a session, ( there will be an option to open new or close a session) a score is given to each field and depending on score, one of 90 text files (3 per field) is linked to.
A print file containing these 30 text files on one page and a score from 0 to -10 for each field in a table on the other page is then produced.
The database access and VPN would come later on but in the prototype that is all thats needed.
Im sorry thats about all the exp' I can give in open. But if you feel you could help and would like to get involved I could arrange an NDA.
I am currently speaking to a couple of people but there is nothing concrete yet so if at all interested, do get in touch.
Thanks for reading (and please take me seriously whatever my Email.)

solved.
Just in case anyone was interested, I finally found help on a site called Rentacoder so if anyone else is looking for development help, try there.
Cheers.

[Ideas] Windows Application Skinings [Long - Rant Material]

Hey guys,
I've hadmy HD a while and think it is by far one of the better phones I've used. Though like many reviewers and people have said the interface could do with a face-lift of sorts.
It just occured to be that maybe this would give the HD more appeal and with XDA being the largest resource of designers and coders for Windows I don't see why it can't be done.
Basically here are a few of my ideas, not all of them are applicable and I'm not a programmer as such and nor do I know the major workings of Windows mobile and I know there are alternative applications for these things but some of us just want a new skin not a new program.
Ok let the ideas flow:
SMS/MMS: This one I truly find depressing. I don't feel there is a need for a seperate program but if someone could just skin the display it would make sending messages that extra bit more 'entertaining'. I know people here dislike the iPhone I don't blame them but just have bubbles around threaded messages could really make a difference and improve communication. If I recall a lot of these edits can be doen through XML files. I've seen a cab which increases the size of the message box so it looks like atleast some change is possible. So adding more colour and imgry I think would be of benifit here.
Calendar/Tasks: Both I feel could do with a major new modelling but I use Calendar Touch so I've found my alternative. Though I think just making the display match Outlook on the PC a bit more of just making the buttons and fields bigger if possible would make the applucation more usable.
WMPlayer: I've tried MortPlayer and Pocket Player, the former crashed my HD as it wouldn't unistall so I had to hard-reset and the latter I left was good but just needed to appear more complete (some menus didn't match the styling of the player skin - also very confusing to use at times). Enter good old WMP, I enjoy using the skins already available, but the menus are still small and the fact I have to click the song then 'Play' I think is backwards, where on earth is double click! Is it possible to skin the menu to be bigger and look more user friendly?
These are obviously my thoughts and opinions but what I'm look/hoping for is for someone to code something that modifies these problems. Ofcourse this is open to discussion and people please do discuss.

haha, I had the exact same idea. I thought of some htc style cover for the wm interface and new apps for sms, notes, calendar etc.
going to move my thread to this section, will probably get more attention.

WONDERFUL!
It's good to see people with on a similair though pattern.

Any views, opinions or ideas?

New HD2, where do I start?

Hi guys, I'm new to this forum and it's a pleasure to be a new member! As a brief introduction, I'm completely new to HTC, Windows Mobile and any non-Symbian device! I've used Nokia's, Sony Ericssons & Motorola's all my life and Symbian is all I know, I think you get the picture......
Anyhow, I should be getting my HD2 within the next few days because I fell in love with it as soon as I saw it and I just want to know where to start?! This looks like the most comprehensive forum I've seen on the net and I couldn't think of a better place to start learning. I know it's a bit of a broad question and I have had a look through a number of posts to get my bearings, as such. I've seen posts about Roms, registry modifications, patches...... and it all sounds very interesting and I want to know all the functions and information I can about my new device.
Coming from the Symbian background, everything is pretty straightforward but Windows Mobile sounds a lot more technical and something I'm looking forward to learning about. Any information or tips about what I should & shouldn't do to help improve performance/tweak the device would be much appreciated and I'm a fast learner. PS I've seen this post:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=583638
and will work my way through it when I get the device, but it seems to be aimed at people with some previous experience with this platform. I'm sure you guys see these tpye of 'Help Me!' posts all the time but thanks in advance.

