Blackberry Desktop Manager hangs in “conflict resolution” window [Solved!]

Further to my post “Blackberry Desktop Manager Sync Error 0x80040fb3 and 0x8004fceb [Solved!]”, I have found another workaround for a problem when the Blackberry Desktop Manager (version 7) hangs after syncing with MS Outlook - when the "conflict resolution" window is displayed but no actions can be taken – all mouse clicks are locked and do nothing.
The problem occurs when conflicts are found and the BDM app asks the user to decide which data to use for each conflict.  The user needs to click on each conflicting entry and tell the app which is the correct data to keep.  However, sometimes (no, most times) the app hangs (application is not responding) and no items can be selected – no further action is possible, except to kill the BDM app from the task manager :( 

This is very frustrating and luckily I think I stumbled on a simple workaround: close MS Outlook before launching the Blackberry Desktop Manager app – then launch the BDM app and start the sync process.  It should then work fine.  BTW, I also decided to sync calendar then contacts – not both at the same time.  Once your sync has been successful, you can then reopen MS Outlook again.

Let me know if this works for you!





 

 

Blackberry Desktop Manager Sync Error 0x80040fb3 and 0x8004fceb [Solved!]

If you are pulling your hair out trying to get your Outlook calendar to sync to your Blackberry calendar then perhaps this will help you sort it out.

Here’s the problem that I was having with my Blackberry Bold 9700 (OS6) sync using Blackberry Desktop Manager (BDM) version 6.1.0.35:

An error popped up “Conflict Resolution - Calendar”:
   then:  
No matter which option I selected, it resulted in this 0x80040fb3 error message (and also 0x8004fceb):


At a later date I also got an error: "Blackberry Intellisync error 0x8004fceb - Flexible Web Services" 
The following forum helped with lots of options to try – but none helped.
I decided to play with the mappings and I noticed that the conflicts always failed when the “Attendees” field was listed…

So I tried UNmapping that field:
Organiser->Configure settings->Advanced->Map Fields-> then UNmap the ‘Attendees’ field as shown in the screen shots below:
  

(Note: The "Reset" button also works)

Retry the sync process and it worked! :) :)

If this doesn't work for you then perhaps this info from the Blackberry Forums will:
http://www.blackberryforums.com/rim-software/137009-help-dm-sync-error-0x80040fb3.html

For more info – when the sync was failing the following appeared in the log file (not that it helped me much!):
The log file: "c:\Users\{YourName}\AppData\Roaming\Research In Motion\BlackBerry\Intellisync\{YourBB_PIN}\RIM.Log" contained the following info and error:
”
Field mapping used for translation:
   Microsoft Outlook                 Device
   Subject ------------------------- Description Title
   Start Date ---------------------- Start Date
   Start Time ---------------------- Start Time
   End Date ------------------------ End Date
   End Time ------------------------ End Time
   Alarm Date ---------------------- Alarm Date
   Alarm Time ---------------------- Alarm Time
   Reminder Set Flag --------------- Alarm Flag
   Body ---------------------------- Notes
   Show Time As -------------------- Free Busy
   Location ------------------------ Location
   Private ------------------------- Private
   Meeting Attendees --------------- Attendees
Unable to write application data record.
Translation Canceled!
”

My BlackBerry Bold 9700 was hanging more than 3 times per day [Solved]

So, my Blackberry Bold 9700 was hanging with the dreaded clock in the middle of the screen.  It has 256MB of onboard memory where the OS and apps are installed and I know I was running low (down to 10MB).  But the OS6 version of the operating system didn’t leave much room for new apps. 
I uninstalled all the apps that I didn’t really use but still couldn’t get more than 10MB free.  It seemed like the deletes weren’t really adding to the free memory :(

After about 6 hours of use, my BB hung and showed the “please wait forever clock”!  A reboot was the only way – that means a battery pull, before I found out the quicker way of: holding “alt+Right_Shift+del” trick!
So, I was reduced to restarting the phone every 6 hours or so - #FAIL
I even scheduled a daily reboot using QuickPull
At the worst possible time eg: using the GPS to navigate, the phone would hang… I wanted to throw it away and get that Android phone which was next on the “which-phone-should-I-get” list.

I decided to take the plunge and start again – in other words: wipe the phone and all its contents – for the sake of my sanity.

