[WM] How to close open programs

Note : This article is written for the Windows Mobile [WM] OS.

The Windows Mobile operating system is a powerful system that is designed to be very similar to the Windows OS for PCs. This makes it very easy for those familiar with computers to use Windows Mobile. But one feature of Windows Mobile that looks the same as PCs but isn't, is the close button.

The close button of Windows Mobile, when used, minimizes the program rather than closing it as in PCs. This can act as a let-down as the minimized programs will use up a lot of battery. This problem can be solved in one of two ways :

Close programs using the Task Manager : You can open the Task Manager & then close the program from it everytime.

Use a 'Close All' button : Alternatively, by using the Tascal Close All tool, you can add a 'Close All' button to the start menu of your Windows. And as the name suggests, by opening it, it closes all the open programs.

Thus, you can easily solve the closing problem of Windows Mobile.

Create your own themes online

Themes are a wonderful way to change the style of a mobile phone. There are several themes available all over the web. Thus, you can easily get a theme of your liking on searching. But, themes too face several limitations as we cannot change the colors, background pictures, etc. separately. 

This problem can be solved easily by creating one's own themes. There are various free online applications available for this purpose (& also several offline softwares) By using such tools, we can customize the background pictures, colors, wallpapers, screensavers, etc. of different areas of the user interface & that too very easily to create a theme perfectly suited to you. You can then transfer the theme to your mobile phone via USB, Bluetooth, etc. Some of the online theme-creating applications are listed below :

[Note : All the sites listed below, except Goggag Mobile (S40)  require you to create an account with them (free, of course) to create / save themes]

OwnSkin Professional Theme Creator : This is  a powerful theme creator that supports themes of a very wide range of handsets. 

Here, the screen is sub-divided into three parts : The left hand section contains a list of all the editable items (like background image, softkey function color, etc.) which can be clicked upon to change it. The bottom section provides various functions like image upload, color picker, etc. for changing the selected item. And, the remaining area gives a preview of how the theme would look on the phone. You can also directly click on an item here to change that particular item's properties.

Zedge Theme Maker : You can also use Zedge's theme creator to create your theme. It facilitates the editing of the theme through several tabs (like Background, Color, Screensaver, etc.)

Some other theme-creation online tools are listed below :

Goggag Mobile (S40 & S60) : This, too, is an excellent site to create themes. However, it only supports themes of the Nokia S40 & S60 operating systems. And unlike other such apps, you need not create an account to make an S40 theme.

Related : How to know your phone's operating system.

Happy theme-making!

How to find your phone's platform / OS

What is a Mobile Platform / Operating System? 

Every mobile phone is built on a certain platform / operating system (OS) which uses the hardware of the phone to set up its basic functions like music playback, making / receiving calls, etc. It acts as the base on which all the activities of the phone are carried out. It is similar to the Windows, Linux, etc. that we are familiar to in regard to PCs. 

There are various different platforms in the mobile world. And usually, the applications, games & themes of mobiles are not cross-platform compatible, ie, the apps of one mobile platform will not work in a different platform. (There are some exceptions though) Thus, knowing the OS / Platform of your mobile phone can be important.

So, how do I know which platform my phone uses?

For a Nokia phone, visit their site's Devices section. It is an excellent resource where you have to simply select your phone model from the list. Then, you will be redirected to a page containing detailed technical specifications of the phone. And on the very top, the platform of the cell phone will be mentioned. Ex. Series 40 3rd edition, Symbian 60 1st edition, etc.

For a Sony Ericsson phone, visit its Phone Gallery. It is another excellent site. Select your phone model from the dropdown box on the left & you will be directed to a page containing some info & technical specifications of the selected phone. You will find the name of the phone's platform in the technical specs section of the page.

The Windows Mobile OS can be easily recognized because whenever a Windows phone is switched on, the Windows Mobile text & logo is shown. And, if you wish to know the version of your Windows, then read Microsoft's wonderful short article on finding your phone's version of Windows Mobile.

