OMLDSuite V0.2 released

Hi,

today I want to release a new version of OMLDSuite, introduced in the previous post. This new version offers a new Opera Mini, a new emulator based on the JavaFX SDK 1.3.1 and new variants for different screen resolutions. Opera Mini is a mobile browser that was originally based on Java ME (J2ME). It is now also available for the iPhone, Blackberry, Windows Mobile and numerous other mobile platforms. It offers a fast browsing experience due to advanced content compression techniques.

Requirements:

• Windows XP, Vista or Windows 7
• Java Runtime Enviroment from here
• Internet access on your PC
  

Downloading OMLDSuite V0.2:

I have made several versions of OMLDSuite for different screen resolutions. Each package weighs about 21 MB. Feel free to download the version which suits your needs:

• For small(er) screens:
  800x600 pixels version


• For normal screens:
  1024x600 pixels version


• For normal screens:
  1024x768 pixels version


• For normal screens:
  1200x768 pixels version


• For normal screens:
  1200x800 pixels version


• For Full-HD screens:
  1920x1080 pixels version

Installation and running OMLDSuite V0.2:

• Unpack the OMLDSuite archive you just downloaded in one directory.
• Run the script "install_opera_mini.bat" by clicking on it. This is only needed once!
• Then click on the script start_opera_mini.bat" whenever you want to start OMLDSuite.
• Then the emulator window should come up in which you can launch Opera Mini (5).

As this new solution does not need the Sun Wireless Toolkit or the Java ME Platform SDK 3.0 or the JDK the installation is now much simpler.

Best
Makube

OMLDSuite - Opera Mini on the PC as a One-Click-Solution

Hi,

this is what you've been waiting for. Now you can have OperaMiniLargeDevice (OMLD) (see previous posts) as a one-click-solution (OMLDSuite) to let Opera Mini run on the PC in a big window. This browser is now also available for the iPhone, Blackberry, Windows Mobile and numerous other mobile platforms. It offers a fast browsing experience due to advanced content compression techniques. The new OMLDSuite consists of three components:

• an emulator from the JavaFX SDK (adapted for OMLDSuite)
  
• Opera Mini 5 beta 2
• scripts to install and start Opera Mini

Follow the next steps in order to use OMLDSuite on your computer.

Requirements:

• Windows XP, Vista or Windows 7
• Java Runtime Enviroment from here
• Internet access on your PC
  

Downloading OMLDSuite:

I have made several versions of OMLDSuite for different screen resolutions. Feel free to download the version which suits your needs:

• For small(er) screens: 800x600 pixels version
  
• For normal screens: 1024x705 pixels version
• For Full-HD screens: 1920x995 pixels version

Installation and running OMLDSuite:

• Unpack the OMLDSuite archive you just downloaded in one directory.
• Run the script "install_opera_mini.bat" by clicking on it. This is only needed once!
• Then click on the script start_opera_mini.bat" whenever you want to start OMLDSuite.
• Then the emulator window should come up in which you can launch Opera Mini (5).

As this new solution does not need the Sun Wireless Toolkit or the Java ME Platform SDK 3.0 or the JDK the installation is now much simpler.

Best
Makube

OperaMiniLargeDevice for Opera Mini 5

Last week the beta version of Opera Mini 5 has been released. Due to the drastic change in the user interface, OperaMiniLargeDevice (OMLD) for the Sun WTK 2.5.2 from this post does not work very well anymore. Therefore, I have now worked on a similar solution (new emulator device template) for the new Java Platform Micro Edition Software Development Kit 3.0 which is the successor of the WTK, offering you the same features of the previous OMLD. The main function is of course to let Opera Mini run in a big window on your desktop. Opera Mini is a mobile browser that was originally based on Java ME (J2ME). It is now also available for the iPhone, Blackberry, Windows Mobile and numerous other mobile platforms. It offers a fast browsing experience due to advanced content compression techniques.

