This may be an obvious one, but it had eluded me until recently. Did you know that you can convert movies to a format that the Clie Movie Player can play using the Image Converter program without converting directly to your Memory Stick?

The other night, I decided to try converting some video into a format that the Clie Movie Player could play. (For more information on ripping DVDs, and converting files using Image Converter, please do a search at the ClieSource.com forums.) I followed some instructions and ripped a DVD using the DVDx program. The resulting file was a VCD-compliant MPEG file that was 780MB in size.

The next step was to use the Sony Image Converter program included on the CD that came with my NX. This program converts the MPEG file into a highly compressed QuickTime format that the Clie Movie Player can play.

The problem with this was that I had no way of knowing if this will fit onto my 128MB Memory Stick once converted using the Image Converter program. Every time I did a convert, I typically selected the drive letter assigned to my Clie after initiating an MSImport. But in this case, I didn’t know if the file is going to fit, and it was going to take a long time to convert the 1 1/2 hour movie.

So, all you have to do is just select a different drive number of a hard drive that has enough free space. The kicker is that when you do this, a dialog box pops up stating that the selected drive is not a Memory Stick drive. In the past, I blindly assumed that the conversion HAD to go directly to the Memory Stick, so I always cancelled out. This time, instead, I clicked on OK to continue, and Image Converter automatically created the proper directory structure on my hard drive and built the converted file onto my hard drive! At that point, it was a simple matter of checking the file size in Windows Explorer. (In this case, the file was about 79MB in size, so yes, it would fit on my Memory Stick.) I could also play the file in QuickTime if I chose, and it was a simple matter of transfering the file to my Clie using MSImport. In addition, having the movie on my hard drive lets me archive it so that I can keep a library of movies if I want and load them onto my Clie using MSImport as needed.

The point is that sometimes, the included programs have non-obvious functionality. Is this in the manual? Probably, but who reads those things anyway?!?

As always, all my information is free, but if you like what you see and would like to help support JimsTips.com, please click on the “Donate” button. Your financial support, no matter how large or small, helps keep this site alive and kicking.

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I have received several inquiries asking how various buttons get assigned and defined in the WonderSilk app. The explanation, while definatly not intuitive, is actually rather simple.

The main difficulty with WonderSilk Skin development is that there are no set “rules” as to what or how things are defined, specifically with regard to buttons that launch other apps. Unfortunatly, many of the skins I developed were just evolutions or modifications of prior skins, so they may not all be consistent in design. I may go back and tweak them to make them more consistent, but after reading this tip, it may not be necessary.

Buttons in WonderSilk generally fall into one of three categories: “WonderSilk Action Buttons”, “Silk Buttons” and “User-definable Launcher Buttons”

The first kind, “WonderSilk Action Buttons”, are buttons that perform WonderSilk-specific actions or actions that don’t launch other programs. For example, there is a “keyboard” button, a Backlight button, a Hide/Show Graffiti Area button, Cut, Paste, MP3 controls, etc. These buttons are defined at development time and are limited to the functions included in the WonderMaker program. They are more “gadget-like” and typically perform specific functions within the WonderSilk skin itself.

The second button type, the “Silk Buttons” mimic the function of the StandardInput Silk area (typically, the Home, Menu, Calc, and Search buttons.) These buttons have pre-defined standard functions except for one button: the Calc button. By default, the Calc button will launch the standard Calc app, but this can be changed. To change the definition of the Calc button, launch the standard Prefs app and select “Buttons” from the drop-down. The button on the lower right defines the Calc button. Just tap on the DropDown and select whatever app you want the Calc button to launch. This is the standard method of assigning apps to the “Hard” buttons as well (DateBook, Address, Memo, ToDo), but is also used to re-define the Calc button. The app you assign could be Calc, powerOne Finance, QuickSheet, whatever. It doesn’t have to be a calculator app either–it could be any favorite app, but I recommend to keep it a mathematical or number-related app because the button graphic typically assigned is “Calc-related”, and isn’t the point of most of these skins to make things easy to remember and intuitive?

