*** WARNING: Originally Speechy was NOT meant to be anything other than simple voice to voice translation with amazing recognition but after tons of requests for other features, we kept the same UI but added-on as this is what our USERS wanted and we go according to what they want, even if this wasn't what we originally desired. ***
What is Speechy...?
A translator you can really talk to, literally. Say what you need and Speechy will translate by writing in the language you desire but also immediately speak out loud what you said for either others to know what you really want to say in a foreign language or as some are using it as a great tool if you're just trying to learn the language to prepare for your next trip.
Next time when you think you need to rent a Translator, Speechy is here!
Just remember, when you're at an Airport and no one speaks your language and you don't know the native tongue, you can say "How do I get to Terminal B" and know someone who speaks one of the pre-bundled languages can help you by listening to a voice or read the translation on your phone.
Did you know... you can now AIM your phone at a sign, magazine, or any form of a document with words and Speechy Camera Tool (SCT using a form of OCR) can actually scan the words, translate what it understood to the language you desire and even speak it back for you.
How is this DIFFERENT?
1). Mic/Recording Input
Simple! Our voice input function that grabs the audio you speak either close or whichever distance you may be and takes the input from the phone Mic. When using your "Mic", we've designed our own Equalizer that is built-in that actually has various functions and decreases/increases pitch, balance, volume and other aspects to obtaining the audio you speak in which it also breaks it up in to a bunch of "chunks" and sending it via Internet (Wifi Connection or 3G Required) in multiple parts to then have it run through a Speech Server where it is analyzed in each segment of your Mono input (Never Stereo).
2). Cloud Speech Server
When your multiple chunks are each processed one-by-one for better understanding, they are first run under another synthesizer to turn everything flat (Bass, Treble, Pitch/Frequency, etc...) and another technique that let's us better understand what you say, even if you have an accent to the best we can and as each few moments are separated, it allows us to promptly guess what each word is being said and if quickly it fails a built-in/server-run spelling database (Query's originally from Bing!) and if it is still valid it will continue on to check to see if it can find the next best thing using the 2nd Dictionary aka "Phrases" which uses a form of AutoComplete for quicker search which is why you may notice sometimes a little bit of lag time/timely response as it is doing it's very best to try and be 100% accurate.
e.g. "This is a test" may normally be recognized by other Speech Services as "This is a pest". In this case the word "pest" could be valid as it is a US-English Dictionary word but we have one last pass-through that has most common American English phrases that currently only has around 2,000+ but as people report more what they've tried to say and hasn't worked we can add it to the 2nd dictionary for accuracy.
3). Translated Voice Download
Once everything is assumed to be as accurate as possible it will then pass the string through the Bing Translator API and in this case grab the audio from the Bing Translator service and pass it through the App as a "Stream" to download it temporarily (removes every translation or application closing/back button pressed) but only to prepare for output in Mono or Stereo (where available).
4). Translation Output
Once the file is available it immediately streams back out at a specific pitch, frequency, mono playback but made a synthesizer that barely modifies the output a little more to make it louder and easier to understand/sound better on almost any device but more important if Stereo headset/playback is available where most App's just set Mono to Stereo for output but we playback in mono and modify it just a tad and again prepare it if Stereo should occur (Balancing the L/R Channels) but most may not even hear the difference in a loud room but the very least more clear.
Hope this gives you a better insight why a Speechy Pro exists for $0.99 where the free edition is available (1.2) but doesn't have all the features and also has Popup Ad's (60-second delay; Ad may not appear depending on the hourly usage from all the users... This means if 1,000 users used it in a 3-hour time frame or 333/Hr, we disable the Ad for 3-hours as a big THANK YOU but don't think we get paid big bucks, we get about 1-2 pennies per view as we use Smaato for Ads) that aren't really intrusive as you can still record/view/hear with it popping up. Once we hit a specific amount of downloads in the pro edition, we will only continue releasing pro but freely but at this time unsure when that will be but it will just pay for the lighting/power, A/C, Internet, and misc items that we needed to build this.
Thanks!
Pro Edition Download Here - 1.2 Available
Free Edition Download Here - 1.2 Available
*SPECIAL THANKS TO (No specific order):
nok_fusion, scoobysnacks, NeilM, diboze, boz, buffalosolja42, mmian, rajivshahi, fuxinyou, wpxbox, and FlashTek95.
Thank you for helping test Speechy as you've been a lifesaver to have testers all over the globe!
Speechy Pro was finally accepted, the update doesn't seem to have completely become available but even downloading the older version, still enables you to download the update (1.2). You'll know the new Speechy as the icon is BLUE.
Download Speechy Pro
good work, I seem to have gotten the latest version straight from the market, no need to update.
link68759 said:
good work, I seem to have gotten the latest version straight from the market, no need to update.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am glad you obtained it without any issues. It seems the update is available but the icon is still red, opposed to the new Pro Edition "BLUE" color... Not sure why though but as long as it is V1.2, your safe.
We're already working on getting 1.3 out, we're working on the UI as that seems to be a big complaint.
Related
Hey everybody!
I'm creating this thread to keep the Barcorama related discussion in a dedicated thread. The discussion spawned here.