In this first preliminary solution, OMLD for the Java ME Platform SDK 3.0 is now available in the screen resolutions of 1024x705 and 800x600 usable pixels.

To install the solution, follow the next steps:

Requirements:

• Get the Java SE Development Kit (JDK) from here.
  

• Get the Java ME Platform SDK 3.0 for Windows from here.

• Get the "OperaMiniLargeDevice" for Java ME Platform SDK 3.0 from here.
  

• Get Opera Mini 5 beta browser for Java-enabled phones from here. Be sure to download both the JAD and the JAR to the same directory.
  

• Internet access on your machine
  

Installation (done for Win XP):

• Install the JDK.
  

• Install the Java ME Platform SDK 3.0 for Windows.

• Unzip your downloaded version of "OperaMiniLargeDevice" (simply extract it, a directory named "DefaultFxTouchPhone" will be created automatically). Open the directory Path-to-Java_ME_platform_SDK_3.0\toolkit-lib\devices . Then rename the directory "DefaultFxTouchPhone" in there to something else. Afterwards copy the newly extracted directory "DefaultFxTouchPhone" in there. The complete path to OMLD on my machine looks as follows: "C:\Java_ME_platform_SDK_3.0\toolkit-lib\devices\DefaultFxTouchPhone".

• Next, we are going to install Opera Mini 5 in this new emulator. This is only needed once! We are doing this by opening the command prompt and entering the following: Path-to-Java_ME_platform_SDK_3.0\bin\emulator.exe -Xdevice:DefaultFxTouchPhone1 -Xjam:install=Path-to-OMDirectory\opera-mini-5.0.15650-advanced-en.jad . On my machine the command was: "C:\Java_ME_platform_SDK_3.0\bin\emulator.exe -Xdevice:DefaultFxTouchPhone1 -Xjam:install=C:\midlets\opera-mini-5.0.15650-advanced-en.jad" . Then you will see some output like: "Installing suite from: http://127.0.0.1:2124/opera-mini-5.0.15650-advanced-en.jad The suite was succesfully installed, ID: 2" . This ID is important, as we need it to start Opera Mini in the next step. After the installation you already see the big emulator screen as shown in the next picture.
  
  You could start Opera Mini now. But you could close the window as well and start Opera Mini later. This is what we will do in the next step.

• Starting Opera Mini is easy as well. Open the command prompt and enter the following: Path-to-Java_ME_platform_SDK_3.0\bin\emulator.exe -Xdevice:DefaultFxTouchPhone1 -Xjam:run=ID -Xdomain:maximum . On my machine the command was: "C:\Java_ME_platform_SDK_3.0\bin\emulator.exe -Xdevice:DefaultFxTouchPhone1 -Xjam:run=2 -Xdomain:maximum" . Then the emulator window comes up and you can start Opera Mini by clicking on the respective entry. If you start Opera Mini this way, your preferences and bookmarks inside Opera Mini will be preserved, as the Midlet's ID (here 2) is reused again.
  

Here is a sample picture of what the result looks like:



Remark:

The Emulator itself has an ID, shown on its window title. Usually it is 9. With this ID you can find the working directory / filesystem of this emulator, where also Opera Mini will store its settings and pages. On my machine it can be found here: "C:\Documents and Settings\user\javame-sdk\3.0\work\9\appdb\filesystem\root1\".

Navigation:

You can control Opera Mini 5 almost completely with your mouse. If you don't like the normally activated inline editing feature you can deactivate it inside Opera Mini's advanced settings.

Hope you find this solution helpful. Any tips to improve this solution are welcome.

Greetings Makube

FireMatcher - Find Matching Documents

Hi,

today I want to introduce the new extension FireMatcher for Firefox 3.x that has been released yesterday. With FireMatcher you are able to find similar documents to your local ones which do not even have to be made public. But also documents in the web like webpages can be conveniently analyzed as well. FireMatcher will instantly analyze them and extract their most important terms and phrases to present you topically matching documents in the web.

