Noob getting Axim some dumb questions

[Spaceman Spiff]

Hi, Merry Christmas to all.

I ordered myself a X51V for Christmas and eagerly awaiting it arrival. Now that I am waiting I am starting to come up with many questions. Here now are the first of many dumb questions.

Are pocket PC's susceptible to viruses? Is so what antivirus program should I get?

To view movies on the Axim, what software do you use to convert a DVD to PDA viewable? Are there any copy right issues in doing this?

I am getting a 2G SD card and a 4G CF card. Is this sufficient? Any issues with this?

If I want to install/load programs such as Adobe Reader do I have to fist install them on my PC then transfer them to the Axim via the sync?

Any pointers will be greatly appreciated.

Cheers

Spiff

[dahawthorne]

There are no dumb questions. Even super-moderators started off knowing nothing... :-)

Viruses - I know that Mahstah, who seems to be The Man in this group, has already said that an anti-virus is an unnecessary waste of space and processing power. I have not heard of any PPC viruses, but I'm a relatively new user myself.
Movies - I use CloneDVD Mobile (payable) to rip DVDs and Pocket Divx Encoder (free) to cut down AVIs to a sensible PPC size. I use TCPMP (Core Player) to play back. You will probably have problems ripping copyrighted DVDs, but that's not PPC-specific.
Cards - I have an 8GB CF and a 4GB SD, and both are pretty well full, though that's purely for my convenience in not having constantly to delete and copy stuff. A DVD rips down to about 400MB or less, so your 6GB is plenty. The maxim "buy the biggest you can afford" is probably good advice.
Installations - some programs are in PC exe format, in which case you install on the PC via ActiveSync. Others are in cab format - I have a Temp directory on my PPC, and use ActiveSync to copy the cab file to Temp, then simply tap on the cab file to run the install. I delete the cab file after installation to free up space.

It's all easier than you fear... After a few years with Palm, which decides for itself where it will dump stuff, it's a delight for me to work with an OS which actually gives you a bit of control.
Hope this helps.

[Bugman]

check out pocket Adobe reader 2.0. It's pretty good. I only rarely use it on the axim because it runs a bit slow. But it is free, and useful if you're in a pinch to check on a document. Also displays graphics, which will not work if you try clearview pdf viewer on the axim.

you install this one by using an active sync connection to your PC, and installing the software on the PC.

[Spaceman Spiff]

Thanks for the replies.

Now that I have the Axim the dumb questions will becoming out at fast and furious pace.

What is the best setting to view IE pages when browsing the internet? Is there a "page not displayed" message prompt when ever you can't load a web page. The reason I ask is it seems on certain pages it load then screen just stays white with no message stating errors.

Also do you find that there are some buttons(icons) that dont display on the mobile pc but on the regular XP explorer they load ok?

I use hotmail as my primary email. If an image is attached to the email does it normally display? Can you open attachments?

Thanks in advance

Spiff

[Bugman]

I would strongly suggest you spend the $20 and get the Opera browser - then never use pocket internet explorer again. Opera will allow you to use tabbed browsing, which you cannot do in pocket internet explorer. It will also show you pages much more as they were intended - correcting all of those things that seem to be missing when you view a page in IE. Give it a try first - you can download a trial version that is fully functional but time limited. You'll not go back to IE again.

8.60 is the latest version. go here

[Spaceman Spiff]

Thanks for the info folks. For the second round of dumb questions:

Is it possible to rearrange the order of favorites in internet explorer?

When is it safe to disconnect after a sync? Once the wheel stops spinning?

I have tried changing the settings on brightness ie: remain on for 30 seconds. It will stay on for 30 secs until I shut the Axim down and then it goes back to the default, Is this normal or am I doing something wrong?


Thanks in advance

Spiff

[Mahstah]

Hi Spaceman-

1. You may not arrange the order of favorites in PIE. As Bugman suggested, a third party browser is much better. Opera is the best one (IMO) but there are others like minimo, a free mozilla browser. Minimo is a bit slow from my experience.

2. You may disconnect at any point safely before, during, or after an sync.

3. What ROM version are you at?

[Spaceman Spiff]

Thanks again for the replies. I am running ROM version A12. I will check out opera. Is Java available for the pocket pc? Can you download or view attachments with email (hotmail)?

Cheers
Jon

[Bugman]

there is download capability with opera. For example, if you view a website with video, you can click on the video and it will download to your axim, then can be played.

Don't know if it may be possible with some tweaking, but java does not work on my setup. Just tried to view the demos at http://www.java.com, and no-go on my axim with opera.

likewise, adobe flash animations do not seem to work.
http://pageperso.aol.rf/marcbrecy/deanmartin.html is a good test for that - check it out (very funny)

But I'd rather use a real computer for things like that. For reading and responding to email (hotmail, yahoo), viewing this site, and even making purchases, opera is more than adequate.

[Spaceman Spiff]

Thanks for help once again guys. I just tried opera and I really like it. I will more than likely buy it once my trial period is over. A couple of opera questions for you now :-).

In regards to my previous question, is there a way to see email attachments such as pdf or doc files and download them in opera?

I know how to set favorites in opera but how do you retrieve them? Do you use tools, then manage bookmarks? Is it because I am using a trial version there is no direct access to favorites?

Cheers

Jon