What about Windows Mobile?

[dividebyzero]

Anyone know of a Windows Mobile remote? I have a touchscreen, wifi, the works.

[waltermoore]

I'm working on a Windows Mobile app, no ETA yet but basic controls are working. I'm testing on WM6 with an HTC 6700 and an HTC 6800, wifi connection. It should also work fine on WM5.

I'll post updates on Twitter as I get closer to finishing it - @waltermoore

-Walter

[waltermoore]

Here are some mockups of the UI. The one on the left is the current UI of the test build (working, but ugly)

http://www.walter-moore.com/boxee/g4593.jpg

Left to right: Current UI, WiFi screen, Searching, Choose Device, Main UI, Main UI Down, Gesture Mode

[Sniperking]

Very nice! Great work...

[Kazx]

if you need testers i have a vx6800 and would love to help out, i have a touch but the more the merryer i always say

[anpe008]

I would be a tester as well if you need one: HP iPAQ Voice Messenger 510. No touchscreen but win mobile 5 :)

Maybe it is a stupid one but where can i get it and try it?

[waltermoore]

Updated requirements:

Pocket PC 2003, Windows Mobile 5, Windows Mobile 6
.NET CF 2
Touchscreen - 320x240, portrait mode
WiFi


Future additions:

Landscape support
Bluetooth or other private LAN connections
Now Playing info



@anpe008: At the moment I'm only targeting Pocket PC devices with touchscreens and wifi. Smartphones are not supported, but it wouldn't be hard to add support down the road with a simplified version.

This is all done in C# .NET and I am considering releasing the source, or snippets of it so that others can create .NET remote apps. The basic code (scanning for Boxee, firing events, gestures) could easily be re-used to make a desktop application or smartphone application with similar features.

Rather than release the app to individual testers I plan on posting a link to the alpha version here in the forums for those of you that want to try it and give me feedback. If everything goes according to plan, I should be posting the alpha around the end of this week.

Regards,
Walter

[anpe008]

OK. Thanks. So it is just a question of time... :)

[clmbngbkng]

Can't wait! :D

[waltermoore]

Still working on the app... I'll have it out this week :D

New features -

Two button modes - One shows d-pad & transport buttons, the other shows d-pad & vol/back buttons.
Night mode - If you use your remote at night it's nice to dim the backlight, so now there is a setting that will let you dim the backlight during a specified time period.
Cross Platform - I did some testing, changed a few things, and now the app compiles and runs fine on Windows Mobile 2003, WM5, WM6, WM6.5, Windows using the .NET framework, and under Linux using Mono. I haven't tried Mono under OSX yet, but it should work out of the box.

[clmbngbkng]

I like more news! :D

[Heratiki]

I so can't wait for this... Will you be releasing Source only or an actual binary build... Or both? Just thought I would ask... I have 2 machines I can test on... Dell Axim v30 and Samsung i730 Smartphone (wifi capable)... So I'll post the minute I get more info... Currently using Synergy through laptop to control on Ubuntu Jaunty 9.04... Fresh Ubuntu install followed by simple Boxee install... No issues with videos...

Heratiki

[anpe008]

runs fine on Windows Mobile 2003, WM5, WM6, WM6.5...
[/LIST]

Looks promising! :)

[Heratiki]

Any new news???.... Just thought I would ask... Thank you again...

Heratiki

[waltermoore]

It's pretty much finished, other than some bugs in the network scanning code that I'm working on.

The long explanation:
After testing with all the Boxee Boxes in the house running (6 of them) I found that the app wouldn't find all of them on the first try. For one reason or another C# .NET UDP Sockets (Sync or Async) will drop incoming packets if the rate is too high. While the existing code worked fine on a PC, my HTC 6800 couldn't find all the boxes. This led me down the path of re-writing the networking code and I'm now on my 5th re-write. It seems I will have to scan multiple times and then filter the results to return all boxes. I'm testing the latest re-write today...

[waltermoore]

Will you be releasing Source only or an actual binary build... Or both?

I haven't nailed down how I will release this, I'm a huge open source fan, so that's the direction I'm leaning and prefer. That said, this took some time, and I can't justify buying Visual Studio right now (doing this on the 90 day trial!), so I'd like to find a way to at least monetize my work to the point that I can afford the tools needed to continue development. On that end, I'm thinking of just starting a tip jar with the purchase price of VS2008 as the goal.

So far I'm against any type of nag screen, or registration scheme. Unless there is a huge interest I probably won't put it in the Windows Mobile App Store, since there is a $99 annual fee just to submit apps.

Like I said, I haven't nailed this part down yet, so keep in mind my plans might change between now and the release.

[Heratiki]

Sigh... Very well... As I am currently broke (thus boxee instead of iTunes) I will keep an eye close to see how things go but I really don't see how I could justify spending money on a remote control for a free product... But hey if that's what you gotta do then go for it... No gruff from me here...

Heratiki

EDIT: On second thought I am sure I have something in Paypal that might help but it's not much... LOL

[waltermoore]

Just to be clear - The app will be free, donations are optional and the app won't nag for them.

