Phoning It In (Chatting from a Smartphone)

[CleverBomb]

If you've got a smartphone (Treo, Blackjack, etc), you can use the Dims Chat directly from your device! Here's how:

WARNING: Make sure you have an "unlimited" data plan from your cell provider. If you try this with a per-Mb plan (the usual default if you don't know what you have) you could face a staggering phone bill!

I'm also assuming you know how to get around with your phone's web browser.

1. Log in using Basic Chat.
- You won't get the sidebar, but the screen's not big enough for it and the chat at the same time anyhow.
- The chat text is in reversed sequence (newest comments at the top).
- Be very careful if your password has capital letters or special characters like "*" or "&". It's easy to get them wrong using a mini keyboard, and you can't see what you've typed into the password field.

2. Once you're in...
- Move the cursor (highlight) to the text entry box, and click/select it (you may need to double-click or select twice, depending on the browser). When the cursor is blinking in the box, you can type your witty comment there.
- To send your comment, try hitting the enter key. It works in some browsers, not in others. If it doesn't, you need to select the "Send" button. It may take two clicks to make it work, but it will.
- To refresh the screen and see new comments, send your message or a blank line (no spaces, no nothing). If the "refresh" button on the chat toolbar (above the text entry box) works, use that to refresh the chat [Caution: On Windows Mobile 5 devices, the chat toolbar is a single item rather than separate buttons -- clicking it will log you out of chat].
- Using the browser's "refresh" button (not the one on the chat toolbar) may re-send the last thing you sent.
- On some browsers (Treos do this), if you hit the "backspace" key without the cursor being in a text box, it will re-send the previous thing you sent in rather than what you've typed.
- Some browsers will balk at sending the same thing twice (blazer on the Treo 270/300 did this), which means you can't just keep sending a blank message -- you might need to type a single space or period into the text box to get it to move along.
-The drop-down menus for PMs and jumping between chats work. The PM menu is useful to show who's in the chat, since there is no sidebar.

Other things you might want to do:
- Bookmark (or save to favorites) the Basic Chat login screen.
- Jump to "who's on" from the main chat switchboard and bookmark that page.
-Get an external full-size keyboard for your phone if one's available for it.

I've chatted using a Treo 600, Treo 650, and Samsung (AT&T) Blackjack, and several Palm OS PDAs. It does work. These devices aren't cheap, though -- even the Blackjack is $400 without a carrier contract, and the Treos run upwards of $500.

If you have any questions about this, either PM me or post a reply to this thread. And, if you've successfully accessed the chat with a mobile device I haven't mentioned, please add a comment about what you used and any hints and tricks you found.

And, once again, do do not try this without having an unlimited data plan on your phone!

-Rusty

[CleverBomb]

Here's an earlier post I did on the subject, mostly covering the same material:

http://www.dimensionsmagazine.com/fo...&postcount=521

-Rusty

[Ruby Ripples]

aw I got all excited there, thought you meant I could use my phone and talk in chat rather than type, lol!

[CleverBomb]

Originally Posted by Ruby Ripples

aw I got all excited there, thought you meant I could use my phone and talk in chat rather than type, lol!

Well, they have voice-to-text programs, but they run on regular computers.
So far, nothing like that for phones...

-Rusty

[Webmaster]

Originally Posted by CleverBomb

If you've got a smartphone (Treo, Blackjack, etc), you can use the Dims Chat directly from your device! ...

And with an Apple iPhone, you can actually use streaming chat just like on a notebook or desktop. It works best for just following chat, but you can also type responses or participate. As far as I am concerned, the iPhone has totally redefined what can be done with a smartphone. The thing just rocks. Here's my review of the iPhone.

[CleverBomb]

Originally Posted by Webmaster

And with an Apple iPhone, you can actually use streaming chat just like on a notebook or desktop. It works best for just following chat, but you can also type responses or participate. As far as I am concerned, the iPhone has totally redefined what can be done with a smartphone. The thing just rocks. Here's my review of the iPhone.

Has anyone come out with a bluetooth keyboard for the iPhone?
That would solve the text-entry problem, and there are a few portable ones already on the market that just need drivers.

Good review, by the way.
-Rusty

[activistfatgirl]

Any ideas for making cruising the forums easier via smartphone or cellphone?

[CleverBomb]

Originally Posted by activistfatgirl

Any ideas for making cruising the forums easier via smartphone or cellphone?

Depending on your phone, Google may present a slimmed-down or at least chopped-up version if you come to the page by a Google search. I'm not sure how much help it is though. (This works on Treo phones, doesn't seem to for Windows Mobile ones).
The best solution would require work on the server side (for example, setting up a reduced-content 'mobile version' of the forums -- which I don't see as likely).

-Rusty

[Fyreflyintheskye]

Originally Posted by Webmaster

And with an Apple iPhone, you can actually use streaming chat just like on a notebook or desktop. It works best for just following chat, but you can also type responses or participate. As far as I am concerned, the iPhone has totally redefined what can be done with a smartphone. The thing just rocks. Here's my review of the iPhone.