The third button type is a user-definable button to launch a user-defined app. This is defined in the Kinu-Maru app included in the WonderSilk distribution. This is where things can get a bit tricky because there are no hard and fast rules to determine which on-screen button corresponds to which numbered function. And, I admit that I wasn’t always consistent in my button assignments. I tried to lay them out logically, but it didn’t always happen. That said, there are two specific ways to define these buttons:

1. Through the Kinu-Maru app
This method lets the user define apps to buttons in one nice screen. Launch the Kinu-Maru app, open the menu, and select “Launcher Info. Manage…” This is where you define your specific buttons. Just tap on an entry and select an app from the drop-down list. The only difficulty with this method is that the the button definitions are numbered 1-8 in the Kinu-Maru app, but there is no way for the user to intuitivly know the specific button on the Skin. To further complicate matters, not all buttons may be included in a particular Skin, and they may or may not be layed out in a logical order. This may take some trial-and-error, but you should be able to get it.

2. “On-the-fly”
This is actually the easier method that almost guarantees that you will get apps defined to the proper buttons the first time. First, we want to clear out all button definitions. Launch the Kinu-Maru app, open the menu, and select “Launcher Info. Manage…” as above. Check the checkboxes for all entries that have an app assigned. Next, tap on the “Delete Info” button and tap “OK”. This erases the button definitions. Tap “Done” and open your favorite program Launcher.

No comes the fun part. Launch an app that you want to assign to a button. Once launched, display the Virtual Silk area if it is not already visible. Next, tap on the button that you with to assign to the running app. The message “Save App Info !!” will briefly display and then disappear. The running app is now assigned to the button you tapped! The next time you tap the button, the assigned app will launch. Simple! If you make a mistake, just re-launch the Kinu-Maru app and delete the entry and try it again.

WonderSilk is a powerfull app, and though it is free, it does come at a cost: To use it well, you have to spend some time to understand all it can do. Unfortunatly, there is no way to pre-defin buttons “out of the box”, but then again, part of its power is its flexibility and customizability.

If you like WonderSilk, please email the author and tell him. If you like the WonderSilk Skins that I have developed, simply enjoy them.

As always, all my information is free, but if you like what you see and would like to help support JimsTips.com, please click on the “Donate” button. Your financial support, no matter how large or small, helps keep this site alive and kicking.

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This tip isn’t so much a tip as a list of resources. Most are probably obvious to you, but for those who are very new to the Clie and Palm world, here are several good sources for information, news, and third-party applications. In no particular order:

PALM APPS

PalmGear.com
This has been the “definitive” source for acquiring Palm apps. Recently, they have instituted a new policy for downloading, but they are still an excellent resource. With some minor exceptions, if you can’t find it here, you can’t find it. Palmgear offers freeware, shareware, and commercial software, but they seem to push shareware.

Handango.com
This is a another app site that has grown considerably over the years. They offer an excellent selection of freeware, shareware, and commercial apps for the Palm and other PDA platforms.

FreewarePalm.com
Lots of popups, but you do get what you pay for! This site focuses exclusivly on freeware Palm apps. The quality of apps ranges from extremely poor to better than most commercial apps. he programmers who provide apps for this site are not trying to make a buck, but put out excellent software for the sake of the challenge and self-gratification. If you are on a budget, check out this site. You are bound to find lots of great apps.

Note: Just please be aware that for ALL of these sites, all programs may not work on the latest Clies running PalmOS 5.

INFORMATION & NEWS

PalmGear
Yes, they carry apps, but scroll down their home page, and you will see the latest news from the Palm world. This site is updated as new news comes in.

Palm Info Center
Up-to-date, thorough, and informative. This site gives you all the latest news and buzz in the Palm world. Each article also has a comment section so you can voice your opinion and view the opinions of others. This site is updated as new news comes in.

