Interview with Tam Hanna, CEO of Tamoggemon

Introduction

Tamoggemon has made some great software for the Symbian S60 platform. At Best of Symbian, we have reviewed TouchCalc Lite and LocaNote two 4 star applications. Palm OS is another platform for which Tamoggemon has many applications to offer.

Here’s an interview with Tam Hanna, the founder, CEO, head developer all rolled into one.

Interview

TouchCalc Lite may be called Lite, but it actually is one of the most fully-featured calculators for S60. It supports graphing, and allows you to enter functions as you would find them in a maths text book.

What will the Pro version contain?

Some loose ends which were left in the Lite version due to lack of time will be added.

Right now, I am thinking about support for degree parameters in trig functions, window settings, and maybe logarithms and arcsines. The latter two depend on the underlying engine – I am not sure how far I will be able to push it. Maybe, I will also add complex numbers – but this is a decision I have not made yet.

Customers who currently have the Lite version will likely be allowed to upgrade for little money – expect the Pro version to run around 5 euros…

What are the other Symbian apps from Tamoggemon? What’s the next one and when is it coming?

Well…we always have LocaNote. It is a hand-written note taking application which was our first-ever release for Symbian. Even though it is outsold by TouchCalc by far, I remain committed to it. Expect LocaNote Pro soon – and also a bunch of speed-ups across all versions.

The next really new thing will be a port of our JezzBall clone for Palm OS. It essentially waits for a few Qt modules – once they are done, it will be released.

After that, it’s either a voice recorder or a stock manager. And don’t forget TouchCalc – I might also make a version for touchscreenless devices.

Pragmatism. I saw that there are few developers with touchscreen experience – and pounced on the opportunity when my wife undug a MWC co-promo. The development experience is not too smooth – but its bearable mostly.

As for the SF…too early to say much. But they seem to be genuinely concerned for developers – some of their staff have helped me a lot with the TouchCalc recall…

How is the Ovi Store helping app developers?

This is a very, very difficult thing to say. On the one hand, it makes life easier as it simplifies distribution – on the other hand, it places loads of new constraints onto you.

For example, text lengths are extremely limited, and images should be generated by hand for maximum quality. Its sort of like SEO, to be honest. We even call it OEO in-house:)

What’s your primary mobile device? What are your favorite applications?

I have to be perfectly honest – it’s an XPERIA X1. I use it because of one application, which is FlexMail – its just a killer email client. Then I also always tote around my Nokia 5800 for TouchCalc and LocaNote…and often, I also have an MSI Wind U100 on me.

So, robbers, better target me – loads of loot to be had if you don’t mind the scratches.

Killer Mobile’s bonanza for Best of Symbian’s readers!!

Killer Mobile, the makers of great S60 software like AdvancedSMS, Total Recall, Black Baller Pro and many more is giving away 20 free licenses to the readers of BesofSymbian!

At BestofSymbian, we have reviewed a couple of Killer Mobile’s products AdvancedSMS and Total Recall. All you have to do is leave a comment in this blog in the next 7 days to win a license key.

We will draw the winners of the 20 free licenses randomly on Monday, February 22nd. So hurry!!

Don’t forget to leave your email to avail the discount offer.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Review Conditions

AdvancedSMS from Killer Mobile was installed on a Nokia 5800 Xpress Music, a Symbian S60 5th edition device.

Installation

The .sis file has to be installed using the Nokia Installer, like all native Symbian applications. AdvancedSMS is compatible with all S60 3rd and 5th edition devices, right from the Nokia N95, E71 to the 500 XpressMusic and the N97.

First View

AdvancedSMS is an SMS utility that provides powerful messaging features to Symbian smart phones.

Main Review

AdvancedSMS is built over the native Symbian messaging application and it uses the native app for sending and receiving messages. It provides many powerful features over it.

Schedule SMS

Text messages can be scheduled for a later date and a specific time to one or more numbers. The best part is you can select multiple numbers from the address book. Advanced SMS automatically changes the Contacts list to a checkbox list from which many contacts can be selected!

