Optimize Your Pocket PC Development with .NET Compact Framework. Mobility Optimize Your Pocket PC Development with the .NET Compact Framework Dave Edson and John Socha-Leialoha Code download available at:NETCompactFramework.exe(270 KB) Programmers get away with a lot today. With .NET, at last there is a framework that allows for really easy application development. Memory is managed with so little effort from the developer that we can easily abuse it. All the neat controls, forms, windowing systems, and GDI+ capabilities make it so easy. Don't despair. This article is divided into two main sections: goodies and optimization. Essential Goodies and Our Test Bench When you fire up Visual Studio® .NET to build our initial application, you'll need to make sure to add these lines of code in the main form's constructor, right after the call to InitializeComponent: #if DEBUG MinimizeBox = false; #else MinimizeBox = true; #endif This lets you actually close the app rather than just minimizing it, which can come in very handy when testing outside the debugger.
Using the .NET Compact Framework, SQL Server CE, and Replication. Data Points Developing Apps with the .NET Compact Framework, SQL Server CE, and Replication John Papa Code download available at:DataPoints0309.exe(150 KB) Handheld and other portable devices are shipping with ever growing feature sets. These devices can now communicate on private networks and over the Internet through Wi-Fi and built-in wireless modems that are combined with cell phones. Handheld devices are popular not only for personal use, but also many businesses are taking advantage of the mobility they offer. In this column, I'll develop a mobile application that can be used to review and update a business' inventory. The SQL Server CE database on the Pocket PC device will contain a replicated version of the Northwind database from a back-end SQL Server database.
I'll begin by explaining how to set up the prerequisites for the merge replication scenario including many of the ways that it can be customized. Configuration SQL Server CE Server Agent Replication Publication The Application. Data Points: Accessing Data from a Mobile Application. Data Points Accessing Data from a Mobile Application John Papa Code download available at:DataPoints2008_01.exe(179 KB) Data access is an important aspect of developing applications with the Microsoft® .NET Compact Framework for Windows Mobile® devices.
In this installment of DataPoints, I want to discuss best practices for data access strategies when developing mobile applications for Smartphones. Mobile Development To develop mobile applications, you must first install the .NET Compact Framework (and its latest service pack). The Windows Mobile 5.0 SDK is available in different versions, depending on whether you are targeting a Smartphone, a Pocket PC, or a Pocket PC Phone. For this discussion, I am using Windows Mobile 5 for the Smartphone. After installing the .NET Compact Framework 2.0 with SP2 and the appropriate Windows Mobile SDK, you must also install ActiveSync (for Windows® XP) or Windows Mobile Device Center (for Windows Vista®). Getting Started Automatic Binding Final Thoughts. Windows Phone Development. Now available: windows phone “mango” jump start videos. Jump Start: Windows Phone "Mango" - Media Gallery - Jump Start: Windows Phone "Mango" - Media Gallery - Jump Start: Windows Phone "Mango"
PhoneGap mobile HTML5 framework adding support for Windows Phone Mango. We’re very excited to join Nitobi to announce availability of a PhoneGap beta supporting Windows Phone Mango. This new option to build applications targeting Windows Phone gives more choices to developers. In particular, Web developers will be able to easily leverage their HTML5 skills to target Windows Phone.
The beta version of the PhoneGap libraries can be downloaded from: In case you’ve been so busy writing code for months and you’ve never heard about PhoneGap, it’s an open source mobile framework that enables developers to build applications targeting multiple platforms, by using standard web technologies (HTML5, CSS and JavaScript). On Windows Phone Mango PhoneGap leverages the new HTML5 support provided by IE9. We have been in touch with André Charland and Brian Leroux (Co-Founders of Nitobi the creator of PhoneGap), who are seeing a growing interest from the PhoneGap developer community to target Windows Phone. Jean-Christophe Cimetiere, Sr. Download Windows 8 Developer Preview Build ISO (32-bit & 64-bit) Torrent. Like Windows 7 Public betas Microsoft has made the first Windows 8 Developer Preview build publicly available for download to all Windows enthusiast. Unlike Windows 7, Microsoft did managed to keep tight lied on Windows 8 leaks and it was worth the wait for first official preview build since all the new Metro UI and features can be seen on in this Windows 8 Developer Preview which Microsoft demoed today at Build conference.
