Develop Bugs

Application HUB ??

I would like to know if there's gonna be an application HUB in the new Windows Phone 7 Series??
Would be nice to have a hub where you can add your favorite 3rd party applications like:
- Location/Navigation software (Google Maps, TomTom, iGO, CoPilot etc.)
- Browser software (Opera, Skyfire etc.)
- Games
- Multimedia software (CorePlayer, TCPMP etc.)
Sorted by example on Category or Most used.
Would be nice, usefull and marketable.

I don't get why Microsoft would introduce an "Application Hub" when the point of Hubs was to get rid of the "applications".
Games would be in the games hub, multimedia would be in the multimedia hub. There's an applications list in alphabetical order on the start page if the right arrow is pressed...

according to http://www.modaco.com/ there's a marketplace hub. does this mean this is the only entry point to install applications? Makes me get panic attacks!

I guess that there'd be another way to install applications, unless they want to have corporate users stay with WinMo 6.5.* for the future, as when a company wants to have a mobile app tied to there custom company software for in house use, they for sure wouldn't want it to take the way over the Marketplace.
As for having the most used applications easily available: you could just pin them to the Startscreen a.k.a. Live-Tiles. You can pin single contacts, single albums, single songs there and I believe somebody already said, that u could pin programs from the App-List to the right too. Depends on the application how it then uses the Live Tile (to display highscore, in-game scenes or what not).

StevieBallz said:
I guess that there'd be another way to install applications, unless they want to have corporate users stay with WinMo 6.5.* for the future, as when a company wants to have a mobile app tied to there custom company software for in house use, they for sure wouldn't want it to take the way over the Marketplace.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That is a good point. I hope you are right. Not being able to run whatever program I want to is a big deal breaker for me. If this were the case I would go Android unless WP7 gets jailbroken (I feel so sad using this term for WM/WP; it is so open right now. Why restrict it in such ways?).

the reason that they are restricting the apps, is to make the system more stable. They want the experience to be amazing on every phone, eg making the hardware requirements so strict. They want to be able to evaluate what an app does to the system before it is released. They are making the submission parameters easier to comply with, so it will be easy to put your work on marketplace. They new marketplace specs for 6.5 will give developers the ability to make links straight to the app on the marketplace.
Initially I was starting to kinda freak out, but I think this is for the best. It will force people to use the marketplace, and since it won't support old apps, it will move all the applications for windows mobile to one spot, it is just one more way they are trying to compete with apple.
And on a side note, I'm not actually sure that winpho7 has a file explorer... Nothing in the demo gave me reason to think that one would be there. I think they are trying to replace explorer with the hubs.

If you swipe left on the start page, you get a list of all your applications.
I don't think there's a seperate, categorised hub.
I believe you can also add shortcut tiles on the start page, but that's all I know.
(And yeah, I too would like to find out whether WP7 has a file explorer...)

webpatrick said:
I would like to know if there's gonna be an application HUB in the new Windows Phone 7 Series??
Would be nice to have a hub where you can add your favorite 3rd party applications like:
- Location/Navigation software (Google Maps, TomTom, iGO, CoPilot etc.)
- Browser software (Opera, Skyfire etc.)
- Games
- Multimedia software (CorePlayer, TCPMP etc.)
Sorted by example on Category or Most used.
Would be nice, usefull and marketable.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't mean to be rude but this doesn't make any sense.
Add your favorite applications to your Start Screen. All the rest are in a list when you swipe to the right.
Apps that fit a certain category would go in that category's hub. Why would you have Games in an Application hub and then have a Games hub? Remember under the Music&Video hub there was Pandora (right now they have it under a list of apps under the hub).. that's your Multimedia software.
I do agree that additional hubs would make sense.. we don't only care about people and pictures etc. but also things like RSS news updates, or like you said, location and navigation. An Internet hub would be a good place for Favorites/Bookmarks, History (shared across every installed browser), RSS, IE8 Web Slices, website notifications (not every update on Twitter and Facebook is by an actual person/contact), etc. If you give the same treatment to Location/Mapping, then suddenly you don't have the standalone apps of IE and Bing sticking out in the hub-centric experience.
but a bunch of shortcuts to different programs doesn't make sense as a hub, just pin them to Start.

