PocketPCHow2 Log

Saturday, January 26, 2002

Vindigo may go to a paid subscription model for Palm and Pocket PC users. Pocket PC users already pay $29 per year for service, but Palm users have been able to use the service for free. And worse, I am told that Palm users have more content available to them (for free) than Pocket PC users. If Vindigo makes the Pocket PC content the same as Palm, they may get my money.
posted by Frank McPherson 11:51 AM | link

Dale says that you can use Displex Display Polish to repair minor scratches on Pocket PC screens. I am wondering what affect this polish has on the digitizer. I would think that if the outer screen becomes too thick that will cause digitizer recognition problems.

I should say that I don't use any type of screen protection on my Pocket PCs. Dale uses WriteShields. I have never used any of these products because I don't like the feel of them when I am writing on my Pocket PC. Besides, I have a bit more relaxed attitude towards my Pocket PCs, and if a little scratch appears it is not the end of the world to me. The biggest precautions that I recommend is watching what stylus that you use. I scratched the heck out of my HP Jornada 545 screen by using a Pilot Pentopia stylus that had a burr. I also recommend keep the screen clean. I buy the Fellowes Brain Wash products, which come with a "Karma cloth." I particularly like the cloth with its felt side that I use at home and work with my Pocket PCs.

So, my Pocket PC screen tips are: know your stylus and keep your screen clean.
posted by Frank McPherson 11:33 AM | link

Pocket PC Thoughts links to a page at PDATweaks showing a SmartDisk USB floppy drive connected to a Casio E-200. Why would anyone want to do this? According to Jason, "because they can."
posted by Frank McPherson 11:20 AM | link

Phillip Torrone has the hp pocket keyboard and has posted several pictures on his web site.
posted by Frank McPherson 10:25 AM | link

Friday, January 25, 2002

One software category where Pocket PCs are really weak is newsgroup clients. What I have been looking for is a good newsgroup client that I can use to connect to news servers, download messages, write replies, and uploaded the replies. What is available for Pocket PCs that provide this functionality is Ink Spot from Deja Vu and News Force from Ruksun. One additional wrinkle to my requirements is that I want to be able to install the software on a MMC card that is in the MMC slot of the HP Jornada extended battery. The reason why I want to put the software on the MMC card is so that I can work with news either via modem, or by using a wireless LAN card.

Both of these programs provide the basic functionality of retrieving news, allowing me to read and reply to them offline, and then upload my responses. Ink Spot works with the MMC card, but News Force does not. The program simply does not work if the MMC card is Storage Card2, and whileI have been able to achieve some success with the MMC Card as Storage Card, I have not been able to do a full cycle. I've only been able to connect and grab message headers. While downloading the messages that I select News Force locks up. In News Force's case it appears that the MMC slot of the extended battery is not fast enough.

The problem with Ink Spot is that it no longer seems to be supported. The last release of the program was March 2001, well before the release of Pocket PC 2002. The biggest problem with Ink Spot is that it does not handle the software input panel properly, so the panel covers up important parts of the screen. Worst of this is that the SIP covers the bottom part of the message screen, and the message screen does not alter, so you have no way of adding text to the bottom of newsgroup postings.

The bottom line for me right now is that I don't have an optimal newsgroup client "experience" for Pocket PCs. I really wish someone would come along and write a better newsgroup client for Pocket PCs. Yes, I know that there are other clients out there that work by synchronizing news messages to the Pocket PC, but that is not what I want to do. I want a real newsgroup client that works somewhat like Outlook Express.
posted by Frank McPherson 7:33 PM | link

PDABuzz.com Discussion Forums - Palm i705 hits retail shelves The new Palm i705 has hit stores, and PDA Buzz got their hands on one of the first units. Wes reports that the i705 is pretty much a re-packed Palm VIIx in that it has the same 8 MB of RAM, 160x160 screen, and Palm.net connectivity. What the i705 adds is a SD/MMC slot, smaller physical design, compact antenna, and always-on email using Palm.net. It appears that if you to use the always-on email you need to live with a new Palm.net email address. From what I read, the i705 is a loser on several fronts. First off, it does not provide full Internet access and sticks with the Palm.net clipping heritage. Palm.net's coverage isn't exactly stellar either. The small monochrome screen and 8 MB of RAM don't exactly make this a killer Internet device either. The final kicker is that this device costs $449.
posted by Frank McPherson 7:03 PM | link

Thursday, January 24, 2002

PDABuzz.com reports about SuperAlert from Whittaker Moore Associates, which brings back repeating alarms to Pocket PC 2002 devices. Repeating alarms is available for Pocket PC 2000, and somehow fell off the shelf when Microsoft was developing PPC 2002.
posted by Frank McPherson 8:28 PM | link

