[MDA III, XDA III, PDA2k, 9090 Software Upgrading] Chef_Tony:
you are misunderstanding some things again, but don't worry, that happens to a lot of people when it first comes to the extrom.

you don't really "need" the sd card, you can live perfectly without any extrom, you can copy all the cab files to your device and install them then. all the extrom does, is install a few programs automatically, and of course that is purely optional.

same thing about the comparison of sun_dream and xplode. xplode offers a great extrom, that contains office (word excel powerpoint) and internet explorer with flash support and also some other tiny programs like marketplace, automatic data settings, remote desktop and so on, but you can use the same extrom for sun_dream's rom or take sun_dream's one (if there is one, i don't know) with xplode's rom, or you download both, extract them, and pick the programs to install, yourself.

you are not forced to do anything there.

and that is why you don't really need an sd card, but may i ask: don't you have an sd card? a 2gb card is like 3eur. that should be nothing to keep you from enjoying the full power of your device.

the rom itself is stored in the device, no need for an sd card, and once you hard reset, you also don't need an sd card. the only thing you are missing out on, is the automated install of programs, which does not keep you from installing them yourself.

i know all this seems complicated, but that is partly because this is all very theoretical for you. let me make this clear by posting some things of my own.

i build my extrom myself based on xplode's 21202 extrom offered with the rom (and yes, that extrom will work with any rom)

i attached a screenshot of the contents of my extrom folder.

as you see there is nothing mystical about that.

there are:

- a bunch of cabs. those files are installers for programs.

- custom.bmp is a picture, that is shown, while the extrom installed, pure eyecandy, not essential

- autorun.exe makes the whole thing run automatically

- and cfg.txt is a text file, where the installation of those cabs is scripted

to make that a little easier for you, here is the content of the cfg.txt:

LOCK:Enabled
SHOW:\Storage Card\EXTROM\Custom.bmp
CAB: \Storage Card\EXTROM\ADC.cab
CAB: \Storage Card\EXTROM\A2DPFix.cab
CAB: \Storage Card\EXTROM\HTC Large Title Bar.cab
CAB: \Storage Card\EXTROM\HTC_Touch_Calculator_Skin.cab
CAB: \Storage Card\EXTROM\HTC_WMP_Touch_Skin.cab
CAB: \Storage Card\EXTROM\Office_6.1.21202.cab
CAB: \Storage Card\EXTROM\PIE8_Flash3.1_21202.cab
CAB: \Storage Card\EXTROM\pocketrar.cab
CAB: \Storage Card\EXTROM\psShutXP.cab
CAB: \Storage Card\EXTROM\RDM_21202.CAB
CAB: \Storage Card\EXTROM\sipchange.cab
CAB: \Storage Card\EXTROM\skybox.CAB
CAB: \Storage Card\EXTROM\skybox.CAB
CAB: \Storage Card\EXTROM\SMS Delivery Receipt Fix
CAB: \Storage Card\EXTROM\WMWidgets.cab
CAB: \Storage Card\EXTROM\youtubeplay.cab
CAB: \Storage Card\EXTROM\R6.1_21202Fixes.cab
CAB: \Storage Card\EXTROM\blackblue_qvga.cab
CAB: \Storage Card\EXTROM\tcmdpocketarm.cab
CAB: \Storage Card\EXTROM\WkTaskL_1202.cab
LOCK:Disabled
HIDE:Enabled
EXEC: \Windows\DelCDetect.exe
HIDE:Disabled
RST: Reset

the first command lock enabled locks the screen and the keys so you don't accidently abort the installation

show custom.bmp shows the picture during the installation, and then there is the list of cab files, which install one after the other, then the screen and key lock is being disabled again, then in hidden mode the delcdetect is executed, don't worry about that and then the device is soft resetted and all those programs are installed.

that is all the extrom is for, there are a lot of programs i want to use with every rom i use. programs frequently needed for a long time now, and i don't want to sit there for hours and install one programm after the other by hand, copy the cab file to the device, then start the file explorer and install it, press ok, install the next one...

that is way to much work. and that is why i copied all my cab files in that folder called EXTROM\ on an sd card and every cab in that folder must be listed in the cfg.txt file, so the autorun.exe can find it.

and pleeeeease, do me a favour, before asking me, what any of those mentioned cab files are, copy the file name, for example "skybox.cab" and google them first. if you really want to know and there are no search results i can still write you what they are, for a few, maybe.

and yes, if you find any of the above mentioned programs useful, i can atach them here, there is no commercial program in there, so it is not warez for me to share them, they came with various roms, and i collected them.

well, and, did it click? now you should have understood the point of the extrom. and basicly, the sd card you insert in the device. the programs are installed in the device and you won't need the sd card till the next hard reset, and even then the device could run perfectly without sd card or extrom, you are just lacking a few programs then.

i wish you a nice weekend, i hope with the new knowledge you are able to flash your device, and afterwards you will think, "wow, some questions were redundant, it is self-explanatory" :D but don't worry, i don't mind, helping newbies. i was a newbie myself, not even a year ago.

have fun and if there is anything more, over the weekend from time to time i will have a look in the forum and i can help you out then, if anything doesn't work to plan.

and once the job is done, just like my signature says, please consider a small donation, for the coffee i need while writing complex and long explanations and tutorials like this.

cheers

Chef_Tony