reformedctrlz said:
the reason that they are restricting the apps, is to make the system more stable. They want the experience to be amazing on every phone, eg making the hardware requirements so strict. They want to be able to evaluate what an app does to the system before it is released. They are making the submission parameters easier to comply with, so it will be easy to put your work on marketplace. They new marketplace specs for 6.5 will give developers the ability to make links straight to the app on the marketplace.
Initially I was starting to kinda freak out, but I think this is for the best. It will force people to use the marketplace, and since it won't support old apps, it will move all the applications for windows mobile to one spot, it is just one more way they are trying to compete with apple.
And on a side note, I'm not actually sure that winpho7 has a file explorer... Nothing in the demo gave me reason to think that one would be there. I think they are trying to replace explorer with the hubs.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The problem is that you have to pay $100 for your spot at the marketplace table. Even if your app is free. Simply not fair. No more xda members coding up their own programs and releasing free.
And hubs is not a file explorer. I dont want a device that thinks it knows what I want to do with my files. If I want something that restricts where I get apps and what files I am allowed to store on my device I will get an iphone.
The only thing wp7 might have over iphone os (besides interface; I do think wp7 has a very cool and original ui; that is a matter of opinion though) is multitasking. While details are slim and it sounds like multitasking capability will be very restricted, it sounds like background processing will be available to third party apps at least in some form. Thats more than iphones can say.
Unfortunately I think its android time for me. But I'm not sad about it. Ive started really looking into it and it seems pretty cool. It has full multitasking now and the latest phones are sporting some awesome hardware. I will probably get my first android phone over the summer and i'm excited.
I'm not waiting nearly another year to get hands on an actual wp7 device. Maybe when more details come out it won't be so bad but I doubt it and I'm not waiting to find out. The direction of Microsoft is back in time toward more restriction and control of the product. It's time I jump ship to an open source OS. Sad because I love MS desktop products. My computing world is a constant battle between google and MS. I use windows 7, outlook, exchange, windows mobile office ect. But I choose google over ie, google over bing, and soon android over wm. Will be interesting to see how well this combination will play together.

I don't think installing Cab files will change all too much..I believe it will be much like it is today except we aren't putting the cart before the horse this time. I mean Marketplace just launched months ago even though WinMo has been around for over a decade...its hard to have an effective marketplace when people who want apps know the better places to find them. This time around the app store will launch with the OS so i think it puts more emphasis on the App store (to the average consumer) as well as being better integrated into the phone...but who's/what's stopping us from just downloading Apps the same as usual? Microsoft has mentioned that Activesync will still work with WP7 (Zune will be just for music, pictures, movies) so why is it all of a sudden impossible just to do what we've been doing for years?
It seems odd the exodus that seems to be happening lately. Its like you guys were perfectly happy with with Windows the way it is now?!?! If you are then stay with it the way it is now..lol. I personally can't wait to the what the guys here are gonna come up with for HUB's...hell I can't wait for HTC to put their special touch on WP7..I can imagine the HUB put together in a TF3D fashion...with their own additions of Weather (with that gorgeous UI) stocks...etc. I'm not gonna lie...the possibilities are as endless in the future as they are with the current OS. I think it will be fun to see in about a year, how many of you guys who are riding the fence or doubting the upcoming release will change your minds.
I once had to drag my best friend on a double date....he didn't want to go, he complained the whole way there...saw the girl, and did everything he could to make an excuse to get out of there (she wasn't his type)...now they're married, crazy things happen when you give something a chance. I've waited 2+ years for this and won't back out now just because I see something I don't know the answer to...once I get the OS in hand I will make my decision. I think thats the most logical way
~style~

style1 said:
I don't think installing Cab files will change all too much..I believe it will be much like it is today except we aren't putting the cart before the horse this time. I mean Marketplace just launched months ago even though WinMo has been around for over a decade...its hard to have an effective marketplace when people who want apps know the better places to find them. This time around the app store will launch with the OS so i think it puts more emphasis on the App store (to the average consumer) as well as being better integrated into the phone...but who's/what's stopping us from just downloading Apps the same as usual? Microsoft has mentioned that Activesync will still work with WP7 (Zune will be just for music, pictures, movies) so why is it all of a sudden impossible just to do what we've been doing for years?
It seems odd the exodus that seems to be happening lately. Its like you guys were perfectly happy with with Windows the way it is now?!?! If you are then stay with it the way it is now..lol. I personally can't wait to the what the guys here are gonna come up with for HUB's...hell I can't wait for HTC to put their special touch on WP7..I can imagine the HUB put together in a TF3D fashion...with their own additions of Weather (with that gorgeous UI) stocks...etc. I'm not gonna lie...the possibilities are as endless in the future as they are with the current OS. I think it will be fun to see in about a year, how many of you guys who are riding the fence or doubting the upcoming release will change your minds.
I once had to drag my best friend on a double date....he didn't want to go, he complained the whole way there...saw the girl, and did everything he could to make an excuse to get out of there (she wasn't his type)...now they're married, crazy things happen when you give something a chance. I've waited 2+ years for this and won't back out now just because I see something I don't know the answer to...once I get the OS in hand I will make my decision. I think thats the most logical way
~style~
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think you have misunderstood the announcements. Activesync (as in sync with PC) will NOT be available. It also seems that there is no way to access the file system on the device. The only way to install apps is through the marketplace. They are removing the ability to just install a cab as we have always done. That is the problem. I am not saying I won't give it a chance. These points may turn out to be wrong. All I am saying is that current info suggests that this is the case and if so WP7 is not for me. Of course I am not going to pass final judgement until it is released. But since all indicators point to the negative I am not going to wait to find out for sure when there are tempting alternatives. And no I am not satisfied with WM as it currently is. The problem is that WP7 fixed what was wrong with WM6 and at the same time trashed everything that was good about WM6 (once again, nothing is for certain but this is what evidence points to).

ok even if it's like that it's microsoft.
Even iphone has jailbreak. In our case we will not have to worry for warranty.
The so called no oem sw will return as bumerang on them.
This is the most hardcore forum on pda's and every one says bhaaaa on MS.
When they did their survey they mast asked only iphone and simple phone users, sertainly not wm users. )

A couple of questions for TP2 users + is it good stuff today?