Heehe I enjoyed your review as well. The play-by-play made me chuckle because it was very fluid. We both seem to be a little suspicious by default... as should anybody making significant purchases and signing contracts (S.S.#??!!?! frigging seriously?) , I suppose, though. I just bought a new car last week. Due to the relentlessness of my phone calls, faxes, and in-person questions, I'm almost positive I would have been strangled had I turned around. I just want to know... everything... so I know what I am getting myself into. It's only natural, right? I do, unlike yourself, think the iPhone is probably not my bag. I'm not 100% positive about it. I admire the efficiency and display. I just believe the more integrated the components on one device, the higher the likelihood of it breaking down. I don't need a gagdet so complex that it simultaneously plays music and interrupts to receives calls. That's the frame of mind I'm in right now, anyway. Plus, if I were to have been a first adapter to the iPhone purchase like I was with the XBox360, I may, in fact, be discovering a "red ring of death" with my iPhone right now and sending it back like I'm doing with my console. I've got my chunky RAZR and a soon-to-be-up-Verizon-contract now and will wait until the bugs have been sorted and ironed out (ew, wouldn't they leak bugjuice and be messy if they were? lol) of the iPhone before I look into getting one. I'm sure I will, though, because I'm sure, like you say, it's as tremendous as it looks and reads on-line with all the snazzy specs.

Thanks for the review -- very insightful

[Fyreflyintheskye]

Originally Posted by ShakenBakeSharleen

Heehe I enjoyed your review as well. The play-by-play made me chuckle because it was very fluid. We both seem to be a little suspicious by default... as should anybody making significant purchases and signing contracts (S.S.#??!!?! frigging seriously?) , I suppose, though. I just bought a new car last week. Due to the relentlessness of my phone calls, faxes, and in-person questions, I'm almost positive I would have been strangled had I turned around. I just want to know... everything... so I know what I am getting myself into. It's only natural, right? I do, unlike yourself, think the iPhone is probably not my bag. I'm not 100% positive about it. I admire the efficiency and display. I just believe the more integrated the components on one device, the higher the likelihood of it breaking down. I don't need a gagdet so complex that it simultaneously plays music and interrupts to receives calls. That's the frame of mind I'm in right now, anyway. Plus, if I were to have been a first adapter to the iPhone purchase like I was with the XBox360, I may, in fact, be discovering a "red ring of death" with my iPhone right now and sending it back like I'm doing with my console. I've got my chunky RAZR and a soon-to-be-up-Verizon-contract now and will wait until the bugs have been sorted and ironed out (ew, wouldn't they leak bugjuice and be messy if they were? lol) of the iPhone before I look into getting one. I'm sure I will, though, because I'm sure, like you say, it's as tremendous as it looks and reads on-line with all the snazzy specs.

Thanks for the review -- very insightful

And, one more thing... FIREWIRE. What happened?

[babyjeep21]

I have to admit, I've tried this from my blackberry when bored. Didn't really work out too well for me, then again I'm an impatient person. I think I'm just gonna stick with the regular old chatroom.

[CleverBomb]

Works as stated above.
The Options/Refresh/WhosOn/Refresh/Profile buttons are a single object, and cannot force a logout -- once you close out the window, you "ghost" for a few minutes.

Otherwise, the integral keyboard is pretty easy to use.
The Tilt also works with the Palm Wireless (Bluetooth) keyboard, using the Windows Mobile drivers.

-Rusty

[CleverBomb]

...and probably any Windows Mobile 6 (perhaps 5 too, no way to check) with a touchscreen: you can tap the logout button directly and it works. Moving the cursor highlight with the scrollwheel or directional pad highlights the entire bar and clicking that will not force the logout.
Also, the Settings and Refresh buttons work the same way -- but the Options (upload pic) button does not.

-Rusty

Also, far too late to edit but looking at my previous post, I added an extra Refresh button to the chat toolbar! Kindly disregard it. Thanks.

[lovesafron]

I tried it but still errors shows is THT technology can help me?

[CleverBomb]

Originally Posted by lovesafron

I tried it but still errors shows is THT technology can help me?

Two questions to clarify your problems -- one's a multi-part question.

First, are you using the chat at http://chat.dimensionsmagazine.com/c.../login?mode=nf
or trying to get into the flash chat in this page's toolbar [User CP, FAQ, Donate... etc]?
The latter doesn't work on phones as far as I know.

Second, what phone are you trying to use? It'll be easier to figure out the problem if we know the manufacturer, model, operating system, and browser.

For example, I've used a Samsung Blackjack with Windows Mobile 5 (Smartphone Edition) and Pocket Internet Explorer.

Any information you can provide would be quite helpful.

