Getting Started: Windows Mobile Applications

Introduction

This set of instructions assumes that you have some knowledge of .NET programming. The instructions are written in VB.NET using Visual Studio 2008 and is deployed on a Windows Mobile 6.1 Device although they are applicable for C# and some different versions of Visual Studio and Windows Mobile. It also assumes that you have connected your device via Microsoft ActiveSync.

Create The Projects

Open Visual Studio, File, New Project. Under project types on the left hand side, find “Smart Device” in the list then select the ‘Smart Device

Project’ on the template side. Click the OK button.

Select the corresponding ‘Target platform’. I chose ‘Windows Mobile 6 Professional SDK’. Select your desired framework. Most WM (Windows Mobile) devices come with .NET 2.0 but if it doesn’t, you will need to install it on the device. Same for .NET 3.5 etc. Select the Device Application template then the OK button.

Hello World Application

You will now have a design view that looks like a dorky phone. Add a button to it. Double click the button to generate the click event in code. Put the following code into it.
Private Sub Button1_Click(ByVal sender As System.Object, ByVal e As System.EventArgs) Handles Button1.Click MsgBox("Hello world") Button1.Text = "Hello" End Sub
Ensure the code compiles by building the project (Ctrl + Shift + B).

Debugging

You have a couple of different options when debugging a WM application. You can either use an emulator or your actual device that is connected via ActiveSync. I find it is faster to use the actual device. Select the desired debug device in your toolbar. Select which ever one suits best. When you give the debug command (F5) you may be prompted again for this value. Debugging the project with the emulator will give you a new window once everything is built, the emulator is started, the code is deployed and executed. This may take some time. Once your finished clicking your hello world button, you can keep the emulator open to speed up the next debug session. In WM, when you click the “X” button up the top right, the program doesn’t actually close unlike Windows XP,etc. Instead, it will go into a ‘deactive’ state. So if you click the X button, the debug mode is still running. If you don’t like this “feature”, you can handle the Deactivate event and close the program like so.
Private Sub Form1_Deactivate(ByVal sender As System.Object, ByVal e As System.EventArgs) Handles MyBase.Deactivate Me.Close() End Sub

Compact Framework Limitations

You might have noticed by now that there isn’t all the controls and libraries available. This is because your not using the FULL .NET library, you are using the ‘Compact Framework’ library. Usually its not possible to fit the entire library on the mobile’s limited memory. You will simply have to deal with a lack of features.

Deployment

We have written our award winning WM application. Now we have to get it out there. Unfortunately we can’t just post an exe or use click once. We need to create a ‘.CAB’ file. This is done via a deployment project. File, Add, New Project. Be sure not to create a new project outside the solution. Both need to be in the same solution which is displayed in “Solution Explorer”. Under Project types, select ‘Other Project Types’ then, ‘Setup and Deployment’. Then select the ‘Smart Device CAB Project’ then click the OK button.

A tab should open titled ‘File System (SmartDeviceCab1)’ (if you closed it, right click on the CAB project, view -> File system).

Select ‘Application Folder’, right click on the right hand pane then select  ‘Add ->Project Output…’. Ensure that the correct project is selected and that ‘Primary output’ is selected. Click OK.

If you want the program to appear in the programs folder of your device, select ‘Program Files Folder’ then right click on the right hand pane and select ‘Create New Shortcut’. Navigate to the Primary Output that you just created in the Application folder and click OK. Rename it to something relevant.

Rebuild the solution. Navigate to the debug output folder of the CAB project. You will find a .CAB file there. Copy this onto your device via ActiveSync. Open file explorer on your device and navigate there. Click the CAB file and it will install on your device. Under Start -> Programs, you will notice your project in the list. It should run perfectly from there.

Better Deployment

Although it is perfectly acceptable to distribute the CAB file, it is hardly user friendly or professional. You can create a Windows Application that deploys your program in a much better fashion. I would highly recommend this method but it is out of scope for this article.

This article should be all you need to create it.

Categories: .NET Applications  |  Tags: .NET, .NET CF, compact framework, embedded development, mobile, phone, programming, tute, tutorial, VB.NET, windows mobile  |  1 Comment »