SEMblog

The Windows Mobile 5.0 Emulator preview is an invaluable tool if you have to support Windows Mobile 5.0 devices. However, to date, (April 2006), the only image that has been released with the latest software has been a landscape Smartphone (see here: http://blog.sembee.co.uk/archive/2006/04/09/10.aspx). Smartphones don't make very good emulators, and their functionality is very limiting compared to a full Windows Mobile device. 

However, one of their OEMs has released an image, but this is a little more difficult to get hold of. Not only that, but the image is for one of the most popular Windows Mobile devices in the USA.

The PALM Treo 700w.

Getting the Image

There is a little more effort required to get the emulator files for the Palm Treo 700w as it it is tucked away inside their developer programme.

Therefore you need to join their developer programme, which is free of charge. It requires a working email address as they send you the login information by email.
http://pluggedin.palm.com/regac/pluggedin/index.jsp

Once you have become a member, go to the Treo 700W page and download the 26mb zip file. After unzipping the file, you will find a single MSI.

Unfortunately, like the SDK from Microsoft, this MSI requires the presence of Visual Studio to install.
This isn't a major problem. As you may have read on my web site, I have a technique to break in to the MSI file and extract the files that you need.
http://www.amset.info/pocketpc/wm5emulator.asp

Once you have extracted the contents, get the bin file from the folder "0409" and the skins file from the folder Treo700w1-10 (should be an XML and some image files). Put them in the same folder, somewhere easy to remember as you need to enter the path in to a command line.

Using the Image

Once again, it requires a command line start of the Emulator. Here is a sample, where the bin file and the skins have both been dumped in to the same folder, called 1, in the root of the C: drive:

C:\>"C:\Program Files\Microsoft\Device Emulator Preview\DeviceEmulator.exe" "C:\
1\nk.bin" /skin "C:\1\Treo700w.xml" /p /memsize 256 /s "C:\Program Files\Microsoft\
Device Emulator Preview\treo700w.dess"

Command lines as my previous blog posting, but in case you are reading this standalone:

/skin is the location of the XML file. Enclose in " if the path contains spaces.
/p enables the NE2000 network card
/memsize is the amount of RAM allocated to the device. 256 is the max
/s is the place to save the image

All other options outlined on my web page at amset.info apply to the image as well.

Notes and Observations

Make sure that you give it more than 64mb of RAM, as per my command line above. Less than that and everything doesn't load correctly.

It appears that the actual push functionality doesn't work, which is not surprising as push only works over a mobile phone connection, which the emulator doesn't have. All other functions work correctly.

I was able to get SSL certificates installed on the device, so if you need to import one then this shouldn't be too difficult. Use the Storage Card trick (on the page at amset.info linked above).

E12 (aka Exchange 2007)

One last word - this image works wonderfully with E12. On my Beta system it connected straight away, did the online lookup to the GAL and basically everything worked as it should.

There is an important update on the Microsoft download site for users of Exchange 2003. It deals with a change in the operation of Internet Explorer following a patent case.
The knowledgebase article is here: http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?kbid=911829
The download is here: http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=5bc06e8a-08eb-4976-bc68-a03ebe3a2552&displaylang=en

I still remain very active on Experts Exchange, fitting it in with client work. Very handy thing to do while wait for an OS or application to install, server to reboot, or mailboxes to move.
During the weekend I also became a page editor for the Exchange Server topic area, and in the last few minutes I have just hit the landmark level of 8 million points.

What makes a good expert become a great expert?
Becoming one of the great experts on Experts Exchange (EE) is not easy, it takes a lot of hard work.
However many people become good experts, but fail to go that extra mile to become one of the greats.
How do you become a great expert?
Here are some points on how to become a great expert. Examples, where given, apply to Exchange server type questions because that is my specialization. They could apply to other topic areas equally as well.

1. Read the Question.
   So many of the answers I see are not suitable because the responder has failed to read the question properly. Most common is responding with an Exchange 2003 technique for an Exchange 2000 problem. I have been guilty of this myself.
   Check the question text for what platform is being used, and if required, ask them to confirm. In some cases the underlying Windows version also plays a part.
   If the questioner states that a certain solution is not suitable, then don't offer it as a solution, unless it is the only solution. Be prepared to explain why (see below - justify your answer). 
2. Only respond if you know the answer or are really sure that you are pointing the questioner in the right direction. Don't waste the questioners time.
   Many of the responses I see are totally wrong. Asking a questioner to check the services are running for an intermittent mail delivery issue is simply a waste of time.
   If you are taking a punt, because you are pretty sure, but not 100%, then say so. That way another expert might come along and correct you, support you or give an alternative.
3. Know your strengths and your weaknesses.
   One of my weaknesses is Exchange 5.5 - I haven't worked with that version for some time. Therefore I avoid where possible any questions relating to Exchange 5.5 because I cannot answer them to the high standard that I have set myself.
   If you don't know, then skip the question, rather than getting the hopes up of the poster, only to have them dashed because your response isn't correct. 
4. Follow up.
   Don't abandon the questioner. If you don't know the follow up question, say so.
   However due to the nature of Experts Exchange, don't expect another expert to chip in with a response. Some of the topic areas are very high traffic. Once the question has gone past the first page, most experts don't look at them again. You should suggest that the questioner asks the follow up question separately, or posts a pointer to the original question. 
5. Give accurate answers.
   By this I don't just mean technically accurate, but the whole answer is polished.
   If you are posting URLs, then make sure that they work. I check all of my URLs, even those that come back to my own web site. I have made errors before, so now check.
   Check your answers. If you are sending someone to a certain window in a tool, then check the full path and quote the full path. Don't presume that the person who has asked the question knows their way around the application. 
6. Justify your answer.
   Don't give one word answers as they don't really help. They answer the question, but they don't tell the questioner why. Give a brief explanation and where possible a URL, preferably back to the software developer's own web site which explains things in more detail.
   As well as providing a response to the specific question, I also see part of the role in answering the question is to educate others.
   With the way that Experts Exchange works, someone might look at the response in six months time when looking for another answer.
   Therefore where appropriate I will provide alternatives or additional things to look out for.
   The migration to a new server questions are classic examples of that. 
7. Be consistent.
   If you develop a technique, then stick to it. If you keep changing techniques, then someone will post that you said such and such three months ago. Develop the technique, and if you change it, be prepared to explain why. A web site or blog can help with this (see below). 
8. Have a web site or a blog.
   Take your best answers and turn them in to a blog or web site article. Many of the things on amset.info started off as an answer to a question on EE. Where I needed to research the response to a question or develop a technique, I would post the answer.
   Once I was sure it works, take the answer, clean it up, apply screenshot and font changes to make it more presentable and it then becomes a good quality web page that you can refer to in future answers.
9. Presentation.
   The presentation of a question is very important. If presented correctly then it gets the information across in a clear way, and anyone else looking at the question will understand what you mean.
   Obviously, punctuate the answer correctly, with good spelling.
   
