They all did what I wanted them to – email mostly, and with Canadian carriers having been dragged into the 21st century, it’s actually possible to do more with data plans without needing a bank loan.

So now I UberTwitter (er, UberSocial), a little Facebooking, and Google search from my Blackberry Bold 9780, but I find myself wanting more.

The biggest change going to the Blackberry was the lack of touch screen – a bit of a step backwards from WM and Palm – but the abilities of email and the form-factor outweighed that lack of touch, plus I needed to ‘eat the dog food’ with Blackberry Server and become an expert (which I have) so I can support my clients on Blackberry (which I do).

Obviously, Android has taken the market by storm, and I just realized I haven’t mentioned the iPhone yet (it’s not even a consideration for me – I absolutely must have a hard keyboard).

And I’m a bit of a Microsoft fanboy, I’ll admit.

So I’ve got a hankerin’ to try Windows Phone 7 – or more accurately, the latest release candidate, ‘Mango’, which I believe will be v8, and if the reviews are to be believed, Windows Phone is actually an awesome platform. Even Dilbert’s creator is giving it a whirl.

But what phone to buy? <—link there to something interesting.

I’ve been browsing the showcases at cell shops whenever I happen by one of them, and the Windows Phones are conspicuous in their absence, and the buzz on the Interweb for those who have them all seem to indicate that if you ask one of the cell-shop employees for a Windows Phone, they might look at you like you have a disease, and quickly lead you to the Android phones.

Which seems a little sad. Windows Phone is likely getting a bad rap. Is it a hangover from how long they let Windows Mobile languish? Absolutely. I think it’s also due to a lack of front-line motivation at the cell-shops to promote and sell them, and this is where Microsoft has to do something, I believe.

And I don’t think they’re going to make much headway getting others to sell it for them – cell phone dealers are a funny bunch. They’re in it to make money (funny, huh?). And past experience with Windows Mobile wasn’t great, and with Android, they have something the public has latched onto (read “The Tipping Point”), and it’s an easy sell. It’s the path of least resistance for the sales folks. And I worked retail in the electronics business for many years (in fact my first real sales job was at Krazy Krazy in Winnipeg, after a 6 week stint selling waterbeds). So I know first-hand what that sales job is all about. Food & rent.

Microsoft has an uphill battle to fight, and they’re not going to win it by getting the cellular dealers to be their vanguard.

I think they need a 2-pronged approach:

1. Supply IT service providers with Windows Phone hardware – for FREE. These are the people who are in front of businesses day in and day out, and if they aren’t using Windows Phone, neither will their clients. And it wouldn’t be a hard throw – these clients are already Microsoft fans – they use Windows desktop and server O/S’s and Microsoft Office. If they see their IT people using Windows Phone, and get demoed by them, they’re far more likely to want one themselves. And if the business people like them, they might actually influence consumer choice among their friends.

Suggestion to Microsoft – do this now with your Small Business Specialists (including Canada).

2. Microsoft retail stores. Apple has proven that if you give people a place to go and touch stuff, they’ll buy it. Cell-phone dealer shops don’t count (see above). Microsoft presently has 11 retail stores – all in the U.S. – and they’ve announced an expansion of 75 more stores in the next 2-3 years. Apple now has over 300 stores, and though 75 will certainly help, this strategy alone is not going to be enough to get Windows Phone’s market-share up to where it they want it. Refer to point #1 above.

A 3rd point – keep up the TV ads. They’re actually pretty good (and I don’t see enough of them).

History has taught us that the best technology does not always win (e.g. Betamax vs. VHS), and I’m afraid if Microsoft doesn’t step up to the plate and do something other than tell everyone how great Windows Phone is, it’s going to die on the vine. Stores are great, but if any company understands the power of their partner channel, Microsoft should (again, see point #1 above).

Lastly, as a Canadian, I have to point out that getting unlocked Windows Phone hardware needs to be easier. I want to buy one online from a reputable source, like Dell. In fact, Dell has a really nice phone I’d love to buy (and I’d do it RIGHT NOW – if I could), but it’s only available from Dell in the U.S. <sigh>.

You can ignore these. Read the ‘fine print’…

So here’s to another 10 years Ted! Congrats.

See Ted’s blog post on their party.

My last 2 posts talk about a 2nd key Microsoft suggested we use to stop the crashing.

Didn’t work for me. One of my clients had their Outlook profile recreated, and the problems came back, so I did what I wrote up in my Redux posts, and found I had to go back to my original fix.

Here

Again, the problem seems to be obscure (Microsoft doesn’t even know why it happens at this point), but here’s the ‘official’ answer for 2003:

For Outlook 2003 we just have to create the key under 11.0 instead of 12 .0 so the registry path would be

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Outlook\Options\Mail

I called back a couple hours later and was told – about another hour, and I also inquired as to what the issue was. Cut fibre connection, just south of Kanata (near Richmond on Fallowfield Rd.).