I found a great blog that explained the process: BlackBerry 302: A complete wipe and clean install of your BlackBerry OS and listed tools to get the job done easily:
BlackBerry Desktop Manager (DM)
BlackBerry Swiss Army Knife (BBSAK)
I also found BBHTool and BlackBerry Master Control Program (MCP)
   

BBHtool is great in that it has a feature called “Shrink-a-OS” where you can choose which parts of the OS’s apps you don’t want to include on your phone – and so saves precious memory space!

I backed my phone up using BB DM and then followed the instructions and landed up with 122MB free before restoring all data and 3^rd party apps.
Then 76MB free (as indicated on phone’s My World)
I then restored the 3^rd party apps using BBHtool 
I then added 20MB of 3^rd party apps.
Then upgraded all my BB apps to the latest version
I now have 16MB free and I haven’t needed to restart the phone in over 24 hours… so far so good… I just wish the phone had more memory!  Or the OS used up less. 

Things to note:
*) when restoring a version of the OS, then the versions of the BB apps are the old ones that were shipped with the OS – so next time I will try to backup even the BB apps for restoration after the OS install.  Obviously, the workaround is to upgrade each app after the reinstall.
*) after the reinstall, you will need to accept each app’s terms and conditions and some will need you to re-enter the usernames and passwords
*) Setting up email accounts needed to be redone – but just entering of the passwords: I got an error "Sorry Unable to continue your session. Please login again".  To solve a problem like this can try the following tips. Sign in to mobile.blackberry.com from your Blackberry browser, then select the state, on the page that appears scrolls down until it finds Communicate - Email, then follow the data requested.
*) All info on my 2GB memory card was not deleted (whew)
*) My TelMap navigation software survived the reinstallation, but I lost the “My Places” list – that was the biggest casualty :(

Walkie Talkie on your phone: Push To Talk (PTT) using data channel on any network in South Africa

Use your BlackBerry or Android phone or PC to instantly talk to a group of users – just like using walkie talkie radios!  All of this for free (just pay for the bandwidth)!  I suppose you could call it a VOIP app, since the voice does get converted to IP packets – but what’s different with this app is that the voice gets transmitted to a group of people and it comes over their phones’ speakers – like an intercom system!

This app is available for download from here: http://loudtalks.com/download and best of all it’s FREE.  This allows public groups of up to 100 people – if you want to create private groups, then there’s the “Loudtalks Mesh or “Loudtalks Cloud” products. 

The Cloud product is free to try out for up to 10 users, then there’s payment options to go larger groups up to 1,000 people. 
In short, if you have your own server, then go for the Loudtalks Mesh option – else Loudtalks Cloud – which doesn’t require a server and is very quick to set up.
See here for a comparison:  http://loudtalks.com/compare_products

 

Some of the features of the app are:
Loudtalks conversations are nearly as fast as face-to-face and possibly the fastest way to communicate online.
With Loudtalks you can voice message two, three or even a hundred people simultaneously.
Re-play your conversations when you want from the voice history.
Unlike traditional VoIP applications you don't have to use a headset with Loudtalks.
Loudtalks works over WiFi and 3G, and can be used on GPRS and EDGE.
Touchscreen-friendly
Real-time, low latency
Public channels
Voice-activated transmission (VOX) support

Currently, the app is available for BlackBerry and Android phones as well as PC (Windows and Linux using Wine):
BlackBerry - point your phone to: http://loudtalks.com/bb Note: that it does not use BIS – so if you are not using WiFi, then you will pay for the bandwidth used.  Depending on your wireless provider and service plan using the app may cause data charges even if you have "unlimited email and browsing" BIS data plan.  The app uses 110kB per minute talking, and 20kB per hour when idle.  Regardless of your service plan you can always use the app on WiFi for free.
Android: http://market.android.com/details?id=com.loudtalks 
PC: http://loudtalks.com/download
iPhone: iOS version will be released later this year (2011)

How to get going?:
Install the app then create an account and username,
then add contacts – once approved,
then you can try talking by pressing the PTT button (for BlackBerry it’s the convenience button on the LHS of the phone; for Windows it is F7) – keep that button down to talk, and release it to listen.  

You can also create your own public channels that other people can search for and join.

