Antony Pranata's Forum Nokia Blog

Antony Pranata's Forum Nokia Blog http://blogs.forum.nokia.com/blog/antony-pranatas-forum-nokia-blog A software engineer living in Vancouver, Canada - http://www.antonypranata.com/ antonypr 2009-11-21T16:08:00Z A New Symbian OS Book - Quick Recipes on Symbian OS http://blogs.forum.nokia.com/blog/antony-pranatas-forum-nokia-blog/2008/05/01/a-new-symbian-os-book-quick-recipes-on-symbian-os It's Friday now. Is it a good time for announcement for a new book? Today, I proudly announce a new Symbian OS book from Symbian Press, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0470997834?ie=UTF8&tag=s60ticom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0470997834">Quick Recipes on Symbian OS</a>. The book is available for pre-order from <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0470997834?ie=UTF8&tag=s60ticom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0470997834">Amazon</a> today. The book is authored by Michael Aubert and a bunch of other people that you may be familiar with, i.e.: <ul> <li>Alexey Gusev</li> <li>Myself (a.k.a. antonypr)</li> <li>Jo Stichbury (the author <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0470021306?ie=UTF8&tag=s60ticom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0470021306">Symbian OS Explained</a> and <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0470058277?ie=UTF8&tag=s60ticom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0470058277">The Accredited Symbian Developer Primer</a>)</li> <li>Jenny Mulholland</li> <li> Jukka Silvennoinen (a.k.a. symbian_yucca)</li> <li>Tanzim Husain</li> </ul>  <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0470997834?ie=UTF8&tag=s60ticom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0470997834"><img src="http://blogs.forum.nokia.com//data/blogs/resources/34687/Quick_Recipes.jpg" alt="Quick Recipes on Symbian OS" width="250" height="250" /></a> What this book is all about? Unlike existing Symbian OS books, it is structured like recipes book. Each recipe solves one specific problem, for example: how to write data to a file, how to load JPG/PNG images, how to handle incoming message, how to dial a phone number, etc. All the recipes are categorized in 10 different technology areas, i.e.: <ul> <li>File Handling</li> <li>Contacts & Agenda</li> <li>Networking</li> <li>Messaging</li> <li>Graphics and Drawing</li> <li>3D Graphics</li> <li>Multimedia</li> <li>Telephony</li> <li>Connectivity</li> <li>Location-based Services</li> </ul> The example source code will be available soon on <a href="http://developer.symbian.com/main/learning/press/">Symbian Press web site</a> soon (once the book has started selling). For now, you can download the source code of our <a href="http://developer.symbian.com/wiki/display/pub/Quick+Recipes+Taster">Quick Recipes Taster booklet</a>. The booklet is basically the stripped-down version of the book. <a href="http://developer.symbian.com/wiki/display/pub/Quick+Recipes+Taster"><img src="http://blogs.forum.nokia.com/data/blogs/resources/34687/QR_cover_JPEG.JPG" alt="Quick Recipes Taster" width="240" height="340" /></a> General Symbian C++ 2008-05-01T21:39:50Z antonypr Screenshot v3.01 Released http://blogs.forum.nokia.com/blog/antony-pranatas-forum-nokia-blog/2008/02/04/screenshot-v3.01-released It's been a while since I released the last version of my open source application, <a href="http://www.antonypranata.com/screenshot">Screenshot for Symbian OS</a>. The new version (v3.01) is now available at <a href="http://sourceforge.net/projects/screenshot-sos">SourceForge.net</a>.Unfortunately, only the unsigned version is available right now. As you may know, it takes a while for <a href="http://www.symbiansigned.com">Symbian Signed</a> to sign freeware/open source applications. So, please be patient to wait for the official signed version. Meanwhile, you can just download and sign it using your own developer's certificate. What's new in this version?<ul><li>A new shortcut, i.e. <#>+<*>. It's been a challenge to introduce this shortcut due to conflict with phone application on the idle screen. It is related to a known issue published at <a href="http://wiki.forum.nokia.com/index.php/KIS000708_-_Applications_should_not_capture_events_from_numeric_keys">Forum Nokia (KIS000708)</a>. Fortunately, there is a tricky workaround to this issue. </li><li>Support for more applications. The previous version has some problems capturing some applications, especially the ones with direct screen access. The new version does not solve the problem completely; but it should be better than the previous one. For example, the new version is able to capture N-Gage games, which has just been released today.