Ready to try some new applications on your Nokia E-series phone? Check out Nokia Business Software Catalog. At the site, you can search by keyword, browse categories, or step through an alphabetical list. You'll find cool tools and utilities, standalone business applications, or full-scale mobile business solutions.

Find something you like? You can buy it and download it right away.

Have you tuned your phone’s active idle screen? With a couple of minutes of easy configuration, you can save several key clicks on your phone everyday. Instead of opening menus to navigate to your favorite application, you can jump directly there using the softkeys or the active idle shortcut bar.

For those of you that aren’t yet fully fluent in S60-speak, “Active Idle” is the name given the “home” or “standby” screen from which you would typically start dialing a phone number. “Softkeys” are the customizable left and right menu keys at the bottom of the Active Idle screen. You don’t need to go along with the default choices; you can make them your own. But, the most important to remember is the productivity boost you get from customizing this launching point.

Clicks add up to seconds, seconds add up to minutes, minutes add … well, you get the idea. Just know this – the time I save using my turbocharged active idle screen let’s me enjoy a relaxing cocktail at the end of the day while you’re probably still working.

Here’s how you can join the productivity party.

• On your S60 phone’s main menu, choose Tools
• Choose Settings
• Select Phone (on E-series phones, or select General | Personalization on N-series phones)
• Select Standby Mode
• Select Active Idle and switch it to ON if it is not already ON.
• Then scroll down and select Active Standby Apps (you may have to re-enter Settings if you just switched Active Idle to ON as switching this setting dumps you back out to Active Idle).
• You’ll see a list of Shortcut 1 through Shortcut 6 which corresponds to the icons you’ll see across the Active Idle bar at the top of the standby screen. Select a Shortcut you want to modify.
• You’ll see a radio button list of applications on your phone, both standard and newly installed applications. Choose one you use frequently so that you’ll no longer need to scroll through your menu to launch it.
• Repeat for each of the Shortcuts on the Active Idle bar.
• Finally, while you’re here, adjust the left and right softkeys. Select Left Selection Key (on E-series on N-series you first select Shortcuts then Left Selection Key). You’ll see the same radio button list as you did for the Active Idle bar. For the most time-savings you should set the left and right softkeys to your most frequently used applications because you’ll be able to launch them with a single click.

I’m most aware of my active idle screen settings when I travel. On the road, I seem most pressed for time and feel the need to quickly check the details of the next appointment, reach a contact, check the weather, or some other urgent task. If I find I’m clicking too much, I tune my active idle screen.

Now your turn – have you adjusted the apps on your active idle screen? What applications have you configured for the softkeys or active idle bar of your phone?

What is WiFI and why should you care?

WiFi, strangely, stands for “Wireless Fidelity”. What it really means is a wireless networking (“wireless LAN” or “WLAN”) technology that allows computers, phones, and other mobile devices to connect to a computer network. It differs from Bluetooth (another wireless networking technology) mainly in that Bluetooth usually connects devices to computers or devices to devices, whereas WiFi connects devices or computers to a network.

Why care? Because WiFi technology comes integrated into many Nokia phones, including most E-series phones and “multimedia computers” like the N95. Using WiFi you can, for example, browse Web pages over your phone’s browser much faster than you could even over a 3G data connection. Even better, using WiFi means you aren’t burning any data minutes from your service plan. You can also use WiFi to run “connected” applications like Nokia Intellisync Mobile Suite Email.

In case you haven’t noticed WiFi is everywhere, including many home networks, airports, businesses, and coffee shops. With a little setup effort, you can be using your phone’s WiFi connection many places within your regular travel route.

To configure your phone to use WiFi, you’ll use the WLAN Wizard (found in the main menu under Connectivity on E-series phones or on the N95 under Tools). When you launch it, the WLAN Wizard automatically searches for WiFi networks within range. You’ll be prompted to enter the secure passcode information that restricts access to the WiFi network.

If you have a home wireless network, I recommend you start there to get the feel for it. You’ll likely know the security information well. Then try WiFi networks in your local coffee shop or work.

Now your turn: Do you use WiFi on your phone? If so, where and why? Have you had any trouble configuring WLAN access or was it easy to set up? Please post a comment here!

Help save your own life and the lives of others by keeping your eyes on the road. There’s no need to steal that glance at your phone’s screen to check the caller ID, especially when behind the wheel. Use the often overlooked “Say Caller’s Name” setting of your Nokia phone. With this setting “on” your phone will speak out (in synthesized voice) the caller ID (using the name you entered in Contacts) when you receive a call. You don’t need a car kit accessory for this; it’s a standard setting on every S60 phone.

I use this setting all the time. It’s even handy when you’re just walking or doing anything where averting your eyes isn’t smart. And, yes, you can insert a joke here about walking and chewing gum at the same time. When you hear who is calling, it’s easy to decide whether to need to stop what you’re doing and take the call or just keep going.

You’ll find the setting in Profiles (select Main Menu| Tools | Profiles)
• Highlight the profile you want to use. Typically this will be General (on an E-series phone and “Normal” on an N-series phone)
• Select Options | Personalize (on E-series and “Customize” on N-series)
• Scroll down to “Say Caller’s Name”
• Select it to change the setting from “off” to “on”
• Select “Back” on the right soft key.

You’re done!

Please post any other ways in which you use your phone in “eyes-free” mode.

In case you haven’t heard, “An Evening with S60” events are fantastic. So far there have been three in 2007 – NYC (March), Chicago (June), and Helsinki (June). In addition to meeting a lot of great people and hearing insider S60 news, there are a lot of cool S60 tips that get shared at these gatherings.

Dan Shugrue of Nokia S60 marketing stumped several tipsters including myself with this tip at the Chicago event.

How do force a new line in a text message?

Enter three zeros on the keypad while in the text message (SMS) editor. The cursor will jump down to the next line. This allows you to make a new line or “paragraph” in a message or simply let you put your name at the bottom of your message in the appropriate place. Try it and add a little professional polish to your next text message.

When I wrote 101 Cool Smartphone Techniques, I included a how-to tip on sending settings (like phone browser, picture messaging, and other settings) to your S60 phone from Web sites you could reach through your PC’s Web browser.

Times have changed. Yes, you can still configure your phone using these provisioning services, but you may not need to. You can configure a Nokia phones running the 3rd edition of S60 without relying on a PC by using a tool called the Settings Wizard.

On the S60 main menu, find the Tools folder, open and look for the Settings Wizard. The wizard will figure out which service provider you are connecting to and ask if you want to set your multimedia messaging and Internet browser settings automatically. It can also help you configure S60’s email client to retrieve your POP email account’s mail.

If you purchase your phone directly from a service provider these settings often come pre-configured. If, however, you’re the type of person that frequently switches phones, the Settings Wizard will help get you running on a new phone quickly.