I’ve tested the application with Vodacom in South Africa and has worked with WiFi and the Vodacom network on BlackBerry 9700 Bold and 8520 Curve.  
Users with 3G handsets should enable the WAP2SR in the Options->Connection menu – this will reduce the high battery consumption.

If you get stuck, here’s a FAQ for BlackBerry users: http://loudtalks.com/bb_faq

Let me know if you have managed to successfully use the app – and for what purpose.  I am going to suggest this for the local neighbourhood watch in my area.

Follow LoudTalks on Twitter here: http://twitter.com/loudtalks

Other similar apps that I’ve found are:
http://hipvoice.com/pricing Blackberry and other “rugged devices”, and not free
http://blabbelon.com Windows and iPhone
http://heytell.com Android and iPhone
http://voxer.com iPhone (soon Android)
http://www.itikl.com Android and iPhone (free)

Telmap 5 maps were not showing [Solved]

I was extremely happy with the beta version of Telmap 5 on my Blackberry Bold (9700) until the maps disappeared at the end of June 2011 and I was wondering what was going on.  A colleague even emailed Telmap support and got a response to call Vodacom support as they were contractually not allowed to deal with clients directly (#Fail).

I kept on opening the maps to see if they were back.  I read on the Internet somewhere that the Telmap servers were undergoing an upgrade so I was hoping…

Until last week the maps were blank.  Funnily enough the maps of Europe were displaying fine – so I then suspected that perhaps Vodacom were blocking the maps for some reason – perhaps to force users to use the Vodafone Sat Nav software :( 
Luckily (for Vodacom) that wasn’t the case :) 

I was quite a happy user and excited when I eventually found an app that provided turn by turn navigation! – and I certainly didn’t want to be forced to use the SatNav software.  It shows weather at my locations and other widgets too.

Last week, I opened the Telmap software and it wouldn’t open saying that the software had expired!  I pressed the BB button and there was a link to “upgrade”…
I took a deep breath and thought that if I upgraded then I would lose “My places” – and wondered how I could extract these from the BB backups that I had made. 
Another deep breath accompanied by a click on the “Upgrade” link and I started downloading the new software…

A short while and a reboot later the software started up; the maps were visible again, and I didn’t even lose “My Places”! :) :)
Navigation working again too :)

I am now upgraded to version 5.41 build 49

Now if only this software would show traffic info and tell me where the speed traps are…

Similar posts:
Update your Blackberry Bold 9700 Vodafone Sat Nav GPS Navigator

I knew there had to be a catch with that 8ta deal for a Blackberry for R90 per month.... with free calls to a landline number

I received a couple of calls asking me if this was a great deal for a Blackberry 8520.  Over the phone it seemed to be a brilliant deal (especially how it was read to me over the phone): it included a free phone, and BIS, for only R90 per month, and (as it was read to me) free calls to any landline number. plus had 500MB free YouTube streaming per month!

So, I had to investigate…

Here’s the ad:
 
Here’s the small print – with catches highlighted in red:

Blackberry 8520 @R90 for the first 3 months; includes free BIS subscription worth R49.
Thereafter R139 x21 months.

· 500MB Free YouTube streaming
· Call one Telkom landline number for FREE
· Send five SMSs per day and receive 50 FREE to send for that day
· 90 FREE minutes 8ta to 8ta / national landlines
· 15 FREE 8ta minutes to other local SA networks
· 25MB FREE data
· Free SIM & connection

So, don’t be fooled: it doesn’t offer free calls to all landlines – only to one nominated landline.
It’s R90 for the first 3 months – the remaining 21 months are charged at R139.

I recently purchased great contract deal from Vodacom’s RED specials on TopUp 135 for R135 per month:
(Unfortunately, it’s no longer available from the Vodacom Direct web site).

Things to watch out for that make it great:
Free phone, Free SIM, Free connection, Free delivery, 2 year warranty on phone, includes R135 free any time minutes (note: that it’s any time minutes, and not off peak minutes), the unused minutes roll over for up to 5 months (so you don’t lose the unused minutes).
So, for R135 per month, you got R135 airtime and a free phone!
These are per minute rates and they are cheaper than the Vodago rates.

The deal details (no longer available):
“
Blackberry 8520 RED including BIS FREE at R129 per month when signing an initial 24 month contract on Top up 135 (per minute billing only).