</li><li>License upgraded to GPLv3. <a href="http://gplv3.fsf.org/rms-why.html">As recommended by Free Software Foundation</a>, it is better upgrading from GPLv2 to GPLv3.</li><li>Some bug fixes. For example, Camera key now works fine on most Nseries devices.</li></ul><div align="center"><a href="http://sourceforge.net/projects/screenshot-sos">Click here to download unsigned version and source code of Screenshot v3.01</a></div><div align="left">  </div> General S60 2008-02-04T21:07:14Z antonypr New Symbian Signed Test Criteria http://blogs.forum.nokia.com/blog/antony-pranatas-forum-nokia-blog/2007/11/28/new-symbian-signed-test-criteria Symbian has just issued the <a href="http://developer.symbian.com/wiki/display/sign/Symbian+Signed+Test+Criteria">new document of Symbian Signed Test Criteria</a>. It is marked as valid from December 1, 2007; but practically it won't be in force until the new Symbian Signed process is generally available (which is expected in early December 2007).The new test criterias now are divided into two categories, i.e.:<ul><li>Universal tests (11 test cases), which focuses on install, uninstall, reliability, robustness and normal operational behavior. Most of the test cases come from the old ones. There are some old test cases that are merged into one. </li><li>Capability-related tests (5 test cases), which include additional tests for applications that use certain specific capabilities only. All test cases in this category are new. </li></ul>Here are some changes that I noticed in the new document.<ul><li>Backup/restore feature is not mandatory. The developer has an option of not supporting backup/restore. </li><li>Auto-start feature. By default, an application shall not enable auto-start feature. There should be an option for the user to change it. </li></ul>The following criterias have also been removed in the new document:<ul><li>PKG-03: File Creation Location.</li><li>GEN-04: SIP session establishment.</li><li>CON-03: Billable events. There is, however, similar test case for applications with NetworkControl and MultimediaDD. </li></ul> For more information, please <a href="http://developer.symbian.com/wiki/display/sign/Symbian+Signed+Test+Criteria">visit Symbian Wiki page</a>. Browsing 2007-11-28T23:17:24Z antonypr Using Accelerometer on Nokia N95 http://blogs.forum.nokia.com/blog/antony-pranatas-forum-nokia-blog/2007/11/01/using-accelerometer-on-nokia-n95 The blogosphere has been hot since yesterday about accelerometer on Nokia N95. Apparently, Nokia 95 has a built-in accelerometer. You can find discussion about this on:<ul><li><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xRRsgu64F6Y">YouTube video showing RotateMe application on Nokia N95</a>. It shows how to get an iPhone-like effect.</li><li><a href="http://research.nokia.com/projects/activity_monitor">Moving Ball example from Nokia Research Center</a>. It shows a simple moving ball application that is controlled by accelerometer.</li></ul>In the latest firmware, we can even get the raw data from the accelerometer using <a href="http://research.nokia.com/projects/activity_monitor">Sensor Plug-in for S60 3rd Edition</a>. You can download the plug-in and start experimenting with accelerometer on Nokia N95 The usage of the API is very straightforward. You just need to create an instance of CRDAccelerometer and then receives the accelerometer data from its observer, MRDAccelerometerObserver. Note that the API still has "RD" prefix in the class name and file name; so it is still an R&D version. Having access to accelerometer raw data gives us many possibilities. For example, we can use it as control for games. Arto Holopainen has shown similar idea; but he is <a href="http://blogs.forum.nokia.com/index.php?op=ViewArticle&blogId=38462&articleId=198">using human muscle to control games</a>. As developers, the first question that you may have is, how to process raw data from the accelerometer. You need to know about "g" unit, which is a standard unit of acceleration. There are several papers that discuss "g" unit in accelerometer, for example:<ul><li><a href="http://www2.usfirst.org/2005comp/Manuals/Acceler1.pdf">Accelerometer and How They Work</a> - from Texas Instruments </li><li><a href="http://www.apartcreations.com/memsic/memsic/pdfs/Accel%20Primer.pdf">Accelerometer Primer</a> - from MEMSIC</li></ul> General Symbian C++ 2007-11-01T22:58:17Z antonypr Platform