The scheduler throws a warning if you don’t enter a message or pick a time in the past. You can also send the message to an email id!! But an email id has to be setup in the messaging application for this to function. AdvancedSMS does not connect to any external email app like Nokia Messaging Service or Profilmail to send emails out.

Manage SMS

The much touted SMS scheduling is all very good but I liked the Manage SMS feature the most. You often receive many spam texts from special numbers or short codes that advertise services. Phone beeps for these messages are very distracting. AdvancedSMS’s Manage SMS feature lets you handle such spam texts quite easily. These short codes are usually not in your Contacts, so you can enable an SMS filter for messages from “All Non Contacts“. For this filter, you can set various actions, like not play any SMS tone, Auto Reply and Auto Forward.

You can add numbers or group from Contacts, from the Phone Log or enter them manually. I like the ‘All Non-Contacts’ option the most because these are the texts that I want to ignore.

But remember that these ‘unwanted’ messages don’t appear in your message inbox but in the SMS Logs of AdvancedSMS. This is not really a problem because if you want to move it back to the inbox, just select Restore and this message is removed from the SMS Logs and moved to the inbox. You also get a new message notification!

Full Screen Message Display

AdvancedSMS also presents a full screen display of all incoming messages. This is a cool feature. AdvancedSMS lets you configure the number of seconds the full screen display remains on the screen.

Export SMS

AdvancedSMS lets you export messages in the Inbox or Sent items in the Symbian messaging application. Messages are stored in the CSV format. You can also send the exported csv file as a text file to another number or email it.

SMS Log

The SMS Log displays all the messages that were filtered. You can view or delete the messages here or restore them to the native Symbian Messaging application.

Configuration

AdvancedSMS can be configured to Auto Start at boot time. It alerts the user about unread texts among various other aspects of managing messages.

Handling

AdvancedSMS has no issues in user interface and I had no trouble finding my way around it. Its well designed and easy to use.

Weaknesses

I didn’t find any weaknesses in AdvancedSMS.

Conclusion

AdvancedSMS is a worthy enhancement to the native Symbian SMS application. There are very many practical features that it provides, which you don’t realize are valuable until you actually get to use them. AdvancedSMS can be purchased at the Ovi Store for 7 Euro. The 14-day trial can be downloaded at Killer Mobile or purchased for $10.

AdvancedSMS is Good Stuff and I’ll give it 4 of 5.

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Review Conditions

TotalRecall from KillerMobile was installed on a Nokia 5800 Xpress Music, a Symbian S60 5th edition device.

Installation

The .sis file has to be installed using the Nokia Installer, like all native Symbian applications.

First View

TotalRecall is a call recorder plus dictaphone that delivers high quality beep free audio recording of all conversations made on the mobile. Read on.

Main Review

TotalRecall, for S60 3rd and 5th edition phones, delivers just a single function, that of a call recorder / dictaphone and it does a great job at it. All incoming and outgoing calls, or calls to and from specific individuals on a list, can be recorded and stored in the memory card for later use. TotalRecall suppresses the beep that usually signals the start of a recording. Besides, it can also be used as a stand-alone dictaphone when not in calls.

Call Recording Log

TotalRecall creates a log of all calls recorded. All recorded calls can be played back or further operations can be done, like copying it to the gallery, renaming the file, adding a note to the file or sending it via various media like Bluetooth, IR, MMS or HTTP (email). The recording is saved with the caller’s name, date and time so that you can find it easily. Clips are recorded up to the limits of the mass memory of the device.

Settings

In the Settings, various configuration options are available. Auto Recording of calls can be configured for specific caller groups – Incoming, Outgoing, Manual, List or Exclude List. Clips can be saved in the amr or wav format. Beep Suppression can be enabled or disabled. The application can be password protected too.

