Windows Vista and XP SP3

In the past year I've bought three new computers for either work or home. In all cases I specified Windows XP Pro, avoiding Windows Vista. IMO Vista offers few added features, and adds bloat and incompatibility with a lot of hardware.

All is not perfect in Windows XP land though. On the first system I tried to install SP3 on I ended up with the BSOD during two attempts. The SP3 install process will back out any changes after a failed install, so I didn't lose anything other than my time. So I've decide to block the SP3 install on the five Windows computers that I take care of. (See Windows Service Pack Blocker Tool Kit.)

More and more I'm thinking of moving to Linux as my desktop/notebook OS of choice. I already know Linux well, I just need to find alternatives to some programs, or run Windows versions in Wine on in a VM. At this point it look promising.

Update: In the end Windows 7 came out, and it just worked. I never bought or used a computer with Windows Vista on it.

Verizon and GPS

Well, it has been about six months now and the BlackBerry 8830WE is working fine. No significant problems, though I wish there were a viable alternative to syncing it to Outlook. (I also had problems during a firmware update, but that is probably due to my impatience.)

However, there is one BIG annoyance. Verizon has chosen to hold the built-in GPS receiver hostage. They will only let you use it is you pay $9.95/month, and even then only with VZ Navigator. VZ Navigator 4.0 looks promising, but only version 2.9.9 is currently available for the BlackBerry, and it is only OK. The main issue is that is is slow.

There are other programs (Google Maps, Beyond411, Nav4All, etc.) for the BlackBerry that could use the built-in GPS receiver, but can't. Verizon is the ONLY carrier that chooses to disable the built-in GPS receiver, simply because they want more revenue. They should not be disabling it. At the very least unlock it for other programs when I subscribe to VZ Navigator! Otherwise I may take a look at AT&T when my contract is up.

Yes, I could buy a Bluetooth GPS receiver to use with the 8830, but that would not be very convenient, and a waste given the phone already has a built-in GPS receiver!

The BlackBerrry 8830 WE after two weeks

Well, the Red Verizon BlackBerry 8830 arrived February 25, 2008. It has taken some time to get things setup the way I want, but overall I'm very happy with it. I've found applications to replace the most important Palm OS applications I'd been using. The old Treo 700p has been retired. It is sitting on a shelf with its battery removed. RIP.

Functionality
Overall I'm impressed with how the 8830 just works. It is fairly intuitive, and the software is integrated very well. I'd seen negative comments about the keyboard, but it works fine two handed or one handed.

VZ Navigator
Overall it works well enough. I had some early problems where it would give me an error when trying to use it, but I tracked this down to memory issues. When the "File Free" gets too low VZ Navigator will not work when the GPS receiver is used. Doing a battery pull after a week to clean up the memory fixed the problem.

VZ Access
Tethering for my notebook computer via a USB cable. It works fine and is fast enough for email and web browsing.

Software
I've added the following applications to the 8830:

• SplashID for BlackBerry - A password program that syncs with a desktop application.
• Mobylo! Multi Alarm - Five independent alarms that are very configurable.
• BBTask PRO! - Uses the standard todo database, but it has a much better interface, though a little slow.
• WorldMagic - World clock that shows the times for four locations.
• GoTimeIt - Timer/Stopwatch
• MemoryUp-Mobile RAM Booster - Memory management. Bought to fix the "File Free" problem, which it appears to not address.
  
• Mobipocket Reader - free ebook reader.
• MidpSSH - A free ssh/telnet client.
• Opera Mini - A free browser alternative, not better, just different than the native BlackBerry browser.
• Google Maps Application
• Google Mail Application
• Beyond411
• VZ Navigator - The only way to access the GPS receiver in a VZN 8830.
• VZ Access - laptop modem (At work I got 487 kb/s down and 68 kb/s up.)

I use Super to convert videos for playback on the BB8830. It is free, and works well. It would be nice if it had "full frame rate" and "half frame rate" options though. That would be useful for batch mode.

Outlook
So far I'm using the BlackBerry Desktop Manager to sync the 8830 to Outlook 2003. I'm still get a few synchronization issues, but it is getting better. Some of the problems are probably related to the initial import from the 700p. Once things are working 100% I'll add a second computer to sync to.

Conclusion
After two weeks I'm glad I made the change from the Treo 700p to the BlackBerry 8830 WE.

PalmOS - Time for me to move on...

I've been using PalmOS devices since the Palm Pilot 1000 (w/1MB) came out in 1996. I also own a V, Vx, Sony Clie 760, Tungsten C, and now a Verizon Treo 700p. Over the years I've collected a number of useful applications, some bought and some free. All the PalmOS devices were reliable and stable... until the Verizon Treo 700p, which I will have had for exactly two years the end of next week. The problems:

1. It will decide it wants to do a soft reset, when opening the browser, email, or other application. I've determined that this problem can be mitigated if I so a soft reset every morning and evening, and at other times during the day when I think a reset might be needed. I still get random soft resets, but not as often.
2. Sometimes applications become corrupted and won't run or will crash. Or sometimes an encrypted ebook will be clear text to a point, and gibberish beyond. This is probably caused by the known NVRAM issues. As well as regular Hotsyncs to my PC, I also use RscBackup to make regular backups of the 700p to the SD card. I've used RscBackup to restore corrupted files many times over the past two years. Great program!
3. Luckily I've only had one random hard reset. RscBackup saved me on that one too.
4. There have been times where the calling party could not hear me, but I could hear them just fine. This could just be a signal quality issue, so I won't harp on this too much.
   

I did update the firmware a few months ago to the latest version. Initially I thought it had helped some, but now I'm not so sure. I've also stopped using some applications I've used for years, that may have helped some too, but again I'm not sure. I think it simply comes down to this: the more I use it, the more likely it is to have problems. I've learned what to do to make the 700p usable, but it is getting quite annoying.

What to do. I'd buy a new PalmOS device so I could continue using my PalmOS software, but from what I've heard the Verizon Treo 755p is neither a significant step up with regards to stability or features. I don't want much, I simply want a smart phone to work well, all of the time!

Time for a change I think, even if it means abandoning my investment in PalmOS software, and changing how I do things. PalmOS is quite antiquated now, and it seems unlikely there will be a major upgrade until at least the end of this year, 2008.

Despite using a RIM 850 seven years ago I've been a bit anti-BlackBerry over the years. Now I'm starting to consider one, though getting it to work with my flow of data is challenging. But I'm sure that even with their periodic data outages it would be an order of magnitude more reliable than my Verizon Treo 700p has been!

My Verizon New Every Two comes up next week, so perhaps I'll be ordering a BlackBerry 8830.

2/22/08 Update: I ordered a Verizon BlackBerry 8830 WE in red, it is due 2/26/08. The Treo 700p seems to know its days are numbered, it has been crashing more often during the past week.