Really not great Rogers. 1 point of failure – I understand something like 97 nodes are out in Ottawa. ONE fibre line? Ever heard of ‘redundancy’?

Talk about putting your eggs in one basket.

When’s the next price hike? Gotta keep that share price going up, right?

This may or may not apply where Telus is the ILEC (me being in Ottawa), so YMMV.

My last post wasn’t entirely accurate, sort of. My phone was actually considered a consumer account – even though it’s now a business phone. Subsequently the CSR who ‘put’ me on the the new tether plan actually didn’t (not happy about this at all). Instead, I was put on some other unadvertised plan which included 1GB of data for $60, with NO tethering.

I figured this out the day after my last blog post & recently got my latest bill, which included $73 for the tethering I had done the previous day. I was calling in to add VPN support, as my Telus contact told me it wasn’t included & would cost an additional $5/mo. So they’re basically charging to unblock port 1723 (why am I not surprised?).

When I called to add this ‘feature’ the rep informed me tethering wasn’t included on this plan & I had been misinformed.

So I called my contact & said WTF, and after some investigation found out it only applied to business accounts (‘Business’ Email & Web 45). Apparently, the plan was introduced Dec 1, but again, YMMV depending on your region.

I’ve since taken steps with a new Telus WBS (Wireless Business Solutions) rep to have my account converted to a Business account, so I’ll then get the plan I was expecting in the first place.

So I believe it to be true, and will confirm when I see it on my next bill. So far I’ve had verbal confirmation from a Telus data specialist & the WBS sales guy who’s making it happen for me (and had lunch with today). Don’t know yet if this includes port 1723, but for an extra $5, it’s still a good deal if tethering is there.

I just signed up for the Business Email & Web 45 plan – it’s not online yet, you gotta call in. My sources tell me it became available here in Ottawa (assuming all of Ontario at least) as of December 1st.

What does it include?

From what the CSR told me – unlimited everything except voice (web, email, texting) & $8/MB if you’re roaming in the US.

And guess what – this includes TETHERING!

Wow. Never thought this day would come. I hope I’m not jumping the gun, cuz I’m only going by what I was told on the phone – haven’t seen anything in black & white yet, and as of right now, the business plans web site @ Telus look like they’re being worked on.

And it all started with portability – I love competition.

All I can say at this point is that it just works better. Things are snappier. As Paul Thurrott said in a recent Windows Weekly podcast and blog post, 64-bit Vista is really a non-event as far as having issues goes.

My Dell D630 also now supports 4GB SO-DIMM’s, so I’ll be upgrading to 8GB when prices on those puppies comes down (somewhere ~$600 each – yikes!).

Lovin’ the “I’m a PC” campaign from Microsoft, BTW. Finally, Microsoft got it right.

Is it perfect – no, nothing is. As with most things there are some good and some not so good points. So here are my first impressions. . .

Good:

• It’s small with a bright screen. Easy to hold.
• Battery life is great.
• Bluetooth works perfectly.
• BPS data usage is WAY, WAY less than Exchange push. Where my office is, the EVDO signal is weak, and my Treo was constantly losing it’s data connection, and would be polling for my Exchange server all day. This was actually one of the biggest reasons for the switch (being in Canada where data rates are high).
• Easy to learn.

What I miss:

• Applications: I’m going to have to pay for some apps that were either free for WM (HandyShopper), or that I had purchased (AutoKeeper, ExpensePlus). Honestly haven’t found anything equivalent. I need (must) have a mileage tracking app that does it’s job in litres/100km. The only BB app I’ve found so far only does US gallons – HEY – RIM is Canadian! There’s a market up here!
• Touch Screen – I like having a stylus – especially the after-market ones that double as a pen. Also makes web browsing a lot more usable (as much as that can be usable on these things).
• A speaker phone – I actually miss this a lot.
• A file system I can transfer files to and from the device directly via USB.
• The little TS app for doing RDP.
• Games – come on folks, Brickbreaker is just lame – I want my Cubis back!
• My Treo keyboard – Palm got this right – RIM’s doing the best they can without infringing on any patents, but the Treo keyboard with the oval domed keys is the best I’ve used.

So I probably won’t stick with a BB forever. My goal is to get familiar with it as a user of the device so I can better relate to my clients, and even train them on their devices. The only other thing I need to do is get a new housing – long story, but my 8330 is PINK, thanks to an eBay purchase gone wrong. I figured I’d just get a new faceplate/housing, but the 8330 housing is slightly different than the 8310/20 housings, and they aren’t available yet. I guess I’ll just have to live with it for now as a sensitive new-age guy (SNAG).

I haven’t left you for good WM – I’ve got my eyes on the HTC Touch Pro – nice.