Switching on Ipaq accidentally

[gsim]

I find myself frequently turning the Ipaq on when I carry it around. I believe this is due to the raised button which are easily pressed by accident, even when my flip leather cover is in the closed position. This more than once has led to my draining the battery really low.

Is there a programme which can disable selected buttons from turning the pda on to minimise this risk? I hope to be able to use the "record" button as the on-off switch as it seems the least likely to be pressed by accident.

[Andrew]

Hi - if on the ipaq you go to start - settings - buttons and look in there at the bottom youll see a pull-down menu called button assignment. If you scroll to the top of that menu youll see an option <None>, just assign this to any button you want to disable.

Hope this helps

Andrew

[karinatwork]

On the h1910, just assigning "none" to a hardware button is not enough to stop the device from turning on. The hardware button when pressed will still power up the ppc, but will not launch any program. So I guess your problem is not solved.

If you want to make sure that your pocket pc stays off in your pocket, or doesn't turn on when pressing any button other than the power button, you should have a look at KeyGuard by Elevatestudios.com
http://elevatedstudios.com/pocket/

I use it, and it works ok. It's not perfect, but it's better than a drained battery, or having to switch off 4 programs every time you pull your device out of its holster.

Hope that helps.

Karin

[gsim]

Thanks, Karin. I'm using the Ipaq 3850 and like your 1910, disabling the button does not prevent switching on.

Ill try the keyguard program.

[Unreal32]

I just assigned the button in question to the free PowerOffARM program. So now when I accidentally press the button (for me it's the Record button I constantly press because of my holster) it turns on... but then immediately turns back off :) A simpler workaround and a free one!

Unreal

[karinatwork]

A simpler workaround and a free one!

May I respectfully disagree? :) KeyGuard is a free program, and it makes your life much simpler if you actually plan on using your hardware buttons. You can switch the "protection" on an off from your today screen, so if you want to use the hardware buttons, you don't have to go into the settings and reprogram their use.

But, I have to say that there are two things about KeyGuard that are a little cumbersome to me. First, if you use it, you might have to press your "on" button several times when you want to start up your device, because it seems that the program "remembers" every single accidental push on the disabled hardware buttons, so for every accidental push, you have to push the on button one time, until the device stays on. For me, that is usually a couple of times.

Second, if you copy the program to your Start Up folder, the welcome screen of the application requests some imput (press "OK") before you can use your device after a soft reset. I personally perfer programs that activate themselves automatically after startup (like Wisbar, or Remover).

Since KeyGuard is a FREE program, I accept those little flaws happily. But I have to say that I would be more than happy to pay for the program if those two little "problems" could be eliminated. Then it would be perfect for me.

I guess I am going to drop the developer a line. :)

Karin

[nosmohtac]

I like to use my hardware buttons when the device is on, but I don't want them turning the device on when it is already off.

I use keyguard, but would like to find another option, that doesn't make you have to remember to disable it everytime you turn the device on, and then to remember to enable it again before you turn the device off. The other thing that bothers me about Keyguard is that it doesn't disable the record button on my iPAQ. This is the one that I end up accicentally turning my device on with.

Is there anyone out there with a 3970 iPAQ, that has upgraded to WM2003?
I would like to know if the option to disable hardware buttons was included in the OS. I would gladly get the upgrade for that feature alone.

[WyattEarp]

I'd love to have that feature built-in too but alas it is not part of the WM2003. :(

[Dave Beauvais]

The Windows Mobile 2003 upgrade for my h5455 added a "Lock" tab to the Buttons Settings dialog. This was not present with PPC2002. Checking either of the boxes on this tab prevents those buttons from turning the iPAQ on. I don't know if the WM2003 upgrade for the 3800 series adds this feature or not.

http://www.beauvais1.com/images/ppc/button_lock.gif

[WyattEarp]

:oops: Oops..., my mistake, just read Dave Beauvais' post and found it on my H5555 (just got it a few days ago). Can't beleive I missed that. :?

I would guest it is on all devices containing WM2003 or the upgrade then.

[Janak Parekh]

The Windows Mobile 2003 upgrade for my h5455 added a "Lock" tab to the Buttons Settings dialog. This was not present with PPC2002. Checking either of the boxes on this tab prevents those buttons from turning the iPAQ on. I don't know if the WM2003 upgrade for the 3800 series adds this feature or not.
Just checked; it does not.

Anyway, this is an OEM-supplied feature; most Pocket PC Phones have had such functionality built-in, even with Pocket PC 2002 Phone Edition.

--janak

[nice_micael]

[quote="Dave Beauvais"]The Windows Mobile 2003 upgrade for my h5455 added a "Lock" tab to the Buttons Settings dialog. This was not present with PPC2002. Checking either of the boxes on this tab prevents those buttons from turning the iPAQ on. I don't know if the WM2003 upgrade for the 3800 series adds this feature or not.

quote]

Thanks Dave the tip did wonders for my ipaq.

[nosmohtac]

Great.
I am happy for the 5455 and 5555 users, but is there anyone in the 3970 camp that can verify that this feature was added for WM2003?