CliePlanet
This UK site maintains all news that is Clie. From the latest apps to the latest hardware, this site is updated daily with the latest news. There is also a linked discussion forum for your and others’ views.

ClieSource
I stumbled on this site shortly before buying my Clie, and it has been invaluable. They offer news and a discusson forum that can’t be beat, It is heavily trafficked and is, in my opinion, the best source of Clie-related information. They suffered an unrecoverable system crash several months back losing everything, but today, you would never know. The information flows fast and freely. If you have a Clie question, you are guaranteed to get an answer from this site.

The Gadgeteer
This site specializes in news and reviews of the latest Gadgets. It’s not limited to the Clie or the Palm. In fact, you will find stuff there you never new you needed!

PDAGeek
While not devoted to the Palm or Clie, this site offers a lot of great general PDA news and reviews.

cbulock’s Clie Home Page
Cameron Bulock’s NX Page is a good starting point for some excellent Clie NX information. He also has a Yahoo Groups forum set up which is a nice resource.

TankerBob’s Clie Home Page
Tanker Bob’s Palm OS Device Page has a lot of good Clie and Palm information.

PDA Buyer’s Guide
Looking for a new PDA? This site has excellent reviews and comparisons of just about any PDA you could want.

JimsTips.com
OK, time for the shameless plug. JimsTips.com has a number of tips available to Clie NX users, new and old. I also added to this site www.wondersilkskins.com, a resource for free skins for the WonderSilk program. And for you Mobile users, point your browser or offline reader (such as HandStory, AvantGo, etc.) to mobile.jimstips.com for the latest tips in a Palm-readable format.

As always, all my information is free, but if you like what you see and would like to help support JimsTips.com, please click on the “Donate” button. Your financial support, no matter how large or small, helps keep this site alive and kicking.

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My name is Jim Barr and I am a Mobile Information Addict. OK. There. I said it. I am a Mobile Information Junkie, and I’m not ashamed, in fact, I’m excited about it!

The Sony Clie NX70V has given me the ability to have all sorts of information with me at all times. From Dictionaries, to clipped Web Sites, to pictures of family & friends, to multiple translations of the Bible, to maps of my surroundings, my Clie provides the information I need and the information I want. There are a many tools out there to enable carrying mobile information, but I am going to focus on one: HandStory.

HandStory (found at HandStory.com) is an information tool that lets you manage and view various types of information. It manages “Memos”, “DOC” files (the most common Palm ebook format), “eBook” (a handStory proprietary format), Web Clips, and images. Organizing and viewing are done through one simple interface.

HandStory includes two main components: a Desktop component and a Palm component. The Desltop component is where all the fun begins. Copy any text or image to your Windows Clipboard, and then click on the HandStory icon that sits in your System Tray. Up pops a dialog box that lets you name the file, determine where to install it (RAM or Memory Stick), categorize it, and in the case of Images, determine the color depth and size of the image. Clicking “OK” quickly converts the copied text or image into a HandStory file that gets queued up to install the next time you HotSync.

Further, HandStory integrates with Internet Explorer adding “Save to Palm” and “Clip to Palm” to IE’s right-click context menu. “Save to Palm” lets you instantly save pictures or selected text. “Clip to Palm” renders the HTML page you are currently viewing (with graphics, if you choose) to a format that is readable on the Clie. I have been told that there are other offline viewers for the Palm that do a better job of rendering the pages (for example, handStory doesn’t do tables) but for most things, HandStory works well.

To me, the important thing isn’t so much how HandStory works, but that it works. Web Surfing no longer is limited to sitting at a PC. If I see something of interest that I would like to look at later, I just Clip it using HandStory, HotSync, and take it with me. This makes standing in line or waiting at a long train crossing much more interesting. And it’s not limited to Web information. Just about any text or graphic image (.jpg, .bmp, .gif, etc.) can be instantly converted to a format that is fully portable.

