Is the bug from Microsoft or HTC ?

[KK**]

I have the problem that one of the three Danish letters is placed at the beginning of the word it is in. The other two Danish characters work fine. Maybe these Danish characters don't display right everywhere, so all through this text let's pretend it is the 'o' that doesn't work.

A sentence like 'Looking forward to solving the problem.'
becomes: 'ooLking ofrward ot oslving the oprblem.'

Not exactly expedient for meaningful communication, right!

The flow of it, letter by letter, while writing is this:
In Danish "blot" means "blue".
When tapping "bl" the two letters are displayed in the black bar and in the application.
When tapping the "o" the black bar displays "bl" and the application "o".
When tapping the "t" the black bar displays "blt" and the application "oblt". "blt" is hightlighted/selected in the application, the "o" is not.

I tried with English and Danish regional settings: Doesn't make a difference.
I would like to try it without that black bar - but I can't turn it off. I turned off all "writting help" in Settings/Input/Keyboard/Word Completion but it didn't make it go away. I really don't know what the black bar is for, cause it does not complete or suggest any words (not in Danish and not in English). Tapping the "x" on the bar only brings out a "Add My Word" label. Since I don't know what to call this black bar, please see attachment. If anybody can tell me what it is called or what it is for, I'd be glad - hard to surf for issues relating to it when I don't know what it is called :-(


Clearly, there's a bug somewhere. But I can't tell if it is in Microsoft software or in HTC software.

Facts are:
O/S: English Windows Mobile 6 Professional CE OS 5.2.1623 (build 18129.0.4.5)
ROM: 1.25.405.1 WWE (date 12/11/07)
Radio version: 1.58-21-23
Protocol version: 25.65.30.04H


What I'm trying to figure out is who has the bug?

I reported to Microsoft, who said it was a localization thing. On the HTC homepage it was not possible to select HTC Cruise P3650 in the list, but I reported to HTC anyhow, making clear in the description that it is a Cruise and so far they have only responded by asking customer info of which they had the major part from the entry on the homepage already, seems like they're just stalling me.

I want to pursue the problem to have it solved but I have to pursue it the right place.

Can anybody make out who has the bug?
If it's the keyboard, I guess it's Microsoft, right?
If it's the black bar, is it HTC?
:confused:

[KK**]

Ok, so I'm talking to myself :cool: ... but who knows - if someone else experience something like or is equally confused about input settings, perhaps this might help them, too.

I have tried to find out more about the "black bar" and come to realize these "late breaking news":

Options/Settings relating to the Keyboard (Keyboard/Word Completion tab) has no effect on anything.

The black bar is related to the Touch Keyboard and appears even if the Touch keyboard is not the selected input method and even if word completion (and all other "typing assistance" functions) is turned off for the Touch Keyboard.

Turning on Word Completion in Options/XT9 Settings for the Touch Keyboard also affects typing with the Keyboard.

Thus, turning on Word Completion for the Touch Keyboard and using the Keyboard as input method, word completion actually works :-) and it is possible to add words - even words containing the two (out of three) Danish characters that work.

So, word completion as such works (allthough it seems that the settings and effects of these settings are kind of mixed up and criss-crossing between the various input methods) but the one Danish character still does not work - it is still placed at the beginning of the word it is in, as described in the first post. :(

[KK**]

Entering Options for input sets Touch Keyboard back to XT9 - no matter whether it is the active input method or not and no matter whether any changes is made in the Options tabs.

Settings on the Options/Word Completion tab have no effects - no matter whether HTC Keyboard is set to XT9 or abc.

Setting the Touch Keyboard to abc disables the black word completion bar for both the Touch Keyboard and the Keyboard - also if Word Completion is selected on the Options/Word Completion tab.

With Touch Keyboard set to abc, and thus no word completion, the third Danish letter works without problems on the Keyboard.

With Touch Keyboard set to XT9 typing the third Danish letter does not work on the Keyboard.

Typing with the Keyboard while the Touch Keyboard is set to abc (third letter working) adds words with the third letter to the dictionary. Turning the XT9 on the Touch Keyboard back on and using the Keyboard, 'Word Completion' and 'Next Word Prediction' works also for words containing the third Danish letter saved in the dictionary while Touch Keyboard was set to abc.

In other words, it is not the letter as such, but the typing of the letter with XT9 activated, that is the problem.

However, I would like to stress that it is completely impossible to work-around the bug by entering all words in all occurrences with the third Danish letter in the dictionary - there are too many and it would make cleaning up the dictionary impossible.

I think I have now narrowed down the error as much as I possibly could, hoping it will be easy for HTC to correct it so that the letter works with word completion - not least since two out three Danish letters are already working well.

Facts on the Touch Keyboard: Touch Keyboard for Pocket PC Version 1.0 (Build 29567)

I have mailed the findings to HTC, hoping for a speedy answer and patch.

Am I the only one, who thinks the functionality-mix between the keyboard is confusing?

[bennykmh]

Is it possible to disable that black bar?

[briggs81]

I have found that the keyboard is hard to trouble shoot. That is all I can say.. lol.

[KK**]

Yes, it is possible to disable the black bar: Select the Touch Keyboard and tap the XT9 button so it becomes 'abc'.

Now the black bar is gone - also for the standard keyboard.

The XT9/Touch Keyboard has been programmed so it interfers with other keyboards, for instance it is not possible to select 'word completion' for the standard keyboard without having XT9 turned on on the Touch Keyboard.

I'd say HTC made quite a mess of it.

[jefmcg]

Just curious: have you tried TouchPal keyboard? I had a previous touch device that only had the simple keyboard, so I started using that and I like it so much that I haven't bothered to even try the new HTC keyboards.

I'm not sure if it would solve your problem, but it may be worth a try.

(you'd have to pay for the dutch version, but it sounds like it would be money well spent :-) )

http://www.cootek.com/

[KK**]

No, I haven't tried TouchPal keyboard.

I also had a previous device which came with just the ordinary keyboard (which worked fine, by the way). I installed HTC Touch Phone Pad International on it to also have a more sms-friendly keyboard. This also worked fine. The functionality of the two keyboards were seperate back then.

But my current phone came pre-installed with HTC Touch Keyboard - it does not even appear in Options/Remove Programs (probably also for the best, cause I have this nagging feeling it would spoil more than "itself" if it were uninstalled since it is so mixed up with the functionality of other keyboards).

So, with a total of five preinstalled keyboards, I don't feel like getting any more ;-) and while HTC is looking into the problem I think I'll leave the phone as is until they find a solution at least.

But thanks for the tip!