Uh Clem's Admin World

The new version of the Sametime for Blackberry app (officially called "Blackberry Instant Messaging for Lotus Sametime" ) came out earlier this month.  When I downloaded it I noticed the download page had a warning that this version (V2.2) ONLY supported Blackberry devices with the 4.7x device software.  You still had to use V2.1x for any devices using 4.6x or earlier device software.

So I tried to install both versions on the BES for wireless deployment.  If you have ever tried this you will quickly learn that the BES doesn't like this.  You get a message something like "Multiple Instances of the Application Were Found".  Fortunately RIM tech support had a work around.  You can find it in this KB article (KB15901).  Essentially it has you create a second share where you can put the second version.  The workaround is very straight forward.

I'm still trying to figure out why RIM would release a new version that was not compatible with older device software knowing the limitation of BES where you can easily install 2 versions of the same app.  Maybe this if fixed in later versions of BES (I'm on 4.1.6).

Many times debugging problems with a Blackberry leads back to the Service Books (SB's).  Sometimes you are told (by tech support) to delete a service book, then undelete it.  Sometimes you can clear a problem by resending the service books from the BES server.  However this only sends a subset of the service books listed.

Another little known function on the Blackberry will pull down a new set of service books from the service provider.  It is accomplished by performing  Options - Advanced Options - Host Routing Table - menu key - Register Now.

Between resending the SB's from the BES and pulling down new SB's from the service provider you think you could clear any problems.   But no, sometimes even this doesn't work.  Another, painful option is to first delete all the service books, one at a time, then pull down both sets of SB's again.  Since this is such a pain I'm sure most of us just revert to wiping the darned thing and re-activating it.  Yep, me too.

Anyone have any other tips or tricks regarding Blackberry service books?

I'm surprised at how few people use email folders on their Blackberry.  It could be because they are not easily understood by the average user.  Maybe it's because they are not sync'ed with their Notes folders by default.  You actually have to configure on the device which folders to sync (RIM calls this "Redirection" ), but even then it doesn't bring in the emails already in the Notes folder.

It's also confusing that, by default, the Blackberry will show the email in the inbox as well as the folder.  They do this because there isn't a good way to tell you what folder the new email is in.

So here are a few tips (lessons learned) about using Blackberry email folders:

• The Blackberry's menu terminology is a little challenging.  For example, to move an email to a folder on the Blackberry you choose "File".  Also, on the Blackberry they call it "Folder Redirection" , and not "Folder Synchronization".
  
  
• Even setting up Folder Redirection is buried in the menu structure.  It's under Menu Key - Options - Email Settings - Menu Key - Folder Redirection.  Whoa!
  
  
• By default, messages that are "foldered" on your Blackberry will continue to ALSO appear in the Blackberry's Inbox.  To change this behavior you need to select the Menu key, then Options - General Options, and set Hide Filed Messages = yes.  However, this makes it challenging to find the new email since your only clue to a new email existing somewhere in a sync'ed folder is the new email count at the top.
  
  
• Once you have selected a folder for redirection it will NOT show any emails that were already in the folder before the redirection was enabled. If you want to get pre-existing emails to show up in a folder, there is a trick!  Move the emails to the Trash in Lotus Notes, then go to the Trash and restore them.  If you do this watch your device’s memory usage.
  
  
• Moving a message from the Inbox to a folder in Lotus Notes will also move it into the folder on the Blackberry.  The opposite is also true.  If you "File" a message on your Blackberry, it will also move it to the corresponding folder in Lotus Notes.
  
  
• This, of course, assumes that the folder is selected for redirection.  If the folder is not selected for redirection, then the foldering will not stay in sync between Lotus Notes and the Blackberry.
  
  
• It seems that the foldering feature is a lower priority for the BES server.  My testing showed a delay of a couple of minutes from the time you folder an email in Notes and the time it shows up in the corresponding Blackberry folder. 

I was not able to find ANY documentation on how Blackberry folders work or behave.  Even the RIM tech support guy could not find any documentation for me.

So do any of you have any tips or tricks regarding Blackberry email folders?  Do you know of any exiting documentation on this topic?