In addition to the comments that I sent to John about the HP battery & MMC slot, I have a few more comments about it. When I attach the battery to my HP Jornada 565 the battery lock is difficult to move when I want to unlock and remove the battery. The extended battery does not fit the Jornada as nicely as the regular battery that comes with the Jornada. I've been referring to this as an extended battery, extended meaning to me that this battery has longer battery life than the regular Jornada battery. I have not done any scientific tests of the battery life, but I am finding that this is not really an extended battery. In my daily use so far I have not found battery life to be any better than the regular battery. If I am correct I think that Hewlett-Packard may be guilty again of misleading consumers. While the box does not refer to this as an extended battery, the first sentence in the manual that comes with the battery says, "Congratulations on purchasing the hp Jornada extended battery pack as an accessory to your hp Jornada." I think a reasonable person expects that to mean that this battery has longer, or extended, battery life, and that "extended" does not mean that the pack extends from the back of the Jornada. And the pack is much larger and heavier than the regular Jornada battery, so there must be a bigger battery in it. Surely the size and weight is not because of the MMC slot.

posted by Frank McPherson 8:17 PM | link

This afternoon I received an email from fellow Pocket PC enthusiast John Rappold, asking me about my impressions of the HP Jornada extended battery with MMC slot. He asked, "How's the weight factor? What about bulk, as compared to an iPAQ sleeve?" I replied:

I think the extended battery makes my 565 almost as heavy as an iPAQ + CF sleeve. It might be a little lighter, but not much. There is more bulk, but not as noticable I think as an iPAQ sleeve.

My hang up with the battery has to do with the naming of the storage card folder, as I wrote about on my log. I am coming to the conclusion that given the current way Pocket PCs name these folders, it is a mistake to use Secure Digital/MMC as the second storage location. The reason being that I think it is most likely the case that people are going to buy a SD/MMC card, put in the slot and keep it there. They will then want to install programs on that card. When you install programs you want that folder name to always be the same, but with this extended battery the folder name can change when you reset the device and you don't have a CF card inserted. In thinking about this, I think the iPAQ 3800 series may be the best solution since the SD slot is internal. I am not sure, but I suspect that the Toshiba/Audiovox PPC will have the same problem as the HP & extended battery. (Of course, this would be a non-issue if Microsoft had named the folders by the type of card, eg. CF Storage, and SD Storage that will always be the same.)


posted by Frank McPherson 7:50 PM | link

Alan A. Reiter says to beware of Verizon's hype. Verizon is planning to launch their new cellular voice & data network next, and say it will deliver data at up to 144 kilobits per second. While that is the theoretical limit, actual 1xRTT implementations in Korea have real-world speeds of 70 kilobits per second. Another thing to look for, and which Alan doesn't mention, is what is the price that Verizon will charge for this "express network" service?
posted by Frank McPherson 1:32 PM | link

Brighthand Forums - Thumb Keyboard should be here today Some people have started receiving the new HP thumb keyboard for the Jornada 565/568, and so far all of the first impressions have been positive.
posted by Frank McPherson 9:43 AM | link

Wednesday, January 23, 2002

allNetDevices: - OmniSky Completes Sale To EarthLink I guess I should be expecting some contact from Earthlink in the near future about my OmniSky account.
posted by Frank McPherson 7:00 PM | link

Lexar announce Pro 1 GB 16x card. Lexar has today announce it plans to ship its new 1 GB 16x Professional CF Type II card by January 31. This new card which has a retail price of $1,199 has a claimed write speed of 2.4 MB pre second and will be... [Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)]
posted by Frank McPherson 6:38 PM | link

News: Amtrak Debuts Wireless Internet Service "Three Amtrak trains equipped with free wireless Internet service rolled out of stations Wednesday morning in joint effort between the railroad, Yahoo! and Compaq. The service is available on Amtrak's three most popular services for business travelers: the Acela Regional in the Northeast Corridor, the Capitols in Northern California, and the Hiawathas in the Midwest. On each of the three train lines, Amtrak has mounted Compaq iPAQ Pocket PCs with Yahoo! providing the wireless connections."
posted by Frank McPherson 2:09 PM | link

I thought that when you attach the extended battery to the Jornada it won't fit in the 565's cradle. There were several replies to a message I wrote on Brighthand about this, which pointed out to me that I need to remove the plastic insert on the back of the cradle. The insert has the HP logo on it and just slides up. Once you remove that the battery + Jornada fits. I presume that will also be the case with the Jornada + PC Card sleeve. At any rate, my original rant here about HP's design was wrong, and the engineers did plan for this after all.
posted by Frank McPherson 9:07 AM | link

Tuesday, January 22, 2002

Today I received the HP 56X Extended battery with MMC slot. Here is a picture of the Jornada 565 with the extended battery:

Monday, January 21, 2002

Software & Drivers - Download iPAQ Dashboard for Pocket PC 2002 Compaq has released an update to the version of Dashboard that comes with the iPAQ. The version that Compaq originally distributed is known to cause performance problems. <link found at Pocket PC Passion>
posted by Frank McPherson 1:49 PM | link