On the results page the most important phrases and terms will be presented along with the search results for the (pre-)selected terms. Quick Search enables users to automatically select the most important terms and phrases as queries:

Teachers easily find the original documents of their students' work. Developers and researchers find out if similar things to their unpublished documents already exist. The same opportunities have journalists and other professionals who want to know whether their unpublished document or a similar one is already public.

FireMatcher works on Windows and Linux and requires a current Java Runtime Environment as the text technology is based on Java. The document formats .txt, .html, .pdf, .doc and .ppt are currently supported.

You can download the beta version of FireMatcher from here.

Best
Makube

Run Mobile Browser BOLT on the PC (Big Screen)

Hello again,

I just found out that the mobile browser BOLT works nicely in conjunction with the previously introduced OperaMiniLargeDevice (OMLD) from here. With this browser you can also surf in fullscreen and get benefit from it's advanced content compression technique. This way surfing becomes a pleasure even with a slow connection at hand.

All you need is the JAD file from here. Download and open it with a text editor, find the entry "MIDlet-Jar-URL: " and download the JAR from the following URL. Then change the URL so that only "bolt.jar" is left and save the modified JAD. Afterwards (if not yet done) put both files into one directory.

This is the only step that is different from the description provided here.

Happy browsing!
Makube

MobTorrent - A BitTorrent client for Java ME

Hello,

I recently came across the first BitTorrent client for Java ME, called MobTorrent. You can find it and its source on this page. Although it still has some bugs like the OutOfMemory-Exceptions that occur sometimes, it is a very good start for implementing the Bittorrent protocol based on the Java ME platform. I wonder, when the first Gnutella client for Java ME will be released :-)

Best
makube

MeRadio - A Shoutcast Radio Streaming Client for Java ME

Hello,

a new year and a new project. This time it's a Shoutcast radio streaming client for Java ME, which I started as a hobby project. I called it MeRadio. Inspired by this post to stream Shoutcast streams to the IPhone, I wanted to make such an application (MIDlet) for Java ME (J2ME). Here it is in an initial version:

The download package (links below) contains:
- a server part which consists of three files: meradio.php5, mr.xml and php.ini
- the mobile application MeRadio (Nokia and Sony Ericsson version) with its source

The Server

The file meradio.php5 has two main functions: First it delivers the radio stream URLs from mr.xml to the mobile application, second it streams the plain audio data (mp3) of a radio station to the mobile application, while stripping off useless Shoutcast headers, which cannot be understood by Java ME.

When you want to install this server on your webspace, php must be supported. Maybe the php.ini is also needed, which sets the property "allow_url_fopen = on". This is needed for customers of 1und1. And maybe the file extension php5 doesn't work for you. Then you should rename meradio.php5 to meradio.php. The file mr.xml is an XML formatted document containing some predefined radio stations mostly taken from the radio list of Ninj's Virtual Radio Symbian application (http://www.ninj.com/vradio/vr_list.xml). Put all 3 files into the same directory of your webspace.

Test the service using a webbrowser:
- Get the radio list using this URL: http://yourhostname/meradio.php5?rlist=1
- Hear the stream of a radio e.g.using this URL: http://yourhostname/meradio.php5?play=http://sc3.radioseven.se:8500/&clientid=123234324

The php will stop executing after 24 minutes to limit the traffic on the server and on the phone. You can adjust this value according to your needs.

The Mobile Application

Select the Nokia or Sony Ericsson version of MeRadio and simply install MeRadio.jar to your Java enabled phone. During the first start you will be advised to set the URL to meradio.php5 properly. Some Nokia devices need a port number after the hostname, otherwise an invalid locator exception might be thrown. This URL can be entered in the settings menu. Then you can click on Genres, which loads the genres (and radios) from the mr.xml file using meradio.php5. This may take some seconds, especially on Sony Ericsson phones. Then you can choose a genre and select a radio stream of interest. Now you should be able to hear the selected stream with very few or even no annoying gaps that often occur on other streaming solutions based on Java ME.

