Slashdot Mirror
An Open Source Alternative to Verizon's GetItNow?
"A bit of explanation: Recently, I was trying to find ringtones for my LG cell phone, and was having some difficulties in figuring out how to even get them onto my phone without the cable.
Finally, I contacted Verizon Wireless via email.
My original email: 'How do I provide content *I create* on the GetItNow network AND/OR how do I SMS the content to my own phone?'
Their response was to first explain how to use GetItNow to download ringtones (many of which really suck, none of which are free). They continued with 'You are unable to SMS Get It Now created from any websites to your phone
and [we] apologize for any inconvience this might have caused.
To my humor (due to the fact that every application I had downloaded had crashed), they also said: 'Verizon Wireless requires extensive lab and field-testing of the Get It Now
applications we choose to offer, to ensure that our customers get the highest-quality applications in the marketplace
today. (Emphasis, mine)
In response, I asked: 'How would an open-source developer put applications onto the get-it-now phones without charging customers for use of the program? And, while we are at it, can I only use Brew to write applications for verizon phones, or can I use Java?'
They gave me the link to the GetItNow developer site (click on Developer Zone at the bottom) and said, 'Verizon Wireless does offer SMS downloads of ringtones and graphics through our Vtext.com website.'
As a side question: I would prefer to write my applications in Java instead of Brew (which Verizon GetItNow does NOT support). Has anyone had experience using any of the Brew-in-Java implementations (like the one from IBM)?"
GAGIN is "get around Get It Now" and is a copy of Qualcomm's AppLoader for BREW (distributed without permission of course) with a binary patcher to let it do more than load BREW apps.
It let me see files, but not download or upload them to my 1monthold Motorola T720c.
BALpatches are other binary patches to AppLoader.
If you get the "update" for Motorola TrueSync 3.1, you can install it without having an earlier version (again, in violation of the EULA) and use a $16 USB or serial cable to syncronize Outlook or PalmDesktop to your phone. It also comes with USB drivers (for Windows of course) to handle the USB-to-serial (I think the T720 just has a Prolific chip or integrated IP to handle USB) and let you use the phone as a modem.
PST is a Motorola app for messing with all sorts of really deep, nasty stuff in your phone. The guy who distributes it (google beavermjr) supplies a patch, but that didn't come down right for me, so I don't know what it does. PST comes with a large collection of USB drivers, so I assume the app isn't talking to the phone with a set of AT-command extensions.
HowardForums have a lot of frustrated Verizon subscribers discussing how to use the capabilities their phones already come with without paying VZW $more.
I have a Windows COM port "interposer" that watches traffic & colors in the display window according to direction. It would be good for reverse-engineering the protocol for implementation in open source. I'll post the name when I find it again.
Verizon's premire camera phone, the LG VX 6000 is hackable. When you press [MENU] it will give u a selection of options. Press 0 and a service code message will popup. The code is "0000000". A new menu opens up, which is full of cool features from FCC tests to changing ur phones call priority on the network. There is also a section for brew, where u can change the IP adddres of where Get It Now connects to. Use this if u want to upload games to ur phone for free.