Hi all,
I inherited an old Orange SPV m500, and found this forum while searching for a way to unlock it from Orange. It worked and was very helpful, so you have my thanks for that!
Then I see all this skinning business and I would love to customise the phone a bit more; there's several things I'd like to do including installing a bigger dialler, a better 'homepage', etc, etc. So I went ahead and installed what seemed to be the latest ROM I could use (the WWE_O3 Cottula rom, which is the last one with a working camera from the looks of it - I need the camera). That's all fine and dandy and worked nicely (although it often tells me I've just inserted a memory card when I haven't).
However, all this extra software is an absolute mystery. It's all circular references which isn't helped by the lack of clear English (no offence, I know it's not everybody's mother tongue). I simply can't seem to find a start point that explains what software does what, how to install it, etc. All the threads seem to assume that you already know the software and what it does. Even the 'wiki' for the magician is limited to descriptions of upgrading the ROM. JMLToday Touchflo Manilla 3d 2d etc. etc.
I don't have a very modern device, so I don't expect to be able to install all of the latest whizzbangs on it, and to be honest I don't need a huge bundle of features, but I'd love to make my phone easier and faster to use and I know you guys have put huge effort into software to do just that. I just can't figure out what I need or how to go about getting it.
Any help and advice would be greatly appreciated!
Welcome to the forum xobby. First of all xda-developers is mainly a technical forum to help in upgrading and tweaking your device. There may be threads involving applications but , like you said, it's not very organized. So the first thing you have to do is use the search function to look for what you are looking for. If you can't find anything then you might ask nicely from the members in the forum for help. If you are looking for specific applications then there are other sites that is more suited for searching for applications.
I would suggest that you do a general search of the internet for programs, skins, etc that you would like to install in your unit and where to download them. It requires a lot of searching and looking I know but that is just the way it is.
Good luck!
By the way. Since you upgraded to WM6.1 by Cotulla, you will have no problem installing almost all of the newest applications available for windows mobile the same as those for the newer more expensive phones.
ferdiebaq said:
Welcome to the forum xobby. First of all xda-developers is mainly a technical forum to help in upgrading and tweaking your device. There may be threads involving applications but , like you said, it's not very organized. So the first thing you have to do is use the search function to look for what you are looking for. If you can't find anything then you might ask nicely from the members in the forum for help. If you are looking for specific applications then there are other sites that is more suited for searching for applications.
I would suggest that you do a general search of the internet for programs, skins, etc that you would like to install in your unit and where to download them. It requires a lot of searching and looking I know but that is just the way it is.
Good luck!
By the way. Since you upgraded to WM6.1 by Cotulla, you will have no problem installing almost all of the newest applications available for windows mobile the same as those for the newer more expensive phones.
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Thanks very much for the advice!
Related
Hello friends,
Im a new PPC user. I have a T-mobile Wizard. There are a lot of freeware available for the Wizard. Since there are too many pages to read and a lot of freeware to compare, I need some help from Wizard users who had their Wizard for a while now. There are only a couple of things I need from the Wizard.... Outlook Email, Internet, and a good Iphone Theme. Does it makes sense to upgrade to the WM6? What are the benefits of WM6? Other than that I just need my Wizard to be really quick.
Thank you friends in advance and I really hope you can help a new windows mobile user.
cabayboy831 said:
Hello friends,
Im a new PPC user. I have a T-mobile Wizard. There are a lot of freeware available for the Wizard. Since there are too many pages to read and a lot of freeware to compare, I need some help from Wizard users who had their Wizard for a while now. There are only a couple of things I need from the Wizard.... Outlook Email, Internet, and a good Iphone Theme. Does it makes sense to upgrade to the WM6? What are the benefits of WM6? Other than that I just need my Wizard to be really quick.
Thank you friends in advance and I really hope you can help a new windows mobile user.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, you will need to spend some time reading if you want to glean anything from this site.
Anyhow, I would recommend upgrading to WM6. A few reasons being is it has HTML capable Outlook (since you mentioned you'd be using that). It's also less buggy, faster and just more stable than WM5 too.
So, you can leave it as-is, and have a perfectly usable device. Or plan on spending a lot of time reading, reading, and reading some more to upgrade and customize. I'd say it's quite worth it though.
Start in the WIKI. It has links to everything that will get your phone unlocked and upgraded.
Just please keep in mind that this site appreciates those that help themselves first. If you do get stuck on something and can't find the answer, don't hesitate to ask.
Good luck!
Maybe more time reading and less time on the '!' key would help.