FREE SIM, FREE CONNECTION AND FREE DELIVERY.

This offer includes a 2 year handset warranty and for your own peace of mind, should you not be satisfied with your purchase you can return it within 14 days from delivery.

Phone features:
Dedicated Multimedia keys
Full QWERTY keyboard
2 megapixel camera
BlackBerry® Media Sync and Wi-Fi
”

Send free "messages" to BlackBerry phones – it works!

Send ‘Blackberry Pin Messages’ using The Internet: If you know someone’s BBM number then you can send messages to their phone for free by connecting to this web page:  http://www.web2pin.com/web2pinfree.aspx and filling in the details: your name, your reply address, their BBM number, subject and message.

It takes about 20 seconds for the message to go through.  All you need to know is their BBM PIN number.

It does not come through on BBM, but appears on their phone in an e-mail-like format.  It is called a ‘PIN message’. 

The "From Name" appears at the top of the sent message.

The sent message looks something like this:
Reply to: 'From Name' at ‘Reply Addr’
Then your message appears…

The message also has an advertisement for the Web2Pin.com web site ie: “A free service of Web2Pin.com  http://www.web2pin.com”

So, if you don’t have a BlackBerry phone and you can’t install WhatsApp, then you can still use your phone’s Internet browser and send a BBM message to your BB friends for free :) :)

Other related posts:
WhatsApp for Nokia Symbian phones is now available
What’s the cheapest cell phone to run WhatsApp on?
Calculator: How much data does WhatsApp use and what are the costs?

Roaming using your Blackberry and don’t want to use Data Services from the cell phone network: SOLVED

So, you are travelling/roaming abroad and don’t want to be charged those horrendous fees for data services?  Using my Blackberry 9700 Bold this is what I did to ensure that I used free WiFi connections abroad:
1) Options->WiFi: and connect to your free WiFi service
2) Options->Mobile Network->Data Services: ON
3) Options->Mobile Network->WhileRoaming: OFF
4) Network selection->Automatic
5) In the BB Browser->Options->General Properties->Default Browser->Hotspot Browser

That should do it :)
Now my WhatsApp, BBM, browsing works

Thanks to this post that helped me figure this out: http://www.blackberryforums.com/general-9700-series-discussion-bold-2/235028-cant-connect-wifi.html

Of course, you could decide that you want to be mobile and not “tied” to the WiFi in your hotel or office – so you should then purchase a local SIM card and put it into your phone and use the local GSM network.   But remember that with a Blackberry phone - you need to buy a BIS package otherwise your phone cannot access the Internet AT all!

In other words, if you just buy a prepaid SIM card you can't use WhatsApp or Viber or similar - it won't work without a BIS package!  Perhaps you should then take another phone (eg: iPhone or Nokia or Android or whatever other non-BB phone) with you on holiday.

Update your Blackberry Bold 9700 Vodafone Sat Nav GPS Navigator

I have been looking for a way to get better turn-by-turn GPS software on my Blackberry since I got it.  The Vodafone Sat Nav GPS Navigator software just doesn’t work as well as my old Nokia 6110 Navigator phone.  The main problem that I experienced was that when it’s in navigation mode, (in other words, when it is giving you directions) the voice prompts come slightly too late and I miss the turn… the screen does not allow a slightly more zoomed out view to see if this is the time to turn.

I even tried the Garmin product for 30 days, as well as their onboard version of their product: Garmap that’s offering a R200 discount (so you pay R399) but the discount voucher didn’t work – I even emailed them 7 (yes, seven) times – still not sorted out :(
 

My BB Bold 9700’s version was running Vodafone Sat Nav version 4.65.87 and I needed an upgrade.

 
I then came across Telmap site - Telmap is the Israeli company that produces Sat Nav software - Telmap 4.5 world edition is available on Blackberry AppWorld for $79.99

I found this great way for you to receive the Telmap5 navigation system for your mobile phone for free.
All you have to do is register for free at http://global.telmap.com/tugpcbeta to join the Telmap User Group.