Barcorama is a Zxing-based (http://code.google.com/p/zxing/) barcode reader software developed by me in C#. The program's main purpose is to provide a free (and hopefully powerful) tool in the consumer's toolchain!
Feel free to try out and comment on it.
The tool is being developed on my Kaiser, so any feedback on how it performs on other devices is welcomed!
Basic Usage (not yet updated for v0.9x:
a. Press the "Shoot" button to launch the phones camera wizard and take a photo of the barcode by pressing the front "OK" button, or the normal side-shoot button. Barcorama will return automatically upon capture and try to recognize the code.
b. Press the "Open" button to launch the file dialog and navigate/select a previously taken photo. Again, after loading the photo, recognition starts.
After a successful recognition, a popup message may ask whether to run the specified external program with the recognized code. The program along with its arguments is specified in the settings. The code will be inserted wherever the !###! string is be found (may be multiple times).
In general, my tests show that the autofocus camera feature seems to achieve a good result when holding the phone more then 5cm away from the target.
Source code is available here: https://sourceforge.net/projects/barcorama/
or download the trunk snapshot here: http://barcorama.svn.sourceforge.net/viewvc/barcorama/trunk.tar.gz?view=tar
Features:
-- Recognizes 1D and 2D barcodes. See the google page for details. Version 0.3 is currently incorporated.
-- Runs an external program to pass the recognized code
Requirements:
- NETCF v2.0
ChangeLog:
v0.9h
-- ability for "continuous operation". After successful recognition, continues scanning/shooting/etc...
-- option to beep after successful recognition. Useful in "continuous operation"
v0.9g (for Testing!):
-- Costpad fixes regarding same name shops
-- QR recognition working (thanx to mao xuchu!). Mind though that proper result handling is not present.
-- BUGFIX: many settings were not holding on their value
v0.9f (for Testing!):
-- Memory optimization. Thanx user jeutaw for reporting the bug!
v0.9e (for Testing!):
-- BUGFIX: fixed exception at the end of the purchase submit procedure
v0.9d (for Testing!):
-- Warning: a bug has already been identified regarding the ability to submit purchases to costpad.com. Perhaps you want to wait a few hours until I get home and fix it <-- FIXED in v0.9e
-- Manual entry of the barcode (useful when scan/shoot/open methods fail)
-- More finger-oriented purchase date entry method
-- Able to register a new shop through Barcorama
-- Smoother button fading
-- Various fixes
v0.9c (for Testing!):
-- GUI fixes (should now cope better with high-res devices)
v0.9b (for Testing!):
-- not connecting to the Internet at startup
v0.9a (for Testing!):
-- Preliminary Costpad.com integration
v0.8a:
-- Reintroduced the "Live" mode (thanks to WiMo project), where continuous capturing is performed (low resolution only, thanks to HTC... )
-- Experimental Autofocus tweak! Manually triggering the autofocus capability so to make the "Live" mode usable. Warning: not all devices/roms will be compatible!
v0.7a:
-- Better File open method
-- Minor interface changes
v0.6:
-- Elastic GUI layout. Supporting landscape mode and greater resolutions.
v0.5c:
- Bugfix: Normal handling of spaces in external program's path and arguments
- Added a program icon (thanx nibblah)
v0.5b:
- Bugfix: proper saving/loading of external program settings.
v0.5
- Can now run an external program passing the recognized barcode.
v0.4d
- Small fix for QR decoding
v0.4c
- Upgraded ZXing to 0.4.5 for 1D barcodes (only)
v0.4b
- Fixed a nasty bug that disabled EAN and UPC codes!
v0.4
- Able to individually select what barcode types to try
- Option for selecting whether automatic return from the Camera application is desired. When not selected, the user has to manually exit the Camera application, beign able this way to recapture before decode
- Added a clickable link in the About page to easily reach this forum
- Black appearance
v0.3b
- Incorporated a ZXing bugfix regarding code-39 decoding
- Added a popup question to copy a recognized code into the clipboard
v0.3
- Tweaked usage of the .net camera API. Using a file based method to detect when the capture was performed.
- Automatically returning back to the application after the user shoots the photo. No second "OK" is needed.
- Better UI behavior by using background thread for camera capture and image decoding
- Various bugfixes
Known Issues:
-- False recognitions (encountered some EAN13 faults)
-- 3megapixel photos cannot be loaded
-- After shooting, image appears 90-degrees counter-clockwise rotated. Recognition works though.
Have fun!
hypest
P.S Please, if you encounter a bug/problem, report it and add your hardware/software configuration, or fill your signature with such info. Reporting of successful trials is also welcomed
Removed: The "speedy" version was removed as it was not functioning on par with the "normal" version...
Added a cab file that includes the .exe and creates a Start Menu shortcut. The shortcut seems to be missing the proper icon and perhaps it won't work in Non-English installations. Removed the ..v07a.zip as the cab seems stable.
Removed: The "Barcorama.zip" as it was too old...
I'm not experiencing crashes anymore, but the app doesn't appear to be receiving the photo taken after pressing shoot etc. I tried leaving the app for a minute, in case it was too busy processing to show anything on screen, but to no avail. If I take a photo manually, it is able to process via the OPEN button.
