I have to firstly apologise for the lack of updates on Torrent Remote. I’ve been developing a few other sideprojects as well as starting a full time job; getting settled in I now have some time to code Torrent Remote again. I have to thank everyone for their support and feedback over the past few months, it’s been great!

I’ve got a new engine planned to handle a few of the more larger scale problems I had as well as a re-worked interface and new features.

If you do have any feedback or problems please don’t hesitate to ask.

Cheers,

- Beau Allison

Yesterday I posted an application for a shortcut to the Wifi Settings page as a request I got from Judge; as another request here are three more!

Connection Manager

An aggregation of all the Setting Applications specifically related to Connections. This one will see a further update in the future to mimic closer the real Settings Application with the “turned off/on” related statuses under each button. Download the XAP here.

Bluetooth Shortcut

A replica of the Wifi Shortcut yet instead launches the Bluetooth Application. Download the XAP here.

Flight Mode Shortcut

A replica of the Wifi Shortcut yet instead launches the Flight Mode Application. Download the XAP here.

Notes

- These have been tried and working only on Samsung devices. From what I know the HTC and LG devices as of yet are unsupported.

- Special courtesy goes to RustyGrom

- If someone would like to make nicer icons for these feel free to send them along.

If anyone has any more requests, comments, or suggestions feel free to ask. Time for some games programming.

Cheers,

Beau Allison

This has been my second request now for a shortcut application and this time it is for quickly opening the Wifi Settings menu (thanks Judge!). Using the app you are able to quickly open the Wifi Settings menu to turn Wifi on and off and connect to a network. I have to give 99% of credit towards RustyGrom whose fair amount of code I reused to re-create this application.

For the icon I took the standard settings icon from the Microsoft Icon Pack. If anyone is willing to create a nice icon for the XAP feel free to do so and send it along (just make sure the 173 x 173 tile is transparent background with a white icon). I should point out that this XAP won’t run within the emulator and only works on device.

Download:

In order to install the app you will need a Developer Unlocked Device. You can download the XAP here. If you do not have a developer unlocked device you can unlock it from Microsoft for a $99/USD year fee or through one of the unlocker tools available.

Update:

Two comments have alerted me that this doesn’t work for the HTC HD7 or LG Quantum. This was tried using the Omnia 7; if anyone knows the name of the executable used on those devices (on the Omnia 7 it is WiFiUXSplash.exe) please inform me and I will make an update for each phone. Cheers.

Update 2:

The Connection Manager, Bluetooth shortcut, and Flight Mode shortcut are now available here.

If anyone has any questions, suggestions, or comments, please don’t hesitate to ask.

Cheers,

- Beau Allison

As a follow up to my New SMS Shortcut app @Ramontrotman and @TheDavidk from Mobility Digest asked for the same type of shortcut yet used for launching a New Email. I was a bit late on my delivery times but here it is. New Email is a simple and small application (about eight lines of code in the Source File, excluding the references) that serves as a shortcut for opening a new email message.

You can download the XAP of New Email Here. At current I will hold off putting this into the marketplace as New SMS is surprisingly having a tough time making it past validation. N.B. My arts skills suffered at creating a legible email icon so I used the email icon from the Microsoft Windows Phone 7 icon pack.

If anyone has any suggestions for applications or ideas you would like us to create send them through to thejoker [at] codejoker [dot] com.

Everyone here at codeJoker would also like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Update: I should point out (thanks David!) that if you have more than one active email account on your phone this will open up  a selection panel from which email account to choose from. This defeats the one click opening yet can save time where you may otherwise be scrolling through your applications list to find your email account (a problem I sometimes have).

- Beau Allison

One of my very minor issues with Windows Phone 7 is that opening a new SMS takes too many clicks; to solve this I have made a small application – New SMS. With one click of the home tile or app button it will launch a new SMS. I have also titled the application “Add New SMS” in the Applications List (Right swipe) so it generally sits very close to the top.

Download:

Surprisingly the application has been having a strange time making it into the marketplace so until then (I just re-uploaded it for testing) you can grab the XAP of New SMS here. (Will require a developer unlocked phone).

