X30 with a lobotomy

[rogerfgay]

Modifying the AJAX application for IE on Windows Mobile 2003 turned out to be a major chore. I'm not seeing the support for http requests that were promised in the MSDN blog. I'd probably get it one day if I kept at it ... oddly enough, there's even a major problem detecting the browser version ... which is critical. Microsoft continued labeling IE versions 4 and up as version 4. ... You don't see that as a normal user -- I mean when scripts are used in a web page to automatically detect the browser version.

This is really a strange world. I tried installing the Opera browser for Windows Mobile 2003 ... automatic version detection told me it was also Microsoft Internet Explorer, version 4.

OK ... so, I looked at Mozilla's browser for Pocket PC and it said it works for Windows Mobile versions 4.2 and 5. Well, I'm still new to this particular world ... so at first I just moved on. I have Windows Mobile 2003. Then it occurred to me that I'd never heard of Windows Mobile 4. I checked my Pocket PC and it says I have Windows Mobile 2003, version 4.2 ....

OK, so rightly or wrongly I tried it and it worked. My AJAX application also worked without modification.

So I'm running real standard AJAX on the X30 ... will miracles never cease? It is so far limited to Mozilla for Pocket PC; also known as Minimo. (Sometimes called Firefox for Pocket PC. Firefox is built from Mozilla.)

Bad news is it's rumored that Minimo is no longer being supported. But I'm not sure I care so much; at least so far as this is concerned. By the time this app reaches the market, the X30 could be obsolete ... partially or completely because Microsoft isn't upgrading the software for the device.

But for the moment, I can use the X30 and Minimo for further testing and demonstrations. That's all I needed at this point anyway.

[Mahstah]

Very interesting observations rogerfay, thanks for sharing!

[rogerfgay]

The circle is now complete.

After what I've been through, it seems like a quote from Darth Vader is an appropriate way to start, but this post could as easily have started "My toothpick days are at an end."

A friend sent me this refurbished X30 ... the one that has been the subject of all my posts. It came without a battery, cable, recharger, or stylus. Getting a replacement battery was a saga in itself. One was sent all around the US (via UPS) for a couple of weeks before the order was cancelled. (I'm not in the US ... would someone please look for all websites that sell things online that allow you to enter the name of another country and then still demand that you select a US state!!!) I finally got a battery from The Netherlands after signing up for a new bank service to complete the online transaction.

Today, the back-ordered 3-pack of styli finally showed up from Dell. It came in an oversized box that appeared empty when first opened. The prize was partially hidden under a flap at the bottom.

So now my toothpick days are at an end. The X30 runs. It connects to the PC by cable and communicates by wireless. I can even run an AJAX application well with the recently installed Opera browser.

Life is good.

[dna]

As a side note, the X30 Styli are very hard to get these days. I ordered a 3 pack from Dell for another person here at the company and had to get specialists to get them for me. Supply is limited and there is no going back.
Moral, hold on to your Stylus.

[rogerfgay]

I'm pretty sure that the extras I got will sit in the box beneath the foam packing for the X30 until they're dug up by archeologists in the year 3000 and put into a museum somewhere. Isn't one enough?

[dna]

Sure, you only need one untill you lose it : p

[Pedah]

LOL, you know I find it very easy to just leave them on the desk at work,get home and Doh. I got extras stashed on desk at home And have found it quite handy.

[rogerfgay]

Stylus watch, week 4: I still have three.

[dna]

Lol. Post again in another 50 weeks.

[rogerfgay]

I know you won't choose to believe it: but this is the third time on my machine. I've had very serious problems with my computer after installing Microsoft ActiveSync. Uninstalled: problems disappear. If you like ActiveSync and are not experiencing problems -- good for you. If you have serious problems that do not seem to have another explanation - disruptions in Bluetooth operations, difficulties shutting down .... you might not have to reinstall the whole operating system. Be suspicious of Microsoft ActiveSync.