Mobile software Monday: HanDBase 4.0 and Nokia Podcasting
My plan was to post software reviews here every Monday, but at times my schedule and life doesn't allow me to give a full test of a software package and write up my thoughts so I missed last week. Thus, I am posting a double review this week on Mobile software Monday. The first application is HanDBase 4.0 from DDH Software and I tested it on Windows Mobile touch and non-touch screen devices. The second application is a free one for S60 devices that actually comes preloaded on some devices and it is call Nokia Podcasting. It is actually one of my most used applications so I wanted to share some thoughts with you on my experiences. You can view screenshots for both applications in my image gallery.
| Image Gallery: There are several screenshots of the HanDBase and Nokia Podcasting applications in my image gallery. |  | |||||
HanDBase 4.0: DDH Software has been selling its very popular HanDBase application now for 10 years and there are versions available for Windows Mobile, Palm, and S60 devices. This latest version, 4.0, has lots of new features, including new security features, sync improvements and improvements across all platforms. There are some differences in functionality in the different versions and the screenshots in my image gallery are from my T-Mobile Shadow (non-touch screen Windows Mobile device). On my T-Mobile Shadow, I cannot create new databases on the device while touch screen users can create new databases right from the device. This makes sense since people use non-touch screen devices more for simple, quick text entry rather than heavy text entry.
I have a few custom databases that I created for project tracking, paid time off tracking, prayer lists, and more. You can sync ODBC/Access databases from your desktop to your mobile devices using the desktop application to setup the sync options. If you want help getting started you can also visit the database gallery where there are over 2,000 HanDBase databases that people have created and elected to share with everyone to use and then customize for their own usage.
You can import data in .CSV (comma-seperated value) format using the HanDBase desktop client, but keep in mind there is a 30 fields per record limit and a maximum of 65,000 records in a database. Further down the File menu (below the Import option) you will find options to Import from Access to an existing database or a new database so there is a simple utility for getting your Access databases into HanDBase format. You can also Export to .CSV, .XLS, .DOC, .HTML, and .XML formats.
After you have created a database on your touch screen Windows Mobile device (S60 users can also now create databases in version 4.0) or you have imported and synced a database to your device then you can begin to sort, filter, view, and add/remove/edit records in your databases. Even the non-touch screen Windows Mobile devices can manage and edit records so you will be able to enter data on the go and then sync that data back to your desktop upon your return. You can also run reports on selected fields right on your device, as long as those fields are setup for reporting the data.
I believe HanDBase originally started out as a Palm program and there are still a couple legacy features in the device. For example, the databases have the .pdb extension and there is the option to beam or recieve databases via IR (my T-Mobile Shadow gives me an error since few devices today still have IR ports). There isn't much flair in the program, but databases are designed to be functional and you will find lots of customization settings and tools to make database creation and editing quick and simple, even for the novice database user.
I have found HanDBase to be quite snappy on my devices, even when using databases with over 500 records. I don't have any databases that push the 65,000 record limit so I can't comment on how they would perform on a mobile device.
There are a number of purchase options for HanDBase so check out the full version page to see what version you want to purchase. Pricing ranges from US$24.99 to US$79.99 and all include a Windows or Mac desktop client. You can also try out the application for 30-days for free and it is fully functional with no limitations. There are a couple of other database programs available, but I prefer HanDBase because it is solid, has all the functionality I need, and is multi-platform so I can experience a familiar interface no matter what device I may be using at the time.
You may also be interested in reading about the details of a new Mobile Database design contest where DDH Software is going to award the Best Commercial Applet and Best Personal Applet with "HanDBase Runtime" licenses (valued at US$1,000) to two winners. The HanDBase Runtime license allows you to turn your database entry into a commercially-available stand-alone mobile application. Databases are pretty straight forward to create and you can even use the free 30-day trial of HanDBase 4.0 to create your database. Think of something innovative and get out there and create some database entries for the contest. Submissions are being collected now and the contest ends on 30 June.
Nokia Podcasting: The second application I am writing a bit about today is actually a free application available for S60 users, but it is one of my most used applications and I wanted to share my thoughts on it with people who may not be familiar with it. The Nokia Podcasting application is preloaded on some devices and available in the Download! utility on most other S60 devices. Admittedly, there are other 3rd party applications on other mobile operating systems that can perform some of this same functionality, but I think the fact that Nokia themselves developed it and includes it on devices helps distinguish S60 from other mobile operating systems.
The application is called Nokia Podcasting, but it actually is a podcast aggregator and does not give you the functionality to podcast right from your device. When I first heard of the application a couple of years ago I thought it would be a way for me to podcast on the go, but given the way we record the MobileTechRoundup podcast with Skype and Audacity it wouldn't have really worked out for me anyways.
Launching the Nokia Podcasting application takes you to a main display that has a Podcasts folder, Directory folder, and Search option. There is an Options menu that lets you access a couple of simple settings for the connection and download customizations. You can set a default connection and a search service URL (in case you want to change it from the default). I use a WiFi connection most of the time to download podcasts, but have also been using HSDPA on my Nokia N95-3 if one of my favorite podcasts is updated during the day so I can listen to it on the commute home. The download settings let you specify where to store the podcasts and how much of your memory card can be taken up during downloads. You can also setup automatic update intervals of your podcasts and I have mine setup to update once per day (range is from 15 minutes to once per day) early in the morning before I head out for the day. I found you have to have the application running in the background and have to ensure an available default connection is selected to get podcasts delivered without any interaction on your part.
You can add podcasts by entering the proper feed URL for a podcast you want on your S60 device. I also understand you can import these stored in an OPML format, but I haven't done that myself yet. I have either entered them individually or I have used the directories to browse and find podcasts that interest me. You can also perform searches of podcasts and in the Settings mentioned earlier you can enter your search service URL since the application doesn't actually search the entire internet for podcasts.
I have about 10-12 podcast feeds loaded on my N95-3 and the method I use to update them if I want to do it manually is that I go into the podcast section that lists all of my subscribed podcast titles and then select to Mark All. I then select update to find the latest podcast available. I then open the podcast directory and download those that I want to listen to on my commute. You can select to download multiply podcasts and the software will manage and queue up the downloads automatically.
There is no notification that the podcast(s) have been downloaded and are available, but there are icons to the left of the podcast that show you the status (downloaded and new, listened to, available for download, etc.).
While you can also listen to your podcasts through the Nokia Podcasting applications, I recommend you listen to them by going to the Podcast genre in the music player because you can then return to a partially listened to podcast later at the same spot as where you stopped listening. If you stop a podcast in the Nokia Podcasting application and then navigate around in the application then the podcast will start over from the beginning again. You can perform fast forwards by holding the right side of your directional pad down, but using the music player on your S60 device is a bit easier.
I recommend you check out the Nokia S60 blog for Podcasting since there is a lot of good information and news on updates and functionality posted on the blog site. I personally find the Nokia Podcasting application to be an essential application on my S60 devices and use it every single day.