Whats up with Your Symbian

Somebody cares!

As you rightly say, it takes a lot of effort - and YS is something we've been looking at closely. It's not dead (just resting) and it's pining for it's smtp.

YS18 Should be around soon... and we'll explain more then.

Yay 😊 can't wait 😊

Thanks Ewan, and thanks to Sophie and everyone else who have worked on it too 😊

Last issue I recieved was about issue 9, *Looks at Ewan*. 😊

Yes, there seem to be (ahem) a few niggles in sending it out. If you haven't had your copy of YS18 yet, drop Rafe a line quoting the email address you subscribed with, hopefully this will help him sort out the blockage.

Cheers
Steve

See that pile of hair on the floor? That's mine because I've pulled it all out.
ARGHHHH!

Originally posted by Rafe
See that pile of hair on the floor? That's mine because I've pulled it all out.
ARGHHHH!

Can I have some of it? Lost mine years ago!

Originally posted by Rafe
See that pile of hair on the floor? That's mine because I've pulled it all out.
ARGHHHH!

I want my free penguin:

Want a Penguin? Get yourself a free Penguin! Only when you subscribe to Your Symbian.

I subscribed. I waited. I waited some more. Now I'm bored of waiting. WHERE'S MY PENGUIN?!

That's false advertising. Hmph. I eagerly looked forward to receiving my free penguin to look after and feed. It was all set to become a member of my family.

Yes, Rafe, I'm talking to you. GIVE ME MY PENGUIN.

There. Glad to get that outta my system.

Ewan is responsible for penguins

We're having sending problems. Not everyone gets it and I dont know why ::cries::

Suggestions of a postcard please.

Originally posted by Rafe
Ewan is responsible for penguins

Ewan - penguin please. 😃

Originally posted by Rafe
We're having sending problems. Not everyone gets it and I dont know why ::cries::

Suggestions of a postcard please.

Try sending the e-mails in chunks of say, 100 members at a time (if YS has that many 😛)?

No mail. No new issues. No updates to the website. Out of steam or what's up with the newsletter?

What is the latest issue of Your Symbian you guys recieved?

YS18 was the last for me.

Issue 17 was the last for me 😞

You guys are lucky,the last one i got was issue 16,i can't read 17 because its not in the archives.I didn't even know there was issue 18.

I've had all the issues, but issues 1-17 were on my desktop PC, and so I only have issue 18 here on my laptop, but if anyone wants it, I'm happy to forward it on.

You've a hidden benefit compared to the newest Nokia devices. The N-Gage runs the older Symbian OS (v6.1) which has the older Java MIDP runtime. That means that there are thousands of midlets that run happily on your N-Gage that barf when tried on the 6600. You can update your blog from the handset, run an RSS Feed Reader, access Hotmail and play Tiger Woods Golf (long before it's released on MMC) thanks to Java.

And let's not forget that you've got all the organiser/PDA functions you'd expect - contacts, notes, task, diary and alarm clocks. They're not perfect (you'll need UIQ for that) but for the average user with two or three appointments per day then the diary is more than suitable.

Don't forget one of the greatest advantages the N-Gage has over some of the other Series 60 devices (such as the 3650 and the SX-1). It has a regular keypad, with everything in the same place. Now admittedly you can really only use your thumb to hit the keys, but it's a lot more comfortable and easier to use than some of the more esoteric designs that have appeared.

And those MMC Games? Well, after the first batch of launch titles that did little to impress, the games are getting a lot better. The nightmare that was Puzzle Bobble can now be safely consigned to history with releases such as Rayman 3 and Fifa 2004.

Put simply, if you're in the market for a new phone, don't dismiss the "failed" N-Gage,. It's the best value for money, has many advantages over some of the other Symbian offerings, it's comfortable to use, and as a PDA it's up there with the best of them.