I have read through many discussions and reviews, and I'd like to confirm and clear a couple of things with experienced users of TP2.
What I need is WM and QWERTY. It leads to HTC TP2, SE Xperia X2, Samsung Omnia Pro B7610. SE and Samsung doesn't fit me for some reasons, therefore I ended up considering TP2. Here are my questions regarding TP2:
SMS stuff: is it possible to have saved plenty of messages [more than 1000]? Does that slow the device or SMS operations down? Is it still lucid and easy to keep overview in sent/received/drafts? Is it possible to send one message to more receivers at once? Is it possible to save SMS as a text file to memory card? And what about full-text search on messages?
audio recorder: is it possible to start it by one or two touch and same easily save it? Does it save mp3 or wav file to memory card?
does it allow schedule power off/on?
What else makes me pretty nervous is the fact that WM6.x is dead system no more supported by MS. Isn't it similar to buying PC with Windows 98 today? In one year time most likely there will be only apps for 7 and no more new apps for old 6.x. If it was phone for 200$ I wouldn't care, but when I pay 500$ [as sold here in EU], I expect such phone to stay useful for a good couple of years. I don't want to go for WP7 as according to MS ads it is intended as a mobile interface for Facebook for bored teens. And what's more, it'll take year or two since those apps used by me will be 7 compatible...

xsys said:
What else makes me pretty nervous is the fact that WM6.x is dead system no more supported by MS. Isn't it similar to buying PC with Windows 98 today?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Dead system? Not supported? Who told you that? Remember: just because somebody posts their opinion doesn't make it true.
And no, not similar to buying PC with Win98.

MCbrian said:
Dead system? Not supported? Who told you that? Remember: just because somebody posts their opinion doesn't make it true.
And no, not similar to buying PC with Win98.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
+1
xsys, there's still far to broad a userbase for the traditional windows mobile platform for Microsoft to pull the plug on it. You can expect to see support and development both continue on it, likely under one of the suspected names of "windows phone classic" or "windows phone enterprise"
For some of your other questions:
-The SMS module in WM 6.x (and even earlier versions) is known to bog down noticibly with the more messages you retain, and would probably be rather significant by the time you got to 1000. That's honestly one of the top 10 achille's heels of this platform.
-Yes, you can add multiple recipients to SMS messages just like with an e-mail.
-I don't know of any way to archive SMS as text file(s), but it's possible that one of the available 3rd-party SMS clients might have that capability. However, microsoft's free MyPhone service/client will back up all your SMS's and other important info (contacts, call logs, pics, etc) to the cloud each day, where you can access them through a web interface from anywhere. Using this is a great way to keep your SMS inbox trimmed down to the few active threads you're using at any given time, which can sidestep much of the native issue in WM6.x
-Again, I think full-text searches of SMS's would require some 3rd-party client, though I can't say if any offer that.
-HTC and other dev's offer a number of voice recording options, most of which can be as simple as lauching the app, then just hitting record. Some can do .wav, some can do .mp3 and others, and all can save to your SD card. I'll also note here that there's a great free key remapper for the TP2 available in these forums, that would allow you to map the recorder app of your choice, to any button on the device, for easy opening if you use it frequently
-I don't know if there's a way to schedule a power on, but I think I've seen a solution here somewhere to schedule a soft-reset (the standard simple reboot procedure). Maybe someone more familiar with it could point you to it.
Let us know if you have any more questions!
-

thanks for your responses guys. It seems dead system from MS point of view. They are now only on WP7 and stopped all work on WM6. Even TP2 is more than year old device and question is if there will be TP3 or something similar, soon. When it comes to memory and processor TP2 is kinda outdated piece of hardware. Though keyboard is outstanding, as well as some other functions. It is actually main reason for me to buy.
I hope that the community will keep this device alive Though, it is not so famous as HD2 what has much more users, and developers too.
My phone service seems to be nice one from MS it could solve my problem.
So, all the info I'm getting online makes me go for TP2... Now I just hope I'll get a good piece, as I heard some have problems and had to go for repair a few times...
Which ROM is the best - Heineken or Pilsner ;-)

There are still builds leaking from MS so someone is developing on the 6.5.x branch. To be honest, as a business user, there is no phone OS out there today that can match the features of 6.5.x. As long as MS has business users I don't see them stopping development on 6.5.x

Facebook App MarketPlace 3 issues fixable?