There is a Hot Key option, if set to yes, will allow you to manually start recording (on or off of a call) using a hot key combo. The hot keys are as follows:

• Start/Stop Recording – ##
• On the Nokia E71, E66 and 5800 the hot key will be a long, green answer/send key press; as per the manual, the hot key may not function on the N97.

Auto Send Settings

TotalRecall also has Auto Send Settings, which lets you automatically send the recorded call via a specified Access Point to Email and/or to the Web or by MMS or Bluetooth.

The Web option is actually KillerMobile’s website, where you can register an account and send the clip over to the servers without the need to have an email account. The default login is the mobile’s IMEI and the default password is 5555.

List

You can also create a list of contacts, either from the address book or manually stored telephone numbers whose calls need to be recorded or excluded from recording.

Handling

It is recommended by the authors of the application to install TotalRecall in the phone memory. But I installed in the external memory card and it worked just fine.

In the user manual, there is warning that TotalRecall may require additional memory than any typical application and thus may require that we reset the device more often than normal! The user should keep this in mind, though I didn’t face any problems when I used this application on my Nokia 5800 Xpress Music.

The default location for saved audio files is E:\System\Apps\TotalRecall\. You actually cannot see this system folders without a third party application like X-plore. So change the location to to E:\Sounds\Digital\. In any case, this location need not be accessed for playing back the files because they are available in the application Log.

Weaknesses

I didn’t find any weaknesses in TotalRecall.

Conclusion

As more and more businesses are conducted over the phone, an application like TotalRecall is very handy when used appropriately. Recording conversations using a beep free recording application may have legal restrictions in certain countries and the user should check local laws before using the application. I recommend notifying the caller / called party beforehand.

TotalRecall v4.1.0, for S60 3rd and 5th edition devices can be downloaded here for a fully functional 14-day trial or purchased for $15. The registration key for the application is tied with the IMEI of the mobile device. A 20 character key is given to the user which has to be used along with the mobile’s IMEI to generate the 6 digit numeric registration key for the device on the website.

TotalRecall is perfect for recording voice calls and it highly recommended. Its a must have and I’ll give it 5 of 5.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Review Conditions

TouchCalc Lite by Tamoggemon was installed in a Nokia 5800 Xpress Music, a Symbian S60 5th edition device.

Installation

Installation is via the Ovi Store. Just select the URL, that is sent to the mobile from the Ovi Store via SMS, and application is installation.

First View

TouchCalc Lite full featured touch based Math Calculator. Read on for the review.

Main Review

TouchCalc Lite is a Math Calculator. It comes with Math functions like Square Root, Pi, Trignometric and Trignometric Hyperbolic functions. And unique to TouchCalc Lite, is the Graph function, which is not available in any other S60 mobile application.

TouchCalc Lite has a clean user friendly layout with large keys for the operations. The numbers are placed in equal-sized square pads and the most often used Math operations, +, –, *, / and ^ are available on the main screen.

The layout of TouchCalc Lite’s keys are slightly different in the Portrait mode and the Landscape modes. The Portrait mode has more functions on the screen – Sqr and Braces are available on the main screen.

In the Landscape mode, the Sqr function will have  to be accessed via the Menu option and curiously the Braces() and Backspace< functions aren’t available in Landscape mode.

I liked the Last Used menu which brought up the 5 most recent used Math functions.

The Memory function provides 5 variables, A to E, in which you store 5 results, which are available always, even when the application is exited and opened again.

Graph

The Graphing function, hidden in the Options menu is very unique for an S60 based Calculator and its quite well implemented. Multiple functions can be created with x as the dependent variable. While there is an option to Add formulae to the Graph, there is no way to Remove formulae from the Graph.

The Graph window can be zoomed in and zoomed out. The Window menu, the purpose of which I don’t know is not part of TouchCalc Lite.

Handling

TouchCalc Lite has a clean layout with the numbers placed in square pads which are large enough for even the thickest of fingers.

The backspace< key in the Portrait Mode could have been a little bigger.