I'm going to disagree with TaurusBullba on WM6 stability and speed. I tried a number of WM6 ROMs on my G4 Wizard and found them to have a more issues than my original O2 ROM. That's not to say the O2 ROM didn't have issues, but I found most WM6 ROMs to have more / more serious issues. My advice would be to look at a thread for a ROM you might like to install. You will almost certainly find users stating any issues they're having.
Furthermore, on the ROM front, it requires a lot more reading and a lot less '!' , so I would sit back and be content with WM5 for the moment whilst reading the forum.
You will find the most comprehensive iPhone threads in the General board of this forum, although I believe there is a thread in one of the Wizard boards too.
If you don't mind paying, I've found Opera is a good replacement to Pocket IE.
PaulMdx said:
Maybe more time reading and less time on the '!' key would help.
I'm going to disagree with TaurusBullba on WM6 stability and speed. I tried a number of WM6 ROMs on my G4 Wizard and found them to have a more issues than my original O2 ROM. That's not to say the O2 ROM didn't have issues, but I found most WM6 ROMs to have more / more serious issues. My advice would be to look at a thread for a ROM you might like to install. You will almost certainly find users stating any issues they're having.
Furthermore, on the ROM front, it requires a lot more reading and a lot less '!' , so I would sit back and be content with WM5 for the moment whilst reading the forum.
You will find the most comprehensive iPhone threads in the General board of this forum, although I believe there is a thread in one of the Wizard boards too.
If you don't mind paying, I've found Opera is a good replacement to Pocket IE.
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Thank you for the information. Im actually very familiar with opera. I had it installed on my blackberry and is so much faster. I think I'll Stick with WM5 since everywhere I read they mention that it has a lot more bugs I think I'll wait untill I get more familiar with my wizard and also when the fix the bugs on the WM6. Thank you guys for the replys.
First off- this is a great site with valuable information for all matters HTC. It has been a resource that has helped me get more use out of my HTC products.
I have a Universal, Dash, Athena, Startrec, and Wing.
Lately I have been trying to get some useful information for the Athena and no amount of searching, reading Wiki ing can answer my questions or even help me get a baseline understanding of things with the Athena.
It is quite frustrating- I would want to straightforwardly ask a question in a new thread, but it seems that the more experienced people on this board jump to the conclusion that a question is the result of not searching or not reading. I can tell you that I spend hours a day searching for things on this site and often times find irrelevant search results or endless threads with needle in haystack like answers that only partially answer questions. Is there anyway to organize this space better so that questions can be answered more efficiently?
The wiki is not useful for the most part- it has less info than some threads- links are old or irrelevant and searching is plain useless.
Great site everybody but darn frustrating for finding info- Any one else having this issue?
RT
Probably not...
What info are you after and I'm sure someone will be able to help - then maybe you can update the Wiki yourself if you think it needs it!
I want upgrade the radio, but I am not sure if the phone needs to be CID, its the HTC model w/o front facing camera. If it does need to be CID, not sure how to do it properly. There are tons of posts of people who have bricked their units using methods that would use to CID. So I am sorta scared to try anything- every method I see suggested is followed by another thread of someone for whom the process went badly. Also I cannot get a reliable place to download a radio and which radio is the best or useable with a later rom? I read that some radios don't work with some roms and there threads of people tried to upgrade ROMs but found that they had radio problems, WIFI, bluetooth and GSM issues. Is there a better radio to use than others? Is their a reliable place to get the requisite radio version?
What ROM version makes sense. The current ROM on my Athena is awful- the worst ever. I downloaded AP4 and right before I geared up to use it, I read a ton of posts which say is does not work with WIFI- WTF? Is there a version of it that does work with WIFI? Is there another version of the ROM that is stable and downloadable? Also I have seen mentions of various types of ROMs, but no real explanation of what these ROMs are and where to get them.
Mind you I have done tons of stuff with my universal, dash, wing, MDA and have had an easier time finding info, links and resources.
Anyway- I just cannot seem to find coherent info here. If I do find coherent info, I would more than happy to help out with the WIKI or some sort of wiki that clearly outlines key info such as
1. Here are the various Rom options and what they do
2. Here are the various Radio options and what they do
3. Here is a coherent, un confusing guide to CID that won't brick your machine
4. Here is a link that works and clearly states which software versions are available for download
5.Here are idiot proof instructions on how do to perform key functions of upgrading.
Before everyone flames this remember I have seen the various posts and threads that talk about these things, but they are usually followed by tons of people who have had problems with ROM, Links, Bricks and other issues. In addition a lot of the information is plain confusing.
So if anyone out there has clear links or pointers let me/us know I will volunteer to compile it because right now I am about ready to toss my crippled Athena out the window.