Hello Gargon, welcome aboard!
I too am new to these forums and I've spent a not-insignificant amount of time browsing threads on the HD2 since I made the decision to finally ditch the venerable nokia 6030 that has served me so well all these years. Being a self-confessed techie the HD2 appealed to me the very instant I first caught a glimpse of it in all its Kubrick monolithic glory and as soon as O2 release info on their tariffs I will be seriously weighing up my options.
Now, let's get down to the nitty gritty. As a disclaimer I've only been here a short while so I wouldn't be surprised if I get a few facts wrong. Hopefully someone will correct me if I do!
The HD2 is powered by Windows Mobile 6.5 edition and as you might imagine it's not too dissimilar in how it operates to the PC desktop version. You have a desktop, start menu, program files etc. with all the various settings held by the registry. The beauty of WinMo is that it is far more customisable than the iPhone OS/Symbian in that you can change pretty much everything you see and also how you interact with the device. For example, a developer on these boards has released an application which enables the vibration feature on almost every keypress whereas the default HD2 only goes so far. Another dev has released an app which changes HTC's desktop from a 3x3 grid of shortcuts to 4x4. You can even do away with HTC's superb frontend entirely and install something like SPB Mobile Shell which has a snazzy rotating cube effect desktop and many other alternative enhancements (although you will have to pay for this). And this is only the tip of the iceberg! There are thousands of applications and games out there on the internet, and with Microsoft finally getting into the appstore gig we can expect a well-stocked central repository for software sometime in the near future. Failing that, google is our friend
With the help of the talented and selfless developers here at xda-dev almost anything is possible, including the potential for changing the operating system entirely, so you can't rule out the HD2 one day running Android or WM7 somewhere down the line, however this depends on one crucial bit of software -- the Hard SPL. Without this essential bit of kit, peons such as myself are unable to reflash the device to a different operating system or even a different version of the current OS (e.g. a lite version to save valuable ROM space, or an enhanced version with greater functionality). Everything hinges on this being developed by the code masters behind the scenes however such projects require a lot of skill, time and effort and such is the support of the community here that monetary donations are pledged in gratitude for past endeavours and in the hope of new enterprise.
As for installing applications themselves, I haven't yet delved deep enough to give you a comprehensive answer, however I suspect that there are FAQs on the parent forums which will give you all the information you need. From what I can tell, applications are released in .cab format which are executed from the phone and self-install. I can't wait until I can get my grubby paws on this masterpiece and get busy pushing buttons! I'm sure I've missed a whole lot of information but my lids are getting heavy and my battery needs charging. I hope this wasn't too patronising for you and I'm sure some other people here will gladly fill you in on anything I've missed.

Welcome aboard, great first posting. Showing the threads you read already makes many people want to help you more.
If you come from Symbian, some stuff will be the same, i.e. you use icons for programs.
What differs the most is the customization possibilities and the level of deep control you have over the behaviour of your new machine.
Get to grips with Microsoft Mobile Device Center, (syncing your data).
Do you have an Exchange account or Gmail ? You can setup your device to have pushmail connectivity with GMail or Exchange.
If you don't own an Exchange Server, you can setup your own free
Custom Domain at http://domains.live.com and have your own email adress as a LIVE-ID and have pushmail with it (free).
Then, I would dig in to the many cool free applications around.
Yes, hunt for .cab files as they will install over the air (OTA) and from your device.
Another tip: When you get your device, start at the first Icon, view it, try and dig deeper in the menu's, always. Press and hold the screen/text to see if there are context menu's.
Then work your way through all the settings and icons available. It will take you about 3 days to see all the menu's and options, although the first 80% you will discover the first day
Hope you will enjoy the transition.

Hey guys
First off, this a awesome site with heaps of help. And advice which is great
Secondly I amnew here too and hopefully getting my hd2 soon. Can't wait!!

Thanks a lot for the replies guys, very informative H2D2 and thanks for the tips lucid. It's good to know that there are other people in a similar situation to myself! If anyone can post any relevant links to any apps or roms/cab files that might be useful for a first-timer then it would be much appreciated. In the meantime, I'll keep doing the research and, if I find anything myself, I'll post it here. Thanks again.

Well I'm new as well so hi everyone!
I used to have a wm phone but that was a few years ago and things have changed a lot since then... so have a bit of catching up to do. Been browsing on here the last few days and ordered the HD2 this morning.
Gargon, I'm sure you'll get used to it all in no time, I know it all looks confusing at first but really it's not that bad and I'm sure the nice people on here will help if you're stuck.