You might want to change the url in the about section into something people are more likely to type into their browser, in case they get the file indirectly... (the tinyurl would be http://tinyurl.com/2kxkuj for example, a little shorter at least)
The other files that came with the previous versions of Barcorama (WiMoNative.dll, and the OpenNETCF.etc.etc), can they be removed from the program's directory?
PS Thanks for all your work so far
SilentlyScreaming said:
I'm not experiencing crashes anymore, but the app doesn't appear to be receiving the photo taken after pressing shoot etc. I tried leaving the app for a minute, in case it was too busy processing to show anything on screen, but to no avail. If I take a photo manually, it is able to process via the OPEN button.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
After taking the photo, do you manually press OK (or the "return" icon), or do you just leave it to return on its own? I think, the Nadavi's camera version, after some seconds returns automatically but it's actually a "cancel", not an "OK".
SilentlyScreaming said:
You might want to change the url in the about section into something people are more likely to type into their browser, in case they get the file indirectly... (the tinyurl would be http://tinyurl.com/2kxkuj for example, a little shorter at least)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The long url really sucks, I know. This was just a quick and dirty solution to the "add an About window". I will certainly change it to actually be a clickable link.
SilentlyScreaming said:
The other files that came with the previous versions of Barcorama (WiMoNative.dll, and the OpenNETCF.etc.etc), can they be removed from the program's directory?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, with the present application functionality, do supplement dlls are needed. So, it is safe to remove them.
SilentlyScreaming said:
PS Thanks for all your work so far
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank YOU...
hypest
Looks good.
Looking forward to updates. I can't get it to "shoot" and decode.
I have to shoot the picture, then run the program to get it to decode the
1D barcode.
Very nice.
Hi, Sean here from the zxing project. Glad to see you got this into C# and I hope it was not too painful. Let me know if you notice bugs. I put a link to your project on the code.google.com page.
Once the code stops changing and looks about done, we'd like to do the same thing, but port to Object C for the iPhone.
Got me blushing
srowen said:
Hi, Sean here from the zxing project. Glad to see you got this into C# and I hope it was not too painful. Let me know if you notice bugs. I put a link to your project on the code.google.com page.
Once the code stops changing and looks about done, we'd like to do the same thing, but port to Object C for the iPhone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hello Sean! Flattered to see a comment from one of the project's developer!
Translating to C# was surprisingly easy and effective by using the MS JLCA. Ofcource I had to make some adjustments, but nothing really "difficult". Poking into the zxing code is certainly on my agenta but for the time being I'm trying to figure out why the prog does not work on some fellow posters' devices . I'll be happy to drive your attention to any bugs I notice.
...will keep my eye on your project's progress...
hypest
Quick Shot not working for me. The application do not get the image. Manual shot dont recognizes EAN13 code. Folder selection not working(HTC Camera takes the shots in Storagecard\DCIM\100Media folder that cant be selected because its a subfolder.)
Trouble replicating the problem
I just reverted my Kaiser to its original rom (had to cook it from the dump I performed the day I got it), but the prog works (shouldn't I be happy about that?). I can use the "Shoot" and recognize...
Some details:
device: HTC TyTN II (unbranded)
Greek ROM (ACE Hellas)
OS: 5.2.1620 (build 18125.0.4.2)
ROM version: 1.56.405.5
Date: 08/28/07
Radio: 1.27.12.32
Protocol: 22.45.88.07H
Camera ver: 4.08 build 28288
The prog also worked with my "previous" ROM (panosha's joannita light + Nadavi's camera)
Perhaps some of you guys that the app does not fully work, can post additional info on the hardware/software you're using.
Thanx,
hypest
i wonder if it had something to do with localization. It is a german Phone here. I've tested it with my own programm(also written in C#) and it has no problem getting the shot. strange....
nsa666 said:
Quick Shot not working for me. The application do not get the image. Manual shot dont recognizes EAN13 code. Folder selection not working(HTC Camera takes the shots in Storagecard\DCIM\100Media folder that cant be selected because its a subfolder.)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
EAN13 generally seems to work. Please, could you try this image?
I have tested the prog on about 10 actual products. Try to keep the phone about 6-10cm away from the target (not closer than 5, anyway).
Thank you for the info on the behavior of the load dialog. I will try and use a different facility to browse every folder.
hypest
nsa666 said:
i wonder if it had something to do with localization. It is a german Phone here. I've tested it with my own programm(also written in C#) and it has no problem getting the shot. strange....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I cannot completely rule out the possibility to be a localization issue, even though, the second Kaiser device I used today was not a Greek one (I thing was English-default) and it worked on it too.
With your shot it actually works. With my it reads wrong code.
nsa666 said:
With your shot it actually works. With my it reads wrong code.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Indeed, your image produces a false recognition. It is quite probable that this is a zxing related bug, but I'll have to investigate it further. Actually I have encountered this faulty recognition once.
hypest
Do you plan to release your source so that others might be able to develop customized applications? I personally would like to have it query a MySQL DB via the web over HSDPA connection to query inventory levels and pricing of product in my warehouse. Other uses might be to have it auto-query the UPC against an online DB to find the best price for a given product or to upload the UPC to an on-line DB to review later from your desktop.
