[Touch HD Windows Mobile ROM Development] cerato:
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Back to IndexHow to Speed Up Your Memory Card

* To speed up your precious memory card, just copy this CAB-file (tnyynt SD TuneUP.cab) to your phone and install it. Apparently, Windows Mobile isn't configured properly by default to take full advantage of memory cards, and the CAB is the remedy for that. It is made by tnyynt, a moderator over at xda-developers. The most accurate thread I could find for it is located here.

Back to Index Installing .NET 3.5 For Better Performance

The .NET Compact Framework is required in order to run most programs on Windows Mobile. However, even though version 3.5 has been available since early 2008, version 2 of the .NET Compact Framework is the one most commonly (and solely) installed on new devices (as of late 2008). Why manufacturers do not pre-install version 3.5 remains somewhat of a puzzle, because the new release offers a number of improvements and has full backwards compatibility. Furthermore, some WM 6.1 software even require v3.5 of the compact framework to run. So grab your copy below if you don't have it already!

* Download .NET Compact Framework, unRAR the archive and copy the CAB-file to your phone and install.

* While you're at it, get the Compact Framework 3.5 powertoy (.Net Configuration) as well! It gives you full control over .NET CF on your device: it allows you to see installed versions, lets you select which programs uses which version of CF, and you can also change the entire device policy for .NET.

Back to IndexMaking the Pop-Up Menus More Finger-Friendly

One of the objections I have against Windows Mobile 6.1 is that for a touchscreen OS, it's surprisingly hard to touch things! Sure, Microsoft has listened to reason and are moving towards a more finger-friendly approach with WM 6.5 that has no need for a silly stylus. Until then, however, you can improve the current situation by enlarging the pop-up menus. You could do this manually via the registry, but I recommend you use one of the tweaking tools:

* From Advanced Config: Tap on User Interface/Popup menu font size and select 'Large' or a custom value. I use 1250 on my WVGA 3" Xperia.

* For tips on how to make your device even more finger-friendly, head over to the User-Interfaces & Modifications section.

Back to IndexGetting Rid of Busy Tone Going Through Speakers

On many WM 6.1 devices, the busy tone is blasted out through the speakers. That's one in a series of slightly bizarre Windows Mobile details. Why, oh mighty giant Microsoft, would you want a phone to behave so mischievously? It could hurt your ear since it's right next to the speakers, it's annoying, it's illogical, it's meaningless. I'd say the verdict is that the quirk needs to be removed, for the good of all mankind! This is how to do it.

* Enter HKEY_CURRENT_USER/ControlPanel/Sounds/BusyTone with your favorite registry editor

* To kill the busy tone altogether, remove the text (default is "apr") from the Script entry, but do not delete the entire entry.

* You can also change the Sound value to a less loud and intrusive wav-file. It must be located in the Windows-folder.

* Change the Script value to ap for the tone to only play once.

Back to IndexTweaks For Optimized Performance

* There are a number of things you could do to increase the overall performance of your phone. But the quickest and easiest way would probably be to take advantage of the utilities: import this .provxml-file in Advanced Config - it contains a set of tweaks. Copy it to your device, then launch Advanced Config, select Menu in the lower right-corner and finally "Import provisioning XML". Locate the file and tap Select. The performance tweaks are compiled by a Norwegian WinMo haxor roxor, itje, who is a prominent figure at xda-developers and "chews memory cards for breakfast".

* Anonther convenient way to improve the speed of your handset is to run SKTools (there's a free, "lite" version available), select Optimize!, tap Action in the lower-left corner, make sure "Performance" is selected then tap Optimize! in the top of the menu. Let the program softreset your phone and you're done!

* For further reading on the topic, check out this thread at XDA.

Back to IndexPersonalize Your Phone: Change the Boot Screen

This have nothing to do with the functionality of your handset, but hey: why not change the standard WM boot screen to a personal image that puts a smile on your face? I always like to make my phone unique and my very own, in as many ways possible. So, this is how you replace the boot screen:

* The image file in question is called welcomehead.192.png and it is located in the Windows-folder. It's in the PNG format. One could think that the size of the boot screen image would be the same as the resolution of the device. But on the WVGA (480x800) Xperia, the dimensions are 800x800 pixels.

* If you have a WVGA device, you have the option to download my boot screen template and customize it in an image editor on your PC. Please note that you can only use the first 480 horizontal pixels, but all 800 vertical. Cut and paste, or draw something new. Make sure you save the image in the original PNG format. You can also locate welcomehead.192.png in the Windows-folder, copy it to your computer and edit the image to your liking (remember to remove the read-only attribute).

* Now it's time to overwrite the original boot screen with your modified version. You will have to use a third-party file manager like Total Commander or Resco Explorer, since the image is part of the Windows ROM and protected by the system. Just transfer the changed image to your phone, locate it with the file manager and then copy it to the Windows-folder. Select Yes if asked to overwrite. The next time you start your phone, you'll see your new boot screen.

Back to IndexHow to Add an ALT+TAB Feature

Something I really missed from my Symbian S60 device when I got the Xperia, was a quick and simple way to switch between running applications. Of course, WinMo has a task manager - but I prefer the Symbian way where you can get a list of active programs (and switch between them) with the simple press of a hardware button. To me, that's faster and more convenient. Unfortunately, Microsoft in their infinite wisdom didn't provide a way to do the same thing on Windows Mobile. Third-party software to the rescue! A requirement for this to work is naturally that your device has a hardware button free to assign. In my opinion, two of the best tools for improving task management on Windows Mobile is SPB Pocket Plus and Wisbar Advance.

There's also a free version of Wisbar (Lite), but SPB Pocket Plus costs a few bucks. Among other things, Wisbar allows you to see all running applications in the taskbar (like on XP), switch between them with a quick tap and skin many elements of the UI. Getting the most out of Wisbar Advance is somewhat of a science (I guess it would fall under the category bloatware), though the massive amount of settings provide great possibilities. I suggest you learn by playing around with it. This tool is mainly for power users and not suited for everyone, I guess. I have also encountered quite a few bugs when using it, and there's some compability conflicts between Wisbar and the HTC system applications. So if unsure, I recommend that you use SPB Pocket Plus which is described here:

* Download Pocket Plus and install the tool with all the options checked.

* Enter Settings/Personal/Buttons and tap < Add buttons... >

* Press the button you want to assign to the task switcher. You may also long hold a button, so that two separate actions can be assigned to a single button - depending on if you press and hold down the button or just press it. For the ALT+TAB feature, I use a long press on the OK-button.

* The button you pressed will now appear in the list of buttons. For the OK-button, it will look like this: OK Button < Default >, OK Button (Hold) < Default >. From the list, select the button you want to use and choose ALT-TAB in the "Assign a program" drop-down list at the bottom of the screen.

* Tap ok and you're done!

* You may also experiment with AE Button Plus

Back to IndexMaking the OK-Button Actually Shut Down Programs

* I will try to make this brief for a change: If you don't have SPB Pocket Plus in your software arsenal, download and install the tool with all the options checked. Trust me, it's worth the dough.

* Enter Settings/Personal/Buttons, tap < Add buttons... > and press the OK button - then press and hold it. Tap Done (Left Softkey).

* It will now look something like this. Under "Assign a program", select the command [Close]. All finished! Now the OK-button will shut down the active program and not keep it running in the background.