Security on Apple's iPhone? http://blogs.forum.nokia.com/blog/antony-pranatas-forum-nokia-blog/2007/10/17/platform-security-on-apple-s-iphone Thanks to petrib who pointed this out. <a href="http://www.apple.com/">Apple</a> just announced that they are going to support <a href="http://www.apple.com/hotnews/">third party applications</a> on <a href="http://www.apple.com/iphone/">iPhone</a> and <a href="http://www.apple.com/ipodtouch/">iPod touch</a>. This is not surprise because developers have been crying for SDK for iPhone. Many people have predicted that Apple will open their platform soon or later; otherwise they will have difficulty competing with "open" smart phones. What made me surprise is the statement from <a href="http://www.apple.com/hotnews/">Steve Jobs in the news</a>. They will have an advanced system that allows developer to access iPhone's software platform while at the same time protecting users from malicious programs. It sounds like Platform Security in <a href="http://www.symbian.com/">Symbian OS</a>, doesn't it? <blockquote> It will take until February to release an SDK because we’re trying to do two diametrically opposed things at once—provide an advanced and open platform to developers while at the same time protect iPhone users from viruses, malware, privacy attacks, etc. ... Some companies are already taking action. Nokia, for example, is not allowing any applications to be loaded onto some of their newest phones unless they have a digital signature that can be traced back to a known developer. While this makes such a phone less than “totally open,” we believe it is a step in the right direction. </blockquote> There is no detail of how they will implement the system. It could be similar to Symbian's PlatSec or totally different. Let's wait and see on February next year. Bonus Links <ul> <li><a href="http://www.apple.com/hotnews/">Third party applications on the iPhone</a> - from Apple Hot News.</li> <li><a href="http://fakesteve.blogspot.com/2007/10/some-more-info-on-sdk.html">Some more info on the SDK</a> - from Fake Steve Jobs.</li> </ul> General 2007-10-17T23:42:18Z antonypr Agile Software Methdology: An Interview with Jim Coplien http://blogs.forum.nokia.com/blog/antony-pranatas-forum-nokia-blog/2007/09/13/agile-software-methdology-an-interview-with-jim-coplien <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agile_software_development">Agile software methodology</a> is very hot topic these days. Many companies have been starting to use agile in their software development. <a href="http://descriptors.blogspot.com/">Jo Stichbury</a>, the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0470021306?ie=UTF8&tag=s60ticom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0470021306">Symbian OS Explained</a> and <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0470058277?ie=UTF8&tag=s60ticom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0470058277">The Accredited Symbian Developer Primer</a> books, has recently interviewed Jim Coplen about agile software methodology. The interview in PDF format is available on <a href="http://developer.symbian.com/main/downloads/papers/jim_coplien/jim_coplien_the_agile_heartv1.0.pdf">Symbian Developer Network</a>. Here is a small quote from the interview: <blockquote> When people inquire about what “Agile” means, I always return to the source: the Agile manifesto. There are so many branches of Agile, individual practices and individual methodologies that have been equated with the word Agile. Like most popular terms it ceases to have much useful meaning any more, so I like to go back to the source. The source is brilliant and there’s some really good stuff there for people to think about and to get their teeth into, but it probably isn’t what most people think it is. <ul> <li>Individuals and interactions over processes and tools</li> <li>Working software over comprehensive documentation</li> <li>Customer collaboration over contract negotiation</li> <li>Responding to change over following a plan</li> </ul> </blockquote> If you are a fan of agile software methodology, you have to read the interview. It contains valuable information. If you don't know about agile or haven't used agile, I highly recommend reading the interview and then.... (this is the most important one) discuss with your team to start applying agile. :) Links <ul> <li><a href="http://developer.symbian.com/main/downloads/papers/jim_coplien/jim_coplien_the_agile_heartv1.0.pdf">The Agile Heart: An Interview with Jim