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Well, it's been quite a nice journey over here at vox, but let's face it, it was my first attempt at blogging and not my last one. Sadly, vox doesn't support comments from any visitor and at first didn't support RSS feeds which are now the greatest thing to keep on with a blog (does it support RSS now? I don't frankly know). And I had to learn that the rough way.
After looking at a couple of other blogging solutions, and after a tip from Darla (quite a few months ago), I decided to switch to Blogger (or blogspot) if you like.
Dotsisx's new address will be http://dotsisx.blogspot.com make sure you bookmark that address, because with the new blog comes new responsability. I admit, I haven't been a frequent poster here, but I'll make sure to do so over there ;) Plus I have had a couple of posts (mostly reviews of apps) ready for a while now but wanted to put them on the new blog...
Anyway, it's been a lovely road, and I hope you enjoyed it as well. I will transfer some of my interesting posts (as tips n Tricks) over there so i don't lose them.
Have a nice day and hope to see you on the new blog!
This is a little off topic, but I have been suffering from a foot ache for a little less than a year. My first doctor thought it was a tendinitis and gave me 3 shots of cortisone, last september. This month, after a couple of visits to a new doctor, an IRM and a Scan, it turns out it's an oedema with an inflammation of the ligaments (for those of you not in depth with medical terms, a ligament is the connective tissue that fixes 2 bones together in an articulation).
Anyway, no drugs could relieve the pain, so the only solution (besides wearing an arche for 6 months) was to cast my foot for 3 weeks.
Now i'm stuck at home (well, I was originally stuck at home, since I have my finals starting this friday) but I'm more stuck now, with a right foot in a cast, an awfully hot weather, and my toes showing (which I hate btw). Pic taken with the 3250 in poor lighting conditions.
They threw in one sort-of-open-blue-shoe (not in the pic) that I wear when on the move, cuz apparently I can't walk on the cast itself.
I'm stuck like this till Tuesday the 26th. Man, I hate it already!
I thought I had blogged this a while ago, but apparently, my post got lost between my desktop pc and my laptop (long story). Anyway, so a day or so after Babi told me she had put up a Dotsisx theme, Pasco another (italian too) very renowned s60 3rd edition theme creator reported that he too had created a Dotsisx theme. It's as amazing as I thought it would be and all I have to say is "Oh my God! 2 themes?! Am I lucky or what?"
Anyway, here's a screenshot of Pasco's theme off my 3250 and to download just click here.
As stated in my previous post, I was about to do a total phone formatting. But something happened unexpectedly that made me go through it even quicker than expected. A day after I did my post, I had a trouble with my messaging and calendar apps. I was always getting this pop-up error message when tryin to open anythg within these apps: "memory full, close some applications and try again". As I have handy taskman installed, I checked that NO other app was open. I even rebooted the phone a couple of times without any success. My friend then told me her 6630 had the same issue a year or so ago and only a format solved the problem, and here it is: a new reason to add to that list of why I wanted to format my 3250.
So I went to the shop where I bought my phone from and they did the *#7370# as Wardy had suggested in a comment following my phone formatting part 1 post. Luckily I had sync'd my phone with my laptop just the day before. I don't know what would've happened if I didn't... I have hundreds of phone numbers that SHOULD not be lost and I never sync'd my phone with my pc, just because I never use Outlook. Kind of stupid, right? Anyway, I sort of avoided a huge problem here. Adding to that, I performed a memory card formatting, after backing up all the info, of course. After format, I restored all my apps, videos, pictures, sound files, documents, themes. But I didn't restore all my games.
Now here are the changes I noted. Remember, I had in mind to compare phone booting time, camera opening time, RAM, internal memory,... But since that unexpected error occured, I had no time to grab all the info I needed to do the comparison before having the phone formatted, or hard reset. So there it goes:
- the phone is still rebooting sometimes when I open the gallery, probably because I didn't perform a full format.
- the phone start-up seems (and I say seems since I have no comparison times) much quicker. Menu opening and folder opening also are a bit quicker.