RT
I'm not sure that I understand exactly what you mean, but from my experience with XDA communities, the Athena has a relatively non "newbie friendly" approach. I don't mean to insult anybody of-course, but the switch from the Wizard community to the Athena one was hard, and I feel like people here save too much info for themselves and don't like to share or help new people. I must say, I don't mean to insult anybody or criticize, I'm merely expressing my feelings from my one month around here.
Unlock http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=315831
Radio - latest 1.57 http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=372904
AP4 works fine with Wifi unless you screw up badly - then it CAN be fixed.
Simple, unlock, flash radio 1.57 or leave at 1.5 if you are happy with it, if you have an earlier version it's best to upgrade, then flash AP4.0
I will give it a try
Thank you for all the responses in short time. I have seen these threads and read the aftermath, but I will try them anyway and hope for the best.
Thanks again for the replies.
RT
OK- none of the files I was pointed to seem to work. I get tons of error when I try to open them. Is there a place that provides instructions on getting the process to work properly?
RalphTech said:
OK- none of the files I was pointed to seem to work. I get tons of error when I try to open them. Is there a place that provides instructions on getting the process to work properly?
Click to expand...
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What problems are you having? Can you download AthenaUnlocker.zip (ie click on the
Click here to download! link in the first link) If so, can you unzip it? What errors are you getting?
In black and white
RalphTech said:
First off- this is a great site with valuable information for all matters HTC. It has been a resource that has helped me get more use out of my HTC products.
I have a Universal, Dash, Athena, Startrec, and Wing.
Lately I have been trying to get some useful information for the Athena and no amount of searching, reading Wiki ing can answer my questions or even help me get a baseline understanding of things with the Athena.
It is quite frustrating- I would want to straightforwardly ask a question in a new thread, but it seems that the more experienced people on this board jump to the conclusion that a question is the result of not searching or not reading. I can tell you that I spend hours a day searching for things on this site and often times find irrelevant search results or endless threads with needle in haystack like answers that only partially answer questions. Is there anyway to organize this space better so that questions can be answered more efficiently?
The wiki is not useful for the most part- it has less info than some threads- links are old or irrelevant and searching is plain useless.
Great site everybody but darn frustrating for finding info- Any one else having this issue?
RT
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
After about a week reading, I have not been able to find the procedure of flashing the radio of this device. "flashes the same way as the ROM" is as close as I have been to the info. I have a device that shows no radio installed, the olipro tool never advances past 0% and gives an error, after which the phone is stuck in bootloader mode and has to be reflashed with a non radio containing ROM in order to get it to boot again. Radio containing ROM's like Black Touch get stuck at 85%, with the same chore of reflashing a non radio ROM afterwards. I downloaded radio 1:58, but the download only has the actual radio file, no flashing utility. Copying the utility from a ROM file does not work either. Someone else in the same situation has a thread for help. He tried flashing from the SD card, but no dice. His thread is not receiving any useful posts from any of the gurus. The "excellent" video that is pointed out in the olipro unlocker thread is mute, so you have to peel your eyes to see through the low quality picture and still can't read the dialogs shown on screen. Those that ask questions are called idiot or lazy and after reading these posts, the searching for info turns into a graceless process. If the chiefs managing this section of the site care about it being useful, a concise, informative, black and white type sticky thread, read only, closed to responses would be a good idea. Maybe inserting the flashing procedures for unlocking, ROM and Radio flashing into the Athena Wiki would also help. This way newbies and others can come and read the basic procedures without having to filter through the vast amount of threads that only lead to more confusion. I wish I knew more about the procedures, I would beef up that wiki, but I'm afraid I can do more damage than good with my limited knowledge.
completly agree
i have read every page on the advantage x7500,being such an old phone you would thin the genius,s on here could sort it out in seconds,but all they do is insult you.i tried to update from windows 6 on radio 1.20 to michys radio 6.5
it got to 94 percent then crashed, now when i boot up i just get a black and white screen,which then turns white,if it try to reinstall advantage 6.0 the phone reets after 2 or 3 percent..will anyboby help by giving simple term advice to unbrick it? NO.will they provide links to there advice no.THEY JUST INSULT YOU AND SAY ITS IN ONE OF THE THREADS.well im a computer tech and if anybody wants there pc or laptop fixing.guess what i will return the favour with computer speak,THAT YOU CANT UNDERSTAND
Hi everyone
I'm familiar with Windows Mobile but not to the HTC Universal itself. Can people recommend to me what the best WM 6.1 ROM is, how I unlock the device to use on any network and where I can find a list of recommended apps to use on WM 6.1 with the Universal?