After you take the picture with the Shoot option what do you hit to have it decode it? If i hit the return (back arrow) nothing happens, and if i hit the OK key on the front of my Tilt, nothing happens...
PengLord said:
Do you plan to release your source so that others might be able to develop customized applications? I personally would like to have it query a MySQL DB via the web over HSDPA connection to query inventory levels and pricing of product in my warehouse. Other uses might be to have it auto-query the UPC against an online DB to find the best price for a given product or to upload the UPC to an on-line DB to review later from your desktop.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Actually, these uses are exactly what I have in mind! The app will act just as the barcode-recognition medium. The backend will be the really interesting stuff .
I just have to figure out some serious problems and in the meantime I'll decide whether to release the code in an organized manner, or just enable the tool to be used as external executable from other apps (or a linkable lib).
pizzaguy said:
After you take the picture with the Shoot option what do you hit to have it decode it? If i hit the return (back arrow) nothing happens, and if i hit the OK key on the front of my Tilt, nothing happens...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
On my kaiser, either way works . Most of the time though, I use the front (D-PAD) OK button just because is easier to press.
I have updated the #1 post and attached a build with some debugging messages. Please try that too and report which messages you see.
hypest
hypest said:
I have updated the #1 post and attached a build with some debugging messages. Please try that too and report which messages you see.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
"Dialog didn't return OK!"
apears when pressing OK on the D-Pad or the icon.
i have a German TyTn II.
ROM Version: 1.56.407.3
Nadavi_HTC_Camera_5_0_4_2915_00.cab is installed, could this be the issue? the preinstalled version was .... sh.... not very good.
hope this helps you a bit..
Im not a great coder but i found a nice PDF that might be good to help with decoding the image. http://www.atilim.edu.tr/~misafran/proje web/BIS04.pdf
bypass build
Fellow posters,
I have revised the #1 post to include a newer build, hopefully with better results. This one tries a different approach to reach the captured image..
to pizzaguy:
The paper might be helpful, event though it is not presented as simply software-based (it benefits from the DSP processor present).
hypest
it still doesnt work.
Barcorama_bypass.exe
IOException
bei System.IO.__Error.WinIOError()
bei System.IO.Directory.InternalCreateDirectory()
bei System.IO.Directory.CreateDirectory()
bei TestNS.TestCL.button1_Click()
bei System.Windows.Forms.Control.OnClick()
bei System.Windows.Forms.Button.OnClick()
bei System.Windows.Forms.ButtonBase.WnProc()
bei System.Windows.Forms.Control._InternalWnProc()
bei Microsoft.AGL.Forms.EVL.EnterModalDialog()
bei System.Windows.Forms.Form.ShowDialog()
bei TestNS.TestCL.Main()
P.S.: This comes if i klick on "shot" buton. The camera app dont even starts.
P.S.2: just tested the verbose version. It seems to be something wrong with directory name. it says \Storagecard\Barcorama\Barcorama_verbose.exe. I think it should say only \Storagecard\Barcorama .
Hi !
I'm new to this forum, and a new user of Android (2.1) / SGS. I recently switched from the iphone 3G, which was ****ed up by ios4 and after swearing I'd never buy another crapple product ever again.
As a linux user / open source fan, I love my SGS so far. I've started messing around with a number of things already, mostly basic customization and application / widget picking, and have landed on a launcherpro+folderorganizer setup. Now enough about my life nobody cares about, I have a few noob questions that are yet unanswered by my initial research, thanks to anyone who will take the time to answer !
1) Regarding plugnplay'ness : when I plugged my SGS to my computer (win7), at first it wasn't recognized. I had to google the error, find some samsung drivers, install them (took a while) before I could access the phone in explorer mode. Is that normal behaviour ? I kinda hoped the phone would be recognized as a "usb key" on any computer without having to install anything.
2) For Android updates : from what I understand, the way of doing them is to install Samsung Kies on a PC and pilot the upgrade from there, correct ? Or is this only for major updates ? Is there a way to auto-update the OS from the phone itself without needing to use Kies ? Are there other things I can only do with Kies (without needing extensive knowledge of Android internals) ?
3) About root : apart from installing android versions that are not yet official, what are the common uses that require root privileges ? I'm familiar with what being root means under linux, but I guess my question would be more like : what are the restrictions on the default user and what do they prevent him to do ?
4) The "lag" : I see everywhere mention of this "lag" problem. I haven't noticed any. Granted, I come from a world where simply opening an application can take anywhere between 15s (iphone 3G+ios4) to 10s (iphone 3G+ios4.1), so maybe I just got used to things being slow ? Or is this happenning only on some specific devices / setups ?
5) The keyboard : is there a way to hand-pick the keyboard layout ? I have my locale set to english because I like the english OS interface better, I have my input language set to french because that's the language I write most in, which results in an azerty keyboard layout which sucks. I'd like to hand-pick the swiss keyboard layout (qwertz with accents), I know it exists because it switches to it if I pick german as input language, anyway to do that ?