When using the Sqr function from the Menu, the cursor is thoughtfully placed inside the braces for entering the number. But when the Sqr function on the main screen is pressed, the cursor is placed outside the braces.

The Graph function could have had a dedicated key for easy access, instead of being a field in the Options menu.

Weaknesses

The inconsistent key layout in Portrait and Landscape modes, though understandable because of the Nokia 5800’s screen size, will cause some discomfort. Switching between Portrait and Landscape modes is not as smooth as one would expect.

I couldn’t find the Braces() and backspace< keys in the landscape mode. Another function that would have been useful but was missing was the % function.

Conclusion

Unlike the common usage of “Lite” as a name for a product version that’s either a Trial version or has a very limited in feature set, TouchCalc Lite is not a trial version and carries a very rich feature set. Certain advanced features like Window may be added later but at the moment the owner of TouchCalc Lite will have a fully functional and feature rich calculator.

TouchCalc Lite is good stuff and I’ll give it 4 of 5. TouchCalc Lite can be purchased at the Ovi Store for 3 Euro.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Review Conditions

Handy Shell 2.0 from Epocware was installed in a Nokia 5800 Xpress Music, a Symbian S60 5th edition device.

Installation

The Handy Shell .sis binary can be installed via the Nokia Application Installer.

First View

We reviewed Handy Shell here at BestofSymbian way back in September 2008. There has been much improvement since them. Read on to know what Handy Shell 2.0 offers.

Main Review

Handy Shell 2.0 comes with 4 screens that let you carry out most common operations very quickly. The four screens are Home Screen, Image Screen, Application Screen and Contacts Screen.

The Home Screen has 5 plugins, which is the same as the earlier version. There are 6 application shortcuts (and 5 in the portrait mode) and 6 more shortcuts for phone events pretty much cover all common operations.

A huge Clock plugin is placed at the top. Handy Shell 2.0 also has a Calendar plugin and a Weather plugin. The Clock, Calendar and the Weather plugins can be linked to the native Symbian app or Epocware’s Handy Clock, Handy Calendar or Handy Weather apps.

The new image viewer screen that displays most recent photos is a nice addition. The Application screen and the Contacts screen have been retained without any change. The avoid the double tap / single tap confusion of S60, Handy Shell 2.0 uses the first tap to highlight the selection in bright red so that you know it needs to be tapped again.

The piece de resistance is the new Page Switch option that animates the switching of screens in three ways – Cube, Rotate and Slide. The animation can also be configured to  run at Normal speed, Fast and Very Fast.

The Cube page switch, is obviously the most attractive and eye candy but unfortunately, it is also the the option that takes a lot of CPU and RAM.

The older features like configuring the Menu Cycle, Red Key Cycle and Red Key action are retained. Handy Shell can be configured to appear after a few minutes of booting or not appear at all.

Handling

Handy Shell 2.0 is easy to configure and is intuitive for the lay user. I didn’t have any problems using Handy Shell 2.0, except the fact that its CPU and RAM intensive when using the Cube option for Page Switch. I recommend the Very Fast, Slide option for best results.

Weaknesses

I didn’t find any weaknesses in Handy Shell. 2.0.

Conclusion

Handy Shell 2.0 is a worthy upgrade to the existing application. Its a powerful replacement for the standard Active Standby in the Nokia 5800, which is not really low on features either.

Its a RAM hog sometimes but the utility value far exceeds the limitations due to  crippled hardware on the Nokia 5800 in terms of low RAM and an underpowered CPU.

Download a trial or purchase Handy Shell here. Handy Shell is good stuff and I’ll give it 4 of 5.

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Review Conditions

SPB Weather 1.00 was installed on a Nokia 5800, a Symbian 9.4, S60 5th edition device.

Installation

SPB Weather comes as a .sis files and can be installed using the Nokia Application Installer.

First View

SPB Weather takes away the drudgery of having to use the never ending hierarchical-menu-driven S60 interface and replaces it with a UI refresh that brings a renewed hope for S60 touch.