Hi All,
I was wondering if anyone else had 2 issues I've run across since using the Facebook app from Marketplace:
1) Sometime when posting comments, it doesnt send to post, anyone have this problem?
2) Does the Facebook app always have to be re-freshed to see whats been posted instead of it notifying you when something gets posted?
3) I know everyone has the photo album not displaying issue I do too, but when I go to HTC Album, I have a freaking list of folders with either pix or no pix, how to I make them not appear in the HTC album when I am picking albums to view?
Thanx

I had the same issues as 1 and 2 and gave up on the app. I use the mobile website for everything except uploading pics, in which case I use the application.
Kind of a pain until someone smarter than me comes up with a good app.

Sux, dont want to use the website, I know they have it working on the blackberry where its real time updates, you'd think they would have done that with this lite app, whats the point of refreshing manually.

the app is pretty worthless, i rarely use it. the manual refresh is horrible. It'll only download the latest (say 25) posts, and if there are 35 new posts on your wall/feed and you refresh, it will only update 25, and when you scroll through them, it would go from the last of the latest 25 to the latest of when you previously refreshed so there would be a gap in your feed...
i use touch.facebook.com and lite.facebook.como via opera mobile and works out very well.

i no longer attempt to use it to post comments because what i found out is its posting on random old posts. it can cause you to say some things you really dont mean.
my other real issue is it will only load the first photo in an album and just sit there rather than opening the next. and of course you cant see who likes a post. hopefully microsoft will fix these little issues so it will be as complete as it is on an iphone or android.

TJoC,
Thanks for the laugh, Microsoft does as little as possible, and in their eyes it works, Being a expert in windows, dont expect MS to be adding anything to this app, MS rather have you jump to a 3rd party. The one that SHOULD make the app is Facebook themselves. But who are we? Just barnicles on the end of a stick.
I went so far to try the Xperia X1 panel facebook, as much as I like its functionality it also lacks simple basic features, like the ability to comment, like/dislike. You would think someone would be smart enough.

Your right, facebook does need to create the app.. They created the app for the iphone and android, what blackberry? did facebook create that or was that RIM?
also since WP7 is due to be released soon, i think MS dropped the development for this as social networking is a big focus for WP7

MS drops everything trying to make the big buck, if they set a dept up to take care of the little things like this, they'd be amazed how all the little cents would add up. They crippled WinMo 7, from everything I have heard and read, I'll stick to the flexibility of 6.5, not that its great, but sure beats the choking factor. If they are so big on social networking, they sure dropped the ball on that front.

A WM/Android User's Take

1st off this is not intended to be a flaming / bashing thread. If you want to do that please go elsewhere; I'm sure the vibrant forums will welcome you. If a MOD feels this belongs somewhere else, please move it.
I have been a long time WM user and recently switched to android for the past year. I am offering my take on WP7 on the pros on cons.
Interface - Finally something completely new and wonderful. Microsoft really did hit a homerun on trying to make information at a glance approach. Mail and search apps look beautiful. I thing missing, being able to quickly jump to apps in the app menu.
Lack of Landscape Support- For as great as the UI is I am shocked at the lack of landscape support. The start menu, app menu, nor Zune have lanscape support. You can not even refresh a webpage or type in a website if you are in landscape mode. Calling this anything other than an epic "FAIL" by microsoft is sugar coating it. Especially when the HD7 and Surround beg to be in landscape mode with their kick stands.
Browser - As expected from an IE browser it is pretty good. I already mentioned the lack of landscape support which is really frustrating but there is something else that gets under my skin more. Web pages do not resize to fit the screen when you zoom in. This was/is almost a deal breaking for me honestly. I love the organization of having all the buttons at the bottom and the interface is stunning but you lose way to many options in landscape mode. You can't even access favorites without first going back to portrait. MS, this NEEDS to be addressed soon. The browser is the main feature of smartphones now.
Zune - Wonderful if you have a Zune Pass. Honestly it was one of the main reasons why I bought this phone. I expected it to be awesome and it didn't disappoint. That being said they need to add a Play Now option to the market songs. When I'm browsing the market sometimes I want to queue songs and the Add to Playlist option makes sense but how could you leave out Play now? Seriously?
Another thing I don't like is I can not fast forward to a certain spot in a movie. Video files can be hours long, why should I have to hold the fast forward button to get to the point I'd like. Let me hit the progress bar and then use the rewind / fast forward buttons for getting to the exact point.
USB Storage Device- glaring admission, but I can kind of see why. It helps stop piracy, but I loved being able to hook my fuze / tilt 2 / nexus 1 / vibrant to my car stereo and play the music I had downloaded on my phone. I know I could get an audio cable and do the same, but while driving it is so much easier to use the radio head unit to control music rather than your phone. I knew this when getting in bed with WP7, but that doesnt mean I still can't miss it.
Bluetooth- for music works just like it should. however it will not play the audio from video files threw bluetooth. It keeps coming out of my phone's main speakers and there is no way to get into the bluetooth profiles to see if something is wrong. VERY ANNOYING MS. get to fixing it.
People- Wonderful. Could anyone ask anymore? I gave it my facebook and gmail accounts and I didn't have to worry about any contacts not showing up. Love the Facebook updates also.
Dailer- No smart dialer? This used to even be in my old wizard by default. How it get left out is completely beyond me.
Announced fixes- Flash, Copy & Paste, Turn by Turn navigation can't come soon enough but I am glad microsoft acknowledged they needed them.
Local Outlook Support- I knew this before hand, but I am in the crowd that says MS needs to add this ability.
Overall- I bought my HD7 without a contract and I am pretty sure i will NOT be returning it. I love my HD7 and WP7, however this OS isn't entirely complete. That being said was iOS and Android complete when they came out? To even suggest that is laughable. I can not wait for microsoft to release all the fixes for this OS because when it does it will be a powerhouse.
I will not buy that this phone is for dumbsmart phone users. I probably done more with my phones than 95% of android users who will do nothing by bash WP7 and i honestly see this for ALL users. It helps bring the powerhouse experience in an easier way without being tied down as much as iOS.

