Resco, authors of some of my favorite and most used Windows Mobile software, have just announced an update to the classic Resco Explorer (see our review here).  Resco Explorer is, in my opinion, the file explorer of choice for Windows Mobile.  The new update provides some very worthwhile enhancements, including improved Bluetooth performance, Today plugin “stay on top” technology and a few other goodies.  You can check out the full press release below.

A trial can be found here.

Resco Explorer 2010 Upgraded!

Totally Touchable File Manager

Bratislava, Slovakia (July 7, 2010), Resco, a supplier of Windows Phone applications and one of the leading mobile software developers officially announced upgrade of Resco Explorer 2010 (version 8.05), the most popular file manager on the market uniting and utilizing all the key features of each Windows Mobile device.

The developers of Resco Explorer has finally mobilized themselves together with the support team to open and finish most of the fresh or elder user requests and implement them into Resco’s popular application. The upgrade solves tasks that have been postponed several times for more reasons especially the time factor. Therefore, they may now be happy to see most of their requests finally real in Explorer 2010.

“Even it may appear that we forgot about some of the promised user requests and ideas; it is far from the truth,” said Lukáš Leško from Resco. “In the newest version of Explorer 2010 we resolved almost all of these issues. The biggest thanks, however, belongs to all the patent users.”

Resco Explorer is the best selling file manager on Windows Mobile Market. Moreover, the fully touch-optimized application provides functions of a launcher, viewer, zipper, registry editor, ftp explorer & network browser. It is a true Swiss knife for daily use of each Windows Mobile user.

New features in Upgraded Resco Explorer 2010 (version 8.05)

• Quick-search supports wildcards — the quick search tool supports “*” and “?” wildcards, you may now search for files and folders the way e.g. *pattern?.exe
• Improved Bluetooth features for Microsoft Bluetooth stack — Bluetooth transfer becomes 4 times faster + the discovery window shows the paired devices
• HW keyboard commands supported — commands such as Del, Tab, Ctrl+C, Ctr+V etc. are now supported on HW keyboard as well as on Soft keyboard
• Progress window is showing the remaining time
• Report view supports both directions scrolling (for longer columns) —  in case the columns are wider than the display size, you may now scroll to the right/left as well

Smaller improvements:

• Paste shortcut for more files
• Properties window — file name and location is scrollable and supports context menu
• REG file import — silent import + key deletion ([-HKEY_...]) + comments are supported
• Today plug-in includes — option “Stay On Top” — If you turn the option on,  Explorer’s Today plug-in will always stay on top of the home screen, even after installing  and turning on new plug-ins

Screenshots

Availability

To download the application, please go to:
http://www.resco.net/pocketpc/explorer/

About Resco

Founded in 1999, Resco, s.r.o. (www.resco.net) is the leading developer of a wide range of mobile software products for multiple handheld software platforms. Besides the best selling end-user mobile applications, Resco also offers developer tools as well as enterprise mobile solutions. Today the company has a lot more than 500,000 satisfied customers worldwide.

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The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.

For users of the new Resco Keyboard Pro 6 that are finding their language is not supported, or need quicker access to a key that is not part of the default set, Resco has a solution for you.  They’ve recently supplied the Letter/Symbol Modification Guide in PDF format (available here).  From a quick glance at the guide, one should be able to edit the characters associated with the keys via editing of a CSV file.

Now, hopefully Resco will release a full skinning guide for version 6 of Keyboard Pro soon!

Handango is featuring Resco’s Photo Manager 7 as this weekend’s deal.  Photo Manager 7, a high quality image viewer, is optimized for touch friendly Windows Mobile devices such as the HTC Touch Pro and Touch Pro 2.  You can use the code RESCO40 to take advantage of a whopping 40 percent discount.

Today we had the opportunity to sit down with Resco employee Lukas Lesko.  Lukas was kind enough to take time out of his busy schedule at Resco to answer several questions for us.  He’s caught us up to speed on the history of Resco, and upcoming plans.  Join us below and be sure to leave any comments or questions for Lukas.

Hi!  Thanks for agreeing to this interview.  Can you tell the readers at JAMM a little bit about the history of Resco Software, and the mobile solutions it offers?

From the beginning the idea was to develop applications that will bring ease of use and functionality similar to the desktop programs. The first application was Resco File Explorer, an application developed for the Windows CE 3.0 platform. It was very similar to the desktop File Explorer in terms of functionality and look. From the beginning it was the most powerful file management tool on the market.  It highly outran the inbuilt File Explorer with functionality and usability.

Then Resco Picture Viewer was released. The reason is similar to the Resco Explorer. The built-in application was very simple providing basic functionality only. The result was better than we expected.

Resco Keyboard Pro was the next application. It enabled users to input text in a comfortable way with a finger-touch. This was very complicated without it.

Other applications followed this trend, we are trying to improve the weak aspects of the system. As the users’ demands grew, we were producing new applications to satisfy their needs.

