-Free Lunch Friday-

Handango is giving away one (1) high quality, fully-functioning mobile software
application for FREE on Fridays! The free app is available from 12 a.m. to 11:59 p.m. CST on Friday only and must be downloaded during that time period. In addition,
the promotion features other applications at a 25% discount throughout the week.
Just visit www.handango.com/FreeAppFriday
for details.

All you have to do is complete a short survey. Handango will then send you an email with a link so you can download your free app. They are calling the promotion, "Free App Friday."

Hard Reseting the TyTN

The last 2 days were difficult for me. Difficult in one sense that I fought with my best friend about a trivial issue and it was all my fault. The other was that i was not able to synchronize my TyTn with a PC.(phew! what a difficulty in life, u must be saying).
I sync my WM6 to 2 PCs, one at the office and one at home and I was unable to sync to either.:(
Bent on finding a result, I tried

• reg solutions
• activesync reinstalls
• office reinstalls
• deleting mobile devices in async
• syncing without Advanced USB Functionality
• syncing over Bluetooth and IR

Everytime, it stopped dead after the Retrieving settings window and showed an error, that active sync failed and syncing was unsuccessful.

This was after after going for

• ip allocations
• subnet masking
• metric and stuff

to get the mobile connected to a pc.When i was able to connect, i could browse the folders and stuff like that, but no activesync. Even with Bluetooth and IR, the same result.

The problem was obviously with the phone settings or some reg settings and it even showed other problems like empty Add/Remove Programs List and Unsuccesssful Cab Installations. So time for the dreaded Hard Reset, which can be evoked from the Settings by clicking "Clear Storage". This is the same as a hard reset and u have to type 1234 in the popup field to execute it.

The only thing i didn't try was cleaning up the temp folders, as some did, with positive results.Since cab installations were unsuccessful i was not able to explore this by installing any temp folder cleaner utilities.But i really have a positive feeling that it might've worked.Maybe next time...;)

Best Mobile App In Recent Time

-Ever wanted to have real-time, secure access to corporate or personal emails from your mobile phone?
-Ever wanted to meet young people right this second and reach them by a simple search?
-Ever want to listen to latest podcast on your phone, like what you did on iPod?
-Ever wanted a universal instant messaging platform that works seamlessly across your desktop and mobile phone, fully integrated with your address book that can also log into other popular Instant Messaging services such as MSN, ICQ, AOL, QQ, Google Talk, or Yahoo Messenger! while you walk?
-Ever wanted to read News & Blogs with pictures while on the move?
-Ever wanted to have fast and secure access to your desktop computer from your mobile device so that you can access your documents remotely?
-Ever wanted a virtual hard disk for ur mobile?
-Ever wanted a simple, robust, secure and intelligent wireless synchronization solutions capable of extending Contacts, Calendar, Task information in Microsoft Outlook?

And wanted to do all this in the safety and security of world class data encryption standards like Advanced Encryption Standard (AES-128) and Secure Socket Layer (SSL)?
And u want all this to happen in a single application?

What? I must be kidding??? Check out the new Morange Application, which combine Mail clients, Instant messengers, RSS reader, Blog, Remote PC Access, Podcast, etc. The basic features are free. U need an Unlimited Data plan with your service provider to access many features like the Podcast and Blog, them being data intensive.

Morange has two versions to choose from. If you love simple chat and have a not-very high-end phone, you may want install the lovely Mini version. Morange Full version is high end and feature rich... 80% of the stuff you do on laptop, you can do with your phone with Morange. Such is the power of this app.





Click on the above thingy to join it.. Coz u need to have an account to use it. It is free!


1.Download Morange ( 3.3.1):1. en.jar
Size: 400.05 Kb

Download to Mobile: Open wap.GetJar.com with your mobile -> Quick Download -> enter Quick Download Code 7801

Download to PC:
JAD file (en.jad)
JAR file (en.jar)

2. minimoto.jar
Size: 167.81 Kb

Download to Mobile: Open wap.GetJar.com with your mobile -> Quick Download -> enter Quick Download Code 19694

Download to PC:
JAD file (minimoto.jad)
JAR file (minimoto.jar)

3. mini.jar
Size: 167.81 Kb

Download to Mobile: Open wap.GetJar.com with your mobile -> Quick Download -> enter Quick Download Code 19581

Download to PC:
JAD file (mini.jad)
JAR file (mini.jar)