Read on.

Main Review

The whole 3.2″ screen of the Nokia 5800 is dedicated to displaying the weather of a single city. This means a great amount of weather information can be gathered in a single view! The screen real estate is divided into three parts. The top part of the screen, [or the left side, in landscape mode], shows a graphic, the day’s weather in a large font and a smaller weather list for Morning, Day and Evening on the side.

The middle part of the screen, which is the largest, displays the weather for the next 4 days with a graphic and the high and low for that day.

The third part of the screen, has the controls for the configuration settings button, weather update button, 3D Globe button and the exit button.

The main screen also shows when the weather was updated last. You can refresh the weather by just touching the weather update button.

Touching the city on the screen, brings up additional weather info – Humidity, Pressure, Wind speed, etc. Touching the return arrow on the right takes you back to the main screen for the city.

Touching the day’s weather forecast brings up additional details for that day. For each day, the weather for Night, Morning, Day and Evening is displayed, with humidity, wind speed and a graphic.

In the landscape, mode, only the weather for Night and Morning can be displayed, so you can use kinetic scrolling to scroll down to view the weather for Day and Evening.

The return arrow is implemented uniformly in all screens to take you back to the main screen. All new screens are brought up with cool animations that’s pleasing to the eye but doesn’t mar the experience by being slow or too long to distract the user.

Even if 10 cities are configured, navigation is very easy. Just by pushing the screen left or right brings up a new screen with the weather for the next city, just like navigating a photo album.

The 3D Globe button animates a globe that can display information about the Cities, Clouds, Sky, Temperature and Rains for the cities configured. Touching the play button animates the globe.

A zoom in/ zoom out option is available that appears when you touch the screen, almost like the Ovi Maps zoom function. The animation is quite realistic, like the weather channel.

The configuration settings, still opens up the S60 menu structure, to add new cities and set other options, like automatic schedule update, units to use for display – Celsius or Fahrenheit, etc.

Adding a new city is a simple operation. SPB Weather supports over 10,000 cities all over the world. Each city in the list is prefixed with the country’s name in short. This is better than have to select a city in two passes – first the country and then the city.  There is also an option to select the city by GPS.

Handling

With photo album-like navigation, kinetic scrolling, large touch buttons and limited dependency on S60’s hierarchical menu-structure for only the initial setup, greatly improves navigation.

Usually frequent operations like weather update, exit, etc are hidden in the a menu structure, thus making it cumbersome to update the weather quickly. SPB have changed the approach and this makes the user experience delightful.

Here’s a video demonstration of SPB Weather from the developers of the program.

Weaknesses

I didn’t find any weaknesses in SPB Weather.

Conclusion

There are so many weather forecast reporting applications out there for S60 on Symbian OS but SPB Weather is the first one that actually makes the weather report rather interesting. SPB have shown that you can actually bring cool animation, one-touch access to most functions and present a great user experience on the S60 UI.

For the functional simplicity in using the touch interface, great display, innovative features and accurate weather reporting, SPB Weather is a must have and I’ll give it 4 of 5. SPB Weather can be purchased or downloaded for a trial here.

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Mini Review

Once in a while comes an application, that’s innovative on functionality but brings amazing innovation and elegance in implementation and usability. StickNotes Touch is one such application.

StickyNotes Touch brings the classic Post-It notes that is ubiquitous in every workplace.

At the bottom left is the New Note menu. Just drag it to the open area and a new note is created. Tapping the New Note menu changes the color of the note.

New notes appear like real Post-It notes lying on a table and they can be dragged around the screen and placed over other notes. The animation when you drag a note is great.

To keep it simple, the application does not allow erasing the notes but you an add to an existing note. Just like the real Post-It notes. You can delete the notes and create a new one but cannot erase stuff that’s already written.

Download

StickyNotes Touch from Offscreen Technologies can be downloaded from the Ovi Store.