Here is the download link for the current version 0.2a:

-FileFactory:
MeRadio0.2a.zip

-MegaUpload:
MeRadio0.2a.zip

Version 0.2 introduces these updates:
- Radio list is persistently saved in the RMS (radio list doesn't need to be fetched from the server everytime the MIDlet starts)
- Radio list can be updated when necessary
- Different versions of MeRadio for Nokia and Sony Ericsson phones, as these devices support different streaming mechanisms
- Small updates to meradio.php5 and new radios (Techno) in mr.xml

I have successfully tested MeRadio on a Sony Ericsson W850i and on a Nokia 3120 classic phone (S40). You can change the source as you wish and play with it. Bug reports are always welcome as this is a new project.

Have fun with it and a happy new year
Makube

PS.:
Here are the download links for the old versions:

Version 0.2:

- FileFactory: MeRadio02_all.zip

- MegaUpload: MeRadio02_all.zip

Version 0.1:

- FileFactory: MeRadio01_all.zip

- MegaUpload: MeRadio01_all.zip

O2 Germany's Internet-to-Go Browser on the PC

Hello,

I recently came across the Internet-to-Go Browser by O2 Germany. In fact, it's an adapted but up-to-date version of the Opera Mini browser that offers some special functions as the access to the O2 Communication Center to check and write e-mails without having to login with username and password. This only works with O2 sim cards. With other sim cards the installation will fail, as a special O2 proxy is used at Opera for internet connection.

This browser also runs on the previously introduced OperaMiniLargeDevice, in order to let it run on the PC in a big screen. But regard, you need to be connected via an O2 GPRS/EDGE/UMTS connection to install this midlet in the WTK emulator.

So you are eager to try this special OperaMini version yourself? No problem! You can get the special browser this way:

- Download the jad file at http://mini.opera.com/o2de/mini.jad
- Locate the String " MIDlet-Jar-URL: " and copy the next URL to your browser
- Then the download of the jar starts. Save it to the same directory as the jad.
- Now change the above mentioned URL in the jad to "mini.jar"
- Then you can start the midlet using the steps in the previous posts

Here are some screenshot of what the browser looks like in the WTK:

The intro:


The start page:


A web site in full screen:


Some additional remarks:
- The browser's interface is kept in the typical O2 blue style
- The start page can not be customized. It always points to the WAP Portal of O2 Germany
- The Communication Center works nicely
- Connection speed is a bit slower than in the normal Opera Mini
- Downloads aren't directly possible unlike in the normal Opera Mini

Have fun.
makube

Using Opera Mini 4.1 Features with OperaMiniLargeDevice 0.6

Hello,

the new Opera Mini version 4.1 offers two new great functions, first the option to download files and the possibility to search in a webpage. OperaMiniLargeDevice 0.6 (from here) also supports these functions.

To download files to the harddisk I recommend to set the security domain in the WTK to the maximum in order to get rid of the annoying security prompts (Do you allow file access? ...). This can be done in the security options of the WTK Preferences. To download a file click a download link. Then a windows will appear that gives you the option to save the file. Choose the folder in which the file should be stored. I normally choose root1/ . On my machine (Win XP) it points to "C:\Documents and Settings\user\j2mewtk\2.5.2\appdb\OperaMiniLargeDevice1200x705\
filesystem\root1" when I use the 1200x705 version of the OperaMiniLargeDevice. I also found that sometimes the download does not start properly. This could still be a bug in Opera Mini 4.1. But in general in works this way. Also remenber not to close the download window until the download process has finished!

The other option to search in a webpage can be accessed when you press F4, then F3, enter the search string and navigate through the highlighted matches via F1. F2 stops this navigation.

