Can't help but wonder if Pocket Informant will make it to the apps store, or will they nix it as it 'duplicates existing functionality'...?
Yeah, I don't envy Alex, or any iPhone developer, who will put months of work into an application only to possibly have it possibly be rejected by Apple. Apple, as usual, doesn't play nice with others.
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Who says they want to make WM more consumer-friendly? We do, for sure, but Microsoft doesn't seem to pay much attention to it. The consumer applets built into Pocket PC have stagnated at best as of late. I know you find WMP adequate, but it is a far cry from what other platforms now support, and really has not improved featurewise for a long time (and WMP sync is buggy). Reader is basically ignored now, etc.
Yes, dropping Reader seemed like a bad call. Are .lit books even around now?
As for Windows Media, I'd say that I find it more like "barely adequate". It does what I need mostly (playing MP3 files), but not much else. It can't play AVI files, QuickTime, AAC, etc., which is why my biggest wish is for user codecs.
However, I think when most people talk about making Windows Mobile more consumer-friendly, they're referring to the user interface, not the applications.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Janak Parekh
Well... notice that Microsoft never really got around to adding file sync for Smartphones. (At least, as of WM5. I haven't tried recently, but would be surprised if it was otherwise.)
They added it in WM 6 -- sort of. It only works with Vista and WMDC. If you're using XP and ActiveSync, tough luck, Chuck.
Yeah, I don't envy Alex, or any iPhone developer, who will put months of work into an application only to possibly have it possibly be rejected by Apple. Apple, as usual, doesn't play nice with others.
I call Apple the ultimate control freaks. They have to control your entire experience. That works reasonably well for the things Apple plans the device to be used for, because you get a nice, consistent experience. But if you want to stray beyond what Apple intended, that model breaks down.
However, you'd think Apple would have a process to review ideas for applications, at least. That way developers could write a proposal and get a go/no-go decision up front.
However, you'd think Apple would have a process to review ideas for applications, at least. That way developers could write a proposal and get a go/no-go decision up front.
They don't, and it's stupid and lame. Even Apple fanboys are calling Apple on this one, as it's utterly inexcusable. I would expect Apple to improve this by next year's WWDC, or face a massive outcry and protest at the time. The only thing is, there's such a potential for revenue, that I'm not sure developer response will be coordinated enough.
So, you have Apple and Microsoft at two ends of the mobile spectrum; one that's extremely consumer-focused, but control-crazy; the other seems to care less about the consumer experience at times, but has built an open developer-friendly platform. Time will tell if Android saddles the middle.
However, I think when most people talk about making Windows Mobile more consumer-friendly, they're referring to the user interface, not the applications.
I think it's both. In any case, WM has not improved their UI significantly in years. Ergo the anticipation of WM7.
Quote:
They added it in WM 6 -- sort of. It only works with Vista and WMDC. If you're using XP and ActiveSync, tough luck, Chuck.
Let me share some comments here as a Microsoft employee in the Windows Mobile team.
1. Microsoft is listening, and is aware of the problems with WMDC. Not only do I and many others regularly read these forums, we also have very active internal discussion groups where thousands of MS employees share their thoughts with the Windows Mobile team - very vocally and bluntly.
3. As someone correctly pointed out, this particular sync product is not from the Windows Mobile team. It's from an offshoot of a Windows Live team somewhere else in the world, and unclear to me what that team's charter or priorities are. No Windows Mobile resources are being used on this project to the best of my knowledge. That's not saying that they're wasting their time. Since Microsoft operates in so many markets, sometimes different divisions develop stuff that is relevant for specific users. In some rare cases there may be overlap with existing products, but those get ironed out over time as regional innovations get rolled into bigger products.
4. I can see why it appears our focus has shifted from desktop sync to air sync. Competing with BlackBerry has been one of our biggest priorities for the last couple of releases, which is why air sync seems to be where most of the investments have gone. However, desktop sync certainly isn't dead and there's a lot of work going on to improve it as we speak. We're working on something big and exciting involving media, entertainment and apps to compete with the iPhone. Although I can't share details on this forum, I can say that desktop sync *will* get better.
