Strong Arm Win CE.Net 4.1 software

can you tell me what kind of applications they were?
thanks

Not much to name here, I fear. One was a little database application called PocketOpen which helps to remember business hours of shops, offices and so on. Here in Germany that's quite an essential tool since shops open and close whenever they like to. Nils, the developer of PocketOpen, still only offers the pocketpc compilation on his website but will provide you with a CE.NET 4.x compatible version if you contact him by mail.
Second application is not yet publicly available and I fear it will never be. The developer seems to have completely stopped the project, at least temporarily.

CU
Jürgen

If you find a way to do so please tell me In fact I don't see any chances. The CE.NET 4.2 aygshell is in some ways completely different. At least you will miss the Ok button to confirm and close dialogues which renders most pocketpc applications unusable on a CE.NET 4.2 device. On the other hand if you replace the original aygshell.dll by a 'hacked' one some of your system's dialogues won't be usable any longer, e.g. battery warnings. Concerning pocketpc compatibility, CE.NET 4.2 was a big step backwards, I fear .

Juergen,
Any example of those missing OK buttons? I thought they were all there, only instead of "OK" in a circle, you get "OK" in a 3D button, in the upper right corner. I could be wrong tho...
To use a different aygshell, you can always name it something else (like aygshel_.dll) and hexedit the app to call that instead. So far I have not seen a need to do that on my 4.2 device tho.

On my Netbook Pro the most annoying example would be battery warning. It appears quite early when the battery drops beyond 50% (although there's still enough power for several hours (!!!) of working due to Netbook Pro's huge 2200mAh power cell). With the original aygshell battery warning is a quite common confirmation box with an Ok button at the bottom. Using any of the so-called dummy aygshell libraries the Ok button is missing and the dialogue box is blown up to full screen with no way to close it.

Not the plainest solution, but nevertheless a solution - thanks for the idea .

Tryng PPC apps on netbook pro I have found more difficulties than a different aygshell.

1) Often the apps require coredll.dll functions that the dll of the 4.2 system cannot provide.

2) Many apps (for example netfront 3.1 and 3.2) requires cellcore.dll.

I have tried to rename that library in serial.dll or use a PPC cellcore.dll but without luck.

I wonder if with the help of some programs as dependency walker it is possibile to get hints to solve that problems.

oh what takwu's saying is what i have done. i never replaced the original ce.net 4.2 aygshell.dll, as it wouldn't let me overwrite it (never saw a dll before that wouldn't..) and really, there was no point in doing it anyway..
i felt the same way as you - big step backwards with ppc2000/2002 compatibility, but it isn't only because of aygshell... you can sometimes solve that one. i tried the wm2003 minimo 0.006 and it would run after hexediting (it wouldn't before) netfront 3.0 will run even without hexediting but most of the menus will be completely screwed up.. but the most important is OK and you just need to do a little hexedit i guess..
however, i couldn't get acrobat reader to work so far.. i think the problem lies with doclist.dll... or maybe something else.

oh coredll.dll... um i have one somewhere, i'll try it...
netfront 3.0 is OK.. 3.1 won't run even on hpc2000, only to 90% and that isn't enough as the remaining 10% includes actual browsing
i couldn't try 3.2 on hpc2000 as it is wm2003 only. on ce.net i didn't fiddle with it as 3.0 is enough, if IE 6.0 doesn't handle something (it seems rare though but i do have examples)
ppc cellcore.dll won't work...

interesting. on the 900C i never get a warning... it just sits in the tray if it gets too low that's fine for me
closing a dialog box.. doesn't enter or esc work? or the ok app? well hexedit is the way to go anyway ...

Edited by cmonex 2005-07-15 9:59 PM

You can always try pressing ENTER or ESC on your keyboard, as they equal to pressing the Ok or X button respectively

the latter was a response to this:

"With the original aygshell battery warning is a quite common confirmation box with an Ok button at the bottom. Using any of the so-called dummy aygshell libraries the Ok button is missing and the dialogue box is blown up to full screen with no way to close it."

Thanks for the advice, but it doesn't work here. I have to correct myself at first: there's no ok button. The only way to close battery warning on a Netbook Pro is the X button at the top right. ESC doesn't do the trick... What's really annoying: the message box doesn't minimize either. So if I replace the original aygshell with a hacked one, I cannot close battery warning since there is no X button and I cannot access shortcuts on my desktop any longer since battery warning is blown up to full screen size and won't minimize .

Edited by Juergen 2005-07-19 1:35 AM

doesn't task switching help?
or Enter?

but hey, just hexedit your ppc programs for aygshell preferably the cab installer itself! that's a much more clean solution.

Of course I can switch tasks. But I'm used to collect shortcuts to all files related to a project in a folder on the desktop while the project is running. I do so on my windows pc as well as on my handheldpc. Everything I need just one, maybe two mouseclicks (or touchscreen taps) away - as long as the original aygshell is used and/or no battery warning appears... Of course I still can access my files otherwise. Or still the shortcuts on the desktop by opening a file browser and navigating to \windows\desktop. Or simply by moving my project folders to \windows\programs. There's always a way around. But the best way to deal with it is to avoid confrontation. Either by charging battery more often. Or by hacking libraries and executables. Or - the cleanest solution - by not-using pocketpc applications anyway .

Edited by Juergen 2005-07-19 1:37 PM

but there are some really nice ppc apps! for example acrobat reader is a must oh if only i could hack it on 4.2.. (working on it)
hexediting is *very* easy.
btw, doesn't quicklaunch work on 4.1..?