Many thanks
Sam
That's a "no no" question to post here, there are many people who don't like to see this types of questions because it seems so simple to arrive and ask something like it without doing some search and read in the forum, please don't misunderstand me, I'm not mad at you, anyway it's better to read some and then ask.
So, the best WM6 rom is the one that better suits your needs, go to the WM6 part of the Universal, read some, read the comments, many of them are heavily personalized, there are "vanilla" types (simple and clean, no branding, etc.), there are some that give you lots of software already inside the Rom, so you'll save your precious Ram space for something else, some are speedier, some are more stable -even if this is not a critic, that's it, there's lot of effort that people put inside those Roms, for FREE!-, so, read, read, ask specific doubts inside the thread of each one, try (be careful!!!), learn, share and be happy!
Unlock (read!), go to the wiki (http://wiki.xda-developers.com/index.php?pagename=HTC_Universal), for the apps READ! and go here (http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=248409).
Cheers
Thanks, I worked it all out anyway
hey guys, i got a new xperia last night. Now i know there are many tweaks out there... wat are the best or main ones to improve ANYTHING on the phone, please share.
You're new here, so the first thing you should do is READ...and do it lots.
Take things one step at a time - you've just got your new device, so play with it as it is first. Learn it's features and quirks, discover things that bug YOU, then start investigating ways of fixing them.
There's no point spending time fixing things that bug other people, you need to figure out what YOU want.
My own personal conclusion about WM6 devices is generally that if it isn't broke, don't fix it. If you're happy with something then leave it be. Just because others have different expectations doesn't mean you should too.
If I were you I would start reading the wiki
plAythiNG said:
just got my new xperia... wat should i do
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Piece of cake: Read here in the forums, especialy the sticky threads up in the front list, then READ a little more and keep reading
You'll find lots of interesting stuff for the xperia, which ROM is better or which app should I install? well... you will have to read, search and find for yourself the apps/ROMs that fit your requirements and needs
BTW: welcome to the developers forum
If you want to mess around with different programs I would recommend you get some sort of backup program for your contacts, messages and so on. Something like PIM Backup or Spb Backup. Why am I saying this; You are surely gonna f*** up your device a couple of times in the beginning and then would need to hard reset.
Hard reset = Reset to firmware default (Like it was when you bought it if you haven't flashed anything) deleting any configuration settings and installed programs etc.
Soft reset = Rebooting (Like restarting your computer's operating system).
Don't do anything with your phone unless you are sure what you are doing. Read up on anything if you are the smallest bit in doubt!
Try to use the search function in the forum as there is a big possibility someone has asked the same question before.
Good luck.
Welcome to the greatest forum on the internetz . I can only tell you what i did. Hope that helps.
1 - Go to google and type xperia. Find some good forums about it. (seems you already got that one in the bag).
2 - Read some info about your device. What is an ARM processor, what is windows mobile, what kind of games can you play, the resolution of the device +'s and -'s. Start with the small things, before you jump to ROMs, flashing etc.
3 - Read the sticky topics in this forum.
4 - After you have done some reading decide what you want and search the forum for info about programs or games you might like. Almost all the problems you encounter or questions you might have, have been discussed in the past.
5 - Customize your x1 .
6 - And if i may quote maedox - "Don't do anything with your phone unless you are sure what you are doing. Read up on anything if you are the smallest bit in doubt!"
That's what i did. I had to hard reset it a few times but now i got my fair share of experimenting and i have customized it to my tastes. The looks, the games, the programs .
well I'm to this l and i was just wondering a couple things like what is a ROM and how do i get the new windows mobile 7 theme stright on my htc hd2 or how do i get the games for my ps1 games stright on my phone without hooking it up to a computer .
Play station info:
I went into the Apps part of this forum and searched for PSX
I would suggest you read the sticky threads at the top of each section on this forum it will tell you lots.
Good luck
curtismeulen said:
well I'm to this l and i was just wondering a couple things like what is a ROM and how do i get the new windows mobile 7 theme stright on my htc hd2 or how do i get the games for my ps1 games stright on my phone without hooking it up to a computer .
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Click to collapse
How about using the search function, looking at the stickys and using Google to find the answers to your questions? It gets a bit redundant replying to the same questions from lazy people that cannot be bothered to invest some time into the forum.
If you don't want to answer the question then perhaps you should save your time even more and not reply? I'm no stranger to forums, but I do find this one particularly hard to follow/read/search.
From what I understand of how search engines work (for example Google's pagerank system) the search results would be dramatically improved if people posted links to relevant pages. This would also be a much better use of time than repeatedly having a go at new visitors for not searching. The more places that point to the answers, the easier it is to find them.
