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Menneisyys · 12-06-06, 02:41 PM

It was a few weeks ago that I’ve reviewed the initial 1.0 version of Teksoft’s new all-in-one task manager / keyboard macro / screenshot taker etc. application, Smartbar. Then, I didn’t unconditionally recommend it because of some of the shortcomings.

Fortunately, the excellent folks at Teksoft have implemented everything what I’ve asked for / criticized on in my previous review and also fixed the 1.0 bugs. This means the new version sports:

a REALLY working Close button – now, you don’t need to go to the Today screen to shut down an application. Excellent!
VGA compliance. I’ve tested it on the HTC Universal. It worked flawlessly.
a sufficiently large timeframes for capturing shots (one shot every minute / 30 / 10 / 2 seconds) in multishot mode in the screen capturer application
etc.

I’ve also spotted some new, minor bugs in the current, tested build (1.2.008, dated 12/03/2006), which will surely be fixed:

While it’s nice to see the CPU usage meter in Task Manager, it has some problems: during my tests, it repeatedly reported 0% for tasks that did consume a CPU cycles considerably (for example, Resco Audio Recorder recording into MP3).
The “Switch to” list of the Close/Minimize menu sometimes isn’t properly updated and doesn’t list active applications
There’s no Today plug-in any more (at least not on the Universal – I’ll report back as soon as I manage to test it on the Wizard)
The application, it seems, is still (?) incompatible with non-Phone Edition Pocket PC’s. It didn’t find a related library on neither my VGA WM2003SE Pocket Loox 720 nor my QVGA WM2003 HP iPAQ 2210 (fortunately, I didn’t end up having to hard reset the latter, unlike with the original version). (Note that I couldn’t test the title on my other WM5 devices as they’re either being repaired – yeah, the dreaded “fried HTC Wizard sound switched switch” problem – or loaned to would-be Pocket PC buyer co-workers to find out why it’s worth buying a Pocket PC. As soon as I get them back, I’ll deploy the new version on them too to find out how they fare.)

The Teksoft folks have also addressed what the HowardForum forum users asked for / complained of:

The per-CPU registration has been changed to per-owner name-based one. Now, you can deploy your copy on any number of your PDA’s and can also continue using it on your future ones.
The credit-based paying has been changed to a direct, PayPal-based one. Now, purchasing a Teksoft app is far easier – and less expensive.

Verdict

Go give this title a try – it’s really capable and already a decent alternative to, say, iLauncher 3, Spb Pocket Plus or the Today plug-in of Resco File Explorer.

12-06-06, 02:41 PM	#1 (permalink)
Menneisyys Contributing Reviewer Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 4,577 Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post	REVIEW: Great all-in-1 task manager / macro / screenshot application Smartbar 1.2 out It was a few weeks ago that I’ve reviewed the initial 1.0 version of Teksoft’s new all-in-one task manager / keyboard macro / screenshot taker etc. application, Smartbar. Then, I didn’t unconditionally recommend it because of some of the shortcomings. Fortunately, the excellent folks at Teksoft have implemented everything what I’ve asked for / criticized on in my previous review and also fixed the 1.0 bugs. This means the new version sports: a REALLY working Close button – now, you don’t need to go to the Today screen to shut down an application. Excellent! VGA compliance. I’ve tested it on the HTC Universal. It worked flawlessly. a sufficiently large timeframes for capturing shots (one shot every minute / 30 / 10 / 2 seconds) in multishot mode in the screen capturer application etc. I’ve also spotted some new, minor bugs in the current, tested build (1.2.008, dated 12/03/2006), which will surely be fixed: While it’s nice to see the CPU usage meter in Task Manager, it has some problems: during my tests, it repeatedly reported 0% for tasks that did consume a CPU cycles considerably (for example, Resco Audio Recorder recording into MP3). The “Switch to” list of the Close/Minimize menu sometimes isn’t properly updated and doesn’t list active applications There’s no Today plug-in any more (at least not on the Universal – I’ll report back as soon as I manage to test it on the Wizard) The application, it seems, is still (?) incompatible with non-Phone Edition Pocket PC’s. It didn’t find a related library on neither my VGA WM2003SE Pocket Loox 720 nor my QVGA WM2003 HP iPAQ 2210 (fortunately, I didn’t end up having to hard reset the latter, unlike with the original version). (Note that I couldn’t test the title on my other WM5 devices as they’re either being repaired – yeah, the dreaded “fried HTC Wizard sound switched switch” problem – or loaned to would-be Pocket PC buyer co-workers to find out why it’s worth buying a Pocket PC. As soon as I get them back, I’ll deploy the new version on them too to find out how they fare.) The Teksoft folks have also addressed what the HowardForum forum users asked for / complained of: The per-CPU registration has been changed to per-owner name-based one. Now, you can deploy your copy on any number of your PDA’s and can also continue using it on your future ones. The credit-based paying has been changed to a direct, PayPal-based one. Now, purchasing a Teksoft app is far easier – and less expensive. Verdict Go give this title a try – it’s really capable and already a decent alternative to, say, iLauncher 3, Spb Pocket Plus or the Today plug-in of Resco File Explorer. __________________ MS MVP- Mobile Devices.