With all Windows Mobile devices, a simple  Explorer is part of the standard ROM image.  For the most part, this built-in version does a well enough job in helping users locate s, move them and deleting them.  However, using the basic  Explorer – especially for frequent users of the Windows 2000/XP equivalent – quickly become frustrating and the limits of the application come to bare.

Seeing this problem, Resco developed Resco  Explorer.  Originally released as Explorer 2002, the new version – Explorer 2005 v5.22 – is nothing short of brilliant.  While all of the expected  management features are included in the application,  Explorer 2005 goes far beyond this standard fare.  The application allows users to send s to another device via a variety of technologies, allows for  and folder encryption and zipping, allows for network drive mapping, has a Today plug-in for quick viewing of battery and storage space remaining and includes a registry editor to name a few of its exhaustive list of features.   Explorer 2005 should be standard issue for any and all Windows Mobile device users.  It is without a doubt a must-have application.

Explorer 2005 is installed via ActiveSync and requires approximately 1060K of storage on your Windows Mobile device.  During the installation, users are prompted which Windows Mobile and desktop PC components they wish to install (Figure 1).  The desktop components allow for the Resco encryption to be part of the Desktop Shell as well as a Sent To: function.  For the Windows Mobile devices, users can choose to install the Registry add-in, the FTP add-in and the Resco Today Plug-in in addition to the main application.  The application and all add-ins can be installed in main memory, built-in storage or a storage card.  Once the installation process is completed, a help screen is displayed on the Windows Mobile device to point out at a high level the features and functions of the application (Figure 2).

With the installation completed, the Resco Today Plug-in is displayed on the Windows Mobile device (Figure 3).  This gives users a quick and real-time view of how much memory and battery life remains available on their device as well as shortcuts to the various applications of Resco  Explorer.

As mentioned before, the Today plug-in provides a quick look at the amount of battery and memory available on the Windows Mobile device.  The type and number of memory icons displayed will be based on the various types of storage available on the device.  By tapping on one of the memory icons, a full screen display of all of the memory and storage cards are displayed, indicating the amount of memory remaining on each (Figure 4).  Likewise, by tapping the battery icon, the main and backup battery availability is displayed (Figure 5).  These displays can also be reached by tapping the System Information icon in the Resco Explorer 2005 folder under Programs.  During testing, both the memory and battery indicators were accurate and reliable.

The main application of  Explorer 2005 is the  explorer itself.  The display of the explorer is a tree structure with Storage Cards and Built-in Storage identified by icons on their respective folders (Figure 6).  By tapping a folder, users enter into that folder where the sub-folders and s of that folder are displayed.  No matter how deep into a sub-folder a user gets, they can always go back up a level by simply tapping the icon at the top of the tree.  The difference between the included  Explorer of Windows Mobile and that of Resco  Explorer 2005 is most evident by the number of options available from the tap-and-hold menus. While  Explorer displays a minimal amount of features (Figure 7), the  Explorer 2005 menu offers users a wide range of options and information (Figure 8).