Conclusion

Offscreen Technologies have once again shown how to implement true touch oriented applications that don’t mess around with menus, scroll bars and myriad options that make the experience onerous. Of course, as the functionality of applications increase, configuration options are inevitable and that will be a challenge I would like for Offscreen Technologies to tackle with innovative ideas. StickyNotes Touch is a must have and I’ll give it 5 of r.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Review Conditions

PeeMonkey Toilet Trainer was installed on a Nokia 5800, a Symbian 9.4, S60 5th edition device.

Installation

Installation is via the Ovi Store. Just select the URL, that is sent to the mobile from the Ovi Store via SMS, and installation begins.

First Look

With over one million downloads in the iTunes Store in 2009, PeeMonkey Toilet Trainer from happylatte and Beiz Ltd comes with a huge reputation to the Symbian S60 platform. Lets see how it goes.

Game Play

PeeMonkey has a simple goal for the Toilet Trainer. A monkey with an unstoppable bladder is sitting on a slippery cake of soap is trying to pee into the toilet. But the slippery soap is making him slide back and forth the wall as he is peeing all over. Your goal is to make sure the monkey pees into the toilet. A watermark indicates how much longer you can train the monkey.

With a simple plot, the game keeps interest levels high as you play longer, by making it more difficult to direct the peeing into the toilet. The peeing speed is measured in km/h. When the game starts, the monkey pees at 1 km/h and the speed increases constantly. I could go upto 30 km/h after which the watermark is breached.

Scores at the end of a game can be submitted to the online database. There are some unbelievable scores out there. But unfortunately, I couldn’t submit my score because every time I clicked submit, the application got killed.

Graphics and animation

There is little scope for great graphics or animation but the little animation of the water level or the pee flow is quite realistic.

Music Score & Sound Effects

Only a single track is used in the background during the game but then the duration of each game doesn’t go beyond a few minutes so it doesn’t get boring to listen to it all the time. There is no option to disable  sounds, so keep it low when you play in a crowded place.

Interface

PeeMonkey can only be played in the landscape mode. The application automatically rotates to the landscape mode and doesn’t throw an error if you go back to landscape mode. I have seen other games like SIMS3 that can only be played in the portrait mode and will throw a warning if you accidentally go to the landscape mode. All game operations is using the built in accelerometer on the Nokia 5800.

Conclusion

With a game play that simple but engaging, PeeMonkey Toilet Trainer is a great time killer when you are on a long commute or waiting in a line.  I hope the bug in the submit is solved soon.

For just 3 Euro, PeeMonkey Toilet Trainer  is great bargain and can be downloaded at the Ovi Store. Its good stuff and I’ll give it 4 of 5.

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

Mini Review

SBSH Whitelist, as the name suggests lets you create a golden whitelist of contacts from whom you want to receive calls and messages for your S60 5th edition devices.

The application state can be turned On/Off so you have the flexibility to set a very strict whitelist and turn it on only when absolutely necessary. On the other hand, if you have a very select Contact list (which is unlikely ) you can turn on SBSH Whitelist to allow only calls and messages from Contacts in your address book.

SBSH Whitelist gives you the option to choose from 4 options – Reject all incoming events, Reject calls only and allow SMS, Mute calls/reject sms or Silent calls only.

It worked efficiently, occupying less than 1 megabyte of RAM when its running in the background.

Download

SBSH Whitelist can be downloaded here for trial or or can be purchased at $9.95.

Conclusion

SBSH Whitelist is able to fend of worthy competitors for Symbian devices like Best Blacklist and Handy Blacklist, though its a little late to the party.  It does adequately with the limited feature set.

An automatic scheduler that switches on the rules for incoming calls and messages based on calendar events and profile settings would have made a killer app.  But it still has some novel features like blocking skype aliases or messages from specific SMS servers that make it a compelling competitor to the many other similar applications.

SBSH Whitelist is worth a look and I’ll give it 3 of 5.