Coplien</a></li> <li><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0131467409?ie=UTF8&tag=s60ticom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0131467409">Organizational Patterns of Agile Software Development</a> - a book by Jim Coplien</li> <li><a href="http://agilemanifesto.org/">Agile Manifesto</a></li> </ul> General 2007-09-13T21:38:47Z antonypr The King of "Mobile Rules '08" http://blogs.forum.nokia.com/blog/antony-pranatas-forum-nokia-blog/2007/07/12/the-king-of-mobile-rules-08 Nokia together with some other high-profile companies announced the second annual competition for mobile developers and entrepreneurs. It is called "Mobile Rules '08". What is it all about? It is a competition to develop new applications or services for the mobile lifestyle. There are two tracks of the competition: <ul> <li>Mobile applications. It includes four categories, i.e. multi player/connected game, multimedia, enterprise and infotainment.</li> <li>Mobile business plan. It is about creating a plan for the mobile business that is innovative and has value for customers and investors.</li> </ul> What is the timeline? The deadline submission for mobile applications is January 25, 2008. The deadline for business plan is November 16, 2007. What is the prize? The prize for mobile applications is fast-track contract negotiations with one of the sponsors as well other prizes. If there is no contract after a year, US $10,000 will be granted. The prize for business plan is the same, that is business contract with Nokia or other sponsors as well as other prizes. If there is no contract after a year, US $20,000 will be granted. For more information, please visit <a href="http://www.mobilerules.org/" title="http://www.mobilerules.org/">http://www.mobilerules.org/</a>. Business Opportunities/Services 2007-07-12T23:02:22Z antonypr Save Our Planet http://blogs.forum.nokia.com/blog/antony-pranatas-forum-nokia-blog/2007/05/11/save-our-planet Environmental issue seems to be keyword these days. We hear global warming, energy saving and many other terms almost everyday. Yesterday, Nokia announced that they become <a href="http://www.nokia.com/A4136001?newsid=1125979">the first phone makers to add energy saving alerts to their devices</a>. <blockquote> The alerts are one of a series of environmental initiatives that mobile manufacturers, led by Nokia, agreed to take action on this year. Nokia is the first of these manufacturers to implement the alerts into its products.<img width="150" height="257" align="right" alt="How to save the climate - Join the energy revolution" src="https://blogs.forum.nokia.com/file.html?id=465&file=saveourplanet.jpg" /> </blockquote> This is not the first action from Nokia to become a "greener" company. They have started a program last year, called <a href="http://www.nokia.com/A4243029">Take-back and recycle</a>, where we can send our unused phones to be recycled. <blockquote> Nokia’s idea is to make it easier for consumers to act green by offering the possibility to return old, unused phones and accessories. Authorized Nokia Service Points, flagship stores, municipal collections, industry association's collections, or retailers' campaigns are all possible channels for returning used products. </blockquote> Many other big companies are serious about these environmental issues. Steve Jobs from <a href="http://www.apple.com/">Apple</a> wrote an open letter about "<a href="http://www.apple.com/hotnews/agreenerapple/">A Greener Apple</a>" last week. <blockquote> And we plan to bring other environmental issues to the table as well, such as the energy efficiency of the products in our industry. We are also beginning to explore the overall carbon “footprint” of our products, and may have some interesting data and issues to share later this year. </blockquote> As the end users as well as mobile developers, should we do something? Yes, for sure. We need to take actions to save our planet. It's not for us, but for our children. There is a free booklet from Greenpeace, <a href="http://www.greenpeace.org.uk/blog/climate/your-personal-guide-to-helping-save-the-climate">Your Personal Guide to Helping Save the Climate</a>, which discusses some tips to save our lovely planet. Here are some of them: <ul> <li>Buy the most energy-efficient products.</li> <li>Do your PC a favor and let it get some sleep.</li> <li>Don't leave chargers and transformers plugged in. This is exactly the reason why Nokia adds energy saving alerts into their latest devices.