For a Samsung phone, visit their Products page. Then, select your phone model's series & the model from the Phone Search tab on the left. In the resulting phone information page, click on Specifications. Then, expand the Platform tab by clicking on the image on its right. This is where you will find the phone's OS.

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If you use some other phone, then you can follow these general instructions, which should work for most sites :

1. Visit your phone manufacturer's site (You can find the site by searching the manufacturer's name on a search engine)

2. Then, from the site, head over to the Phones / Products section.

3. Select your phone from the list or menu.

4. Check the technical specifications of the phone. This is usually the place where your phone's platform will be stated.

If you can't your phone's OS by this technique, then you can try searching for it. You can use the following syntax in a search engine :

i) "Phone model" platform

OR

ii) "Phone model" OS

where "Phone model" be replaced by the name of the phone model whose platform / OS is to be found. 

So, these are some of the techniques to find your phone's OS. 

Introduction to the Flight Mode

As a rule, the mobile phone has to be switched off before a flight takes off. This is because, the cell phone uses radio waves to communicate with its networking service. These waves might interfere with the radio waves that the aeroplane uses to communicate with the airport. This airplane-airport communication is very important for the safety of the plane. Thus, it is advised to switch off the mobile phone before embarking on a journey. 

But by doing this, we cannot use the other functions of the phone such as music playback, camera, writing documents, etc. This onstraint is solved by the flight mode.

The flight mode simply detaches the phone from its networking service (making you unable to make/receive calls & SMSes). Thus, the radio waves of the mobile phones are switched off too. Thus, the mobile phone simply becomes a digital toy, not interfering with the plane's radio waves in any way.

Windows Mobile - it does not have a separate flight mode. You can simply turn off the phone service from the Wireless Manager to turn off its waves. It works the same way as the Flight mode.Go to Settings --> Phone --> Flight mode --> On.

[WM] How to beam multiple documents at once

Note : This article is written for the Windows Mobile [WM] OS.

In Windows Mobile, you have the facility to beam documents. (send documents via bluetooth or infrared) However, you can only send one document at a time. Or, you can send all the documents at once by using Select All & then beaming them. But, it is not directly possible to send multiple (but not all) documents of a folder in one go.

It can be done though, with a simple trick, the Ctrl + Click technique of PCs. If you don't know the technique, read on :

1. Open the concerned application. (Word, Excel or Powerpoint)

2. Open the On-Screen keyboard & press Ctrl in it.

3. Now, select the documents to be sent. (without turning off the keyboard)

4. Then, select Beam File. This will beam the selected documents at once.

Thus, you can easily beam multiple documents at once.

How to reduce your GPRS charges

General packet radio service (GPRS) is a very good feature used for accessing the Internet from a mobile phone. The GPRS rate (cost) is generally based on the amount of data transferred. Thus, to reduce the GPRS charges, one needs to reduce the phone's data transfer. We can do that by the following ways :

1.Visit mobile versions of web-sites : Many popular sites have special mobile versions of them. These sites are usually optimized for the cell phone, and are of a much lower size than regular sites. Thus, you should always prefer mobile sites over regular ones. Generally, the sites will have a link to their mobile version on their homepage, or they will automatically redirect you to the mobile site if you are accessing the site via mobile.

2.Turn off images : Images have a much higher size than regular text. Thus, the more the images loaded, the more is the data transferred. Thus, turn off image loading from your browser's settings, which will significantly reduce your internet charges.

3.Turn off other extras : Similarly to images, disabling extras like pop-ups, animations, etc. too helps in lowering data transfer.

Thus, these are the methods by which your data transfer over the internet can be reduced, resulting in lower GPRS costs.

How to save Battery

Saving battery life is of utmost importance due to various factors like saving electricity, increasing the uptime of the cell phone or making the battery last longer. So, here are some basic tips to save battery life :

1. Keep off connectivity devices when not in use : Connectivity devices like Bluetooth, Infra-red, Wi-fi consume some amount of energy when they are on. Specially, Wi-fi & Infra-red, when on consume a lot of battery in searching for networks & other phones respectively. Therefore, it's better to disable them when unused.