- SMS sending speed is back to being as fast as new, even without the SMS_acceleration from Nokia
- Contact's details viewing is much quicker. It used to take around 3-4 seconds to open up a contact's details, now it's basically instantaneous
- the coolest thing I observed: I have now 6.7MB of free internal memory, even after restoring all the applications, all the themes (but not all the games). Even so, I went from 2.7MB to 6.7MB. Now I know I lost all my messages, but those were around 2MB (since I copied them to my pc). So that is 2MB gained, ain't that amazing???
- The keylocking problem still exists: I use Smartphoneware's Best keylocker and I had a problem: even though I had set my delay time to 1min, after 10-20seconds of inactivity, if I press any button the keypad will be locked... But I am pressing a button! How does that give it the right to lock my keypad, I don't know?! Anyway, the problem is still here :s
- I have 2 or so more MB of free RAM (yaaaay)
- my SMS and calendar problem got solved, of course
- I gained back the "Music" folder which was installed on the phone when I first got it, but which I had deleted. Then I ditched it again because its icon doesn't change with the themes :s
- Syncing with my pc after formatting, I didn't lose any of my contacts, calendar or notes entries (which is a very nice surprise btw). But I lost all my contact's groups, I lost all my default number setting for my contacts, and only old sms were re-transfered, 3 times each (WTF?)
Anyway, beside the little problems that are still there (keylocking and rebooting and syncing issues) I am very glad I went through with that format: the more free RAM and internal memory are very nice, the faster SMS and contact's opening are just too good.
When it comes to formatting, I am usually retiscent to performing it myself. Whether it's a USB drive, a pc hard drive, a phone memory, a memory card,..., it's always hard for me to decide to press that "format" button. Perhaps it's just the fear of losing some information I forgot to back up, or the fear of messing the device up, but I keep telling myself: it's still functionning, let's leave the format for later.
Now my phone is still functionning but I decided to give it a total make-over (ie format) which includes the phone's internal memory and the memory card. I won't do things half-way. Reasons why I decided to go for that is that:
- the phone's free internal memory is now lower than 3MB no matter what I do and it seems that many registry and system files, etc, have not been properly deleted after uninstalling certain apps, etc.
- the phone's performance speed is getting slower and slower, especially when opening a contact's details
- sms sending is getting slower even with the SMS_acceleration app from Nokia running
- the phone keeps rebooting randomly and while using the gallery
- the blaster theme installed by mistake on the phone memory is starting to i.r.r.i.t.a.t.e me since it can't be deleted by the theme deleting trick
I believe a total formatting (not just restoring factory settings) would solve a couple of these problems. So I'm going to do it (lemme hear those hoorays). But first, I'm going to take a couple of days to sync sms and contacts with my pc, make sure nothing is missing, move all my memory card files to my pc, write down all the important settings I have used (for messaging, camera, connectivity and all the apps I have installed). That promises to keep me busy for the whole week I think, but being an as we call it here "2emm 3aj2a" (very chaotic person), I have to make sure I lose no contact detail, no files, no pics, no vids, no documents,..., NOTHING.
The official preparation for the formatting starts tomorrow, so wish me luck. I'll write down the free RAM, memory card and internal memory. I'll also write take the time it needs to boot now, the time it needs to open the cam, etc... and compare these numbers with those i will have after the formatting. Hopefully, the overall performance will be better and worth the trouble.
Any ideas, any advices are welcome. It's my first formatting so i'm a novice.
P.S: I would love to download the firmware upgrade from Nokia, but I'm on dial-up so there's NO way i'm spending 7-8 hrs to download the usually 50MB or more firmware file.
I'm litterally jumping off my chair now. Just a minute ago, I was checking my mail and saw a private message on vox from Babi. She was telling me there was a surprise for me on her site. Just a click and the website loaded showing me... the Dotsisx theme!
Now you only know you're part of the blogosphere when you have your own theme :) especially when it's created by one of the best theme providers!
Here's a screenshot of the theme and personally, i think it's awesome!
Actually, it's neat and visible, bright but not too fluorescent (try it on your screen). It also got a 4.5/5 rating.
To check out and download the theme, head on to this page on Babi's site.
Thank you Babi for the great surprise, and also thank you for the amazing work you have done. What would our phones look like without you???