   EE doesn't have a built in spell checker, so I use a free Internet Explorer plug-in called iespell (http://www.iespell.com/). If I am using a machine that doesn't have this installed, then I will use either Word or Outlook to spell check the response, then copy and paste it back in again.
   
   Use common acronyms only - not any that you use internally within your company or group that may not be in widespread use. If you do need to use a non-standard acronym, then use the complete phrase first, then put the acronym in brackets later: Experts Exchange (EE).
   
   Avoid the use of txt speak - m8, l8r, etc. This looks unprofessional and can be difficult to read. This is a public professional forum and it should be treated as such.
   Other shorthand should also be avoided, w/ (with) and b/c (because) which are almost exclusively used in the USA. Remember that these forums are available to anyone in the world, whose first language may not be English and they may not understand what you have written.
   
   Space the answer out as it makes it easier to read. Think how newspapers and magazines are laid out. The text is rarely in a single block. Look at the presentation of this blog posting - each point is separated out. 
10. Don't steal another person's work.
    That doesn't just mean lifting a post from elsewhere on the site, but also from other web sites and blog postings. This is particularly the case with Microsoft KB articles and major web sites that update frequently (like my own).
    Post a link instead, so that if the information is updated, the latest information is always available.
    Copying and pasting someone else's work is theft - pure and simple.
    As far as I am concerned, if I find anyone copying my work, then I will ask for it to be removed.

By paying close attention to the answers that you give, your work and knowledge will become trusted and welcome.

If you have looked at my technical web site, amset.info recently, I have an article on using the Windows Mobile 5.0 emulator to ease support of Windows Mobile devices. (http://www.amset.info/pocketpc/wm5emulator.asp)
Unfortunately the emulator images aren't keeping up to date with the Windows Mobile released versions, and as such there isn't one with the latest MSFP update.

However Microsoft have recently released the first emulator image with the AKU 2.0 update, which you can download from here: 

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=EB580A44-CB40-4BE1-9FF3-E224BF669CD0&displaylang=en

When you install the download it claims to require the SDK and Visual Studio, but it doesn't actually check for these, so you can install if you don't have either installed.

The files install to the following location by default:
C:\Program Files\Windows CE Tools\wce500\Emulator Image for Windows Mobile 5.0 Smartphone 320x240 (Landscape)

All is not what it seems.

The download file does not contain a dess file, but an nb0 file, making its use a little more complex. It is also a Smartphone image, not a Pocket PC image, which limits your options somewhat.

However if you would like a look, you need to use a complex command line string to start the image. As it is a Smartphone image you need to use the supplied skin so that you can actually control the device.
Also note that the skin doesn't have numeric keypad, but you can use the numbers on your keyboard to enter those.

Here is the command line I have been using:

"C:\Program Files\Microsoft\Device Emulator Preview\DeviceEmulator.exe" "C:\Program Files\Windows CE Tools\wce500\Emulator Image for Windows Mobile 5.0 Smartphone 320x240 (Landscape)\Deviceemulation\0409\SP_USA_QVGA_LANDSCAPE.nb0" /skin "C:\Program Files\Windows CE Tools\wce500\Emulator Image for Windows Mobile 5.0 Smartphone 320x240 (Landscape)\Skin\Smartphone_Landscape_QVGA.xml" /n /tooltips OFF /memsize 256 /s "C:\Program Files\Microsoft\Device Emulator Preview\smartphoneaku2.dess"

Not pretty.

If I tear it down to remove the paths, it is actually:

DeviceEmulator.exe SP_USA_QVGA_LANDSCAPE.nb0" /skin Smartphone_Landscape_QVGA.xml /n /tooltips OFF /memsize 64 /s smartphoneaku2.dess

where

DeviceEmulator.exe would be the full path to the device emulator

SP_USA_QVGA_LANDSCAPE.nb0 is the nb0 file from the download

/skin Smartphone_Landscape_QVGA.xml is the Smartphone skin that is also in the download

/tooltips OFF turns off the tool tips

/memsize 64 is the size of the RAM in mb.

/s smartphoneaku2.dess is the name of the file to save the machine to once you have started it once.

You should be able to develop your own path based on your install locations. Once you have run it once - then you can simply save the machine and restore the file using the Device Emulator Manager.

SSL Certificates
The device is locked, so importing an SSL certificate is a little more complex. That will have to wait for another blog post.