Dell Axim Pocket PC Questions

[WeaponX 0]

Hi, I bought a Dell Axim X30 last week (didn't arrive here yet) and have a couple of questions to ask.1. Can the Pocket PC run any regular Windows programs? I was told that it can't and just want to confirm this.2. I created a program in Visual Basic and want to use this on this PDA. How should I convert it so that it works on Windows Mobile 2003 Second Edition (that's the operating system it will come with)? Or what programming language does it accept?3. This question has been bothering me a little. Will turning the PDA on and off frequently damage it? I mean it's a scheduler also, so I would think that this is ok to do. I just want to use it to jot down some notes from time to time. If this will damage it, I might have to leave it in standby mode instead then.4. I don't get the RAM part 100% yet. Is that RAM as in the RAM/memory we have for our computers? Or is that RAM like a hard drive for PDA's? Also is the ROM the storage space I can use to store my data files?Thanks.

[miCRoSCoPiC^eaRthLinG 0]

1. Can the Pocket PC run any regular Windows programs?  I was told that it can't and just want to confirm this.

I don't think it can - a PPC can run only software designed for Windows CE. So you should look around for software which is WinCE compatible.

 

2. I created a program in Visual Basic and want to use this on this PDA.  How should I convert it so that it works on Windows Mobile 2003 Second Edition (that's the operating system it will come with)?  Or what programming language does it accept?

With VB - I'm unsure, but if you're taking advantage of the new .NET framework, ie. using visual studio.net to develope your software, you should utilize the .NET Compact Framework components to develope your application. The compact framework is meant for creating WinCE apps.

 

3. This question has been bothering me a little.  Will turning the PDA on and off frequently damage it?  I mean it's a scheduler also, so I would think that this is ok to do.  I just want to use it to jot down some notes from time to time.  If this will damage it, I might have to leave it in standby mode instead then.

I don't think so - other than causing undue stress on your Power button and eating up a good chunk of your battery, this shouldn't adversely affect your ppc. But make sure, your switch off - switch on cycles are a little spaced out, i.e. at least with a gap of 1 min in between... Constant cooling and heating (off/on) causes stress on the solders of the PCB components of most electronic devices resulting in cracks.. this is applicable for desktop systems too.

 

4. I don't get the RAM part 100% yet.  Is that RAM as in the RAM/memory we have for our computers?  Or is that RAM like a hard drive for PDA's?  Also is the ROM the storage space I can use to store my data files?

This I'm unsure of... maybe someone else can help you out here. Not really experienced in using a PPC and thus cannot comment on it's ram usage.

[WeaponX 0]

Thanks for the reply m^e :PMan, I really need to keep myself up to speed then I never dove into the .NET area yet. I'm still using VB6 since lots of users say it's still good to use and probably less of a hassle. So no possible converters out there aside from getting VB .NET and recreating from scratch? If not, I guess I will have to look into .NET :PThat's ok with the RAM question. I keep reading a lot of these reviews and they never go into the RAM specs in detail. I guess I'll find out once I get the PPC and play around with it.

[Klass 0]

#3, You only have On and Standby mode. Everytime you hit the power button the Axim goes in standby as when you hit the button again it just resumes.The ony thing you need to do from time to time is soft reset it which will "reboot" the axim.#4, This is a tricky question, If you want to store files you need to get a Card: Compact Flash, Secure Digital, etc. depening on what your Axim takes. This will be where you store your files and some programs.The built in "memory" will get filled up quite fast if you do not have the addon memory.Klass Faithful user of Dell Axim X3

[derrick1985 0]

Ram (like a computer) 32 MegsRam (storage on the Axim) 32 megs.Think of Ram (storage) almost like a Ram drive. And yes, programs WILL start taking up quite a bit of space real fast. I would suggest either a 512 or 1 gig SD card for the Axim, and remember to format it for the axim (in the axim itself, it should ask you when you put it in)No, Windows Programs (regretfully) don't run. and I think .net is the way to program for Windows Mobile.Proud Axim X30 624mhz user.

[WeaponX 0]

Thanks for the replies guys.So that's why it boots up so quickly. It never actually shuts down like desktop Windows.Got it. I'm looking for a good deal for 512MB or 1GB SD or MMC cards.Does the SD card speed matter? I mean, I have one that's 60x and I use it for my digital camcorder. Can I use this SD card on a USB memory card reader or must it only be used on the Dell Axim? So if I wanted to transfer files, I must use wireless or bluetooth? I know my camcorder mentions this - that it shouldn't be plugged into the PC (or USB memory reader) since it might mess up the format.I'll have to learn VB .NET in that case and create a portable version of it.I have a problem that I just encountered this morning. The last thing I did yesterday was create a power on password, changed the screen view to landscape, and played around with the built-in transcriber feature. This morning I just changed the screen protector (changed it yesterday but didn't look so good - it's a pain to change these...). But since then I powered up and it asks me for the password. No problem there. So I took out the stylus and started writing on it. Didn't work. I tried tapping the keyboard. Didn't work either. I then noticed that the whole screen and basically all my PDA buttons are useless. Only the Enter/Select button works. I push that, it says wrong password (obviously). Pushed it a few more times and it gave me the hint I typed in yesterday. I tried hitting the reset button in the back. It just restarted but still I can't use the screen. Actually there was a few very short moments when I could. I opened it and it was like I had written something on it already (little scribble on the screen). I could scribble a few more strokes but that's it.Could the screen protector cause this problem? I tried peeling it a little and tapping the OK button on the upper right corner of the screen but that didn't work either. Maybe a hard reset? But I don't know how to do that.I see we have two Axim users here I have the X30 624Mhz also with 64MB RAM.

[Klass 0]

Hard Reset Hold Power Button, Press Reset Button on the Back.It Will boot up tell you to press the Home button to finish the Reset.This will remove everything on the internal Ram (Memory) more than likly you will need to reinstall the programs that reside on the SD or MMC Card as some of the files are saved to internal Memory.

[WeaponX 0]

Before I do this, will my default programs that came pre-installed on this PDA be deleted as well (Pocket Word, Excel, etc.)?

more than likly you will need to reinstall the programs that reside on the SD or MMC Card as some of the files are saved to internal Memory.

That's another thing I didn't know about till now. Still learning all the quirks on this thing. Thanks.

[Klass 0]

When you do a Hard Reset it will be just like you turning it on for the first time.If you have active sync installed you might have some issues with the same device name.

[WeaponX 0]

I got it. It's a little buggy. I was testing it out and hit No on purpose but it looks like it stilled cleared the memory But I did another hard reset and chose Yes to make sure.It's definitely the screen protector because it still wouldn't work after I did the hard reset. I basically have to peel at least half of the screen protector in order to use the screen taps. Right now, my screen protector is not sealed 100%. I have two sides (bottom pane and left pane left open - big bubble).Are there any screen protectors that actually fit the Axim X30 screen? I bought this and the seller said it will fix this model and others. When I sealed it today, I had to push on all the sides so they hide the cover/sheet. I'm not sure if that's how it's suppose to be done, but it looks good when I finished that. But it killed the tapping. No air = no good? I might need to look into getting a smaller screen protector if this is how it's going to be.

[Klass 0]

I bought the protectors directly from dell. Here is the link: http://forums.xisto.com/no_longer_exists/