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Trouble with Windows 7 and the T-Mobile G1

Monday, August 9, 2010 Robert Saunders T-Mobile/HTC G1, Tech, Windows 7 2 comments

I don’t have any complaints with Windows 7 whatsoever. Really I don’t, but I have read about some people experiencing a problem accessing the G1′s SD card with Windows 7.

Okay, I experienced this problem too, but, luckily, I knew how to fix it.

What happened? I was connecting my T-Mobile G1 Smartphone to my computer to backup the memory chip in the phone. For your information, the G1 was the first phone to use Google’s Android Operating System for smartphones. Today’s leading Android based phones are Verizon’s Droid, Google’s Nexus One, and T-Mobile’s new Samsung Vibrant.

But, as they say, I digress.

HTC Dream (T-Mobile G1)

Shortly after upgrading to Windows 7, I attached my G1 to my PC via the docking station, and then I “mounted” the SD card in the G1 by selecting “Mount” option from the G1′s notification panel.

Now, for those who don’t have a G1, you “mount the SD card” — sounds ‘dirty’, I know — so you can transfer files to and from the SD or memory card in the phone to your computer.

But, now, with Windows 7, one time I attached my G1 via its USB cable (or docking station) I saw a notification on my computer’s desktop that Windows was “installing a driver” for the “HTC Dream”. (For your information, HTC is the company that makes the G1 for Google and T-Mobile. Dream is HTC’s model name for the G1).

I had never seen this happen before, but I thought it was cool because I was thrilled that Windows 7 was capable of recognizing so many devices when they were attached to the computer.

My thrill was short lived.

Once I mounted the card, and I double clicked the “Computer” icon on the desktop, I expected to see an icon, as I had in the past, that represented the SD card in my phone.

The icon wasn’t there.

I unmounted the card, remounted it, and, again, no icon for the card visible after double-clicking the Computer icon.

Uh oh!

This meant I wouldn’t be able to get my files the old fashioned way. Instead, I would have to remove the card from the phone and insert it into the memory card reader on my desktop computer. That would work, but I would prefer being able to just access he chip by attaching the phone to the computer as I always had.

The Fix. Here’s the solution for anyone who has experienced this problem, too.

Right-click the Computer icon.
Click Properties.
Click Device Manager.
Locate “HTC Dream” on the list. You may need to double click a few items on the list to reveal the HTC Dream listing. I think I found it under “Other Devices”.
Double-click HTC Dream.
Click the Driver tab.
Click Update Driver.
Select “Mass Storage Driver”.
Click OK to close out the dialog boxes.

Now when I connect my T-Mobile G1 via its USB cable or dock, and then mount the SD card, I am able to access the G1′s memory chip and transfer my files without a hitch.

$450 System Hardware Wrap-up

Wednesday, January 20, 2010 Robert Saunders Hardware, Retail, Tech 7 comments

In two earlier posts I spoke about a PC I built for a client last month. The whole system costs about $400—$450 in parts. The goal was to spend about $60 per part or less. The basic parts needed to build a complete system were:

a motherboard (also called a mainboard)
a processor. For $60 I could get a good basic dual core processor. The best thing is in the next year or two the client can upgrade to a faster, more modern processor for about the same price. Currently a quad core processor will set you back about $130.
RAM (memory). For around $60 I used 2 GB of RAM, but the mainboard and 64 bit operating system will allow this system to be upgraded to 4 or even 8 GB if the client chooses to do so later.
a hard drive for storage or programs and other files
a case (to put all the parts above into) with a power supply. This part was only $35 in my budget.
an operating system. For this system I used the new Windows 7 Professional 64 bit edition.
an optical drive, or in this case a combination CD and DVD burner. I didn’t have to buy this part; I just reused the one that was installed in the client’s previous computer.

In my second post on this system I recommended some parts available from Tigerdirect.com to cover the first 3 items on the list above. Please note the client will be reusing the monitor from their previous computer system. You can probably do the same.

Here are my recommendations to cover the final 4 items on the list, and I’ll add on a DVD drive just in case you don’t have one, but you’d like to build a similar system.

Hard Drive: Seagate Barracuda 500 GB SATA drive ($50)
Case and power supply: Apex PC-375 Black Mid-Tower Case with a 300 watt power supply ($35)
Operating System: Between all the hardware I’ve only spent $283 before taxes and shipping. So I’ve got about $167 left for the Windows 7 operating system. I have two flavors to choose from in my budget: (1) Windows 7 Home Premium edition (32 bit) for $110 or (2) Windows 7 Professional (64 bit) for $150. The 32 bit system will limit my future RAM potential to 4 GB, while the 64 bit system can upgrade to 8GB. 4 GB is fine for most systems. I went with the Pro version.
DVD Burner: Samsung SH-S223C DVD-RW Drive ($25) This one burns CD-R discs, too. The client had a Sony DVD burner from their previous system. A similar Sony model would cost about $50 to $60. If you already have a DVD drive from your previosu system, you can reuse. Windows 7 comes on a DVD, so that’s why your need a DVD drive. A CD drive will not do.

So that’s all the parts. Now comes the assembly once you’ve got them all. Tomorrow I’ll tell the steps in brief for putting it all together.

Gestures with Windows 7

Friday, October 30, 2009 Robert Saunders Demonstrations, Microsoft, Windows, Windows 7 No comments

I’m sure you Windows Vista users out there had several gestures you used when Vista let you down, but with Windows 7 gestures are more productive.

Gestures refer to mouse movements on your screen, and how they affect objects on the screen. Today’s video demonstrates the new windows minimization technique, and the “Aero Snap” gesture.

Minimize gesture: Windows 7, as other Windows versions before it, allowed you to minimize a window and hide it from view by clicking the minimize button on the top right of the window’s title bar, but now with Windows 7 you can grab the title bar of one window with you mouse, give it a shake, and the other windows on your screen will minimize. So, instead of minimizing each window seperately, you just shake the window you want to keep on screen to hide the other windows.

Aero Snap: This gesture involves dragging a window toward the left or right edge of the screen, or towards the top of the screen. When you drag a window towards the left edge, the window will snap into place and cover the left half of the screen once the mouse arrow touches the edge of the screen. Similarly, dragging the mouse to the right edge will cause the window to fill the right half of the screen. This makes it very easy to organize your workspace. For example, you might be reading a web site on the left side, while taking notes in your word processor on the right side.

Dragging the window towards the top of the screen with your mouse will cause the window to maximize and fill the screen. The previous methods of double clicking the title bar or clicking the maximize button still apply. Similarly, you can restore a maximized window to a smaller size simply by dragging the title bar away from the top of the screen.

It’s nice to see that gesturing at your computer will actually have an effect, and it will probably help you fel better at the same time.

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