The only part I'm not sure about is how much of the source will be released, and what license it will have (MIT vs GPL vs CC).

The Boxee interaction is all in it's own namespace and separate from the GUI code so anyone can re-use it and make their own .NET or .NETCF remote app - I plan on making this part open source. I'm not sure if I will give away the GUI code or artwork.

[Heratiki]

I just misunderstood but don't get me wrong I still plan to donate... Awesome idea and wish I had an alpha to help test... Not much I can do now but wait... Like I said before I'll be anxiously waiting for it all... Releasing under MIT is much less restrictive so it's a personal choice as both are based on freedom and not free beer... Most say MIT is more akin to BSD than GPL... Good Luck...

Heratiki

[clmbngbkng]

As soon as the info comes around on how to donate, you'll get some cash from me!

[waltermoore]

Not a ton to report today, working like crazy on other non-Boxee projects. If I get time tonight I'm going to try and nail down a release version of the code... otherwise it might be tomorrow.

Last night testing of the new network code went great, I think this is the best method so far... a slightly longer scanning time but it has consistent results with multiple boxes, and works on any OS with .NET support.

I still need to read up on the finer points of the licensing options, and I'm considering making it all open source... I even did the artwork in Inkscape, so that could be open too. (Not all of the mockup artwork was mine, icons were GPL or CC, background was random from Google Images.)

[captainwizard]

Hiya.

I am a Samsung Omnia user and know a fair bit about windows mobile and have been looking for a app like yours for my new boxee machine. I will happily test it for the Omnia if you need to. I look forward to your first release and will happily donate.

- wizard

[Heratiki]

I know I'm being anxious but any news? Anyway we can help out? Anything at all?

Heratiki

[clmbngbkng]

Ditto on that one! I have a Touch Pro if you need a tester with a VGA screen.

[x40sw0n]

you were already so far along on the windows mobile version of the app. I saw an article this week about someone porting an iphone app over to windows mobile and after reading it was wondering if it might be relatively straightforward to port the existing iphone boxee app (which I have seen in action a couple times). It's elegance and simplicity is nice feature, and with winmo phones coming down in price I thought it might be a good bonus.

for those interested, verizon is running the HTC Touch Pro down to $50 for renewal/new contract if you get just the bare package. They try to sell you the full kit (mobile connect, car charger etc etc) but it knocks the price up at least $50 bucks and is pretty much pointless since the charging cable is usb and just plugs into a wall wart. The touch pro runs winmo 6.1 out of the box (blech) but it's trivial to upgrade it to 6.5, or for that matter to unlock it and custom rom it altogether.

MSDN article about porting iphone app (amplitude):
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ee355030.aspx

[Heratiki]

Anything new? Just thought I would see how it's going...

Heratiki

[clmbngbkng]

I have a feeling that real life has gotten crazy for him as he said it might. I've been checking his twitter and there hasn't been an update since July 31.

All I've really got to say is I'm willing to wait because I have a feeling it will be worth it!

[briansvgs]

Waltermoore. Are you a student or teacher at any colleges? If so, you might want to look into dreamspark. It's a free copy of Visual Studio for use by students and teachers. I am not sure what the rules are regarding open source software, but I do know that you can not produce comercial software with it. Still, might be something worth looking in to.

[Heratiki]

I have a feeling that real life has gotten crazy for him as he said it might. I've been checking his twitter and there hasn't been an update since July 31.

All I've really got to say is I'm willing to wait because I have a feeling it will be worth it!

Ditto... His mock-ups are what have driven me to watch this page like a hawk...

Heratiki

[waltermoore]

Nothing new to report, yet. I've been busy with work projects. I did get a Google Code Project set up for the app & code, cleaned up the code and added the GPL headers.
I'll be putting it up on Google and making the release announcement soon! Promise ;)

briansvgs: Nope, not a student or a teacher. I'll check out Dreamspark though, sounds cool for students! I did look at the Express Editions before I started this project, but they don't support mobile development (.NET CF)

clmbngbkng: Not too crazy, just busy... I do freelance work and sometimes a bunch just comes in at once.

x40sw0n: Tom mentioned you were interested in doing some development. Once I have it up on Google Code you'll be able to contribute to this app, or take the Boxee C# library I made and use it to start your own.

Heratiki: Nothing new to report, but knowing that you and others are watching - I'll see if I can get a video of the latest build working.

-Walter

[clmbngbkng]

I gotcha about stuff coming all at once, that's life.:)

[Heratiki]

Yeah I know how that goes... Life is always in the fast lane...

Heratiki

EDIT: BUMPITY BUMP BUMP...

[jnachman]

Ive been asked by a friend to look into this, i only have experiance with c#.net. what type of apis do you use to connect to the boxee system. Im assiming it is a type of webservice?

bit stuck and unsure where to start looking.

Thank You In Advance

Jonathan

[Heratiki]

Anything??? BUMPITY BUMP BUMP!!!

Cry...

Heratiki

[waltermoore]

I'm still busy at the moment, but should have a break coming up where I can get this finished. In the mean time I'm still working on it each day as a break from other coding.