Windows 8 Developer Preview is available in ISO format for 32-bit and 64-bit OS. Also Microsoft had made Windows 8 Developer Preview Build along with developer tools (x64) ISO. It should be noted that developer preview is pre-beta version hence it may or may not work correctly and should be available on production machines. All the machines capable of running Windows 7 should be able to run Windows 8 developer preview without any issue however if you are wondering what are the idea specs for running Windows 8 then check the below list, 4. 5. MSDN Library. Configuration Service Provider Reference for Windows Mobile Devices. Configuration Service Providers and Security Roles. OMA DM Provisioning Files. OMA DM commands are transmitted between the server and the client device in messages.
A message can contain one or more commands. For a list of commands supported in Windows Mobile 6.5, see OMA DM Protocol Command Elements. A DM message is an XML document. The structure and content of the document is defined in the OMA DM Representation Protocol (OMA-SyncML-DevInfo-DTD-V1_1_2-20030505-D.dtd) available from the OMA Web site. Each message is composed of a header, specified by the SyncHdr element, and a message body, specified by the SyncBody element. The following table shows the OMA DM versions that are supported in Windows Mobile: The following example shows the general structure of the XML document, using OMA DM version 1.2 for demonstration purposes only. For more information about the header and body, see SyncHdr and SyncBody.
OMA Client Provisioning Files. One provisioning XML file typically contains configuration information for multiple Configuration Service Providers. The root node of the provisioning XML is a wap-provisioningdoc node. The following table shows the format of this node. The structure of the nodes within each version is the same: The Configuration Service Provider is identified, as are the settings to be queried or changed. Typically, an OMA Client Provisioning file holds configuration instructions for multiple Configuration Service Providers.
The Microsoft MSPROV document type definition (DTD) describes the configuration document. Each Configuration Service Provider lists the Microsoft custom elements that it supports. The following example shows the general format of a provisioning document for OMA Client Provisioning. The first-level characteristic elements indicate which Configuration Service Providers are used to set and retrieve individual settings. Each characteristic element may contain the following: Managing Windows Mobile Devices. Managing a device involves configuring the device after the initial operating system (OS) is put in ROM. The initial image placed in ROM is the bootstrap image. You can then manage the device from a remote location through continuous provisioning by using a device management (DM) server. The mobile operator, corporation, or user can perform the following tasks, depending on the security policy set by the device manufacturer: Configure the device to change functionality.
For example, change settings related to phone functionality. Change core configuration and registry settings. Set the security policy on the device to limit or control functionality. The following table shows the two major ways in which you can manage devices. Best Practices in Managing Devices Lists general best practices for device management. Understanding Provisioning Describes the concepts of provisioning a device, including the architecture, protocols, and available services. Understanding OTA Firmware Update. Creating an Installer for Windows Mobile Applications. When deploying your Windows Mobile application, you may want to create an installer that runs on the user's desktop and invokes the Application Manager to install your application on the user's device. The creation of an installer with Visual Studio is simple, requires little coding, and can be done within the existing Visual Studio Solution for your application.
Make sure that Solution Explorer for your project is visible. On the File menu, point to Add, and then click New Project. You can create your custom action in native or managed code. Make sure that Solution Explorer for your project is visible. Mobile PractiCEs: How to create a windows mobile (Smart Device) .Cab installer. This time I'm going back to a basic topic: How to create a windows mobile installer for our mobile (Pocket PC / Smartphone)application. I've already blogged before about how to build a .cab which registers the assemblies on the .Net CF GAC. But this time I'm focusing on the .cab installer itself.
A Cab file is the default setup format for Windows CE and Windows Mobile devices (similar to windows .msi files). You probably already have installed several application using .cab files, and are familiar with the concept. One point which is often unknown is that .cab files are processed by wceloader.exe, and it can only install one .cab file at a time. That means we cannot have nested .cab files. It doesn't mean we cannot have .cab files contained by another .cab, but the contained .cab files will not be installed during the installation of the container .cab. There are two ways to create a cabinet (.Cab) file. The easiest way to build a .cab file is using Visual Studio. Congrats! Multiple CAB Install. Delivering Applications. Optional Setup.dll Files for Installation. A version of this page is also available for When you create a cabinet (.cab) file, you can choose to add an optional Setup.dll file.
This enables you to perform operations before and after the installation and unistallation of your application on target devices. If you are using CAB Wizard to create your .cab file, you specify your Setup.dll in the DefaultInstall section of your .inf file. The following example shows how you can use the CESetupDLL directive in the DefaultInstall section of the .inf file to point to a custom Setup.dll file.