6) Android market and security : is there any control from Google over if not the quality, at least the security of apps in the market, or not at all ? Is it my duty as a user to make sure that any app I would download from the market is "safe" ? Is there any justification for installing something such as an anti-virus on android ?
7) MarketS : there are other markets than the "default one" out there. I do not understand their sales pitch. Aren't applications that are in other markets also in the Android Market anyway ? Where is their added value ?
8) Taking notes. On the iphone I loved the iconic notes application. It allows to create a hierarchy of folders and subfolders and write/store notes inthere. I haven't been able to find anything similar yet, the market seems spammed with forks from an "hello world" notes application. Any recommendations ?
9) RSS : I haven't been able to find a good RSS reader as well. By good I mean feed categories, widget, and support for images. Any recommendations for this ?
10) Media files : it seems that the embedded applications that aim at reading media files (images / music / video) auto-scan the folders on the SD card for supported file types and include them. Is there any way to prevent this on some folders ? For instance I used ringdroid to create a few ringtones, but now those appear in my music player, so I'd like to prevent my ringtones folder from being used by the music player.
11) GPS : haven't played with it much yet, but I read here and there it was buggy. Is it a general state or country-specific ? On an unrelated note, are there offline maps navigation applications available ?
Well 11 questions is probably enough to start with. If you take the time to answer, I thank you in advance .
You do not find anything, Why :?? Rss channel is on all sides, until you can organize its yourself ... kies works for the exchanges,multimedia mp3, video.. the last Firmware is recognize the kies,but need the driver , firmware changes are another thing, I had the iphone 4 .safari browser ****, really slow and messy Iphone 3gs is more better.I sold that **** 250 pound When The prize is more 400 pound, crap, The iphone 4 his value is U.S. $ 200. If you feel good in Iphone buy one and play with him .. ahh and have problems with sound and audio capture .. And not just for me, the number of comment are no good to Iphone 4. My SgS 9000 Working 100% kies Working Good, Video , No lag , Browser,,Everything. if something is wrong there you need chekin out, My Firmware is JPM, And The Market have everything, Everything Working in my SGS , Regards
Love Windows Phone 7, don't really love the hardware quality of the HD7. There are a few software issue that I am hoping are user fixable and not something I have to wait for an update to address.
1. Search button behavior in Internet Explorer - it irritates me immensely that when you hit the search button on the HD7, it brings up the Google desktop website. Similarly if you enter text in the address bar it searches Google, not Bing. If I wanted to use Google, I'd have kept my Android device. Is there a way to change this yet, and set the T-Mobile USA HD7 to default to the Bing app and not the Google website? Its especially annoying because the results bring you to mobile formatted pages.
2. This is more of a complaint than a fixable issue until copy and paste comes, but I have noticed that the text type recognition doesn't work all the time. In some places if I click an address it goes to Bing Maps but other times it does nothing, it looks like it highlights the word I touch. I haven't been able to find any pattern in which sites work and which don't, but its frustrating.
3. Sometimes when I get a text message the notification sound plays all choppy. It does seem to happen only where service is bad. Is there a fix for this?
4. Office and Skydrive. Maybe I am just retarded but I feel like there should be a way to access my Office files online, specifically through SkyDrive since I can save to it from Office on the computer. Do I have to have a Sharepoint server to do this? Can I really not access my SkyDrive files?
If I remember more I will post.
Also, is there an ETA for Flash?
I have been playing with the skydrive and I added a few files to it to try and see if I could open them on the HD7. The thing is I can open them but have yet to figure out how to open them with Word on the HD7 so that I can edit them and save them back to the skydrive(copy & paste would be nice...meh...soon I hope). But I opened IE and logged into my Windows Live account and I can open anything I have saved on the skydrive, PDFs, word files, excel sheets, ppt presentation, pictures, etc. Now the only issue is editing those files, I haven't tried sending files Word, Excel, etc. to the skydrive and trying to open them on my PC. Will update later with results of further tinkering.
My issues with HD7
Like many people I love this phone but coming from Windows Mobile 6.5 and donw (isn't that weird to say), this phone is really lacking.
1) The Zune software is crap for lack of a better word. No Smart DJ; No Artist photos; no random track play etc. These are not deal breakers but if you came from the Zune HD like me then you'll feel let down.
2) Font Size. It might just be me, but not being able to set a minimal font size is ridiculous. I use the word ridiculous because even my first pocket Pc phone edition in 2001 allowed font resize.
3) No ability to sync my desktop mobile favs. Yes! I know of the work around but wasn't the point of the new OS to avoid all that crap.
4) I want to be able to sync with my local address book. This whole facebook and windows live thing . . . .Look at it this way, if your contacts are based through FB then if one of those contacts cancels their FB acct then you automatically loose all that data. Of course this is not a MS thing.
4) With my HD2 and HTC Sense, I was used to seeing ALL my FB contact photos. Again not an MS thing but . . . .
5) This is really more of a gripe than anything but the battery icon doesn't tell much.How come I can't see exactly how much juice I have left.
6) Unified Inbox, flash, cut and paste. These are all things MS was kind enough to make us aware off so they get a pass on those.
Where is the File Explorer?
c0wb0ycliche said:
Love Windows Phone 7, don't really love the hardware quality of the HD7. There are a few software issue that I am hoping are user fixable and not something I have to wait for an update to address.