Since the last update I've added support for different screen sizes (VGA, landscape 240x320, square screens), an option screen to set up the app, and authentication support. There is some basic 'Now Playing' code, but no GUI for it yet. Network scanning will need to be tested - from my testing results it depends on the device, and how much is running in the background. Current network code should work on WM5 and up, XP and up, but for some reason it doesn't work in the PPC2003 emulator images.

-Walter

[waltermoore]

jnachman -
For Boxee remote API docs head over to the Boxee developer site - http://developer.boxee.tv/ (http://developer.boxee.tv/remote-control-interface/)

To control Boxee over HTTP with .NET check out the WebRequest and HttpWebRequest .NET classes. This shows some examples - http://www.c-sharpcorner.com/ (http://www.c-sharpcorner.com/UploadFile/mahesh/WebRequestNResponseMDB12012005232323PM/WebRequestNResponseMDB.aspx)

-Walter

[clmbngbkng]

Thanks for the update! :D

[Heratiki]

Ditto... Thank you for the hard work and updated news...

Heratiki

[yaga11]

Just seeing if there was any update on this. I was going to try and build an app on my own for this, but I dont want to put time into that project after seeing this well designed app coming along.

[Heratiki]

Yeah we are all patiently awaiting it's arrival... The dev is working on many other projects so it's slow and steady but just like the tortoise that always wins the race...

Heratiki

[roman1983]

come on mr. moore, dont let us stand in the rain. :)

[waltermoore]

I'm finally getting back to work on the remote app this weekend, look for more info early next week. I'm excited to finish it up! :)

[samcraig]

There allready is a windows mobile app. Gremote

[waltermoore]

My app has a slightly different angle - it's specific to Boxee and built using the Boxee Remote API. It uses the Boxee network discovery protocol to automatically find your Boxee Boxes, and in the future will provide now playing information and (provided the API supports it) browsing of the media library on the phone / PDA itself.

It will also be free and open source.

This is a lot like comparing the Boxee iPhone remote app to HippoRemote. They are two different beasts, that happen to overlap on some basic functions.
http://blog.boxee.tv/2009/07/20/hipporemote-a-review-by-gidon-coussin-aka-boxee_bd/

[connor_sencu]

Dude, i can't wait anymore i neeeeeeeeeeeeed it badly. wanne bring out a beta can i help in any way with building it ?

is there a svn repo ?

[gfoldv]

I guess it will be this one...

http://code.google.com/p/wmboxeeremote/

... filled with the precious code.

[yaga11]

Hey guys, I stumbled across a great piece of freeware that may hold you over until this project is up and running. Its a customizable remote app for windows mobile. Check it out here. http://t2remotetouch.blogspot.com/

[waltermoore]

I have some videos of the current build, I'll edit them and get them posted in the next day or two.

There is one more feature to finish off before I release it... After looking at a new phone, with yet another resolution I hadn't accounted for, I decided to drop hard coding the resolution support in the app and instead use XML & image based skins. This way it will be easy to support new resolutions, move buttons around to your liking, and swap out the background/icons.

I do plan on releasing a 'beta' version with limited resolution support within the next week. There are still issues with UDP communications on Windows Mobile devices. XP, Linux & OSX work great with the same code, but WM devices may or may not list all of the Boxee Boxes when scanning the network. I'm going to release the beta to get more input on this issue and the code in general. Maybe I'm just doing something wrong.

The Google Code page is at the link gfoldv posted - http://code.google.com/p/wmboxeeremote/ Nothing there yet.

[clmbngbkng]

Thanks for the update!

[waltermoore]

More delays....too busy with work, I took on some last-minute projects. Should be back to the app this weekend. I'd work on it in my free time, but at the moment free time = work time.

-Walter

[Heratiki]

:eek:

Heratiki

[clmbngbkng]

Any update?:)

[nigel2k]

Is this program ever going to surface for those that have been waiting since July when it was said it would be done. Now its November and nothing still, is this program ever going to surface or is someone just toying with those that really want a boxee remote for windows mobile.

[judgeschambers]

Is this program ever going to surface for those that have been waiting since July when it was said it would be done. Now its November and nothing still, is this program ever going to surface or is someone just toying with those that really want a boxee remote for windows mobile.

It would appear that the developer posted on 10/1/09 that he has limited spare time due to work and other life obligations.

So, patience is the virtue here.;)

[Themuzz]

Nothing yet? I'm also waiting :)

Please post a alpha or beta, even if it's not perfect yet :)

Thanx for all the work!

[brandon079]

I have a HTC TouchPro 2 from US Cellular. This phone has WM6.5 and fully featured (wifi, bluetooth, accelorameter, touchscreen). I would love to give the test version a try.

[jreock]

The the mean time, boxeemote works well under Windows Mobile 6.1 and higher:

http://code.google.com/p/boxeemote

[gilgatex]

If you've abandoned this project, please at least post the source code so someone else might be able to pick up the torch and finish it. Thanks!

[nigel2k]

since july people having waiting and still nothing if you have stopped working on pass all what you have done if you even did anything. I don't mean to sound rude but why announce a program that you never plan to release. if you are not going to finish it just say