Some Picture Thoughts

This view looks cool...
Or go to my Picasa Album - Biku's Albums

WM5 to WM6

I hope that doesn't seem as cryptic as it really seems, at least to the Windows Mobile users out there. Yeah, I really meant the upgradation of OS in HTC Pocket PCs from WM5 to WM6. It actually speeds up the whole thing and frees valuable system RAM(mostly in cooked ROMs, donno about the official versions), in addition to having better Bluetooth stacks with more services, updated Java Manager, updated Radio ROM( (if u plan to update Radio also, but I'd recommend it as it really improves the handling of calls and GPRS functions), new display codecs, improved A2DP support, etc....(there are lot of improvements, which makes it worth the effort and the risk involved)

When I talk about the risk, I really mean it, coz the process can effectively render your prized possession into a useless junk (BRICK, in PDA parlance). But if u follow the instructions given by MrVanx word by word, I'm sure u'll definitely be safe and happy.

Before starting anything, I'd like to tell u that this blog concerns the upgradation of HTC Hermes and its variants only. Check out the whole list:

HTC Hermes

HTC TyTN

O2 XDA trion

T-Mobile MDA Vario II

Vodafone 1605 VPA Compact III

Orange SPV M3100

Dopod CHT 9000

Dopod 838 Pro

DoCoMo hTc Z

Qtek 9600

iMate JasJam

Cingular 8525

AT&T 8525

Swisscom XPA v1605

SoftBank X01HT

Vodafone PDA 1605

Vodafone PDA 9600

This page gives u an idea of what all options are available as upgrade for the models mentioned.

A word about ROMs and Radio ROMs.

ROMs are the OS only versions of the installation. U may or may not upgrade your Radio version, but it is recommended to upgrade it to the latest version for improved function. If u are upgrading ur Radio version also, u need the Radio ROM too, the version u want to upgrade to, normally the latest one. Shipped ROMs contain both the OS upgrade and the Radio upgrade. The other OS only ROMs are called cooked ROMs and they are, IMHO, far better than the shipped ones or official releases. I'm not going into a discussion on which cooked version is better. U can just go thru the materials and the threads to find out the answer. Personally I now use the latest version of LVSW ROM and 1.41.xx Radio ROM with the recommended Bootloader of SPL 2.1 olipro. The theme here is, To each one, his own. An interesting thing here is, after upgradting Radio to the latest version, u can play around with different ROMs, and these are updated frequently.

Now, extended ROMs are actually customizations or add-ons distributed normally by the provider to enhance the capabilities of the device, but they take up RAM space. So while it is prudent to disable the Extended ROM installation by pressing reset after a hard reset just before the installation of the Ex-ROM starts (u can see a prompt there, which waits for arnd 3 seconds, depending on the device, so be watchful!), most cooked ROMs come with bare minimum ExROMs which add great functoinality, without affecting storage space. So, need for being extra cautious. Let it run. They are good. But ur device can work perfectly well with the standard ROM only.

U can check out other LVSW versions too.

A revamped version of Jasjamming's WM VI Black edition ROMs named Black Majik is also an interesting release with fewer or no bugs, just like the LVSW edition.

For me, the experience was one of fun rather than a nightmare, just coz I took pains to go thru each and every article and the threads for the specific ROM I was going to try. Believe me, it pays for itself in the form of peace of mind and NO Downtime at all(no data loss)

Now, get a stable XP machine (with .net framework 2, stable USB drivers, good power backup), charge up the PDA batteries to the full, get ample time(arnd 30 mins- 1 hr, I took 20 mins in all), grab a coffee (u'll need it, to kill the time and the anxiety) and GO PLAY!

WELCOME TO THE LEAGUE!!

The Complete GEEK CODE

The GEEK CODE is a complete reference code for the geeks and wannabes...

According to the author Robert A. Hayden

"The geek code consists of several categories. Each category is labeled with a letter and some qualifiers. Go through each category and determine which set of qualifiers best describes you in that category. By stringing all of these 'codes' together, you are able to construct your overall geek code. It is this single line of code that will inform other geeks the world over of what a great geek you actually are."

Check out and project your GEEKSELF.

Unnatural Erosion

The ways of nature are quite unnatural, as is evident from this aerial view of an eroded landscape in Alberta, US of A.....
Human intervention to an extent cannout be ruled out, though...

Tinkering my Treo 600

This is what I love about tinkering. Mostly you get the job done for free and you get a HIGH for nothing at all. And when the thing in question is a geek gadget, you know what I mean.

Had put aside this job for over an year, but today actually had the mood to do it,
having to do nothing else in the time bought by deciding to celebrate the year's
Diwali not with firecrackers
(read Hydrogen Bombs, Ladoo Bombs, colorful rockets, sound effects and what not), but with sweets.

