What problems do you have with the PPC?

[sublime]

I'm always getting minor things that keep on irking me. Even after a hard reset I get the same problems. Go ahead and rant. I know I will:

Sound automatically goes off - sometimes it just stops working. I click the speaker to check if I muted it by accident, but everything looks fine. I just can't get any sound. A soft reset clears this up
Colored speaker icons - This does affect the sound, but sometimes the icon just turns a different color, like orange, for example. This does not affect the above mentioned problem, but occurs anyways.
Movies - Pocket MVP gives me serious problems with AVI (such as, it just won't play them), as does PictPocket Cinema. The latter does not even play WMV or QT movies like it says it would. I just wind up converting everything to WMV files and playing them with Windows Media Player.
Input - I use Fitaly for input, and have set it for default input option, but the regular keyboard keeps on popping up in its place. It's not an issue, since I wind up switching to Fitaly by clicking the bottom right corner. Sometimes, though, I cannot use any of these options. Any one I select just won't pop up. A soft reset corrects this.
Transcriber/Calligrapher - I can cover the screen in blue before one word gets transcribed.
TodayPlus - Can't get the weather to save my life. I did all I should (entered my city code, city name, and unit of measure), cleared buffer, and got nothing. I tried different skins and got nothing. I soft reset my PPC and got nothing. Phooey.

That's all.

[Ripper014]

Well I can not speak for everyone... but...

My sounds seem to work just fine...

I am not sure what you mean by the colored sound icons.. I created my own and I have not had any issues with them... when they are red the sound is muted... I think thats the way it is suppose to work.

Movies with PocketMVP work just fine. I have yet to watch a whole movie... but encoded correctly I have never had an issue.

I can't comment on Input...

I have Caligraphy but seldom use it... so (no comment)...

Today Plus works great... though I think it may be a bit of a system hog on my Hp2210... but this is just my guess... and I could be wrong. It seems snappier when I do not have it loaded...

So all in all... I guess I am satisfied with my unit except for the occasional lockup... and when my unit will not turn on without a soft reset. Beginning to think I may have a defective unit... or at least one that is not running at 100%... Got my sister a Hp1930 for Xmas... and it is running as fast as mine... if not quicker..

[Ed Hansberry]

Sound automatically goes off - sometimes it just stops working.
Colored speaker icons - This does affect the sound, but sometimes the icon just turns a different color, like orange, for example. This does not affect the above mentioned problem, but occurs anyways.
Movies - Pocket MVP gives me serious problems with AVI (such as, it just won't play them), as does PictPocket Cinema. I have none of tce above issues, but then I have none of the above apps installed. Typically video and sound apps take control of the sound and it could be one of them doing it. As for the speaker changing color - I have never seen that. Again - probably one of the apps above or some kind of skinning tool.
Input - I use Fitaly for input, and have set it for default input option, but the regular keyboard keeps on popping up in its place. It's not an issue, since I wind up switching to Fitaly by clicking the bottom right corner. Sometimes, though, I cannot use any of these options. Any one I select just won't pop up. A soft reset corrects this.
Very strange. I too use Fitaly as my default and in the 2½ years it has supported the "default" SIP option, it has never reverted to the keyboard. This on PPC 2002 iPAQ 3650, 3870, 3970, Jornada 565, Axim X5, WM2003 3970 or 2215.
Transcriber/Calligrapher - I can cover the screen in blue before one word gets transcribed.Have you modified the speed and accuracy? You can speed up the recognition process but it cuts down on accuracy.
TodayPlus - Can't get the weather to save my life. I did all I should (entered my city code, city name, and unit of measure), cleared buffer, and got nothing. I tried different skins and got nothing. I soft reset my PPC and got nothing. Phooey.No clue on that.

It sounds like you have a lot of stuff loaded and always running, which may also be slowing down your handwriting recognition. What is in your Start Up folder?

[Ed Hansberry]

Also, what Today plug ins are installed and which of those are checked?

[Dave Potter]

I am not sure what you mean by the colored sound icons.. I created my own and I have not had any issues with them... when they are red the sound is muted... I think thats the way it is suppose to work.

How did you do that?

[Janak Parekh]

Input - I use Fitaly for input, and have set it for default input option, but the regular keyboard keeps on popping up in its place. It's not an issue, since I wind up switching to Fitaly by clicking the bottom right corner. Sometimes, though, I cannot use any of these options. Any one I select just won't pop up. A soft reset corrects this.
Very strange. I too use Fitaly as my default and in the 2½ years it has supported the "default" SIP option, it has never reverted to the keyboard. This on PPC 2002 iPAQ 3650, 3870, 3970, Jornada 565, Axim X5, WM2003 3970 or 2215.
I had this problem, but never with Fitaly -- with another SIP that came with my iPAQ 3870 (WordLogic perhaps?) In that SIP's case, it was a conflict with the BT stack built into the 3870 -- once you started the BT stack, WordLogic wouldn't "load", and Pocket PC 2002 would pop up the keyboard as a result. Similarly, perhaps you have one app that's conflicting with Fitaly on occasion? Mind you, this is very surprisingly rare -- I've never had this with Fitaly -- but that's my best guess based on your symptoms.

--janak

[Ripper014]

I use the original wisbar... so I created my own buttons...

Ok I have a question for you... can you get a keyboard for your Hp1930 and did it come with a back-up utility...? Ok so its two questions.. I owe you one.