Why not just post in one of the other 50 threads? Now people will be copy-pasting replies from those into this one.
I did notice the lack of landscape mode in IE. I think that was the only thing that made me go WTF when I used the HD7.
However, the keyboard is so good that I don't think it even mattered that much.
I guess with a 3.7-8" screen it can be a bit annoying, but on anything 4" or bigger it didn't strike me as a big deal beyond the initial shock of it not being there.
Also, lots of people dont' seem to know the difference between an Operating System and an Application.

N8ter said:
Why not just post in one of the other 50 threads? Now people will be copy-pasting replies from those into this one.
I did notice the lack of landscape mode in IE. I think that was the only thing that made me go WTF when I used the HD7.
However, the keyboard is so good that I don't think it even mattered that much.
I guess with a 3.7-8" screen it can be a bit annoying, but on anything 4" or bigger it didn't strike me as a big deal beyond the initial shock of it not being there.
Also, lots of people dont' seem to know the difference between an Operating System and an Application.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Those threads became nothing but flaming / bashing threads. I thought it would be a good idea to try to get away from that.
Also a core application can be considered part of the OS. If you can not uninstall it, it is part of the OS.
I thought it was annoying not being able to get to the address bar with all that screen space.

I don't know about you guys but my Surround goes into landscape mode IE just fine...
The only thing I don't like is lack of landscape in marketplace and Zune...
also if you want a nice photo editor, Thumba photo editor for $.099 is awesome!
EDIT: Oh i see. I can't believe I have to switch to portrait to type a URL!! WTF microsoft!

jz9833 said:
Browser - As expected from an IE browser it is pretty good. I already mentioned the lack of landscape support which is really frustrating but there is something else that gets under my skin more. Web pages do not resize to fit the screen when you zoom in. This was/is almost a deal breaking for me honestly. I love the organization of having all the buttons at the bottom and the interface is stunning but you lose way to many options in landscape mode. You can't even access favorites without first going back to portrait. MS, this NEEDS to be addressed soon. The browser is the main feature of smartphones now.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Overall I agree with just about everything you said. Regarding the browser, I've noticed that certain areas of webpages are zoomed in more than others. For instance, on xda, the text of people's posts is HUGE compared to the buttons such as User CP, etc. at the top of the page. What I've found is a double tap in my area of interest on a page will zoom the page so that ONLY my area of interest is approriately sized. Then, when I want to switch to another part of the page, I double tap there and the page will resize, and so on. The text does not dynamically reflow a la Android, but I think it's a pretty usable system.
-R

jz9833 said:
Dailer- No smart dialer? This used to even be in my old wizard by default. How it get left out is completely beyond me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There is voice dialing in WP7 not sure what you mean by smart dialer???

rruffman said:
There is voice dialing in WP7 not sure what you mean by smart dialer???
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
By going to the dailer and being able to spell "MOM" for example on the keys and it would automatically come up with the number for that contact.

jz9833 said:
Also a core application can be considered part of the OS. If you can not uninstall it, it is part of the OS.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Lol, what? No, it's not. It's a stock application distributed with the OS. It is not part of the OS.
By the Logic people can say "Android is buggy because the GMail client is buggy." or "Windows Mobile is buggy because the Opera Browser HTC bundled with the HD2 is buggy." or "Linux is full of bugs because the KDE in that distro is buggy as hell."
Every OS comes with a set of stock applications, but they are just that, and are usually updatable independent of installing a new kernel or driver stack on the device.
In any case, I've already said I agree that the lack of landscape mode is an issue.
I just wanted to make that distinction, because lots of people on this forum are incapable of doing it themselves.