Greetings makube

Another Solution to Bring Opera Mini to the Big Screen

Hello,

another interesting solution to let Opera Mini run on the PC has been published here in Indonesian and here in English. This involves to use the MicroEmulator instead of the Sun Wireless Toolkit.

Greetings makube

Run Opera Mini on PC - Version 0.6 (also with UMPC and Netbook support)

Today I want to release version 0.6 of the "OperaMiniLargeDevice", introduced earlier in this blog. The new version now supports the usage of numpad keys to allow shortcuts and speed dial in Opera Mini. Because of problems with the keys '*' and '#' on some keyboards they are now mapped to the keys F3 and F4. So if you want to use speed dial in Opera Mini, press F3 + a number from the numpad, and if you wish to use shortcuts, press F4 + a number from the numpad. Mouse support is activated as well.

To install the solution on your PC you should follow the steps described in this post.

Greetings makube

Youtube Mobile (J2ME) on Sony Ericsson W850i

Last week a beta version of the Mobile Youtube application (J2ME) has been released. I successfully tested the app on the SE K800i and on the SE W850i which is currently not yet on the list of the officially supported devices. You can download the version for Sony Ericsson phones directly from here. Please also make sure that you have configured the streaming preferences correctly on the phone, as the normal Java internet profile will NOT be used to stream the videos.

Greetings makube

Run Opera Mini on PC - Now larger and cooler!

Before you read on, the newest version of "OperaMiniLargeDevice" can be found here and here.
This post only refers to the old version 0.5.

I recently updated the solution to use the Opera Mini browser on the PC to version 0.5, introduced in the previous post. Opera Mini is a mobile browser that was originally based on Java ME (J2ME). It is now also available for the iPhone, Blackberry, Windows Mobile and numerous other mobile platforms. It offers a fast browsing experience due to advanced content compression techniques. Thanks to the nice enhancement of my "OperaMiniLargeDevice" in this post at darmawanku.wordpress.com for another application, I got some ideas to improve the original solution.

So the new version 0.5 offers these changes and improvements:

• Screensize enlarged to 1200 x 705 from 1024x705
• Mouse can be used to control Opera Mini and to click on links
• Escape-key does not accidentially close the emulator anymore

Version 0.5 can be downloaded from here. Please follow the installation instructions in the previous post.

The older versions 0.2 and 0.1 are still available from here and here.

Yesterday I made some tests on how much traffic you can save using this solution. For instance the big german news site www.spiegel.de took around 850 kb to completely load on the Firefox browser. On the "OperaMiniLargeDevice" only 103 kb were needed. On a Nokia 6230 only 51 kb of traffic were consumed. Here is one picture of these tests using version 0.5 of the "OperaMiniLargeDevice":

As you can see, you can really save traffic with the "OperaMiniLargeDevice" and with a dialup connection or slow GPRS connection the page load time is vastly improved, also because the Opera Mini proxy has been enhanced recently.

Greetings
makube

Opera Mini as a PC Browser (big screen)

Hi,

a new version of OperaMiniLargeDevice (OMLD) for the new Java Platform Micro Edition Software Development Kit 3.0, which is compatible with the new Opera Mini 5, has been published here. OMLD for the older Sun WTK, which is the topic of this post, will stay online, as it is also compatible with Linux and many users have installed this solution already.

Now the original post:

Today I have worked on a solution to make the famous mobile browser Opera Mini run in a big window on the PC. The reason for this is the fast browsing experience on mobile devices with this application and the small amount of traffic it generates during browsing sessions, because the Opera Mini proxy reduces page sizes. It is now also available for the iPhone, Blackberry, Windows Mobile and numerous other mobile platforms. So also PC users could benefit from using this browser, especially from version 4 that introduces fullscreen support.