-Rusty

[CleverBomb]

I've had one of these for the past couple of weeks. It's a great device for browsing the internets, media playback, and so forth. But,. it's not actually a phone -- more like a Palm Pilot on steroids but without the day-planner stuff built in. Pair it with a phone that does fast data (3G) over bluetooth*, or connect to a WiFi hotspot, and you're in there! And, it runs on Linux...
So, what does that have to do wiith my rambling thread here?
The big thing: It's the first non-laptop computer that I've owned that will run the chat in anything other than Basic Mode -- It works in Frames (but not Streaming) Chat**
You'll want a Bluetooth keyboard for it, and the Palm Wireless Bluetooth keyboard works quite well once you set the Hardware Keyboard profile in the Control Panel to US 105-Key (the default setting does weird things with apostrophes and quotation marks).
If you're going to use it in Frames Chat, set the scrollback to 25 and the refresh rate to 10. And bring a magnifiying glass -- you'll probably need it if you don't have good eyesight.
More on all this later, but that's a start.

-Rusty
*Please note that the N7xx and N8xx series tablets can only connect to cellphones that support the DUN Bluetooth profile -- the Internet Sharing profile introduced in Windows Moblie 5 (and later) is not yet supported. There are workarounds available that require either some Linux skill or some unstable hacks to the WinMo device.
**Browser is the stock browser (apparently derived from Opera) on OS 2007. There's a newer browser available (based on Firefox) for OS 2007, and the new one is built into OS 2008 as well (OS 2008 is stock on the N810 tablet, and the N800 can be upgraded to it as well).

[CleverBomb]

I didn't mention that the Frames Mode chat also displays the sidebar (which uses a lot of the limited screen real estate). Clicking on the sidebar links will open new windows, and the chat keeps running in its own window.
Also, every one of the chat toolbar functions works -- for example, you can upload sidebar pics from the device. Again, these will open new windows, and the chat keeps running in its own window in the background.

The other very nice feature of this device is that it's available for under $300, and since it isn't a phone, doesn't tie you to a contract. Its successor, the N810 (which essentially trades a slide-out keyboard for a memory card slot) is currently available for $480 from reputable sources.
Maximum memory capacity using two SDHC cards totals 32GB (but even with off-brand memory cards that'd set you back an additional $300! 16GB total these days would be only $160 though).

Suitable folding full-size Bluetooth keyboards are available in several models from $70-100.

Some references from around the Internets:
YouTube overview (Provides a pretty good idea of the size of the device. 17 minutes)

Manufacturer's site (Warning -- heavy Flash content)

Wikipedia article
(While they describe how to enable the FM radio, they left out that you have to do the same thing to get the webcam to actually take pictures -- as delivered, it is only for use with video chatting). Then again, it's not a particularly good camera. The one in the cellphone that you'd use with it would do a better job -- just send the photos to the tablet via Bluetooth. If you need better quality than that, get a real camera that uses SD or SDHC memory cards (or Mini/Micro SD with an adapter) and import them directly.

-Rusty

[CleverBomb]

Finally got a photo of it in use.
Here 'tis:


Doesn't include the phone I was using for the internet connection, since that was what I used to take the picture...

-Rusty

[CleverBomb]

Originally Posted by CleverBomb

Finally got a photo of it in use.
Here 'tis:


Doesn't include the phone I was using for the internet connection, since that was what I used to take the picture...

-Rusty

The photo in the last one seems to have evaporated (given how I'd done it, I can't say I'm surprised...)
I'm contemplating getting a Nokia E71 (QWERTY-candybar smartphone with Symbian OS). Might go well with the N800 mentioned above.
Current new toy is an ASUS EeePC 900 XP (tiny Windows XP laptop with a 16GB solid-state (flash memory) hard drive). $450 at major retailers. Slow as XP machines go, but not bad -- and it's got a full install of XP. Added a bluetooth adapter so I could use it with my cellphone. Some models of this machine have bluetooth already installed, if memory serves.
-Rusty

[CleverBomb]

Originally Posted by CleverBomb

The photo in the last one seems to have evaporated (given how I'd done it, I can't say I'm surprised...)
I'm contemplating getting a Nokia E71 (QWERTY-candybar smartphone with Symbian OS). Might go well with the N800 mentioned above.
Current new toy is an ASUS EeePC 900 XP (tiny Windows XP laptop with a 16GB solid-state (flash memory) hard drive). $450 at major retailers. Slow as XP machines go, but not bad -- and it's got a full install of XP. Added a bluetooth adapter so I could use it with my cellphone. Some models of this machine have bluetooth already installed, if memory serves.
-Rusty

Got the E71.
Pretty good phone, actually. Gorgeous display, fairly easy user interface, too. And, the web browser it comes with will do frames chat with the sidebar pictures! It will also display streaming chat but it doesn't work right.
Acts a little funky with the Palm Bluetooth keyboard in chat (inconsistent response from hitting enter or ctrl-enter to get out of a text field). On the whole though, I was pleasantly surprised.
I'll probably sit down and figure out exactly why it acts inconsistent and do a tutorial on it at some point. It's not a problem if you use the built-in keyboard, just an external one.

-Rusty