How did Resco Software get into mobile developing?

It all started at the university where Marcel Šaffa, Radomír Vozár and Eduard Kirchner met. They became good friends, programming geeks and after realizing there is a huge gap on the mobile application market they decided to fill this gap and founded Resco together. It was pretty hard because the first application was almost done before we got the first mobile device. Then, after testing, Resco File Explorer was introduced shortly.

What makes Resco’s programs unique?

The main common outline of Resco applications is their complexity. We are trying to include everything that might be important in the current field and make it as perfect as possible. We are always trying to think like advanced, experienced and inexperienced users when designing the application. But also we do not want to scare users with various settings or options and we try to make the applications easy to use.

How did you choose to develop the programs you currently offer?

All the applications are a result of market monitoring and predictions. Ideas come from our personal needs of some applications for everyday use and cooperation with our users. We are trying to offer applications throughout the whole market.

What mobile operating systems do you provide support for?  Are you considering supporting any other platforms in the future?

At the moment the key platform is Windows Mobile, especially touch enabled devices. We do have some applications for the non-touch screen devices, but further development is not planned. The Applications division offers applications for Windows Mobile, Symbian and Palm OS (with only limited support as the system died). The Game division offers applications for Windows Mobile and Resco Bubbles is also available for iPhone. The Enterprise Solution division is focused only on the Windows Mobile platform and the business market.

In the near future we would like to explore the possibilities of the Android platform because it has promising potential. But we are also very curious about what the new Windows Phone platform will bring.

Can you tell our readers anything about upcoming projects you are working on?

At the moment we are working on the new version of the Resco Photo Manager Professional, as a successor of the Photo Viewer Professional. This application is targeted at professional and amateur photographers. It adds some useful functions such as histogram and direct Ftp upload. Then the new Resco Pocket Radio will be released. It will bring new functionality, e.g. an online radio database and graphics. Also we plan to port this application to other platforms, especially iPhone and Android. But these plans could be affected and adjusted as more information about the Windows Phone will be revealed.

With all of the interesting twists in the mobile operating system arena, what predictions do you have regarding the future of mobile computing?

We believe that the future lies on the online services and multimedia. Still more people choose smart-phone devices not for the advanced applications, but for their high-end technologies that make it easier to browse the web, use online services and multimedia on-the-go. But these users want an easy to use system that will not scare them with its complexity and amount of options.

The case of the Windows Phone 7 is the same. The advanced functionality admired by advanced users is dropped off and the focus is on the ease of use and the online services.

Is there anything else that you would like readers to know about Resco, your software or yourself?

We would like to wish your users all the best, especially when using all the technology that makes life easier and more interesting and we hope that our applications are helpful in this matter.

If you will have any other question feel free to ask.

Resco Explorer 2010 File Browser

Let’s face it:  if you are a Windows Mobile user the chances are high that you are already familiar with Resco Explorer and the functionality that it provides as a file browser / manager.  If you aren’t, check this (see here) out before continuing with this reading.  As such, I’m not going to allow you to spend your time with me going over the same features that you already know about.  Instead, together we’re going to take a good hard look at the main new features that will make you want to consider the upgrade.  Resco was kind enough to grant me a review copy, and I’ve been putting it through the paces of my daily life.  Grab yourself a glass of iced tea and join me as we look at how the new features stack up.

Resco Explorer 2010: Thumbnail Browser

First, Resco integrated a new feature for viewing files on the device.  This form in a thumbnail view, allowing you to see all image files as small previews of the actual picture.  This is very handy when hunting through obtuse filenames that may or may not have any significance to you.  Resco also nicely integrated the image viewing capabilities with the updated Resco Photo Manager 7 (see here).  If Photo Manager 7 is installed to internal memory, you will be able to jump to the program to view the pictures.

Resco Explorer 2010: Today Plugin

Next, Resco provided us with a completely revamped Today plugin.  If you are familiar with the Today plugin provided with Resco Contact Manager (see here) you should already have a good grasp with Explorer’s.  It provides rows that can serve as docks for files, meters, toggle switches and program shortcuts.  The transparency of the bars adds a simple elegance to the display.

Resco Explorer 2010: Task Manager

The last major enhancement comes in the form of the task manager.  Instead of being integrated into the Today plugin only, it is now a stand-alone program.  As you can see from the screenshot below, the window is an easy to control finger friendly bubble.  There is a definite refined quality to it.

In conclusion, if you haven’t already checked out Resco Explorer 2010, you should give it a try.  True, there aren’t a ton of new features or a completely redesigned user interface.  One might argue that it would be difficult for Resco to build on such an already mature program.  I would make that argument on their behalf.

Details

Product Website:  http://www.resco.net/pocketpc/explorer/
Version: 8

Compatible With:

• Windows Mobile Pocket PC
• Display resolution: QVGA, VGA, WQVGA, WVGA, SQVGA and SVGA resolution
• Touch Screen