1. Search button behavior in Internet Explorer - it irritates me immensely that when you hit the search button on the HD7, it brings up the Google desktop website. Similarly if you enter text in the address bar it searches Google, not Bing. If I wanted to use Google, I'd have kept my Android device. Is there a way to change this yet, and set the T-Mobile USA HD7 to default to the Bing app and not the Google website? Its especially annoying because the results bring you to mobile formatted pages.
2. This is more of a complaint than a fixable issue until copy and paste comes, but I have noticed that the text type recognition doesn't work all the time. In some places if I click an address it goes to Bing Maps but other times it does nothing, it looks like it highlights the word I touch. I haven't been able to find any pattern in which sites work and which don't, but its frustrating.
3. Sometimes when I get a text message the notification sound plays all choppy. It does seem to happen only where service is bad. Is there a fix for this?
4. Office and Skydrive. Maybe I am just retarded but I feel like there should be a way to access my Office files online, specifically through SkyDrive since I can save to it from Office on the computer. Do I have to have a Sharepoint server to do this? Can I really not access my SkyDrive files?
If I remember more I will post.
Also, is there an ETA for Flash?
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Click to collapse
1. Apparently carriers can change the search engine within Internet Explorer, and we can't do anything about it. Once someone gets access to editing the registry, maybe we will be able to change that. BUT I do have some help for you: Search something in Google, and then scroll down to the bottom, find the "Settings" link. Then you can change it to NOT format sites for mobile phones. That should make the experience better!
2. Addresses have to be in a certain format: #### N Street Rd, Zip Code. Like this address, 6362 N Calle Campeche, 85750. If it doesn't have the zip code after the street, it sadly doesn't recognize it. Hopefully they fix that, it's a great feature otherwise.
3. Idk, never had that happen.
4. You can access your Skydrive files and download them to your phone by going to the SkyDrive website (they have a mobile version), but you can't upload any documents from your phone or upload the changes you make in a doc you download. It has been rumored that SkyDrive integration will be implemented at some point.
alabij said:
My issues with HD7
Like many people I love this phone but coming from Windows Mobile 6.5 and donw (isn't that weird to say), this phone is really lacking.
1) The Zune software is crap for lack of a better word. No Smart DJ; No Artist photos; no random track play etc. These are not deal breakers but if you came from the Zune HD like me then you'll feel let down.
2) Font Size. It might just be me, but not being able to set a minimal font size is ridiculous. I use the word ridiculous because even my first pocket Pc phone edition in 2001 allowed font resize.
3) No ability to sync my desktop mobile favs. Yes! I know of the work around but wasn't the point of the new OS to avoid all that crap.
4) I want to be able to sync with my local address book. This whole facebook and windows live thing . . . .Look at it this way, if your contacts are based through FB then if one of those contacts cancels their FB acct then you automatically loose all that data. Of course this is not a MS thing.
4) With my HD2 and HTC Sense, I was used to seeing ALL my FB contact photos. Again not an MS thing but . . . .
5) This is really more of a gripe than anything but the battery icon doesn't tell much.How come I can't see exactly how much juice I have left.
6) Unified Inbox, flash, cut and paste. These are all things MS was kind enough to make us aware off so they get a pass on those.
Where is the File Explorer?
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1. Yeah, I miss SmartDJ too. I never looked at an artist's pictures however. Their picture does load as a background image, but I know that's not what you're referring to. By random track playing, you mean Shuffle? In the now playing screen, tap on the album art, and then click the shuffle icon.
2. Font size depends on the user of course. I'm good with it as it is, but they should have made an option to change it. Maybe a future update.
3. Eh yeah. I don't use favorites honestly
4. You mean how the HTC Album app in WinMo could access all of your friends online Facebook photo albums, right from their contact card? Yeah I loveeeed that in HTC Sense. I was really disappointed when my WP7 didn't have something like that.
4.2. Umm, if a friend cancels their Facebook account, you don't loose anything that you stored yourself. Just add a contact's info into your Windows Live contacts, it will never disappear.
5. Maybe someone will write a battery percentage app. Idk.
6. I personally can't wait for copy/paste!
7. Microsoft made it decetly clear months ago that there wouldn't be a file explorer.
Thanks for the tips, and I'm really hoping someone figures out how to change the search option. It's annoying when my bosses WP7 (HTC Surround) pulls up the bing app in IE, and mine goes to the Google site. You can remove all carrier and manufacture apps (1 step forward) but can't choose your default internet search while your carrier can (2 steps back.)
Hardware wise, the issues I have are these:
After a couple days, the back and battery color have some discoloration. I don't have particularly dirty or clammy hands, so I don't know why this is. It weirdly also doesn't look like where my fingers actually are, so maybe it's heat related. I've seen similar issues on the Touch Pro and the G2. I think it has something to do with the soft touch material.
There is also a gap between the two pieces of the battery cover. This I have seen on literally every unit I've touched. Mine, my boyfriends, the demo unit at T-Mobile, and the ones at Best Buy.
Likewise, if you press search a little hard, you see like a ripple in the bottom right hand corner. This also was on every device I played with, so it's a general thing.