To use an annoying TV cliche, “But wait…there’s more!” HandStory offers a “Web Clipping” service similar to AvantGo and the HandStory Desktop component can automatically update Web clips for you daily. For example, I have mine set up to provide the latest weather, news, movie listings, etc. daily. I always have fresh, interesting content to take with me. And you can also create your own web clips to auto-update. Admittedly, not all sites work. Sites that use java or other “funky” programming may not render. HandStory (like almost all other Palm-based offline readers) work best with sites that don’t bombard you with eye-candy. Just about any site that works with AvantGo, Plucker, or iSilo should work just fine with HandStory.

For more discussions on HandStory, check out the forums at ClieSource.com and do a search for “HandStory” or “Web Clip”

The tools are at hand, so why not take it with you?!

Note: I am not affiliated with HandStory other than being a very happy and satisfied customer.

As always, all my information is free, but if you like what you see and would like to help support JimsTips.com, please click on the “Donate” button. Your financial support, no matter how large or small, helps keep this site alive and kicking.

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I know this tip is VERY specific, but it has been VERY useful to me. I own a Sena Case from SenaCases.com for my Clie NX70V, and while I think it is a good quality case, one of its shortcomings is that over time, the leather “pouch” that holds the the Clie into the case has stretched making it a lose fit.

So, to remedy this, I just cut a two inch piece of adhesive-backed Velcro and applied the “hook” side to the case and the “fuzz” side to the Clie. I mounted it right over the Clie logo on the back near the top. Now when I put the Clie into its case, it secures very nicely.

The Velcro doesn’t interfere with the cradle nor the operationo of the flip-screen.

It’s unobtrusive and makes a decent case into a more secure and reliable case.

As always, all my information is free, but if you like what you see and would like to help support JimsTips.com, please click on the “Donate” button. Your financial support, no matter how large or small, helps keep this site alive and kicking.

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The included Clie Viewer program, while good intentioned, suffers from lethargy. Take more than a handful of pictures with your Clie Camera, and you sit and wait, and wait, and wait for the Clie Viewer to generate thumbnail images. It doesn’t cache these thumbnail images, so the next time you want to view images, you have to wait, and wait, and…

An alternative is to purchase one of the several third-party Imager Viewer apps. One such app is AcidImage from RedMercury.com These third-party viewers add functionality and speed not available to the native Clie Viewer.

For example, AcidImage adds a “file manager” function that lets you choose to view pictures stored anywhere on yout Memory Stick. This is very handy because you can organize your pictures into folders either on-board using a program like ClieFiles or “externally” using MSImport and opening a Windows Explorer window to manage the files on the memory Stick. You can select one, selected, or all photos to view. You can view the thumbnails in various sizes or view a text list of the photos. Very flexible.

Another nice feature is the ability to view “other” image types imported to the Memory Stick using MSImport. The Clie’s camera takes pictures in .jpg format, but AcidImage can display .gif and .bmp, and several other graphic file types. This is especially useful if you want to carry graphical information with you. You are no longer limited to viewing just Photos taken with your Clie, but you can carry with you and view images from just about any source.

For example, say you are Web Surfing and go to MapQuest.com to find a map of a specific place. Once it displays on your PC, just right-click on the image, and (in Internet Explorer) select “Save Picture As…” and save the picture to your PC. Then, use MSImport to load the picture onto your Memory Stick. Viewing the image in AcidImage lets you Zoom, Pan, and Rotate the image quickly.

There’s also a slideshow function that cycles through your images.

Admittedly, one nice thing about the Clie Viewer is that you can use it as a “launching point” to view Photos, Movies, listen to Voice Recordings, etc. but these functions can be easily done by launching the associated apps separatly. This integration is something I would gladly give up to have an image viewer that is quick and simple to use.

A Third-Party image viewer can open the door to many other uses for your Clie!

Note: I am not affiliated in any way with Red Mercury other than being a happy customer.

As always, all my information is free, but if you like what you see and would like to help support JimsTips.com, please click on the “Donate” button. Your financial support, no matter how large or small, helps keep this site alive and kicking.

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