</li> </ul> General 2007-05-11T21:33:59Z antonypr Free Booklets from Symbian http://blogs.forum.nokia.com/blog/antony-pranatas-forum-nokia-blog/2007/05/02/free-booklets-from-symbian These free booklets from Symbian are intended for developers. They discuss various development topics in hand and consie format. They are normally less than 100 pages long. The terms "free" here mean you can download it from <a href="http://developer.symbian.com/main/academy/press/essential/index.jsp">Symbian web site</a> and get the printed book for free. Currently there are 9 booklets plus some translations to Chinese and Japanese and the list is growing. Here is the current list: <a href="http://developer.symbian.com/main/academy/press/essential/index.jsp"> </a> <a href="http://developer.symbian.com/main/academy/press/essential/index.jsp">Essential Symbian OS booklets</a> <ul> <li>Signing Tips</li> <li>Coding Tips (also available in Chinese, Japanese and Korean)</li> <li>Performance Tips (also available in Chinese and Japanese)</li> </ul> <img width="373" height="142" alt="Essential Symbian OS booklets" src="https://blogs.forum.nokia.com/file.html?id=447&file=essential_booklet.jpg" /><a href="http://developer.symbian.com/main/academy/press/essential/booklets_using.jsp"> </a> <a href="http://developer.symbian.com/main/academy/press/essential/booklets_using.jsp"> </a> <a href="http://developer.symbian.com/main/academy/press/essential/booklets_using.jsp">Using Symbian OS booklets</a> <ul> <li>Getting Started (also available in Chinese) </li> <li>Java ME on Symbian OS</li> <li>P.I.P.S</li> <li>Carbide.c++</li> <li>Data Sharing Tips</li> </ul> <img width="543" height="299" alt="Using Symbian OS booklets" src="https://blogs.forum.nokia.com/file.html?id=449&file=using_booklet.jpg" /> <a href="http://developer.symbian.com/main/academy/press/essential/booklets_uiq.jsp"> </a> <a href="http://developer.symbian.com/main/academy/press/essential/booklets_uiq.jsp">Essential UIQ booklets</a> <ul> <li>UIQ Essentials Getting Started (also available in Chinese)</li> </ul>  <img width="128" height="158" alt="Essential UIQ booklets" src="https://blogs.forum.nokia.com/file.html?id=448&file=uiq_booklet.jpg" /> Java Symbian C++ 2007-05-02T20:22:02Z antonypr Always Remember that Mobile Device has Limited Battery Power http://blogs.forum.nokia.com/blog/antony-pranatas-forum-nokia-blog/2007/04/24/always-remember-that-mobile-device-has-limited-battery-power Recently I had a strange problem with my <a href="http://www.nokia.com/e61">Nokia E61</a> device. The device needs to be charged every day. I was quite sure that the battery was still okay. The device was relatively new, about 1 month old. Before it happened, I could use my device for 3 - 4 days without charging. I thought it must be from one of the applications that I have installed recently. I suspected one of the applications that I have just installed. Then, I decided to uninstall it (I am not going to disclose the name of the application). What happened after that? The problem with my battery was solved. I can use my device normally. Why did it happen? Apparently, the application installed a server that runs in the background. I am not sure what the server is doing, but it empties the battery very fast. As a mobile developer, how can we avoid this? Forum Nokia has a good paper, <a href="http://seap.forum.nokia.com/info/sw.nokia.com/id/11749ea6-afee-46ab-9e36-0d453b4d5a98/S60_Platform_Effective_Power_and_Resource_Management_v2_0_en.pdf.html">S60 Platform Effective Power and Resource Management</a>. I won't repeat everything here; just highlight some of the important points: <ul> <li>Continuous timers, ticking too frequently (for example, more than once every five seconds), can adversely affect power consumption. </li> <li>If an application is moved to the background, it should, where appropriate, be paused and timers should be stopped. </li> <li>The backlight shall not be kept on without a good reason. It is turned off after a short period of inactivity is to conserve power; therefore overriding the system defaults should only be done if there is a compelling reason. </li> <li>Communication technologies, such as Bluetooth and WiFi, should be used carefully, as there is always some drain on the battery when any network interface is active. </li> <li>The camera has to be powered off when it is no longer used. Even if the camera is not being actively used, it is still consuming power if it is not powered off.</li> </ul> Please, always remember that mobile device has limited battery power. It is not the same as desktop world where the power is "unlimited". Symbian C++ 2007-04-24T05:30:50Z antonypr