These things, for me at least, aren't deal breakers, but they are annoying, especially compared to the absolutely astounding build quality of the HD2.
...
anyway.
All of this stuff aside, I must say, my actual general usage experience with the device (again, more WP7 than the HD7 specifically) has been honestly, wonderful.
I've found that in my experience,true to Microsoft's goal, everything just works, and works quickly. Coming from Android (recently, after the HD2 I just couldn't deal with WM6.5) and having had every phone in between (iPhone, Palm Pre, a crap ton of Android phones, even a Symbian phone) I must say that I have had the fewest problems, and most fluid experience of all, on WP7. General usage stuff like calls, texts, e-mail, web browsing, social networking etc. are all just super fast and efficient (with maybe the only exception being Facebook's annoying load time, but its not horribly necessary with the "what's new" section in People. Also, despite some issues (like it taking me a week to realize you can click on the song list under now playing) the media and gaming is hands down the best I've had on a phone.
Ugh, is the T-Mobile HD7 locked into Google?
I thought the whole idea of the Search button was to get quick access to the Bing Search Application. Is this so or is it only the search in IE?
Hoping they'll add a way to change that ASAP.
Jonno2343 said:
Ugh, is the T-Mobile HD7 locked into Google?
I thought the whole idea of the Search button was to get quick access to the Bing Search Application. Is this so or is it only the search in IE?
Hoping they'll add a way to change that ASAP.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Only in IE. Press Search from the start screen and it'll work like you expect (opening Bing)
Jonno2343 said:
Ugh, is the T-Mobile HD7 locked into Google?
I thought the whole idea of the Search button was to get quick access to the Bing Search Application. Is this so or is it only the search in IE?
Hoping they'll add a way to change that ASAP.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The T-Mobile US variant of the HD7 works like this, in all places other than a) Internet Explorer or b) app that override the search button (like contacts) when you press the search key it bring up Bing. When in IE, it goes to google.com. When in an app with an override, it searches within that app.
c0wb0ycliche said:
The T-Mobile US variant of the HD7 works like this, in all places other than a) Internet Explorer or b) app that override the search button (like contacts) when you press the search key it bring up Bing. When in IE, it goes to google.com. When in an app with an override, it searches within that app.
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Click to collapse
About your part B... that's how the search button is supposed to work, Windows Phone was designed like that. The T-Mobile USA HD7 is only different than other phones in part A.
as a few more days have passed, I also noticed that sometimes the Marketplace will lock up. The phone doesn't, I can still go back to the start screen, use all other apps etc, but when I go into Marketplace again it says loading and then goes back into to start unless I restart the device. Not a big deal, not too common, but still a bug. I think its related to the small freezes while browsing apps when it's loading the icons.
To clarify, you can upload and save your changes to SkyDrive. Simply tap down at the application settings and select synchronize. That will sync any changes with SkyDrive.
Sent from my HD7 using Board Express
Edit: it just works with OneNote.
But I think if you download excel doc from SkyDrive and make changes it will sync with SkyDrive?
Sent from my HD7 using Board Express
c0wb0ycliche said:
as a few more days have passed, I also noticed that sometimes the Marketplace will lock up. The phone doesn't, I can still go back to the start screen, use all other apps etc, but when I go into Marketplace again it says loading and then goes back into to start unless I restart the device. Not a big deal, not too common, but still a bug. I think its related to the small freezes while browsing apps when it's loading the icons.
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Click to collapse
Yep, that's a problem with just about everyone that has an HTC phone. I'm not sure if it affects Samsung and LG too, but I wouldn't be surprised if it does too.
Most advanced GPS calculations app for windows phone just got even more advanced!
GPS Calculator is an advanced app that allows you to do almost anything with GPS coordinates. Convert between 4 different formats (including UTM grid), calculate distances, area, and project points. It also does geo and inverse geo-coding (via bing services), maps true geodesic lines, works both offline and online, and allows you to manage waypoints. GPS Calculator major update to version 5.0 brings new features, including sharing of location in any supported format via sms, email or social, time zone, local time and sunrise-sunset calculations for any location, and the most advanced altimeter available on any mobile platform. With the new Altimeter function you can not only view elevation profile graphs and get current GPS elevation, but also compare it using five different elevation data models! In this update we support SRTM3 (shuttle radar topography mission), ASTER (Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer - a high resolution imaging instrument that is flying on the Terra satellite), GTOPO30 (global digital elevation model from topo maps), USGS elevation data, and finally Google’s elevation data web service.
GPS Calculator is not a tool for everyone. It will not take you from A to B, it does not record tracks or replaces your car GPS. There are plenty other apps that do that. But if you feel a little geeky about GPS technology, or just want to learn about it – you should give GPS Calculator a try. Hey, it is completely free and has no ads too, so there is nothing to lose.
GPS Calculator does speak your language (if it happens to be English, Russian, Italian, Spanish, French, Dutch or Swedish). Kevyn82, BigwaveMx @XDA, NebZonNe, Willem van Vugt, Johan Spanberg and others helped me translate. When Tango ships even more languages will come – including Ukranian, Arabic and Turkish already in the works.