- Beau Allison

Every now and again we like to do things which push the boundaries of standards and policies. Sometimes these work and sometimes they don’t. Our first application, Torrent Remote, was the first example of this in getting approval for a torrent related application on the Windows Phone 7 Marketplace. Fast forward to the present and our latest application didn’t quite make the cut.

This application is SMS Bomber – An app used to select a contact and repeatedly send the recipient messages over and over again. The application supports sending up to 140 messages (a strange limitation on Windows Phone 7′s part). Not a new or original idea but an application which I wanted none the less – my friends often bomb each other. Readily available on Android phones you can often find an application like SMS Bomber which is used to repeatedly send SMS to an individual. Unfortunately the application was rejected by Microsoft citing concerns that a consumer could easily rake up an unanticipated bill etc.

Now for the fun facts:
- The application was made in about 2 hours total
- 10 Minutes was spent on coding
- The remainder 110 minutes was spent on drawing icons – I am a terrible artist

How does it work?
Due to limitations in the API the easiest way to send a contact multiple messages is to repeat the contacts number over and over again. The steps behind this are below:

1. The user selects a contact to send a message to. Once the user selects a contact a phone number is returned to the application.
2. The user selects the amount of messages to send to the contact and the message they would like to send
3. A new SmsComposeTask is created and for every message that you wish to send repeat the contacts phone number in the Contact List (aka SmsComposeTask.To – This is a string)
4. Show the new SMS and it will be populated with the repeated contacts and the message

Step 3′s Code:
//This will be the Phone Number you receive back from the PhoneNumberChooserTask
string contactsNumber;
//This will be the String that is used for SmsComposeTask.To
string contactsList;
//The amount of Messages to Send
int numberOfMessages;
for (int i = 0; i < numberOfMessages; i++)
{
contactsList += contactsNumber + "; ";
}

Download the XAP

Disclaimer: For every Message you send this will incur an additional cost by your carrier. If you send multiple messages and incur a large bill this is your own responsibility.

You can download the XAP for SMS Bomber here. Please note that in order to install SMS Bomber you will need a Windows Phone 7 device with developer access to install XAP files. For more information on this you can go to the Windows Phone 7 Developer portal (in the short it will require a $99 USD/year fee to unlock your phone).

- Beau Allison

The team at codeJoker would like to wish you all a Merry Christmas!

To celebrate this wonderful time of year and the worldwide release of Windows Phone 7 we have temporarily dropped the price of Torrent Remote to $1.29 USD ($1.70 AUD) for the holiday season!

Enjoy,

- Beau Allison

It is often strange I verge off the Windows Phone 7 path, but when I like something, I generally talk about it. Today that is Lylian! A PC game produced by Robert Dowling and his Melbourne based studio Pixelpickle Games. Lylian, Episode One: Paranoid Friendship, is a side scrolling adventure where you take control of Lylian, a patient in a children’s mental institution, and make use of her straight jacket teddy bear to fight off enemies.

Gameplay

Lylian starts off as a somewhat simple game. You side scroll along wielding your straight jacket doing deadly moves and using your trusty and faithful teddy bear to circumvent trapped doors and certain objects. Break down the layers and get further into the game and it’s complexities and challenges arise. Lylian will eventually gain a series of physic powers or ‘imaginations’ which really mix up the game play. Without giving too much away it struck me as reminisce of Super Mario Paper where you could change between gameplay views and would need to accomplish different parts of the level in certain views.

The opponents in Lylian are a treasure. From rodents you must stomp on (which have a lovely splatter effect),  to crazy nurses, and giant worm-like creatures, the variety in Lylian is amazing. Gameplay is not just limited to general attacking and defeating as there are puzzle and chase elements thrown in. On a technical note, Lylian is fast, smooth, and responsive.

Graphics

Lylian has a unique art style. It’s hard to explain the beauty and sophistication of Lylian without playing the game. For a one man (and sometimes two) studio the game’s style blended with the smoothness of the animation shows off the developers skill and talent. Unmistakably beautiful Lylian has a dark theme where at it’s often most darkest moments reveals a scene of beauty and bright colours. The blending of a dark genre into a beautiful fantasy world often surprises you and leaves you in a scene of wonderment.