N8ter said:
Lol, what? No, it's not. It's a stock application distributed with the OS. It is not part of the OS.
By the Logic people can say "Android is buggy because the GMail client is buggy." or "Windows Mobile is buggy because the Opera Browser HTC bundled with the HD2 is buggy." or "Linux is full of bugs because the KDE in that distro is buggy as hell."
Every OS comes with a set of stock applications, but they are just that, and are usually updatable independent of installing a new kernel or driver stack on the device.
In any case, I've already said I agree that the lack of landscape mode is an issue.
I just wanted to make that distinction, because lots of people on this forum are incapable of doing it themselves.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I still completely disagree with you. Froyo for Android made plenty of browser updates so would you say that wasn't a OS update?
I like most people consider stock apps part of the OS

jz9833 said:
I still completely disagree with you. Froyo for Android made plenty of browser updates so would you say that wasn't a OS update?
I like most people consider stock apps part of the OS
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Agree. Basically system is made of apps.
If email app built into it is buggy, we can say OS is buggy.

jz9833 said:
I still completely disagree with you. Froyo for Android made plenty of browser updates so would you say that wasn't a OS update?
I like most people consider stock apps part of the OS
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Doesnt meam ur right and most people are ignorant in os design and the diff between an os and an app distributed with said os.
Obviously...
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App

N8ter said:
Doesnt meam ur right and most people are ignorant in os design and the diff between an os and an app distributed with said os.
Obviously...
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
then you are going to have to disagree with almost all people. This isn't a techy vs jock debate. These are apps which are built into the os and therefore part of the os.
But anyway this thread is meant for objective evaluation of WP7. If you want to continue this debate we should continue it somewhere else.

jz9833 said:
By going to the dailer and being able to spell "MOM" for example on the keys and it would automatically come up with the number for that contact.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can use search in the people hub for something very similar. Admittedly not an exact substitute but it works well enough for me.

jz9833 said:
I have been a long time WM user and recently switched to android for the past year. I am offering my take on WP7 on the pros on cons.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Good post
jz9833 said:
USB Storage Device- glaring admission, but I can kind of see why. It helps stop piracy, but I loved being able to hook my fuze / tilt 2 / nexus 1 / vibrant to my car stereo and play the music I had downloaded on my phone.
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Click to collapse
How does this increase piracy? If the files you buy on Zune are locked down they can still do this even if there is a common store of files accessible as usb mass storage. Either by drm or by using isolated storage for those files.
jz9833 said:
Local Outlook Support- I knew this before hand, but I am in the crowd that says MS needs to add this ability.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you do it this way, then you are working with two sets of data (email, calendar, tasks, contacts, etc.) neither of which is guaranteed to be up to date. I don't see why people think this is preferable to a server-based system.
jz9833 said:
I will not buy that this phone is for dumb smart phone users.
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Click to collapse
Hopefully this will be true; I will keep my fingers crossed. Currently, as I see it, they are targeting people who don't understand what files are, and would be confused by files, and who believe that music consists of songs arranged by artists into albums. I.e. the dumb mass market.

CSMR said:
How does this increase piracy? If the files you buy on Zune are locked down they can still do this even if there is a common store of files accessible as usb mass storage. Either by drm or by using isolated storage for those files.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The cintent u purchase in zune have no drm..... The piracy statement is legit.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App

though given you just purchased for your zune account, you can then access it on zune desktop, and burn discs from there. so no necessarily correct.
however, what i think of a common storage area is a good idea. just have it so that the pictures, videos, music, documents are in a folder view for when you plug the phone into your PC. it would really only require a bit of mapping within the OS to make it look like a storage unit. Even if it was just more restricted down to just the documents section, that's still something. better than nothing imo as i don't have access to skydrive at work. but aye, i can live with it, it's not going to make me want to return the phone.

The Gate Keeper said:
though given you just purchased for your zune account, you can then access it on zune desktop, and burn discs from there. so no necessarily correct.
however, what i think of a common storage area is a good idea. just have it so that the pictures, videos, music, documents are in a folder view for when you plug the phone into your PC. it would really only require a bit of mapping within the OS to make it look like a storage unit. Even if it was just more restricted down to just the documents section, that's still something. better than nothing imo as i don't have access to skydrive at work. but aye, i can live with it, it's not going to make me want to return the phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Its 2001, people pirate with digital media. Cd piracy may still be hip in the third world, but I haven't operated a cd player in years (or used my computer to play one), much less bought or burned one.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App

N8ter said:
Its 2001, people pirate with digital media. Cd piracy may still be hip in the third world, but I haven't operated a cd player in years (or used my computer to play one), much less bought or burned one.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
how about an MP3 cd? to play in your car? to lend to a friend? or your USB stick? as soon as it's available on zune desktop you have a copy of it... there is plenty ways around it. i'm not saying you should do it, i'm saying the possibilities are there.

N8ter said:
The cintent u purchase in zune have no drm..... The piracy statement is legit.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If the files are not DRMed, and Microsoft wants to protect them, either it can DRM the files, or it can keep them in isolated storage. The existence of common storage doesn't exclude isolated storage.

official suggestions for WP7 improvements!!