Having got home early, I decided to have a go at my Treo's problem with its display.
Some dirt lodged between the digitizer and the
TFT is causing a lot of difficulty when in bright daylight.
When the display is off, the dark background of the TFT very clearly "shows off"
the dust particles. Making very sure that the dust is indeed between the digitizer and the display,
I pried open the unit and took out the skeleton.

This guide is a good one for opening up your Treo.


Treo 600 Screen Replacement Guide

The treo's touchscreen in front of the display is very much like the Visor Edge's screen, which I had opened up earlier. This helped a lot in giving me the confidence I was lacking for a long time.Slowly pry open the digitizer (top sheet along with the transparent plastic sheet) from the display unit's mount. A visiting card will help to pry the sheet from underneath,but u can use a thin precision screwdriver at first to get some leeway. Also, the paper card will cause much less damage electrically and mechanically..eliminating short circuits and scratches...Once it comes off, u can see the dirt layer on top of the TFT surface.
Cleaning can be done with a damp cloth, but care should be taken not to make any scratches on the TFT, which is a soft glass material. U may want to clean the underside of the touchscreen unit also, depending upon the nature of dust...some are really stubborn, like mine..
damp cloth will remove 90% of the problems..
USE LINT-FREE SOFT CLOTH TO CLEAN ALL GLASS/TRANSPARENT SURFACES.
All this can be done with the unit's battery connected, but always backup before opening up the unit.
If anything can go wrong,it will.

Admire your work...

My display actually showed far better images after the cleaning...and much cleaner and darker when off too.

I would really have taken some pics to show how it's done, but the only cam I have is the treo's. Sorry for that. But it shouldn't be too hard on you, if u try it. maybe u can do some cleaning inside the unit since u have opened it..like keypads...

Some GIS thoughts.

Once I tried an interesting software in my old Handspring Visor Edge.It gave your current global co-ordinates with centimetre accuracy,(here comes the interesting part) without any hardware gadgets or GPS devices either built-in or plugged in. Ain't it cool?Yeah, I thought too, and when given to calculate a fix, it showed "You are Here", with a position marker which looked professional.haha. Now there are different ways to do it, and even add a target and an "I'm here" facility, calculate the distance, get co-ordinates, search for road intersections and for landmarks, zoom in on the data, link it to addresses, drag the map, get the map moving with the GPS input, edit ESRI shapefiles on the field and more. Yes, I'm talking abt the HandMap utility for the PalmOS 5.0 and above, which I'm now using with my Treo 600.It's a sexy li'l piece of software for the outdoor person. The purpose of this blog is not the HandMap utility itself, but abt developing and sharing data for the platform. The only software that I'm aware of that outputs data in the format that Handmap can process is the MapIt Enterprise Edition , though to view the data that you created in the Mapit, you would need a valid license for your Handmap, and that too for Deluxe/Pro Edition. I've tried developing the Trivandrum Roadmap with some Landmark and Junction layers, and would love to have contact with people in the same interest area. I'd like to add that my interest is not limited to Trivandrum. I'd be glad if there are any positive reactions to this, either to try out or to develop new. Anyone having a Licensed Mapit EE would be welcome, always. I'm sorry to have no screen captures with me, to actually show the Handmap in action.

Video Info for Everyone

This Site is a cool resource on everything (well, almost) in Kerala - the narrow strip of Heavenly Greenery nestled between Western Ghats and Arabian Sea, in Southern Peninsular India. Includes lots of cool pictures and videos on Culture, Heritage, Arts, Society, etc.

Prasanth Nagar

This is the place where I was born and I grew up.
-Ode to the Place-

Rocking information on Kerala!!! Roll baby Roll...

Wanna see God's own country in hot action?Just check out what's hot and where to cool off.

Migration from Tripod

http://bipingp.tripod.com/FreeLands/

This used to be my blogging space (not very active though). Since I've decided to come to blogspot, i thought i'll add this data here.

In that blog, one post says how to tinker with ur Handspring/Palm Treo 600 to clean the dirty screen. It contains instructions on how to open up ur treo 600 and the detailed cleaning method.Happy tinkering.

The second post deals with making navigable maps for the treo 600 using Mapit Windows software and viewing it with Handmap Palm software. The maps thus made are having gps support and address search functions. There is also a Shapesync plugin for Handmap for editing the maps on the go.

Free Guitar Instructional Videos

This is something I found on the net.Got it from Andrew Koblick, who pblishes a newsletter and Kenny is his friend. Do check out and there are some free videos, too.
http://www.guitarin60seconds.com/blog/2007/02/22/were-giving-away-a-course-free/