5. Granted, progress on the next version of Windows Mobile front has been slow....no arguing there. It's frustrating, even to me as a member of the team that makes this stuff. However, realize that the sheer amount of work we're trying to do in this one release is massive. There are so many new features to create, lots of legacy code to port, thousands of 3rd party apps to support, new Live services to integrate, emerging competitors to match, new technologies to adopt, all amidst shifting priorities, that it's bound to be a bit challenging. However, I'm confident that the end product will be worth the wait, and have a strong value proposition for both - business users and consumers.
I'm not sure if this directly answers any of the questions in this thread, but I just wanted to share some perspective and let folks know that we're out here and listening.
-Mel Sampat
(Program Manager in the Outlook Mobile team)
melsam [at] microsoft.com
Last edited by melsam [MS]; 09-30-2008 at 03:41 AM..
Thanks, Mel, for the comments. I find myself with mixed feelings about what you've said, though. I don't know whether to be pleased that you guys do read what we say or even more irritated that you know about how bad our experiences are and do not fix it.
I think the problem I have is reflected in your email. In a couple of places you talk about some great new things you guys are working on. That's great... it really is, but the thing is that the basics are still broken and those things seem to get worse with every release.
I used to be irritated with the unreliability of Activesync under WinXP. I was pleased with the idea of the WM Device Center, since I figured you'd start over from scratch and make it all better. I never imagined that you'd start over from scratch and make it all worse! I can't believe that I have to manually start WMDC to see what is happening with my sync, and then I can't even tell what's wrong if something is wrong. I'm just supposed to guess and change things randomly until it works. WMDC 6.1 is so bad that I have given up syncing my Touch with my Vista computer at home. I just sync with my XP computer at work and leave it at that.
In fact, it's worse than that, because I make it sound like that's okay. It's not; this will only last while my employer continues not to use Vista. As soon as they switch over and WMDC is the only way to sync at work (we don't have exchange), then I'll finally have to give up on WM and move on to something else. I've been using Windows CE based products since the Velo 1 so I have a serious investment in the platform and won't give it up lightly, but what choice do I have? If it doesn't work, then it doesn't work. If you've been reading these forums, you've seen just how many former WM users have preceded me in this move so it's not just a single grumpy user.
Anyway, I've drifted. My point is this. It's all well and good to be working on shiny new features, but if you can't get the basics right, then the rest doesn't matter. Please! Spend some time just getting WMDC to work right. Make it easy to use, transparent as to what's happening and tell us what's wrong if something doesn't work so we have a chance to fix it. That's not too much to ask for.
I'd say it's a safe assumption that if a user is posting in this type of forum, their software is up-to-date
Quote:
Originally Posted by melsam [MS]
...
2. Please ensure you're using the latest version of WMDC (6.1) and the latest Vista patches and SP1. The updated version of WMDC fixes a lot of issues reported initially.
Let me share some comments here as a Microsoft employee in the Windows Mobile team.
4. ...We're working on something big and exciting involving media, entertainment and apps to compete with the iPhone...
5. ... However, realize that the sheer amount of work we're trying to do in this one release is massive. There are so many new features to create, lots of legacy code to port, thousands of 3rd party apps to support, new Live services to integrate, ...
Um...how about releasing a version that fixes existing bugs first? This actually reflects the Microsoft mentality for the past few years: every release needs to have something really, really big. But when you are trying to introduce something really big while fixing bugs, you end up introducing more bugs and problems.
You know, some other companies (like the "fruit company") actually releases many firmware and software updates to just "fix bugs".
LinkBack to this Thread: http://forums.thoughtsmedia.com/f412/bored-windows-mobile-device-center-microsoft-provides-sync-solution-other-devices-90787.html
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