2. Decrease the brightness of your cell phone : Reduction of brightness can save a lot of power. Most phones, by default, have their brightness at its highest level. And, reduction in brightness has very less effect on visibility. Thus, this is one of the best ways to save battery.

3. Close inactive programs : An open program, though inactive or minimized, also consumes more battery than an idle phone. Therefore, all inactive & minimized programs should be closed if not needed.

4. Avoid screensavers & animated wallpapers : Usage of animated screensavers & high-resolution, animated wallpapers too drains out the charge of the phone. Thus, they should be used sparingly.

(Note : the resolution of an image can be checked by viewing the image's properties/information. It will be of the format width x height ex. 800 x 600)

5.  Also :

 i) If your phone has a power saving or sleep option, enable it.

 ii) reduce the amount of idle time required before the locking of the device. 

 iii) reduce other such times related to reduction of power usage.

Note : Following the tips of this article together, rather than individually, will have a much better & noticeable difference in battery life.

Therefore, the rules for preserving the battery life of your mobile phone have been explained.

Beware of SMS scams

In the previous days, scams were only limited to e-mails & fake web-sites. But now, with the increasing usage of cell phones, these hoaxes have spread over to SMSes as well. So, it is crucial to know information about them to be protected against it :

A mobile trap usually starts in the following way; first, you get an SMS informing you that you have won or have been selected to receive a huge sum of money. Then, according to the SMS, to collect the money, you either have to :

I) call a number or

Ii) pay a certain amount of money as an advance. This amount is generally high if seen normally, but looks small in comparison to the total amount promised.

In both the cases, you can be betrayed. As for the first case, the creator of the trap charges a very high rate for the call; sometimes even 500 times the normal rate. In the other case, the money sent will never be repaid to you.

Thus, this is the way by which these scams work. As you can see, the quality of greed is targeted in these hoaxes. So, be very careful not to fall for it.

How to operate a mobile phone

In this article, I will explain the very basics of operating a cell phone to use its various functions. There are several people who use the phone just for making & receiving calls. They do not use it for more purposes either because they don't know how to use it or due to fear that something wrong might happen with the phone. But this way, we cannot use the mobile phone to its full potential. And, it is very easy to operate a phone.

To start operating mobile phones effectively, you will need to follow 3 steps :

1. Understand the phone keys & icons : 

you will firstly need to go through the name & details of the buttons of the phone. You can find this detail in your phone's user manual. Note that you do not need to remember all the buttons strictly but just going through them is enough. You should also go through the meanings of the phone icons (like the battery indicator, bluetooth sign, etc.) in the same user manual.

2. Understand the softkeys & arrows : 

this step is important to start operating the phone. Normally, you will see three particular functions at the bottom of the screen. To carry out a function, you will need to press its corresponding softkey (this will be clear from the given image). The arrows are used to navigate between the different items in the phone. 

Note : In some phones, the middle softkey & the arrows are integrated in a joystick.

3. Explore : 

by understanding the keys, icons, etc. Of the phone, you are now well equipped with the basics. Now, you can start exploring the different menus, settings, applications, etc. Of the phone. This is a very interesting phase of learning as you will get to learn about all the features & functions for which you can use the phone.

Thus, by following these 3 simple steps, you can start learn about your cell phone & thus perform a wide range of functions with it. And yes, If you face any problems while learning with this technique, then you can ask me via the comment form below. Enjoy your mobile learning!

Introduction to Phone Codes

What are Phone codes?

Phone codes are simple numbers containing stars (*) & hashes (#) ex. *111# that you can use to view certain useful information & to carry out some functions that cannot be done directly from the cell phone.

How can I use the codes?

Simply enter the code like a normal phone number & dial it. Note that you are usually not charged for this service. 

Welcome

Hello! Welcome to Cell Phone Beginners. On this blog, I will regularly give you tips, tricks, etc.  for the Cell Phone. As in PC Beginners (my 1st blog), my aim will be to write the articles in such a way that even beginners can understand them. I hope that your stay on this blog will be a pleasant one.

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