Nokia Beta Labs 'IM Beta', part of the Nokia Messaging 'empire', previously only available for the E75, has now been upgraded to v2.0 and also supports the E71 and E63, according to the Beta Labs blog. Version 2.0 also adds support for Google Talk, in addition to the existing Yahoo Messenger and Ovi systems. You can investigate Nokia Messaging IM Beta here.
Read on in the full article.
Yet another example of Nokia-branded software that only works on a very small subset of devices. Is it just me, or does this send out all the wrong signals regarding software compatibility across S60...?
Unregistered wrote:Yet another example of Nokia-branded software that only works on a very small subset of devices. Is it just me, or does this send out all the wrong signals regarding software compatibility across S60...?
Don't you know what 'beta' means in the context of new pre-release software?????
Just tried to install the app for my E71 and i get a file error notification! Nokia sucks!!!!
Second thing: i just wanted to have a look at the app and compare it to Nimbuzz, its totally useless to me since it only supports ovi yahoo and google talk.. i need msn, skype and facebook support!!! Wake up nokia, Nimbuzz has support from all of them and many many more months ago!!!
"Don't you know what 'beta' means in the context of new pre-release software?????"
Of course I do, but that's hardly the point. What this continual release of individual, device-specific versions of the same application does show is that maybe S60 is not as easy to develop for as it should be.
Presumably you're expecting a new beta version for every device, hardly what one would call the most logical way of approaching software development...
I personally would expect most software written for a particular version of S60 (ie. v3 FP 1 etc.) to run on all, or at least most, of the devices running that version of S60, not only one or two.
OK, it was first released as an early beta for the E75 only. Now it can be installed on E71 and E63. The first release only supported a couple of message services, and now another has been added.
The software is still being developed, tested and its functionality expanded. Why are people demanding everything all at once in early pre-release software that is provided for trial and feedback only?
Before people start whining and moaning that it doesn't do this and doesn't run on that they should wait for the software to be finished and released.
I'm sure Nokia are very sorry that they didn't choose YOUR device and support YOUR message client first.
Jeez.
It's not S60 or Symbian that is the problem, it's the variety of hardware.
Symbian and S60 are no more or less difficult to develop for, if the developer is reasonably capable (like any professional should at least be). There are a range of devices and it is necessary to pick a suitable target device to do the first development, and use flexible methods particularly with display size to begin with and then once the core work has been done expand the supported formats and fucntionality.
I would see having a variety of devices that suit different needs, with different screen sizes, price points and functionality as an advantage for most buyers making a choice, even if there is less choice of applications available as a consequence, most users are happy with the phone out of the box.
"OK, it was first released as an early beta for the E75 only. Now it can be installed on E71 and E63. The first release only supported a couple of message services, and now another has been added.
The software is still being developed, tested and its functionality expanded. Why are people demanding everything all at once in early pre-release software that is provided for trial and feedback only?"
I wasn't actually demanding anything, if you bothered to read what I wrote.
"Before people start whining and moaning that it doesn't do this and doesn't run on that they should wait for the software to be finished and released."
My observation was a general one that Nokia have a tendency to release software in a piecemeal fashion, which I don't understand.
"I'm sure Nokia are very sorry that they didn't choose YOUR device and support YOUR message client first."
I have no interest in this particular application, so am not particularly bothered that it doesn't run on MY device.
"Jeez."
Blimey, calm down why don't you...
Unregistered wrote:Blimey, calm down why don't you...
Perfectly calm thanks. In fact amused at how rapidly you are backing out LOL!
Not quite sure what you mean by "backing out"?
Unregistered wrote:I have no interest in this particular application, so am not particularly bothered that it doesn't run on MY device.
So cute when Unregistered gets into a fight with him/herself!
and yes, Unregistered, I do share your sentiment - Nokia have been making a fool of themselves for the best part of the last decade. They keep making marginally different handsets which run on a funky OS with backwards compatibility broken on a regular basis so when you see that software produced won't even run on handsets with the same series and feature pack numbers, you just laugh (or cry, depending on your level of involvement)
It's messing with developers who need to put extra work into their products to make them work and it's messing with customers who hope to use the applications they like when they move on to new handsets. nothing is meant to work on older handsets and nothing aims to work on future ones. I must be getting old, because this "let's serve the minute-men" mentality is becoming ever so irritating... :/
I guess when all these features that "need" a separate application now will be available through the phones' browser a new and better world will arrive 😊
ps: I'm sure you all know about NGage2, OVI launch etc and we all share the view about buying Beta bread or building Beta houses, yet it's better just to ignore my little whine because I'm perfectly aware that nothing will ever change as long as phones are not worth keeping at the end of a contract AND you are given a new one "for free" with a new contract anyway. there is just no point.
I think you guys keep forgetting something. Beta means limiting the install base on purpose while making sure things get ironed out. It is wise, and better than limiting it to a limited number of users, which would upset others.
What I wonder is whether this version is a Java midlet or a native app. Anyone have any idea?
@ attila
"So cute when Unregistered gets into a fight with him/herself!"
Nope, definitely 2 different "Unregistered"s.
Glad you agree with me about this stupid device specificity that Nokia seem so keen on...
@ malerocks
"Not even interested in the application and yet... "
If you'd read my posts you'd have seen that I wasn't discussing the application itself but about the way in which Nokia develops its software.
My belief is that Nokia are having huge problems with their device FW for exactly this reason...
OK so maybe Nokia should drop every device that it sells and just concentrate on selling one.
Which one would you choose?
For me it would be the 5800.
For me; the E90.
I don't think Nokia is having any "problems" with firmware. Each build brings improvement. And doing a beta on one device is wise and limits the participants. Adding support for more devices as we go along is also. It takes time to make stuff that works, and doing it in the public eye is better than no one knowing about it at all.
Sorry, I don't agree.
Recent Nokia phones have been launched with unacceptably bad firmware; it's all very well to tell (potential) customers that serious bugs will be fixed in future updates, but many people don't feel that they should have to wait so long to get a device which works as expected. Only the very naive expect such a complex device to have zero bugs, but there is an expectation that a device will work relatively reliably out of the box, and with recent Nokias that does not appear to be the case.
It just seems to me that Nokias have become too complicated, with too many differences between handsets which are not adequately dealt with by Symbian or S60, hence the multiple versions of the firmware and the apparent inability of Nokia to launch new devices with anything like decent firmware.
As I said in my original post, I fail to see why an application designed for a specific version of Symbian/S60 should not be able to run on multiple devices; this also applies to beta applications. If you design an application for S60 v3 FP1, then all devices (within reason) meeting this requirement should be able to run the application. If an application, or the OS/UI it's running on can't deal with (minor) differences in the screen size, keyboard layout or the underlying hardware, then there is a fundamental problem.
I have en E90 and fully understand that certain (beta) applications can't deal with the larger internal screen. However, having an application such as Internet Radio available in multiple versions, each one virtually identical but differing only in which device it runs on, when most of the devices in question are all running the same OS/UI version is just crazy, particularly when other devices having the same OS/UI version are still not supported. Is it any wonder that there are many more applications available for the iPhone than for S60 if it is so difficult to program for...?
Unregistered wrote:Sorry, I don't agree.
Well at least you are apologetic about it.