[tanalasta]

Oooo is fitaly hard to learn? I just discovered it!

I agree I hate transcriber. But it's not a problem with having a screen filled with blue (just pause for a second after writing a couple of words if that's your problem). I hate it because i usually get a screen filled with gibberish which i then have to spend heaps of time editing/selecting and correcting. And i'm not about to blame the neatness of my handwriting :P

My gripes with things pocketpc:
Why hasn't microsoft's included programs (file explorer, word etc etc...) come with the functionality of Resco file explorer and textmaker in the first place??? :devilboy:
I hate the included memory manager and the exclusion of a "close" button
Microsoft reader is slow and buggy. I think i have the older version that has a memory leak problem which causes my device to freeze randomly whilst using it - requiring no less than a hard reset. Not only is this annoying but it's not worth me downloading the latest version of MS reader just to read the DRM'ed bible. I forked out for laridian's copy instead :D
For some wierd reason the automatic turn-off timer keeps defaulting back to 3 minutes (battery power) and 5 minutes (external power). It's annoying because i have it set differently as a pocketpc backup takes longer than 3 minutes.
Not a big fan of WMP. It doesn't have many functions, no eQ and the process of converting/transferring mp3's using the desktop version takes forever.
Why do ppc's use so much power and memory compared to palm OS?
I hate the fact that you even have to soft-reset/hard-reset ppc's because of bugs or inherent "screw-ups"...
Pocket IE requires webmasters/designers to optimize their pages for this device and the "fit to screen" function is second-rate at best. Also can't save pictures using Pocket IE and there's no multiple window option. AND it's not IE6 compatible meaning i have trouble viewing certain websites.

That'll do for now ;) can't be bothered straining brain cells on a sunday arvo thinking of things i don't like about ppc. :D

[Dave Potter]

Ok I have a question for you... can you get a keyboard for your Hp1030 and did it come with a back-up utility...?

I assume that you were referring to the 1930/35 and not the 1030 (type-o??)

Keyboard - wireless IR is the only option here other than software based keyboards like SPB FullScreen Keyboard (which I use). I wish I could use a thumb keyboard with it - but alas, the 1930/35 does not have serial support.

Backup - it did not ship with a backup utility. I purchased Sprite's Pocket Backup Premium Edition (a must have)

[sublime]

Startup folder:

BTTrayCE
fe_wa
Pocket Plus
poutlook
VoiceCommand

Today Plug ins (x = checked):
x Date
x PocketMon
x Pocket Plus
x Calendar
Tasks
Owner Info
Inbox
Pocket Quicken

I deleted TodayPlus after having problems with it.

As for Calligrapher, I gave up on it, since I decided that I was going to become the Fitaly Champion of the World, so I only use that as my input method.

A lot of stuff loaded? I won't list all of my programs, but I'm pretty sure that's not the problem. I have 23 and 17MB of free space, and I assume that's a lot of free space, so I don't think it's an issue.

I have nothing skinned. My speaker icon just seems to change color (now it's blue, and thus invisible in the top toolbar, since that is also blue).

I think I'm just cursed by the evil demons of Pocket PC Perdition.

[Janak Parekh]

I have nothing skinned. My speaker icon just seems to change color (now it's blue, and thus invisible in the top toolbar, since that is also blue).
A program in startup has to be doing that. I've never had that issue, on several different Pocket PC 2002 and 2003 devices.

--janak

[Ed Hansberry]

PocketMon? From Sprite software? Uninstall that. I had tons of problems with it on a 2003 device. Don't just uncheck it.

[Eitel]

FYI... TodayPlus won't update the weather and RSS info if your PPC is connected via a proxy server. It needs a direct connection to the internet.

[sublime]

Really? What problems did you have with PocketMon? Is it that bad? Do others complain about it, too?

[Dave Potter]

Try a hard reset and then add your applications one at a time, with some testing in between each install. Once you're satisfied that the application you just installed is working correctly and not affecting the other installed apps, do a backup and then move onto the next app and so on and so forth. If an installation screws things up, restore the most recent backup, skip the troubled app and continue the process.

This systematic approach has served me well in the past with PCs and with my own Pocket PC. It's time consuming, but worth it in the end if it gives you a properly fuctioning PPC. One tip - for backup purposes, use Sprite Pocket Backup and not Activesync backup. Activesync backup is utterly useless.

[Ed Hansberry]

Really? What problems did you have with PocketMon? Is it that bad? Do others complain about it, too?Check out the Pocket Mon forum at http://www.spritesoftware.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=648 . There are other issues too. I just found it to be very buggy and reduce system stability. I kept Sprite Backup and Space Detective.

[sublime]

Wow, thanks for linking me to that. I'll make sure to uninstall it right away.

But I will miss the monitor. Any battery monitor you suggest take its place? I'm thinking Battery Bar, but I'm not sure if that has any problems. Link me to another one of those crisis-hotline forums if it does...

[tsb_hcy]

No problems here on my e805, but the CPU monitor doesn't work. No other problems when it is running, but it doesn't display any info. I don't want that on anyway. However, perhaps it was PocketMon that made my battery meter act funny, not the combination of the UnDead hack and an IME replacement. Supposedly the problems with PocketMon have been identified and a new release of Sprite backup Premium is coming soon.