Hi,
I've only just found the official feature suggestion website, it amazes me that so few people have been shouting for the same three things I want to see:
As it's a bit of a search/tag based site, I'm going to link to the three features I thinking EVERYONE should jump on and vote for, and hopefully they'll get some weight behind them:
1. Allow Zune to Analyse WP7 "Space reserved by other devices"
2. Drag and Drop files
3. Device backup
the last one's already got big support, so please spare 3 votes for each of the first two, and ask your friends to do likewise if they agree...
I've linked to these 3, as hopefully this might avoid repeated feature requests for the same thing, and all votes can be concentrated in one place. As people vote, these suggestions will rise to the top of "most recently voted on", and consequently snowball and gather more votes.
The homepage for the feature request forum is here, should you want to request anything else:
Feature requests
If this was a sticky, I might have known about this earlier

I've never experienced that first one; what's the issue?
Device backup would be great. But I think I'd rather see some type of notification center; if you miss a third party app toast notification there's no easy way of knowing which app it was. Also, skype integration would be nice, assuming they integrate skype messaging as a bbm alternative.

Are you kidding, OP?
I've never heard of this "space reserved" issue. I've got a couple movies, tons of songs, tons of videos, tons of apps, and still have 5gb free.
This obsession with drag and drop is reaching critical mass of annoyance. I mean, how hard is it to open up the Zune software?
And device backup? Is that a joke? You can do that any time you want. In the Zune software.
My goodness man. If you're gonna troll this forum please bring your A game.

I actually think it's a good idea to link to that list and make people aware of this.
sure haven't. He sure hasn't acted like a troll. I do not understand why you have to attack him for something he'd like to share. Ok, if you don't like it, but don't make it personal. The "joke" is shared by at least over 1000 other people on the feedback page btw (>4000 votes). If you want to take this to the next level why don't you convince those that it's a joke?
Can you please tell me how you backup everything on your device (apps, app settings, os and media) via the Zune Client?
Not knowing or trying to understand what somebody is saying and then acting like that person is a fool - that is trolling to me.
keep it civil

Troll? Maybe google a bit first, follow the links, or at least research before you throw that out there
Point 1.: If you've not come across the "reserved space" issue then, then I doubt you've ever hooked your WP7 up to several PCs, as it will happen sooner or later if you do.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1104921
The above is my first post on the issue. I had no idea how bad it was going to get from there. In trying to fix the issue by changing sync setting on the 2 PCs I'd used, nearly all of my device is now taken up with "reserved Space".
There are LOTS of posts all over the internet with users having the same issue.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=904321
http://blog.spencen.com/2011/04/05/windows-phone-lsquoreserved-spacersquo.aspx
http://forums.wpcentral.com/windows-phone-7-os-discussion/178895.htm
http://makingwindowseasy.com/2010/03/02/zune-reserved-space/
there are many more, including a massive page on Zuneinsider trying to decipher it:
http://zuneinsider.com/?s=reserved+space
Basically, my WP7 now shows currently as having 200 MB free, with virtually the whole phone taken up by reserve space.
If I "delete all content" from both PCs I've used, this leaves me with between 6GB and 7GB still used in reserved space, and I've certainly not used that with Apps and email (and i don't use GMaps). For a day after Mango update I actually had 13GB reserved space, not bad for a phone with only 8GB
Currently, the only way to sort this is a factory reset. But because the Windows Phone website doesn't work for me, I can't even check to see which Apps are in my history and whether I'd have to manually reinstall them all along with resetting everything else.
So.. brings us to Point 2. Drag and Drop. I hate Zune. I do not want it to sync anything for me automatically anymore. I also want to drag media from a PC without Zune installed, or running Linux, or a Mac. Not too much to ask.
Point 3. Well, point 1 wouldn't be such a major issue if Point 3 existed. If WP6.5 can have a simple backup (even if 3rd party), then why can't Wp7? And choose which to backup from contacts, email, and apps at will.
A simple image backup is going to backup the same issue I'm trying to get rid of.
Hope I'm not trolling too hard here...

i like to have a livetile with a clock like the htc sense
Livetile with a clock

@boma23
Good luck, just remember on this forum talking about WP7 problems = troll
Drag & Drop would be great, this automatic sync drives me nuts too.

It was getting dark in the cave, so I came back to add this one:
Make Windows Phone a 1st class citizen in Windows
Rather ambiguously titled, but this one combines a few of my suggestions, and also already has quite a lot of support and is appearing on the front page of the forum anyway. Please add 3 votes