[DefaultInstall.SA] CESetupDLL = custom_setup.dll For Windows Mobile, if you are generating your .cab file by creating a Smart Device CAB Project in Visual Studio, you can specify your setup DLL in the CE Setup DLL field in the Project Properties window. To determine the function prototypes and return values that you must use for the functions in your Setup.dll file, examine the Ce_setup.h header file. Wceload Tool. The Wceload tool (Wceload.exe), which is an XML-based CAB installer application, runs on your target device. You typically use this tool to install a .cab or .cpf file to a location that you select on the target device.
Most .cab files are configured to enable the user to select the destination volume where the .cab file will be installed, either \Device or \Storage Card. However, you can choose to suppress the destination volume selection prompt and install the .cab file to a default location, specified in the .inf file used to create the .cab file. Typically, you do not directly call Wceload. Instead, Wceload is called programmatically by other programs to install .cab files. For example, if you use File Explorer to view and open a .cab file, Shell automatically invokes Wceload for installation of the .cab file. For information about creating a .cab file, see CAB Files for Delivering Windows Mobile Applications. Wceload installs .cab and .cpf files using the following process: /nodelete. Deploying Windows Mobile Applications. CAB Wizard. When you finish developing your driver or application, you can use the CAB Wizard to create cabinet (.cab) files to facilitate installation of your driver or application on devices.
This file acts as a container, holding all necessary device driver or application files in one location, which ensures that these files are present at installation. You create a .cab file by first using a text editor to create an .inf file and then using the CAB Wizard command-line tool (Cabwiz.exe) at the command prompt. For Windows Embedded CE, the CAB Wizard is typically found in <Platform Builder installation path>\CEPB\Bin.
For Windows Mobile, for information about the mechanisms that you can use to install an application using a .cab file, see Delivering Applications. The following example shows the command-line syntax for the CAB Wizard: "inf_file" [dest_dir] [err_file] [cpu_type [hardware_platform_label]] [platform_label [platform_label]] inf_file Full path and filename to the CAB Wizard setup .inf file. Mobile PractiCEs: Setup.dll Sample and Walkthrough: Terms & Conditions / End User License Agreement for a Smart Device CAB installer. Visual Studio Smart Device CAB projects are extremely helpful in many ways for building a cab installer, even thought they have some pending issues, like a more natural MSBUILD integration, they allow us to have a cleaner and dynamic definition of our mobile app installation based on our source projects instead of relying just in binary and .inf files.
Sometimes we need to perform some custom actions before and after the installation or uninstallation. Typically we can need to check for pre requisites or show a Terms & Conditions/EULA before the installation and continue only if the user accepts it or, as another example, we can need to remove temporary files and registry entries after uninstallation. In this post I want to show you a very simple way to implement a Setup.dll which shows a Terms & Conditions dialog which requires the explicit user acceptance to continue the installation. What we need to start? We'll use Visual Studio 2008 but this procedure also works with VS2005. Advanced XML Setup Script. On this page, there are examples of XML scripts for any Windows Mobile device, and examples for devices with Windows Mobile 6.1 or later.
Scripts for all Windows Mobile Devices The following script is a sample advanced XML script that does three things: Sets up the GPRS connection Adds a browser favorite for www.something.com Sets up MMS settings: ISP Name: XYZ Inc.Gateway: 10.10.10.22MMSC URI: APN: internet.xyz.comUser name: nnnPassword: ppp Scripts for Devices with Windows Mobile 6.1 or later The following scripts are only for Windows Mobile 6.1 devices. Configure WiFi Disable Bluetooth Enable Bluetooth Disable Camera Enable Camera Disable Email Enable Email Block Applications Unblock Applications POP3 and IMAP4 Email Set Speed Dial Number Exchange ActiveSync GPRS Setup Set up a Proxy Server Backlight Settings AC and Battery. Writing Unmanaged Functions for Microsoft .NET Compact Framework-based Applications. Using the Microsoft .NET Compact Framework MessageWindow Class. Facebook Development with the .NET Compact Framework.
Share Code: Write Code Once For Both Mobile And Desktop Apps. Project Directory. Creating Location-Aware Applications for Windows Mobile Devices. Using the REST Services with the Core Map Control. Locations API. Microsoft Products Accepting Bugs and Suggestions | Microsoft Connect. Bing Maps SOAP Services.