Some people are also happy to reply, because they know the answer straight away and it will take 60 seconds to reply. I don't see that it hurts to ask, in the hope that it will avoid 30 minutes of searching, which of course, is probably going on at the same time. If you are looking for something, do you not ask around whist you look yourself?
Anyway, more constructively back to the original question... @curtismeulen
Basically the ROM is the operating system that your phone runs on. You can install apps on to your phone (which mostly come in .CAB files) and most ROM come with a load of apps preinstalled.
HTC make the standard ROM for the HD2, but also phone companies (O2, T-mobile, etc) make slightly customised versions for the phones they sell themselves, - for e.g. adding/removing particular apps, or a special startup screen or background image, etc. If you have one of these kind of ROMs then you can't install the HTC one without running special programs.
The third kind of ROMs are 'custom ROMs' made by experts who want to always have the cutting edge software, have the phoen set up exactly as they prefer and to improve on what HTC do. Again special programs are required to install these, and always when you install a new ROM there's the risk of something going wrong and your phone not working any more.
Here's some links to useful info:
The HD2/Leo page on this sites wiki:
http://wiki.xda-developers.com/index.php?pagename=HTC_Leo
a list of ROMs for the HD2 (though it's not quite up to date):
http://wiki.xda-developers.com/index.php?pagename=HTC_Leo/ROMs
Stuff about installing different ROMs:
Changing "official ROMs" from one to another: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=591314
Installing any ROM you like: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=606713
Personally I use this ROM:
Artemis HD2 ROM Family Ver 15.5: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=612580
The instructions there are also quite useful to give you an idea of the differences between ROMs, etc.
mpaxton said:
If you don't want to answer the question then perhaps you should save your time even more and not reply? I'm no stranger to forums, but I do find this one particularly hard to follow/read/search.
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Click to collapse
Don't be obtuse, the stickys tell you everything you need to know with regards to ROMs and ROM flashing. Google search 'ps1 emulator for windows mobile' and FPSEce and a number of other emulators are listed in the first link.
It probably took him longer to register to ask the question than it would have done to research it for himself.
I dont undertstand why people get so offensive, i thought forums like these were made to help people with questions, even noobs?
nirvanafreak919 said:
I dont undertstand why people get so offensive, i thought forums like these were made to help people with questions, even noobs?
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Actually, this forum is call xda "DEVELOPERS".... name clearly means it's full of developers.... not really a place for newbies. There are plenty of help forums out there. This forum is for the advanced user who wants to learn to hack and help develop. I didn't even post for the first year or 2 that I was a member... not until I felt comfortable with my knowledge. I used other help forums that are meant for newbie questions and just watched and learned from this forum.
Help form
For friendly site try htchd2forum.com They are great, but as stated, this is dev site, theirs is help site, big difference,, good luck
mpaxton said:
Anyway, more constructively back to the original question... @curtismeulen
Basically the ROM is the operating system that your phone runs on. You can install apps on to your phone (which mostly come in .CAB files) and most ROM come with a load of apps preinstalled.
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Click to collapse
Actually ROM is Read Only Memory
It has come to be used as short form for the coded OS that is used in the ROM and that specifically is the "ROM image" of the OS in use.
So any cooked (or otherwise) "ROM" we are talking about is not the same as the "ROM" within the device.
...and even though it's called read only memory, it can still be written to, otherwise we'd not be able to install different kinds of operating system, etc. So to me it's an arbitrary set of letters used to describe something that's vaguely relevant to the original usage of them!
mpaxton said:
...and even though it's called read only memory, it can still be written to, otherwise we'd not be able to install different kinds of operating system, etc. So to me it's an arbitrary set of letters used to describe something that's vaguely relevant to the original usage of them!
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You don't install anything to the ROM.
ROMs are flashable, which is different to installing things to. OSs are flashed, not installed, to devices.
The internal memory part of the device is different to the ROM, it is an 'open' writable section. It may well be on the same memory chip, but is different in terms of usage available to it.
mpaxton said:
...and even though it's called read only memory, it can still be written to, otherwise we'd not be able to install different kinds of operating system, etc. So to me it's an arbitrary set of letters used to describe something that's vaguely relevant to the original usage of them!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
And as a follow on from rp-x1 and also as a quick history lesson to you "youngsters" the correct term is actually "EPROM" chips (Electronically Programmable Read Only Memory) and when they were first used you couldn't write to them unless you had the appropriate equipment and that included UV "fixing ovens"!!!!!!
So, it's not an arbitrary set of letters, but, more a corruption of a very precise acronym which is now used in completely the wrong way.