I think I have a few
* Add Support For Gtalk, mxit, and Nimbuz in the messaging hub. Believe it or not, but these are leading chat networks in both India and Africa by both Businesses and individuals.
* Add Support for Other Bluetooth devices. I want to be able to receive VCard Contacts from other phones as well as send them. If my PC can connect to other phones then why not my WP7??? Its anoying!!!
* Add Dedicated storage area to be used as FLASH Storage, so i can transfer files between PCs that do not have Zune
* Lastly Can someone do some thing about this interface??? the start menu idea is good and by all means should be carried forward. But I want to be able to customize it more say may be have 5 columns of icons. The menu should have a back ground etc. The back ground could be my wall paper, so i don't have to lock my phone to see how cool my wall paper looks.
---------- Post added at 04:37 PM ---------- Previous post was at 04:23 PM ----------
boma23 said:
Troll? Maybe google a bit first, follow the links, or at least research before you throw that out there
Point 1.: If you've not come across the "reserved space" issue then, then I doubt you've ever hooked your WP7 up to several PCs, as it will happen sooner or later if you do.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1104921
The above is my first post on the issue. I had no idea how bad it was going to get from there. In trying to fix the issue by changing sync setting on the 2 PCs I'd used, nearly all of my device is now taken up with "reserved Space".
There are LOTS of posts all over the internet with users having the same issue.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=904321
http://blog.spencen.com/2011/04/05/windows-phone-lsquoreserved-spacersquo.aspx
http://forums.wpcentral.com/windows-phone-7-os-discussion/178895.htm
http://makingwindowseasy.com/2010/03/02/zune-reserved-space/
there are many more, including a massive page on Zuneinsider trying to decipher it:
http://zuneinsider.com/?s=reserved+space
Basically, my WP7 now shows currently as having 200 MB free, with virtually the whole phone taken up by reserve space.
If I "delete all content" from both PCs I've used, this leaves me with between 6GB and 7GB still used in reserved space, and I've certainly not used that with Apps and email (and i don't use GMaps). For a day after Mango update I actually had 13GB reserved space, not bad for a phone with only 8GB
Currently, the only way to sort this is a factory reset. But because the Windows Phone website doesn't work for me, I can't even check to see which Apps are in my history and whether I'd have to manually reinstall them all along with resetting everything else.
So.. brings us to Point 2. Drag and Drop. I hate Zune. I do not want it to sync anything for me automatically anymore. I also want to drag media from a PC without Zune installed, or running Linux, or a Mac. Not too much to ask.
Point 3. Well, point 1 wouldn't be such a major issue if Point 3 existed. If WP6.5 can have a simple backup (even if 3rd party), then why can't Wp7? And choose which to backup from contacts, email, and apps at will.
A simple image backup is going to backup the same issue I'm trying to get rid of.
Hope I'm not trolling too hard here...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
boma23, you should kno better than to plug your device into multiple PCs, let alone sync with them. The WP7 is designed to be a hand held version of your PC, and since every PC is different (System Locale, Time Zone, Registry, Zune Settings, etc) there is bound to be a problem. Though luck for you will have to reset your device. So never do it again there after.
File Backup and Drag-n-Drop would be cool indeed

I expected smart /T9 dialer to be a popular request, but it has less than 100 votes (across different requests). I guess an app can fix this, but when WM had it as an OS feature, I don't understand why WP team thought it was unnecessary.
USB outlook sync, without cloud/exchange etc, is my biggest wish. seems there is some interest for that feature.

TED906 said:
---------- Post added at 04:37 PM ---------- Previous post was at 04:23 PM ----------
[/COLOR]
boma23, you should kno better than to plug your device into multiple PCs, let alone sync with them. The WP7 is designed to be a hand held version of your PC, and since every PC is different (System Locale, Time Zone, Registry, Zune Settings, etc) there is bound to be a problem. Though luck for you will have to reset your device. So never do it again there after.
File Backup and Drag-n-Drop would be cool indeed
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That is utter crap! Why should he know better? What about people with multiple PC's? Say a desktop, laptop and possibly a work laptop too. Why should we only be able to use our phone with one PC? I plug my htc 7 pro into both my PC and laptop but luckily I havn't came across this problem yet. But I have seen many posts about it and Microsoft need to fix the issue.
A way to copy music, pics and video to the device without Zune would be great. Some of my music is hard to find in Zune. But it would be much better to allow WMP to sync with the device. Then I could just drag a music folder over to it and sync that way. Exactly the same way as I used to with Windows Mobile.
Apart from the lack of bluetooth file transfer, and even thats not a biggy for me. I very pleased with WP7.5 even more so now my 7 Pro has wi-fi tethering

A battery percentage tile would be awesome imo

scoobysnacks said:
A battery percentage tile would be awesome imo
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Check this out if you like the idea of a battery tile:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1328730

Multiple text message selection like you can with the email. Landscape support for homescreen and throughout OS. Led notification a standard on all devices. Forward button in browser, better yet a better laid out browser. One button access to dialer keypad instead of two. Should be able to access a mini menu when u press the drop down notification for the sig al bar WiFi and battery to have quick access to toggle or more info. That's just a few. I know it's more but that's off the dome
Sent from my Venue Pro using XDA Windows Phone 7 App

I'm guessing the "know better than syncing across multiple devices" thing was sarcasm
I've just thought of another - we need the keybpard API releasing so we can use SWYPE again in WM... I think I miss that app more than anything else since 7 came out