Desktop not needed?
by Steve Litchfield

Over the years running 3-Lib and writing for Palmtop magazine, I've come across a handful of rather odd people. It appears that their Psion palmtop or Nokia 9210 is in fact their only computer. No desktop computer to break down, no Windows to patch every week, no hackers trying to gain access, no reliance on Microsoft, no synchronisation issues, and so on. In retrospect, it's positively idyllic. And their entire computing environment fits into a briefcase.

There are downsides of course. Some software (DTP, graphics work, to name but two) simply needs a desktop, mouse, etc. But it's an intriguing question to ask yourself: "Could I survive using just my Symbian device?". A lot will depend on just what you use computers for, of course. Although you probably won't change your computing habits overnight as a result of this article, it might serve as a useful exercise to read on, if only to establish your Symbian device as your backup, emergency system.

Input: The keyboard of a Psion or Nokia 9210 needs no introduction, of course. On the other hand, a humble Series 60 smartphone or a not-so-humble P800 or P900 would need the addition of an infrared keyboard, to make the experience bearable (especially for handling email). There are several suitable infrared keyboards available. If you get hold of one of the Palm/ThinkOutside ones, use the drivers at rallypilot.sourceforge.net/symbian/keyboard-symbian.html or www.gootz.net/gbin/uiq/. If you like your solutions with a little more hand-holding and own a P800/P900, try the Snap'n'Type at www.mobilelinktech.com/shop/snaptype/keyboard_nr.php. Do watch out for battery drain though - turn the keyboard driver off when you're not using it!

Display: It's rather difficult to imagine anybody using a narrow-screened Series 60 or UIQ device as their only computer. Web sites and spreadsheets would be the worst offenders, demanding pixels that simply aren't available. The Psion 5mx is a contender here, but the drab, monochrome screen isn't exactly a pleasure to use. The bright colour of the Nokia 9200 series makes it usable in most conditions but the narrow screen height and usual on-screen furniture does rather restrict what can be done in terms of serious work. My favourite Symbian candidate would have to be the Psion netBook (or Series 7), with a large (640 by 480 pixel) colour screen (and an even better keyboard than the 5mx, of course).

Office software: The only platform currently left out in the cold here is Series 60, with no editing software for Office documents. The old Psions don't make life easy, either, with only plain text import and export; Psion owners typically resort to third party conversion software such as Neuon's nConvert (www.neuon.com). UIQ, on the P800 and P900, now has Quickoffice (www.quickoffice.com), of course, which works well to open Word and Excel files, even if the raw functionality is still found wanting. The Nokia 9210 is still king in this area, with built-in native Office support. Mind you, the usual caveats about editing this sort of file apply - working on any file on a handheld is likely to strip it of 'advanced' desktop features (macros, headers, and so on), a factor which is especially important when this is your only computer.

Internet: Ah yes, going online. Of course, every man and his dog (and his smartphone) can get online these days. Email is easy and surprisingly practical on almost any Psion or Symbian device, though Psion owners should make sure they get the Sink2 'firewall' (utopia.knoware.nl/~hlub/uck/software) installed and running before venturing online. The web is another matter altogether, due to the sheer number of infernal javascript functions that seem to clutter many sites. Luckily, each Symbian platform comes with its own browser and there's always the choice of Opera (www.opera.no), which supports multiple concurrent windows. Most sites can be navigated and interacted with using one of the two. And any site that can't deserves a quick and damning email to the webmaster about catering for other browsers than MSIE...

But in real life?

So can you really heave a sigh of relief and leave Windows, whirring hard disks and reliance on Microsoft once and for all? It's hugely tempting, the sort of thing you muse over in bed while waiting for your partner to stop watching Eastenders re-runs on satellite and come to join you. A friend of mine (a plumber) is coming round later this week for me to sort out this very transition, from an old laptop to a Psion netBook. In a few days time, if all goes well, the netBook will be his only computer, responsible for everything from contact management to games to customer invoicing to route planning to email to frittering away his hard-earned cash on eBay. I'll report back how he gets on.

