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Yesterday I’ve posted about some concerns I have with new Windows Mobile devices which lack any hardware button.

In the post Windows Mobile Devices with no Hardware Buttons I gave two examples of UI controls that are really not finger friendly: menus and scroll-bars.

Reading the comments I realized that many Windows Mobile users actually prefer as many hardware buttons as possible, because using them is easy, does not require “looking at the screen” and faster than any other alternative. Exactly my point!

But, one of the comments mentioned bigger menus in HTC HD. It gave me an idea and I decided to look for a tweak or two that will change the UI of my phone – here’s what I’ve found:

Changing the menus font:

Is possible after all! Ha ha!

It may not be the coolest thing around, but hey – this tweak can really make the menus finger friendly!

To change the the font size you will need a registry editor.

The following link explains exactly what to do in order to change the popup menu font and/or the menu bar font.

http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa911384.aspx

Changing the scroll-bar width:

Is possible as well! [Admit that this is freaking you out!]

[OK, you don't have to admit...]

Not the sexiest look, I know, but looking at the scroll-bar in the picture, you can assume that it will be much easier to scroll down the list with this chubby scroll-bar.

This is why I love Windows Mobile so much!

To change the scroll-bar width – open your registry editor (the same one as before…) and go to : HKey_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\GWE\

Then, Adjust the following values:
cyHScr : Horizontal Scrollbars Height in pixels (default is 13)
cxVScr : Vertical Scrollbars Width in pixels (default is 13 – in the picture above it’s 20)
3) Soft-reset
Extras:
cxHScr : Horizontal Scrollbars Width in pixels (default is 20)
cyVScr : Vertical Scrollbars Height in pixels (default is 20)

That’s it. Now your Windows Mobile is a bit more finger friendly in at least 2 controls!

Gil Bouhnick (58 Posts) - Website | Twitter | Facebook