I have been looking for that perfect theme for quite a while now, never found one that really suits me. My perfect theme has to:
- have a very clear wallpaper with nothing very important in the middle top part (i use active desktop)
- have a nice icon pack: not ordinary nokia icons, yet not too sophisticated
- have an icon pack that actually shows on my 3250 (many icon packs used by many theme creators end up showing white squares instead of icons on my screen)
- have a black font writing in the MSDict search box (all themes with white fonts end up writing in white in that box => null visibility)
- hide the dust sticking inside my 3250 cover, over the screen, or at least don't let it be too visible
Just a couple of days ago, I stumbled upon too amazing themes from my favorite theme provider, Babi and another great theme creator, Pasco. The themes are respectively Aquablu by babi (which comes in 2 other versions) and BlueDream by Pasco. Now normally, I am not a big fan of graphic wallpapers with no real image, but these themes made me totally change my mind.
If you wonder what they look like, here are some screenshots (there is also the menu screenshot of both themes in the pic gallery):
In case you are wondering, I was using the Sylfaen (or Palatino, can't quite remember) font when I took those screenshots. Unfortunately, I had to lose those fonts and use Arial because only Arial and Times New Roman support arabic letters, and ever since a month or so ago, I've had this rush towards using arabic on my phone (which I normally never do).
Anyway, doesn't the screen look dead sexy in those themes? I mean I can't stop looking at my phone! Or is it just me? Hmmmm....
So, as you must have noticed, I have been away for quite a couple of weeks now. I know that's irresponsible but hey, it's never easy. And to explain myself, I'll be saying that I was busy at uni. Now I know that sounds very exagerated, but it's true. Apart from my pharmacy courses (i'm a 4th yearer) I have been attending some Master (in pharmacy) courses too, which left me with a 8am to 8pm schedule. Now try to keep up with that and then also keep a blog running! The blog by itself takes a couple of hours a day ;)
Now add to that the fact that I was in charge of organizing an orientation and recrutment forum at our faculty, and top it all with the fact that my faculty's dean decided to let me hold one of the conferences. That makes a lot, even on paper (or in this case on the pc screen).
Anyway, to cut the crap, I will be back in a couple of days (thursday - friday) with lots of posts in mind, mostly related to app reviews:
- comparison: phonepoint+phonetunes v/s salling clicker
- comparison: iSilo v/s mobipocket
- my best games list
and many more :D
As you might have noticed, yesterday I started a selection of best apps in different software categories. I am not doing a comparison here, just picking the app that has the little plus that makes it stand out of the crowd and be the one I personnaly prefer. Advanced Call Manager was my pick in the call manager utility section.
Today's category is File Managers and my vote goes to X-Plore by Lonely Cat Games (read about it on the official site).
When it comes to file managers, there is a point when you start to wonder if you really need one. Well, the answer is easy: if you need to access D and Z drives on your phone, the answer is yes, if you don't then the answer is no. It's as simple as that. Frequent file manager users might scream "Blasphemy!" but to me it is as simple as that. It's true that file managers do just more than just access D and Z drives, but most of these features are those who are used by advanced mobile users, hence users who usually need to access D and Z drives. Does it make sense now?
In the seek for a good file manager, I have passed by many: Nokia's pre-installed File Manager, Y-Browser, X-Plore, F-Explorer... and there are many others like SysExplorer, Active File, SkyExplorer, don't blame me if I forget one, it's just that there are many. If you need to know more about (and/or download) these file explorers, just read this post by Antony Pranata on his s60tips blog.
Although X-Plore is no longer a freeware, it can still be installed and working on your phone: it's just a matter of an additional screen that lasts 3 seconds before the app opens and 3 seconds before it closes.
Now let's get to the point: file managers usually allow you to access all drives on the phone (C, D, E and Z), to copy/paste files. Most of them also allow you to access the inbox (for any file received via bluetooth), most have a hex viewer (whatever that is). Some of them have shortcut abilities, some allow you to see and change file attributes, to send files via BT IR or email. A couple also allow you to take screenshots or see detailed information about your phone or send an sms.Now why do I prefer X-Plore? It's because it has a couple of features that made me stop searching for a file explorer:
- Extracting .zip and .rar: people might need a separate program (like Handy Zip and Mobile Rar) to zip/rar and unzip/unrar files on their mobile. I only need to unzip/unrar files and X-Plore does it for me. I can choose which directory to extract my files to and it does the rest.