This message would not be very useful without the marketplace link at the end. So here it is:
http://windowsphone.com/s?appid=4e06928a-de12-e011-9264-00237de2db9e
Nobody saying much here, so I'll say thank you for this useful and interesting app!
Peace
just installed, not bad! thanks
Thank you fellow WP7 users. I appreciate your comments here and even more at the marketplace. It is quite hard for a little non-commercial app like mine get noticed.
And just to let you know - new update with even more useful functions is already in the works.
hi kitya,
will be happy to update the translation if you introduce me to that NebZonNe...
little request : would be nice if we could find the app amongst other "G" named apps...thought the "space" was here for easy testing purpose...
Thank you. I will let you know as soon as I make some progress. Takes some time, sorry
Great Application
I will say this is a terrific app - works like a charm. Very ingenious! I would like to make a request though. If it were possible to save area calculations and email them, that would definitely be a big PLUS!
Thanks - great job! Greg
Stonebird said:
I will say this is a terrific app - works like a charm. Very ingenious! I would like to make a request though. If it were possible to save area calculations and email them, that would definitely be a big PLUS!
Thanks - great job! Greg
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you! But what exactly do you mean about area calculations saved. Just the result number? It should already be possible even now to select it and copy-paste into an email, if needed.
Helllo! I am Russian, my English is not very good, but I have not success with my idea in my country (nobody cares about health).
I want to talk about absolutely another way for health caring, if you compare this with traditional design and usability.
Now we have a LOT of people with glasses. People take their first glasses in childhood, and most of them using tablet or PC very often, and this is really bad. Also, we can see something like this (it's not me , and it's very bad to.
Why his back is a curve? It's not only "bad habbit" of one man, it's a problem of many people . I think that the reason of bad back and glasses is very simple and stupid - he (we) physically can not see text well, and glasses or curve back it's a trying for compensation!
So, if we want to have health people, developers should rebuild old methods of text displaying, because they are not compatible with our health!
Most of Russian spend a lot of time for sitting in our social network. VK.COM . If we talk about PC (not mobile phone or tablet), it uses 11px font by default! It's not only very small font, it's very low detailed font, especially, if we remember, that "program" DPI is 96 (in paper this is 300). Really display DPI in windows does not matter - font drawing in 3 times less.
I want to say we should use 16px/12pt font size by default, and stop use small font size. It's something like this (if we say about detalization)
Why 16 px? Firstly, it is compatible with 12 pt (12pt*96dpi/72=16px). So, we can use 16px not only in web, but also in Window interface. Secondly, I want to say that "bigger is better", but 18px (for example) in most of font look absolutely different (bolder) with 12-17px, it is unusual for some people.
Also, I want to say about features of human text perception. Long line length (more 100 symbols) is not good for us, and text understanding becomes worse. If we read books, line length physically can not be very long, but in the Internet a lot of text (for example, Wikipedia) do not consider this. Bigger font size can reduce line length, but developers should to consider it.
I mean, that most of children hate reading, because this associated with big eyes's strain (small font-size), curve back and inability to get text well (loong line-length).
Also, some rules are existed - if we use bigger font and shorter line-length, we should reduce line-height. Default line-height is 150%, I think we need to reduce it to 136%.
So, these principles can be simple realized in CSS:
*{font-size:16px;
line-height:136%}
I called it ESI - eyes saving interface, and it have realization in plugin, which load custom CSS for sites. There is not only font-size and line-height, it includes rebuild site rebuilding. I does not make it good, but something like this:
It's usual VK
It's ESIed VK
It can looks unusual and bad, if compare it with traditional representation of design, but I believe it's better for health.
ESI is better, than scaling, because we don't lost information, and ideally we can control base FONT-size.
It's YouTube
It's ESI YouTube.
Ideally, user need to have an opportunity for manual tuning of base text parameters.
It's wikipedia's control (prototype). You can choose font-size, line-height, max-width, and you can change font-family (for big texts it's preferred use serif, but apply it for every element it's too global)
Also, ESI realized to Windows in themes, you can download it and try. You can apply it correct to the Windows 7 (maybe Vista) only, because Windows 8 has independent font setting.
But Windows have some "bug" - you can set 12pt for icon's text, but horizontal spaces are not in theme. It means, that icon's names will look like
«Wind...» int 12 pt, not «Windows» in 8(9?)pt. In Windows 7 you canenlarge horizontal spaces to 85 (I prefer numbers that are divisible by 17) or something, but in Windows 8 you can not control it, maybe in registry.
So... I think that ESI idea should have some support. Suppose I can rebuild every program and site for comfortable of my eyes, but it's quite hard and eats my time. I'll still see people with poor eyesight and curve back, who hate reading, and I believe, that some developers can affect on it.
Now, you can test ESI with my plugin (it's Stylish with little mod) and give your opinion. You can install it using google chrome bit.ly/esi_c or bit.ly/esi_o for opera. Then you can find esi styles for some sites, Facebook (I did not work on it), Wikipedia, YouTube...
I can not post external link for images...
It's good someone's passionate about this and I think it would be a good idea. I hope one day you vision is achieved (no pun intended)
you can do it!! :silly: