DonS.CF : Windows Mobile Hardware

Club Pocket PC - Boston Meeting: Wednesday, Oct. 18th, 2006

Dons — Tue, 17 Oct 2006 15:04:37 GMT

FYI - The next meeting of Club Pocket PC - Boston will be held on Wednesday, October 18th at 6:30 PM at the Microsoft office in Waltham, MA.

Presentations include:

FIRST LOOK: Windows Mobile Device Center for Windows Vista. If you are wondering about how your Windows Mobile device will work with the upcoming Windows Vista operating system, this presentaton will give you insight to the successor to ActiveSync.
Microsoft SLAM for Windows Mobile Smartphones. Microsoft Research recently launched SLAM (Social/Location/Annotation/Mobile), a concept application for Windows Mobile Smartphone. SLAM is focused on social networking with small groups, exchanging conversations and other media. If you are interested in seeing what Microsoft is thinking in the mobile device social networking space, then this demonstration is a must-see.
Ink Enabling Applications for Microsoft Windows Tablet PC Edition. Digital ink functionality has always been a cornerstone of the Microsoft Windows XP Tablet PC Edition platform. Surprisingly, however, there has been slower than anticipated release of "ink-enabled" applications. If you are a .NET developer, you may be very surprised to see just how easy it is to provide ink functionality to your users. This presentation will demonstrate the common steps to support digital ink and related tasks.

I will be presenting the ink-enablement session (and working with my "partner in crime" Steven "fyiguy" Hughes on the other presentations as well. As always, it's a great opportunity to learn and meet other Windows Mobile and mobile technology enthusiasts. Hope to see some of you there!

Talk About Your Windows Mobile "Wins": Census Bureau Signs $600 Million Contract for Data Collection

Dons — Wed, 05 Apr 2006 15:11:00 GMT

Talk about a nice deal! AP is reporting that the U.S. Census Bureau has signed a 5-year, $600 million contract with Harris Corporation for data collection for the 2010 census that includes the deployment of Windows Mobile devices in the field by census takers -

The portable devices are being designed to allow census workers to immediately record information they gather when going door-to-door to American households, said Monty Wood, a spokesman for the Census Bureau.

While the devices (which will be manufactured by Taiwan's HTC) are critical for the collection of census data, they will not be used for other functionality (PIM, e-mail, etc). This will remain with the Census Bureau's RIM Blackberry devices -

Wood said the devices will not be used as cell phones or for other functions such as sending e-mail, and will not replace bureau employees' BlackBerry communicators.

"It's not like a BlackBerry," he said. "It's specified designed for the census 2010 application."

And here I was, getting worried that there weren't enough large-scale enterprise deployments of Windows Mobile devices for custom application usage... ;-)

Source: Yahoo! News

UPDATE: According to a Bloomberg article (spotted at Smartphone Thoughts - thanks, Mike!) , the deal equates to 500,000 devices (and an equal amount of Windows Mobile 5.0 licenses for Microsoft).

New Emulator Image for 320x240 Smartphone (with Landscape)

Dons — Wed, 05 Apr 2006 02:03:00 GMT

Some of you may or may not already know that the upcoming Motorola Q and Samsung i320 Windows Mobile 5.0 Smartphones have a couple of unique properties. First, they provide 320x240 screens. Second, they can function in landscape mode. Both of these capabilities pose new challenges to .NET Compact Framework developers.

Microsoft is now providing a new emulator image for developers. This new download adds a Smartphone emulator with both 320x240 dimensions and landscape support. In order to use this image, you must have Visual Studio 2005 and the Windows Mobile 5.0 SDK for Smartphone already installed. It is recommended that all Smartphone application developers download and install this image in order to test your existing applications.

WOW - New T-Mobile SDA Smartphone For Only $29.99

Dons — Mon, 03 Apr 2006 20:01:00 GMT

I don't normally post on this kind of stuff, but this is just too good to let slide by...

Amazon.com has the new T-Mobile USA SDA Smartphone (for those who follow this, the SDA is code-named by HTC as "Tornado") with Windows Mobile 5.0, EDGE, WiFi and a nice QVGA screen for only $29.99 with service activation and a $200 rebate. I know, I know - You have to wait for the rebate and you have to sign a contract with T-Mobile USA. At $29.99 (did I mention free shipping, too?), this might just be worth the "pain points" :-)

It's times like this that I regret reading the RSS feed from Techbargains.com (thanks to them for pointing this deal out).

Club Pocket PC - Boston Meeting Wednesday, Feb. 15th

Dons — Sat, 11 Feb 2006 16:55:00 GMT

While not a developer topic this month, I thought this might be of interest to those Windows Mobile device owners who want to flex their "device multimedia muscles" a bit more... ;-)

The next Club Pocket PC - Boston meeting will be held Wednesday, February 15th starting at 6:30 PM at the Microsoft offices in Waltham, MA (201 Jones Road, 6th Floor).

The theme for this next meeting is Multimedia Madness! If you've wondered about all of the ways that you can use your Windows Mobile device for multimedia functionality, then this is the meeting to attend. Steve Hughes and I will cover the array of Windows Mobile possibilities for video and audio on Windows Mobile Smartphones, Pocket PCs and Pocket PC Phone Edition devices, including:

- Built-in functionality with Windows Media Player Mobile;
- Integration with Windows Media Player 10 on the desktop;
- Third-party utilities for video and audio playback and conversion;
- Windows Media Center integration features (note: we will be demoing MCE 2005 as well, so if you're wondering what MCE is all about, this is another reason to attend).

As usual, we'll also have items for giveaway!

Hope to see you there!

Musing on the Windows-Powered Treo and the Palm OS...

Don — Mon, 26 Sep 2005 16:56:00 GMT

As I write this, the countdown has long since begun for the press conference announcing the Windows Mobile 5.0–powered Palm Treo 700w device. For some, this day serves as a sort of “VP Day” (“Victory Over Palm”) in the Windows Mobile world. As someone who once used and developed for the Palm platform and subsequently followed the “long and winding Palm road” for a number of years, it does give an opportunity for reflection.

I first started using the Palm OS back in the 3com days with a Palm Pilot Professional. I owned several models before making the switch in 2000. I was very interested in Palm development, but the options at that time were either expensive (CodeWarrior) or complicated (GCC development). As someone interested in use for the enterprise, I ended up limiting myself in those days to PQA-oriented applications. I saw these early obstacles to enterprise development as being a potential pitfall over time, and to some extent, I think I was right. While the Palm did eventually open opportunities for web-based development in a more standardized fashion, serious enterprise application development was limited by tools and technologies.

I really think that some of Palm’s issues relate to the age-old business problem of what you do when you’re “Number 1”. As any sports franchise (and most businesses) will tell you, it’s difficult enough to get to Number 1, and immensely more difficult to stay there. I found the attitude of Palm executives in the first couple of years after the Pocket PC’s launch to be somewhat arrogant and static. The OS went through no innovation for a long period of time, while hardware innovation was mostly evolutionary. As a side note, people who lament over issues with upgradability of Windows Mobile devices typically never went through the period of “zero upgradeability” over several Palm OS releases. It was as bad, and usually worse.

By the time Palm started to react to diminishing marketshare, the responses were just that – reactionary. It seemed to me to lead to another mistake that has a sports analogy. Any coach will tell you that the last thing you ever want your team to do is to play someone else’s style of game rather than your own. Palm truly lost one of its differentiators when it lost “The Zen of Palm” (despite what Palm execs proclaimed). Palm devices and the OS did basic PDA tasks well, and the move towards more features and functionalities created complexities for users. At that point, it became a matter of who did the complex better; this was not Palm’s strong point.

So – what does the future hold? Well, those that proclaim another Microsoft monopoly forget that it has not been a “two-horse race” for a while now. While many work hard to discredit the viability of the Linux OS on PDAs and Smartphones, it is still a definite player. One cannot in any way avoid the prominence of the Symbian OS in the Smartphone world, either. That is, of course, if you do not want to repeat Palm’s mistakes. As for the Palm OS – the acquisition of PalmSource by ACCESS Japan still leaves a lot of questions. Do they continue the traditional OS route? Do they focus on PalmSource’s work in the Linux space? Do they simply want intellectual property? We will simply have to wait and see.

One thing is for certain today; another major change in the PDA and Smartphone space is occurring. I (like many others) never thought I would see the day when Bill Gates and Ed Colligan would stand shoulder-to-shoulder at a public press event. The world is ever-changing; while we think some things could never happen, well… “never say never”.

ActiveSync 4.0, WiFi Sync and Some Clarification

Don — Tue, 10 May 2005 21:13:00 GMT

If you have not heard, Windows Mobile 5.0 (the OS formerly known as “Magneto”) was announced today at MEDC (Mobile Embedded and Developers Conference). Lots of great stuff for end users and developers. If you are looking for information, we’ve posted a lot at BostonPocketPC.com.

Also announced today was the release of ActiveSync 4. Now, before you go out and install this, there is something very important you need to know. ActiveSync 4 does not include WiFi synchronization (except with Exchange Server). If you use this functionality and need it, please continue using ActiveSync 3.8.

The immediate backlash from this has been quite harsh. I am concerned, however, that the whole story regarding the removal of this feature has not been told thus far. So, I feel it is important to me to post something that I feel is immensely important here and now for posterity's sake.

As I just mentioned, ActiveSync 4.0 does *not* include WiFi synchronization. This was initially brought to all of the Mobile Device and .NET Compact Framework MVPs attention a couple of months ago. Also clearly stated at that time was the reason.

WiFi ActiveSync has never been secure. While this has essentially just "slipped by" for quite a while, the recent emphasis by Microsoft on security across all product lines made this an issue. When it was realized that a serious security hole existed, the problem then became what it would take to close that hole. Unfortunately, quite a bit of work needs to be performed.

In order to Windows Mobile 5.0 to ship, ActiveSync 4 needed to ship at the same time. Some of the synchronization enhancements required an update that is included within ActiveSync 4 (AS 4 is backward-compatible with older devices, though) The decisions, therefore, became quite limited. Either:

1) Remove WiFi synchronization from ActiveSync for now, allowing for the product to ship on time;
2) Delay release of both Windows Mobile 5.0 and ActiveSync 4.

The final decision was the former of the options.

I can say that the entire body of Mobile Devices AND .NET Compact Framework MVPs were very troubled by the removal of WiFi synchronization. The result of this is that Microsoft is looking at what would need to be done to bring WiFi synchronization back AND alleviate the security issues.

Why am I stating all of this here? For a couple of reasons -

1) Microsoft did give some people a "heads up" on this issue. In addition to MVPs, developers participating in beta testing for Windows Mobile 5.0 development were made aware of this issue. I want to be perfectly clear about this - people were informed.
2) A number of people expressed concerns over this issue, and Microsoft listened. Although the short-term solution was undesirable, there is no permanence. Again - people were informed.
3) All - I cannot emphasize this enough - ALL of the people who were involved in the discussions were made clearly aware of the reasons why this decision was made. Any comments to the effect of "I can't understand why this happened" are simply not true. Period – end of discussion.

Listen - I find this whole thing a hard pill to swallow, too. But I refuse to run from the issue and act like it was done in utter silence and without explanation. While I might not agree with the result, I can accept the fact that there was a valid reason for it, and I am appreciative in the fact that it was explained to me. I also can't sit by and let anyone who knows this to give any impression to the contrary.

Here’s to hoping that the solution to the ActiveSync 4 WiFi security problem is resolved sooner rather than later, and that those you use this (myself included) will have a restored and secure experience moving forward.

Microsoft Executive Circle Webcast: Extending Applications to the Edge with the Windows Mobile Platform

Don — Mon, 21 Mar 2005 15:48:00 GMT

I must admit that I was a bit surprised to open my latest Microsoft Windows Mobile News e-mail on Friday and discover my next Microsoft Executive Circle Webcast marketed amongst the content. Heck - I hadn't even had a chance to mention it here yet ;-)

Microsoft Executive Circle Webcast: Extending Applications to the Edge with the Windows Mobile Platform

Start Time:   Thursday, April 14, 2005 11:00 AM (GMT-08:00) Pacific Time (US & Canada)
End Time:   Thursday, April 14, 2005 11:30 AM (GMT-08:00) Pacific Time (US & Canada)

Event Description
Products: Pocket PC.
Recommended Audience: Business Decision Maker.
Language: English-American
Description:
In an increasingly competitive business world, providing real-time information and access from enterprise systems to remote workers is often essential to success. There are a number of challenges to empowering your employees and customers on the edge of your computing infrastructure, but there are answers to these challenges.

Join us for a presentation focusing on how the Microsoft Windows Mobile platform can enable your organization to successfully extend enterprise systems, data and processes to your highly mobile workforce and help gain a competitive advantage.

Presenter: Don Sorcinelli, Editor-In-Chief, BostonPocketPC.com; Microsoft MVP

If you are interested in this event, you can sign up at the MS Events home.

Why I Believe The PDA Won't Die

Don — Thu, 10 Mar 2005 19:24:00 GMT

Last week, fellow BostonPocketPC.com’er and friend Steve Hughes posted his thoughts on a c|net article by Molly Wood entitled “Molly to handhelds: just die, already”. Steve and I have had this conversation for about as long as I’ve known him, and I have found myself addressing this issue since shortly after the birth of the “modern-day” PDAs in the mid-‘90s.

I believe that, as Steve says, Molly doesn’t get it. I also think that Steve does get it. The problem with Molly and so many others who follow and report on technology is their clearly myopic view of concepts and implementations. They view what they see before them today (the implementation) as the concept. These are two entirely different things.

The overarching technical concept of a PDA is to be a Personal Digital Assistant (yes – that is what the acronym stands for). How it is implemented evolves over time. Just look back at those cute little Casio and Sharp “digital organizers” of over a decade ago. They were PDAs, like it or not, based on the concept of a PDA. Ten years have passed, and we have seen the evolution of the technology concept of a PDA transform implementations over and over again. If I were to apply Molly’s myopic view of things to the marketplace in 1995, then the death of the OZ spelled the death of the PDA ;-)

Certainly, the technological implementations of PDAs will continue to evolve, with new features and functionalities. Does this mean that the converged device of the future cannot be a PDA, simply because it is not today’s perception? Of course not. The concept of a Personal Digital Assistant and its value in any of a number of use cases will always exist. How manufacturers and technology implement solutions to meet these needs may change, but as long as demand exists (and it certainly does) there will be solutions.

As an aside – when will the analysts (who do get paid to provide insight) finally actually research the devices they are reporting on when it comes to statistics. Molly (and everyone else, it sometimes seems) is basing their PDA “death knell” on declining sales of certain devices. On the other hand, they also report that sales of smartphones are on the rise. HELLO!?!?! Try crunching the numbers AND combining handheld PDAs and phone-based PDAs (which is what a Smartphone essentially is) and see what you get.

One last note – did I mention that how, based upon recent sales numbers, the home computer is destined to die? ;-)

My Executive Circle Webcasts Now Available On Demand

Don — Tue, 23 Nov 2004 16:07:00 GMT

I just checked to confirm that my two Executive Circle webcasts (delivered on November 16th) are listed on the Microsoft "On-Demand" webcasts page. They are -

Increasing Competitive Advantage with Windows Mobile Solutions (30 minutes)

Effectively Deploying Windows Mobile Solutions to Employees and Customers (60 Minutes)

The former presentation is targeted towards Business Decision-Makers, while the latter is targeted at Technical Decision-Makers.

Samsung Mobile Intelligent Terminal Developer Community (and More)

Don — Wed, 13 Oct 2004 16:43:00 GMT

At our Boston-area Cabana event, one of the more common types of questions tended to boil down to programmatically accessing device-specific features. Interacting with WiFi, Bluetooth and cellular radio stacks seems to be quite a popular area of curiosity for many developers.

In many cases, direct access to this type of functionality is not exposed by the .NET Compact Framework. The reason - each hardware implementation is unique in its own right, and there is no Windows Mobile-equivalent of a robust Hardware Abstraction Layer. As a result, it is often necessary to work directly with the hardware vendor to determine if their is an API exposed that can be developed against.

At the Cabana event, there were questions regarding the Samsung Pocket PC Phone Edition devices. Steve Hughes did some digging around after the event, and uncovered the Samsung Mobile Intelligent Developer Community. He posted information regarding this program at the BostonPocketPC.com web site. If you are interested, check out the article for more information.

Another developer program that may be of interest is HP's iPAQ Developer Program. There are 3 levels of membership (1 free, 2 with fees). The Developer Level ($199/year) includes access to the iPAQ Developer SDK, with access to a number of iPAQ functionalities.

As I uncover more hardware vendor developer programs for Windows Mobile devices, I'll be sure to add them to the list.

FINALLY - A Windows Mobile Smartphone 2003 Device Makes It To The US

Don — Tue, 12 Oct 2004 19:41:00 GMT

You know, it is incredibly difficult to espouse the benefits of the .NET Compact Framework to enterprises when they ask "Where are the devices capable of running the .NET CF?". Thankfully, the first of what will definitely be more, and hopefully many, Windows Mobile Smartphone 2003 devices was announced today by AT&T Wireless and Audiovox -

"LOS ANGELES — Oct. 12, 2004 — Today at the Windows® XP Experience More event, Microsoft Corp. and Audiovox Communications Corp., a majority-owned subsidiary of Audiovox Corp., and AT&T Wireless introduced the smallest Microsoft® Windows Mobile™-based Smartphone in North America — the Audiovox SMT5600. The Audiovox SMT5600 includes the Windows Mobile 2003 Second Edition software for Smartphones and is the first Windows-Mobile-based Smartphone featuring Windows Media® Player 10 Mobile, providing a rich new media experience that enables the seamless transfer of media from a PC running Windows XP. AT&T Wireless is offering the Audiovox SMT5600 starting today for $199.99 (U.S.) after rebates with a two-year voice and data service contract."

I have posted the complete press release and lots more pictures at the BostonPocketPC.com web site, if you are interested.

Here's to being able to justify all of the benefits of the Windows Mobile platform and the .NET Compact Framework just a bit easier... ;-)

"Why No Windows Mobile Upgrade?": A Complex Answer to a Simple Question

Don — Tue, 14 Sep 2004 20:55:00 GMT

Lately, it seems like the most frequently-asked question I receive around Windows Mobile devices revolves around OS updates for the Pocket PC, Phone Edition, and Smartphone. The question always boils down to something like -

"Why does Microsoft not make the OS upgrade directly available? Why do I have to go through <fill in the manufacturer>?"

There is an answer to this question. Usually, however, the answer is either -

a) Way too wordy and technical;
b) Way too "finger-pointing" in nature;
c) Way too "not what you want to hear";
d) All of the above

I finally decided that I would take a little time to describe the answer to this oft-answered question in a way that overcomes a) and b). I do not think I can do much to overcome c), especially if you are the owner of a Windows Mobile device that has been "orphaned" by a manufacturer. I am hoping that at the least you will have a better understanding as to why the "Microsoft-direct" alternative is not viable.

A Tightly-Coupled OS and Hardware
How many people can remember back to the early PC days, whether it was DOS or early (pre "Plug 'n Play") Windows? More importantly, how many of you remember what an absolute nightmare it was to upgrade the OS and discover your hardware drivers no longer worked? For most (myself included), your PC was never upgraded at the OS level until you checked with all of your hardware component manufacturers to get the latest drivers for the new OS. In some cases, the hardware vendors decided not to support older hardware with new drivers, so you had to go out and buy a new replacement hardware piece (I remember this being common with CD-ROMs) in order to upgrade the OS. While this can still happen today, it is far less common.

Now turn to the Windows Mobile platform. When Microsoft completes a new version of or update to Windows Mobile operating systems, it is not really complete. You see, the new/updated version of the OS must be delivered to all of the manufacturers of the devices for customization. Here's the deal - Windows Mobile hardware devices are very tightly coupled to the operating system. This is similar to the days of DOS and system drivers, but in some cases is actually more severe. Rather than simply providing an updated driver, the device manufacturers must actually integrate directly (and thererfore modify) the operating system provided to them by Microsoft in order to work properly and efficiently.

This tight-coupling of hardware to Windows Mobile operating systems essentially means that Microsoft cannot simply provide a single generic version of Windows Mobile for all Pocket PCs or all Smartphones. The end result would be disastrous.

XIP - Nice In Theory, But...
Some of you may recall that one of the largely-touted advancements in the Pocket PC 2002 OS was the insertion of "XIP" technology. Without getting too wordy or technical (as promised), XIP was supposed to enable Microsoft and/or the hardware manufacturer to update specific areas of device ROM (where the OS is stored) without having to overwrite the entire ROM. In theory, XIP was supposed to enable -

1) A device update of ROM without having to hard-reset a device;
2) Microsoft to provide updates to items in ROM that would never be customized by any hardware manufacturer.

XIP can (and has) actually been used and works. As a real example, my Mitac Mio 8380 Smartphone (running the Smartphone 2002 OS) actually has been upgraded with a number of ROM updates using XIP. I never once had to hard reset my device after applying one of these updates. While XIP could work to solve the "Microsoft-Direct" update, there were several major obstacles -

1) There would need to be a universally agreed-to standard for "what gets placed where" in ROM (for lack of a better term). Microsoft would need to know that a specific location in memory would always contain the same data (regardless of the device).
2) The agreed-to standard would then need to be rigorously self-enforced by the hardware manufacturers.

As far as I have been ever able to determine, neither items 1 or 2 ever really occurred. Even if they had, it must be noted that XIP would only solve updates that were not device-specific; an update to Pocket Word would be possible, but not necessarily to Connection Manager.

What About Plug and Play and Today's PCs?
Earlier, I mentioned that many of the problems regarding early PCs with regards to the operating system and hardware have been overcome. Much of this has been made possible by creating a layer in the operating system that separates the tight coupling of the OS to the device. While risking an over-simplification, the evolution of the Windows (and other) operating systems to include a "Hardware Abstraction Layer" (or "HAL") has made it easier to provide OS updates without as much regard for the underlying hardware. This, when combined with a "Plug and Play" specification (this is a standard for creating device drivers, BTW) to hardware manufacturers and the people responsible for writing the device drivers for the hardware, have made OS updates a much more simplified and hardware-agnostic process.

While this may be possible at some future point for Windows Mobile devices, it is not really feasible at this point in time. The reason is quite similar to the early days of PCs, where resources are at a premium. A Hardware Abstraction Layer requires quite a bit of physical space (something that current Windows Mobile devices are still quite limited on) and processing power (again limited). We may very well see this occur somewhere down the road for the Windows Mobile platform, but not today.

Computing Platform or Consumer Appliance?
The last factor that plays some role in why updates are or are not available for a particular device lies largely with the device manufacturers themselves, and is very non-technical. For many manufacturers, the debate rages internally over whether a PDA or Smartphone is a computing platform or a consumer appliance. The difference in how manufacturers perceive the devices makes all of the difference in the world from a business perspective.

To a manufacturer, a consumer appliance is largely considered "disposable". That is, the product will likely (based on price and changing technology) be replaced within a brief time period (with "brief" being relative and specific to the product and market). As a result, the cost of labor associated with providing an upgrade is weighed against the need for assigning the same resources to similar products that are earlier in their life cycle. In short, manufacturers count on you as the consumer simply buying a new consumer appliance with more features rather than trying to make due with an older product.

Computing platforms have evolved to the point where users expect to be able to extend the life of their product for longer periods of time (thanks to easier hardware replacement and OS advances mentioned previously). As a result, manufacturers (in order to maintain customer satisfaction) have increasingly taken steps to ensure that labor is put forth to ensure greater upgradeability.

Unfortunately, it has become apparent through actions that some hardware vendors have chosen to classify their Windows Mobile products as consumer appliances, if for no other reason than to try to spur continuing sales of newer hardware through older hardware obsolescence. This holds true for both Pocket PCs and Smartphones (perhaps even more so for the latter, as that has been an industry-wide philosophy for quite some time).

Conclusion
There is really no one-line response to answer the question as to why Microsoft cannot currently simply directly provide upgrades to Windows Mobile devices. It is a complex situation that prevents this from happening today. While it is possible that this situation can change over time, it will only happen if hardware manufacturers buy in to the process. Hopefully, this text has helped explain the situation a bit more clearly.

Secure Mobile Development and Deployment White Paper at MSDN

Don — Fri, 03 Sep 2004 14:37:00 GMT

There has been a new (and large, at 44 pages) white paper addressing various aspects of secure development and deployment of Windows Mobile applications for the Pocket PC and Smartphone. Issues addressed in the article include -

Public Key Infrastructure
Email with Exchange Server 2003
VPN
WiFi
Device Configuration Management
Power-On with Password
SQL Server CE

OK, now I can see how this could be a large white paper after all ;-)

You can download the white paper at the MSDN web site.

New Mobile Device Developer Web Site - Mobidogs.com

Don — Thu, 02 Sep 2004 16:03:00 GMT

There is a new resource for Mobile device developers on the Internet today - Mobidogs. The press release announcing the web site launch pretty much sums it up well -

Developers working on Windows Mobile, Embedded, or location-based solutions have a new place to turn to when looking for information online. Focused primarily on Microsoft mobile technologies and paying specific attention to the Compact Framework and Dot Net platforms, www.Mobidogs.com opened their pages to community traffic today.

According to the editors, "the goal of this new site is to be a leading central repository of the important information and links that a mobile developer needs while developing for Microsoft mobile platforms".

Besides the unusual name, Mobidogs is also a little different in the types of developer topics they cover. This site attempts to point developers to a wide and holistic array of technical as well as business, marketing, event and online learning resources. The Mobidogs site makes a great launching point for developers of mobile solutions who may not be familiar with all of the best places to find the information covered in any one of the five major site categories:

SmartPhone, Pocket PC, Embedded, Game Development and MapPoint Web
Service/Location Server.

If you are developer of solutions for mobile devices, you should pay the Mobile Developers Online Group a visit and add a bookmark to your list of important online gateways.

It always warms my heart to see another site focused on mobile device development launch on the Internet. It just seems like another little affirmation that the .NET CF platform continues to gorw in acceptance.