- Viewing/Extracting .jar: although on a phone you might not be able to edit .jar files, opening them is still a very good plus for me. I spend hours trying to come up with tricks on my phone, and being able to read .jar is a must. It allows me to check the MANIFEST file inside any java app and hence see if it fits my screen size, if the icon is good, the name is good, the language is right... Sure I would need a pc to correct a mistake (if any) but it saves me from having to check all my apps on my pc before sending them to my phone.
- All text files viewing: doc, txt, ...
- Quick folders: gives quick access to 10 different folders: your favorites, you pick them.
- File Associations: if X-Plore can't open a file by itself or find a default program to do it, you can always set the file associations. For example I have set my .pdb extension files to automatically open with iSilo.
- Inbox emptying: most of the time (if not always), I use bluetooth to send files to my phone. These end up in the inbox. Since the mobile doesn't automatically open some files (zip, doc, pdb) I have to copy them to my memory card, which can not be done without a File Manager. Via X-Plore, I get to see all my inbox files, copy them to drive E, but more importantly cut them because X-Plore, unlike Y-Browser for instance, allows you to delete an inbox file by simply clicking the "c" button. This is extremely useful if you have a couple of files in the inbox you need to delete. You don't need to go to the inbox and start scrolling through messages in order to get to this particular one with the BT icon that you need to delete. Just delete it from X-Plore.
- Good search function: allows you to specify which folder / drive to search in (the one highlighted) and to search for file types: for instance, queue in *.jpg for image searching.
- Image viewing, Themes, Device Info, Tree viewing, On-screen memory details of each file...
Now despite the fact that X-Plore can't send sms, tell me details about my device, or take screenshots (there are freeware for all those features), it still gets my vote as the best File Manager.
Now don't get me wrong: I am not saying that the other file managers don't presend all those features: I don't know because I haven't tried all file managers: X-Plore made me stop my search. It had exactly all the features I was looking for. The inbox emptying, .zip .rar and .jar opening, on-screen memory details of each file, and file associations: all are must-have for me.
N.B: the native symbian file manager is still essential in order to access private and sys folders on the memory card. Using the search function of X-Plore doesn't show up the hidden folders as they do in the native file manager.
There are many, many, call managers on the market for s60 3rd edition. I have been wondering around trying every program that came into my hand, and finally found one that I simply can not delete from my phone: Webgate's Advanced Call Manager.
All call managers offer you the possibility to 1) manage your contacts into black lists and white lists, 2) manage your calls : reject or accept or send an automatic sms or answer with an asnwering machine message. Some also let you answer with a busy tone, or customize messages for answering machine (every called gets his own greeting message) or record phone calls or schedule different profiles.
But only Advanced Call Manager goes that extra mile. It has the 2 features I am not willing to give up on:
- Locator don't ask me how it works, it just works! It's something called Cell Id that functions, whether you do or do not have GPRS/GPS (I don't). The locator automatically detects which cell id I'm at and loads the profile and the configuration I have set for this specific location. It took me 2 minutes to configure it to Accept all calls when I'm at home and 1 minute to configure it to Reject all calls when I'm at my university. Now I don't have to worry about scheduling my profiles, Locator does it for me!
- Silent speaker on answering machine I tried a couple of other answering machine solutions but everyone functionned like any home answering machine. You could hear the greeting being played and the message that the caller was leaving really loud through the phone speakers. The two reasons I wanted an answering machine were to answer my night calls when I'm asleep and my day calls when I'm in a class. Hence these two reasons made me want a silent answering machine: I don't want to wake up at night, I don't want my classmates and teachers to hear my calls. Still, Advanced Call Manager isn't perfectly silent, you can hear the same thing, but through the phone's little ear speaker which makes it the closest to silent. When asleep, the voice can't wake me up. When in a classroom, if the class is really silent, i just have to put my finger on the ear speaker in order to avoid any noise.
Although not being a perfect call manager (inability to record calls, inability to answer a call when the answering machine has started), Advanced Call Manager has the little plus that makes it stand out of the crowd and be the call manager that I am just not willing to replace, yet.