Greetings our new community members
I was in the same situation as You guys half year ago when I purchased my first WM device, the Diamond2. And now Im awaiting my HD2 already ordered
As for the Windows Mobile platform, it is the most powerful, sophisticated and versatile mobile platform ever made, and that's why it has always attracted more advanced users. But on the other hand, it is in many ways very similar to Windowses on your PCs At first you may feel a little overwhelmed of all the functions, tips, tricks, registry hacks and so on. But what's great about Windows Mobile platform, is that once you start to "feel" it, then playing around with your phone becomes extremely addictive. I remember my first week with the Diamond2, it was nothing else than playing with it, installing and testing every trick i could possibly find
Moving on to the relevant stuff:
First of all, you should equip your device with a decent file explorer, as the native WM one is a bit clunky. I recommend Resco File Explorer. Second, equip yourself with a registry editor, as you gonna need it for tweaks. Resco Explorer has a plugin for registry editing and there are even desktop PC editors which you can use when device is connected to the PC.
As for application installation, it can be performed in 2 ways:
1).cab files. These are like .sis in Symbian. You run them directly from the device just by executing them from any file manager.
2).exe files. Those can be installed from your PC when the device is connected to it. Sometimes developers make small apps for phones which are in form of exe files which are designed to run directly from the device. This is possible because every app after installation usually has its folder in Program Files where an exe file of the app itsself is stored (exactly the same as on Your PC Windows)
Moving on to the interface. One of the biggest advantages of Windows Mobile is that it enables you to change practically the whole interface with minimum effort. The native WM interface is unfortunately very old and not finger friendly, and thats why every major company designed their own interfaces. On the HD2 it is called Sense. In fact Sense is only a further developement of an interface which was called TouchFlo 3D. And one thing more you should know. Developers on this forum use the code name of this interface, which is Manila. HD2 has the latest Manila v2.5. So basically Manila=TouchFlo=Sense.
Feel free to ask any questions, everyone of us was a newbie at first I personally am very happy to see new people being attracted by new fantastic WM devices. I myself was a Nokia/Symbian fan for many years, untill half a year ago I discovered that I was living in the darkness all these years
The XDA-Developers is one of the greatest, biggest and oldest communities on the whole internet. This makes this community concrete, mature and serious. This means that members are very helpful to each other and they always communicate with a certain level of etiquette, so You surely won't hear any offensive words, swears or any vulgarisms
So enjoy your new devices and this community, as it will bring you many happy moments, i guarantee this to You

the wiki is a great tool (not much on the HD2 in there yet) but background reading on other devices is good.
As long as you're willing to take time to learn to use the search (often searching around the term you're looking for) then you'll solve issues you may have quickly as well..
several of us are happy to discuss stuff on PM as well..
and don't forget if you find something that you think others would find useful,
The WIKI is always there, to be edited at your leisure

Welcome
Very nice attitude from Gargon01 and H2D2.
You are on the right track about the winmo os.
In itself it is clunky on the surface but the structure sits on the registry database which is accessible through a registry editor.
This forum is quite unique and must be the largest of It's kind, that is, a community of smartphone developers/hackers.
I have been dropping in for 4 years but only started flashing recently after buying an HD.
The HD came with an earlier development of Touchflo and I saw rom versions on Youtube etc of more advanced versions from XDA Devs.
I took the plunge in flashing roms and have been addicted ever since.
I am running the latest version of sense on my HD but am awaiting an HD2 from clove tech on the uk for which sense was made.
There are many brilliant people in this community who generously offer their creativity, time and energy.
You are in the right place. More will be revealed.

Thanks a lot for the responses guys, exactly what me and I'm sure a lot of other new users are looking for! I'll look for the Resco File Viewer jgal, there was a similar app called Modo on Symbian that was also used for deep-file exploration/modification purposes.
Also, it's good to know that there are a lot of similarities to the desktop version of Windows. I'd like to think that I'm pretty proficient with that so I'll look forward to taking that knowledge and applying it to the HD2.
A big thanks to all the other users who have contributed to the post as well! I was pretty sure that my thread would fade away into non-existence but it's good to know that people seem genuinely interested in offering help and advice.
I should hopefully be getting the handset on Monday so I'll give it a good examination and keep you all posted should I run into any problems. Keep the tips/links coming though, my brain is like a sponge!! Cheers.

Android Software Development

Hi all,
I work in IT but have never done any programming at all before. I would like to get started in developing apps for Android. Does anyone have any pointers tips on doing this. Is Android the wrong place to start with programming or should I be ok? Does anyone know of any good resources which should get me started, either online or in book form?
Any advice appreciated,
Michael

Manning has a Developing for Android book. http://www.manning.com/ableson/ You'll need to learn Java so start there too. Or look into Titanium http://www.appcelerator.com/

Promoting your site, isn't a good idea

I don't necessarily want to discourage you, but doing proper software development isn't the easiest thing to learn. There's a pretty steep learning curve surrounding object-oriented development, and the alternative is something you'll either hate or misuse.
Most people starting to program first learn how to make things happen in code procedurally: do A, then when that's done do B, then when that's done do C. Trying to program user interfaces this way is awful because the user workflow does not necessarily follow each little action in a specific order (and the interface has to continue to be responsive while your program is working). Your code will almost certainly suck and you'll spend most of your time testing, fixing bugs, and rejecting feature requests because they are "impossible" until you learn the better way: break down the problem into discrete blocks of related data and resources (the objects), define all the ways each block can be manipulated (the methods on those objects), define the conditions under which different actions must take place (thread messaging, event handlers), and tie all of that together into an application.
If this sort of thing interests you, great! I myself used to work in IT and found software development to be a much more interesting, open, and creative field. Mobile development is an especially fun field because you can deal with smaller projects and your customers are normal people, not businesses. I caution you not to jump right into the deep end, though; read several books on java and OOP, start with a smaller project and redesign/rewrite it several times until it's perfect, then you'll be ready to take what you've learned and apply it to something incrementally bigger.