Forum Nokia recently published an implementation of the card games Solitaire as their latest 
S60 5th Edition code example. For consumers it is a nice bit of extra freeware. For developers it is an example of an application fully optimised for touch; it demonstrates handling of pointer events of custom made UI controls and tactile feedback.
When the N97 was announced at Nokia World last year, some 8 months ahead of its retail release, it was clear that the software was a work in progress. At MWC, it was equally clear that progress had been made. For example, Nokia were showing off a number of fully operational homescreen widgets, including one for Facebook. A new addition, which caught my attention, was the implementation of kinetic scrolling (finger flick) in the browser, which improves its usability. Read on for (extensive) further discussion and example video.
Ah. Merely days after dismissing Fring (VoIP, Skype, other IM, etc) as not ready for inclusion in my 'top freeware for the Nokia 5800' piece, the guys in Israel go and formally release it! C'est la vie, and you can be sure that Fring will make the next iteration of my roundup. In the meantime, here's Fring's official blog announcing availability. And there's a video after the break. What are you waiting for, go download...
Even if you're an old S60 hand, there are some unique aspects of the Nokia 5800 XpressMusic and S60 5th Edition which need a little pause for thought. Here's my take on how to get optimised on the 5800's home screen, from realising all the additional shortcuts available to populating the new Contacts bar. Which home screen view do you prefer? [See also our complete list of Nokia 5800 tutorials]
Nokia today announced the availability of version 4.5 of the Qt cross platform application and UI framework. The new version sees the first release of the Qt Creator, a cross platform IDE, which combined with the Qt SDK, gives you everything you need to start cross platform development. The release is also the first licensed under LGPL, which is more permissive license and should increase the adoption of Qt.
It is just a matter of time before the Nokia Music Store (purchase per track) goes DRM free, but reports from Nokia's 'Comes with Music' launch in Singapore cite Adam Mirabella, Director of Global Digital Music Retail at Nokia, as saying DRM free music is also 'on the roadmap for the future integration of Comes With Music'. Clearly such a move is still some time away and the statement is not definitive, but it's a sign of how keen Nokia is to push its music offerings.
In All About Symbian Insight 61 (AAS Podcast 117) we look back at some of the software highlights of MWC (including a quick N97 mention), discuss the Nokia Netbook rumours / ideas, talk about Ovi Contacts and go over the latest N-Gage developments. You can listen to AAS Insight 55 here or, if you wish to subscribe, here's the RSS feed.
There are fifty, that's right Five Zero, Samsung Omnia HD smartphones (8mp cam, huge OLED screen, S60 5th, etc) available to each person accepted as a Omnia HD 'ambassador' next month. If you run a blog or media outlet and can get some buzz going about this latest Symbian OS super-phone then you've got a good chance of early access to the HD and a free device - apply now! The ambassadorial activities are due to start on April 4th, although Rafe and I should be able to bring you quite a bit more hands on Omnia HD coverage before then.
Continuing a fine and longstanding tradition, I bring you what will be a regularly updated top pick of the very best freeware for S60 5th Edition. At this moment in time, this means the Top Ten freeware for the Nokia 5800 XpressMusic. OK, OK, so I relent after 10 and give you a bonus 'next 10', bubbling under. Hopefully there are some items in here that you hadn't considered until now!
In an admirably thorough and even-handed way, Mobile-review.com has investigated the 5800's earpiece problem to find its cause, and they've also got a lengthy official response from Nokia detailing what went wrong and how they've fixed it. In short, the cause was humidity gradually getting inside flawed earpieces. Nokia changed earpiece suppliers in late January so that 5800s made in February 2009 and later should be okay. Anyone with an older 5800 can get their old earpiece replaced with the new version at an authorised service centre. If you're unsure when your 5800 was made, the service centre should be able to tell you over the phone using your IMEI number.
Mobile Royale would like developers to work on a decent Twitter interface for S60 devices. They've posted their challenge on-line, and are pointing to the interface that the Google Search plug-in, and asking for 'something like that' so people can tweet directly from the stand-by screen. There are a number of Twitter clients for S60 available, and a number that are in development, so will anyone take up the challenge?
UK networks Orange and O2 may not carry the latest Nseries devices, including the N97, if Nokia insist on placing Skype on their hardware (reports MoCoNews and others). While other networks have had success with the Skype infrastructure (notably 3 in the UK), the idea of being able to route calls over the internet and not the GSM services has struck fear into others.
Without wishing to harp on about a small third party utility too much, this one's rather popular. Dr Jukka's Y-Browser is now at v0.89(2) and the author has managed to significantly improve the support for touch, including proper 'multi-selection' in dialogs. You can grab version 0.89(2) at the venerable Dr Jukka's web site, along with all the optional companion plug-ins.
Thanks to a clever developer DOSBox, a DOS emualtor, has been ported to S60. This could potentially give you access to an essential applications from the past as well as a variety of games such as Tank Wars or Prince of Persia. Less usefully, given the speeds involved, it also means is now possible to run Windows 3.1 (and possibly Windows 95 too) on your phone.
Trust Ricky and the team to come up with useful info on making more of the Nokia 5800's rather intractable Contact RSS feed home screen - here's a slightly convoluted but working walk through, focussed on seeing a friend's Facebook or Twitter status/streams. There's also a detailed review of the Nokia N79 Active 'pack' and the new Sports Tracker 2.0, with built-in heart rate monitor.