Levels are quite varied and characters, enemies, and animations are drawn smoothly and in depth. The only downfall of Lylian is the current supported resolution. In fullscreen mode the game only supports 800 x 600 yet run the game in windowed mode and this won’t present a problem.

Story

Before I talk about the story I have to give a disclaimer: I’m not very good with horror, gore, scary, or dark themed movies; this often translates over into games and I often find myself a bit edgy. Considering the general theme of Lylian I’ve had a wonderful time playing the game. Lylian the game is quirky, humorous, and often dark but funny at the same time. The general quirks of the story translate over into the game play itself; to replenish health Lylian can eat doughnuts or regains it through defeating other characters. The introductory video of Lylian is wonderfully done. It starts in Lylians cell and sets up the mood for the rest of the game.

Talking to other characters is another highlight. Their quirky personalities match Lylian’s and creates for some amusing and original story telling. Note emphasis on original.

Price Point / Value

Coming in at $4.99 USD Lylian is a real steal. I do not have much to say in this area except that you will not be disappointed by value.

Overall

I often find it hard to judge Indie games; by nature their developers are usually under resourced,  under staffed, and require each person to do a multitude of tasks outside their area of expertise. It really is a work of art though when one man can pull together an array of talents and produce a game of quality such as Lylian. From the spluttering rats to the creepy and quirky characters I wholesomely recommend Lylian from Indie lovers to those who are looking to enjoy something different; you won’t be disappointed.

Gameplay: 5/5

Graphics: 4/5

Story: 5/5

Price Point: 5/5

Overall: 5/5

Links

Lylian Home Page

- Beau Allison

Let’s start by saying that I love Windows Phone 7. Developing for it has been a pleasure  and using it has been a real charm. Anyway, every system is not without it’s fault and these are the things that I would love to have:

1. A quick way to turn Wifi / 3G Data on and off

Currently you have to go into Settings > Wifi / Mobile Network which is a bit of a pain. Having a toggle button (ie. next to the profile button) accessible via the volume rocker would be sensational.

2. Separate Sound Profile / Vibrate buttons

Separate buttons between vibrate and the sound profile. Sometimes I want to have my phone on silent but no vibrate, and sometimes silence with vibrate. Doing this I have to go into Settings > Ringtones & Sounds. Again this could be solved by having a toggle button next to the profile button.

3. Developer access to user bookmarks

Having an API available to allow the user to select their bookmarks like the Contact Chooser would be great. There should also be an “Add Bookmark” API etc.

4. Developer access to WebBrowser Control Cookies

Getting cookies is currently a pain. A lot of people need this and the current solution isn’t very friendly.

5. Bug Fixes for the following

- When I’m in an SMS if I receive another message from the same contact I shouldn’t recieve a toast notification (unless the screen is locked).

- Opening a large SMS sometimes flickers

6. Having an X button on toast notifications

I don’t want to open that message right now. Bam! Bye!

Update: emalamisura pointed out that if you right swipe a notification it disappears. Thanks Eric!

7. Disable buttons during Gaming

When I’m in an Xbox Live game that takes a good ten seconds plus to load a level I sometimes accidentally hit the capacitive hardware buttons (Back / Search) which takes me out of the application. Going back in requires the game to re-load again.. sometimes a pain. They could solve this by requiring you double tab these buttons or something similar.

8. The ability to Delete all SMS Messages

Self explanatory.

9. Allow me to clear my Recent Contacts List

Self explanatory.

10. Ability to Wipe My Back Stack

Probably one of the features I want most. If I hold the Back Button for three seconds it should give me the option to clear all my current back button history. At the moment I just keep pressing the back button till I’m at the start.

…and that’s about it. Everything aside Windows Phone 7 is a great platform. If I think of anything else it will surely come. I should note that someone wrote a post similar to this the other day.. and now I can’t find it.

- Beau Allison

Torrent Remote 1.3 is finally out on the marketplace. Seems they had a bit of delays in processing the update, anyways it’s up now! New in this version is some minor bug fixes and stability upgrades.

Currently working on the next version and getting some much needed support for more trackers.

If anyone has any questions or comments feel free to drop us a line,

- Beau Allison