Because Opera Mini is a Java ME application, an emulator is necessary. Therefore, I used the Sun Java Wireless Toolkit with the included MIDP emulator. Then I adapted the preinstalled "QwertyDevice" and made a new emulator device template, the "OperaMiniLargeDevice" (OMLD), with the usable screen size of 1200x705 pixels. I omitted the usual control buttons of the standard emulators to have more space for the browser.

Here are two pictures of what the result looks like.

OperaMiniLargeDevice is now available in 4 variants for different screen resolutions. So if you want to test the solution yourself you should follow the next steps:

Requirements:

• Get the Java SE Development Kit (JDK) from here.
  

• Get the Sun Java Wireless Toolkit 2.5.2 for CLDC from here.

• Get the "OperaMiniLargeDevice" for Sun Java Wireless Toolkit from here.
  

• Get Opera Mini Browser 4.2 from here. Be sure to download both the JAD and the JAR to the same directory. The generic advanced version is recommended.
  

• Internet access on the PC

Installation (done for Win XP):

• Install the JDK.
  

• Install the Wireless Toolkit.

• Unzip your downloaded version of "OperaMiniLargeDevice" (simply extract it, a directory will be created automatically). Copy this directory to Path-to-WTk\wtklib\devices\ . The complete path to OMLD on my machine looks as follows: "C:\WTK2.5.2\wtklib\devices\OperaMiniLargeDevice1024x705".

• Then choose "OperaMiniLargeDevice" as the default device, e.g. via "Start->All Programs->Sun WTK->Default Device Selection".
  

• Then use "Start->All Programs->Sun WTK->Run MIDP Application" to start Opera Mini via its JAD file.

• The start screen should appear and you should now be able to launch Opera Mini by pressing F2.

Remark:

It might be that you receive the following error on starting Opera Mini:

OTA server emulation started ...
HTTPS server emulation started ...
Error: Reason = 36

The most obvious reason for this error is that the "MIDlet-Jar-URL" in the JAD does not point to the right JAR file. Try to open the JAD with a text editor, locate the property "MIDlet-Jar-URL" and make sure that ONLY the filename of the JAR is left in this entry, e.g. MIDlet-Jar-URL: opera-mini-4.2.13918-advanced-de.jar . You must not use a complete URL to the JAR in the web. And do not forget to put the JAD and the JAR in the same directory.

Navigation:

You can set the link focus and scroll through a site with ARROW keys. The ENTER key selects an action, e.g. a text field. Texts can be entered with the normal keyboard keys. You can copy from and paste text into text fields by pressing STRG+c and STRG+v. The keys F1 and F2 control the menu actions of Opera Mini and the emulator, e.g. security questions for internet access. Since version 0.5 you can use your mouse to control Opera Mini and to click on links.

Hope you find this solution helpful. Any tips to improve this solution are welcome.

Greetings Makube

PS.:

Update to version 0.6 (see this post):

• Shortcuts in Opera Mini usable
• Speed dial in Opera Mini usable
• Special version for netbooks and UMPCs like the Asus EEE or the HTC Shift available
  

Update to version 0.5 (Major update):

• Screensize enlarged to 1200 x 705 from 1024x705
• Mouse can be used to control Opera Mini and to click on links
• Escape-key does not accidentially close the emulator anymore
  

Update to version 0.2:

I updated "OperaMiniLargeDevice" to version 0.2 because the first version triggered annoying keyRepeatEvents on some websites, resulting in not being able to focus links. Therefore the property keyRepeatEvents is now set to false. Happy browsing!

iPhone with no Java support

What a pity! Besides its innovative innovative input solutions and futuristic look and feel the recently released iPhone by Apple lacks some features that many current phones offer by default. This is really annoying for such an expensive device of around 500 $ for the 4GB model. Some of these negative points are:

• No support for mobile Java applications
• No 3G wireless data connections possible
• Non-removable battery
• Closed platform, no SDK available
• Camera with only 2.0 megapixels
• iPhone activation is mandatory
  

For information on the iPhone, specs can be found here.