Notes:
a) this will UNinstall the existing Vodafone Sat Nav software, and you DO need to reboot your phone after the installation.
b) Traffic info does not work in South Africa.
c) It is a 6.1MB download (I hope you are on BIS)
d) It is beta software – so make a backup of your entire phone using the Blackberry desktop software

TelMap info:
”
The Telmap User Group is a group of beta testers for Telmap5.  As a member of the User Group you will receive Telmap5 software for free and will be able to navigate everywhere we have geographic coverage including Europe, North America and more.  Feedback can be returned at any time using our feedback form, and every so often we will conduct an online or phone survey asking you to answer some specific questions about the product.
You should know that you must maintain your own data package, and that we may keep GPS logs of your navigations.

We are currently accepting new users with the following devices:
- Android devices (English, French and Hebrew)
- BlackBerry 9800 Torch (English, French and Hebrew)
- BlackBerry 9780, 9700, 9300 (English, French, German, Spanish, Italian and Hebrew)
”

Here are the installation instructions:
1) Click on the “Register” button (at the bottom of the page) to join the Telmap User Group: http://global.telmap.com/tugpcbeta
(a download link and registration code will be emailed to you)
2) Open the email on your phone and click on the download link – a 6.1MB file will then start downloading and be installed on your phone.  My version is version 5.12.32.01 build 02.  Release notes are here: http://downloads.telmap.com/tug/doc/TUGReleaseNotes.htm
3) It will replace the old Vodafone Sat Nav version and will ask for phone permissions
4) Reboot your phone after the install is complete.


Feedback can be given using this form: http://www.surveygizmo.com/s/193403/feedbacks-on-telmap-navigator-v5-0
(not for installation problems… rather use: tugadmin@telmap.com)
Telmap User Group Forum is here: http://www.pocketgpsworld.com/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewforum&f=137


Telmap5 offers:
- Full-featured in-car navigation with moving maps and sound instructions with street names
- Turn-by-turn pedestrian navigation with moving maps that follow your location and bread-crumbs for orientation
- Simple and easy one-line search for anything you need
- Widgets that let you personalize your experience for in-car navigation, pedestrian navigation and mapping
- Rich UI with animations, shadowing and graphic effects – all based on a map
- Weather information for any location
- Cell-ID positioning technology lets you use mapping and local search even when you are indoors with no GPS fix
- Tiled maps for quicker map download and smooth panning
- And much more…

BlackBerry Bold WiFi connection problems solved

I have been looking all over for solutions to my problem connecting my BlackBerry 9700 Bold to my wireless router at home (using WPA2 security). 

I checked the BB Bold’s specifications here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BlackBerry_Bold and found that it could support a lot of WiFi security: Wi-Fi 802.11b/g, WEP, WPA-PSK (TKIP or AES), PEAP, LEAP, EAP-TLS, EAP-FAST, EAP-TTLS, EAP-SIM

I tried a lot of settings but I kept on getting the error: “failed to associate with the network”.

Eventually, I found the problem by chance – I tried playing with the router’s wireless mode (thanks to a posting on the CrackBerry forums).  I changed it from 802.11b+g to 802.11g.. in doing that the Channel changed from “Channel 13 (2.472 GHz)” to “Channel 1 (2.412 GHz)” and all of a sudden it started working!  Problem solved :)

So, here’s the solution in case anyone else has problems connecting the BlackBerry to a wireless router.

I have a Billion Bipac 7300GA modem/router and I have set it up as follows:
Wireless Parameters tab:
Mode: 802.11b+g
ESSID: MyWirelessSSID [can be anything]
Hide ESSID: Enable [I don’t want to let my neighbours know that I have a router]
Regulation domain: Europe
Channel ID: Channel 1 (2.412 GHz) <<--- that was the problem as I had it set to “Channel 13” initially
WMM (QoS): Enable
WMM-APSD: Disable

Wireless Security tab:
Security mode: WPA2 Pre-Shared Key
WPA2 algorithm: AES
WPA2 shared key: mypassword [remember, this is case sensitive]
Group key renewal: 3600

I then used the BB’s WiFi manual setup menu: Options->WiFi->New->Next->Manually add network->Enter your SSID->Add->Security type: “Pre-shared key (PSK)” (this works for WPA and WPA2 since there is no WPAx option)
Then enter your “Pre-Shared Key”: mypassword  [this must be the same as router’s “WPA2 shared key”]
Then click the “Connect” button.