In the meantime, I'm sure that many reading this have managed with nothing more than a Symbian unit while on extended holidays or trips. If you have an interesting story to share, please get in touch with me at [email][email protected][/email]. As an incentive, I'll throw in a year's free subscription to Your Symbian. What? You mean it's already free? Oh. OK, then, you get to receive each issue of Your Symbian before everybody else.

About a milli-second or so.... Roll up, roll up...

Letters
Ewan Spence continues his rolling rumble through the Symbian alphabet...

L

L3 Solutions
With all the programming options available to Symbian, not all of them are represented in the commercial market. L3 Solutions are strong supporters of the AppForge Booster system (which allows programmers to use Visual Basic). This has allowed them to create a wealth of databases and reference programs. Check out Pocket Bartender and the online Stock Watch.
www.l3solutions.com

LCD
Stands for Liquid Crystal Display. That'll win you a pub quiz one day.

Litchfield
Our new editor. He's been around the block a bit [careful.... Ed], starting as an OPL Programmer with Pitch and Putt in 1992, through Palmtop magazine, a whole bundle of other programs, and countless millions of words. Is he better or worse than Sophie? Depends� Ask us again in a few issues!

London Underground
There are some great ideas for programs that are promptly let down by bad execution. See London Underground's 2003 attempt at a Java Midlet to help you through their network. For all the strength a computer has, there are some things that a paper-based system can do a whole lot better - and they don't gather mobile phone numbers as you download the app.

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Keep up-to-date on Symbian OS
Whether you�re new to Symbian OS or are already an experienced developer, the Symbian Community Newsletter brings you, every month, the latest news and resources for Symbian OS. Keep up-to-date on Symbian OS phones, new Symbian Developer Network features, highlights from Symbian OS phone manufacturers, new development tools, tech tips and techniques, and events. Subscribe to the Symbian Community Newsletter now for free at www.symbian.com/developer/newsletter.html

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Work for Opera
Would you like to take part in the development of the Opera Browser for Symbian phones? An opportunity to get your favourite feature into the most popular Symbian application? Opera has open positions for excellent C++ programmers with Symbian experience and knowledge of web standards.

www.opera.com/company/jobs/programmer_oslo-swed.dml

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So there you have it, another Your Symbian read and digested. See you again in March and, this time, we promise not to be late!
Brought to you by the letters "Y" and "S" and the number "18".

Steve Litchfield
Your Symbian (http://www.yoursymbian.com/)
All About Symbian (http://www.allaboutsymbian.com/)
3-Lib (http://3lib.ukonline.co.uk/)

Sorry it was split into two messages, but it seems each post can only contain 10000 characters, and YS 18 was almost 20000.

Happy reading!

Cheers

Thanks!

Yes thank you, j2k! I just turned issue 18 into a text file which I will read later on my P900. Can't wait. Thanks again.

Glad to be of help 😉

Cheers

For those needing Issue 17, it turns out it is on the YS server, just not showing in the archive: http://www.yoursymbian.com/issue.php?id=17

Cheers

One more month & no newsletter. It might be polite to at least update the website to say that things are "on hold" or somethin to that effect. 😞

Obligatory monthly complaint for this one too: One more month & no newsleter.

Is it time to close down yoursymbian.com or at least put up a notice that nothing has happened for a long time + when something might happen?

Now the site pretends to be working, but isn't, and that's not nice.

Thanks for inbligatory complaint. I really do intend to do something about this very soon. I wish there were more hours in the day.

Great. And a great new word, too. One that I couldn't find in any dictionary. Even the allmighty Google couldn't. 😉

New words.

"We at AAS strive to give you more than anyone else - even Google".

Obligatory monthly complaint for this one too: One more month & no newsleter.

Is it time to close down yoursymbian.com or at least put up a notice that nothing has happened for a long time + when something might happen?

The site still pretends to be working, but isn't.

Your Symbian has been discontinued apparently. Shame.