Experts Online

PocketGear Closing It's Doors

Ben Stanley — Tue, 04 Mar 2008 10:00:13 -0600

As reported in this article, PocketGear is about to shut its doors forever and its parent company, Motricity, is moving its operations from my current home state of North Carolina to Washington State.

New Website: My World of Handhelds

Ben Stanley — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 17:07:46 -0600

Several mobile device enthusiasts, including our own Eric Pankoke, have created a new website called My World of Handhelds. The site covers mobile devices of all types, including Windows Mobile devices. Look for mobile news, reviews, hardware profiles, as well as information about up and coming developers in the future.

5 Rules of Email Etiquette

Ben Stanley — Sun, 10 Feb 2008 13:36:48 -0600

The rise of email and other forms of instant electronic communication has eroded our respect for many of the conventions that we traditionally adhered to when writing paper letters and has introduced several new bad habits into the way we communicate with one another on a daily basis. Those of us who use mobile devices to communicate are especially susceptible to bad email habits because the size limitations of these devices encourage lazy habits and because mobile device users tend to be busy, always-on-the-go types.

In response to this phenomenon, I've decided to compile 5 rules of email etiquette.

Nanobotz: A New Twist on a Familiar Game

Ben Stanley — Thu, 07 Feb 2008 17:54:27 -0600

The developers over at MoreGames Entertainment consistently create games of the highest quality. Thankfully, they don't waste their abundant talents creating sudoku clones or solitaire collections. Instead, all of their games are either original, first of their kind for the platform, or refreshingly new takes on old staples.

Their latest game, Nanobotz, continues this tradition by building on the familiar artillery duel subgenre.

Favorite Cool Windows Mobile Apps

Ben Stanley — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 20:39:04 -0600

Unlike fellow blogger Mike Riley, I had a lot of difficulty deciding what my favorite "cool" applications for Windows Mobile were. For starters, I'm still not entirely sure what the term "cool app" means. After giving it a few minutes' consideration, I've decided to focus on those applications that supplement Windows Mobile's core functions. In other words, the list that follows includes those applications which I believe perform indispensable functions that Windows Mobile itself would provide in a perfect world. Microsoft has already lost those who only care about prettiness to the iPhone (good riddance!). The core of Windows Mobile users have always consisted of power users who need and demand functionality, not glitter.

Revival: Finally a Civilization-Like Game for Windows Mobile!!!

Ben Stanley — Sun, 06 Jan 2008 13:33:40 -0600

There have always been a few gaping voids in the field of games available for the Windows Mobile platform. One of the most striking is the lack of turn-based 4x games in the tradition of Sid Meier's groundbreaking Civilization series. I've been calling attention to this omission for as long as I've been playing Windows Mobile games (as can be seen in this post from almost two years ago, for example).

Finally, though, finally, a Civilization-like game has arrived for Windows Mobile devices! I was so excited when I heard about Revival that I could barely contain myself. I couldn't resist the opportunity to take a break from the break I've been taking and write a review. And while not without its flaws, I'm glad to be able to report that Revival definitely delivers for the most part.

I'm Taking a Break...

Ben Stanley — Fri, 16 Nov 2007 16:15:41 -0600

After following the Windows Mobile scene for several years and contributing to it via my blog here and my old blog Pocket PC Gems, I've decided to take an extended break from blogging. There is more than one reason for this decision but one contributing factor is that I just had a really annoying experience with Verizon Wireless.

I've clung to the WM2003SE operating system for years but when I saw the Samsung SCH-i760 I thought that now might be the time to finally switch to a WM6 device. I joined a forum on the SCH-i760, read countless reviews, etc. and went into my local Verizon store to try to figure out how much it would cost to take an SCH-i760 home with me...

Several weeks and several conflicting answers later and I still don't have anything to show for it.

Read on if you want to hear more (but I don't blame you if you don't)...

The Technological Dumb Down Continues...

Ben Stanley — Fri, 09 Nov 2007 10:23:55 -0600

As technology proliferates, the entire industry is increasingly struggling to balance ease-of-use and usability on the one hand with power and functionality on the other.

A quick glance at the criticism leveled at any modern computing platform bares the truth of this assessment. While supporters of Windows Vista point to its "eye candy" innovations, detractors point to the fact that it is only a partially functional, less stable version of XP rife with software and hardware incompatibilities. Critics of recent Linux distributions--long the exclusive realm of ubergeeks--allege that attempts to lure users away from other operating systems have led to its watering down to absurd levels.

Perhaps the most succinct statement of the problem came from the creator of Linux himself, who in 2005 said of Gnome, a particular variety of Linux desktop environment, the following:

This 'users are idiots, and are confused by functionality' mentality of Gnome is a disease. If you think your users are idiots, only idiots will use it. I don't use Gnome, because in striving to be simple, it has long since reached the point where it simply doesn't do what I need it to do.

The balancing act between usability and power is an unavoidable dilemma in this area, but I would argue that the pendulum has swung too far towards usability at the cost of power and continued advancement. I have demonstrated this phenomenon previously with respect to Windows Mobile hardware. In the current post, I argue that this trend also manifests itself in the way that phone companies and mobile software vendors market themselves to consumers, with similar results: technological innovation is stifled and the consumer remains uneducated.

Cell Phone Consumer Empowerment Act of 2007

Ben Stanley — Thu, 25 Oct 2007 11:36:22 -0500

On September 7th, Senator Klobuchar (D-MN) introduced Senate Bill 2033, entitled the "Cell Phone Consumer Empowerment Act of 2007"). If enacted, this bill would do a number of things that would impact cell phone users in the United States, including users of Windows Mobile phones.

DukWite Goes Commercial

Ben Stanley — Tue, 23 Oct 2007 17:14:36 -0500

A few weeks ago, Developer Pocket New released a commercial version of their popular freeware title DukWite.

Read on for a comparison of the two versions and find out if this game is worth paying for.