Microsoft Application Architecture Guide, 2nd Edition

The guide helps you to:

• Understand the underlying architecture and design principles and patterns for developing successful solutions on the Microsoft platform and the .NET Framework.
• Identify appropriate strategies and design patterns that will help you design your solution’s layers, components, and services.
• Identify and address the key engineering decision points for your solution.
• Identify and address the key quality attributes and crosscutting concerns for your solution.
• Create a candidate baseline architecture for your solution.
• Choose the right technologies for your solution.
• Identify patterns & practices solution assets and further guidance that will help you to implement your solution

The guide can be downloaded from: http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=ce40e4e1-9838-4c89-a197-a373b2a60df2&DisplayLang=en

I have been lucky enough to be reading a couple of books from O’Reilly which deliver their eBooks in multiple formats, as the iRiver supports both ePub and PDF.  I have chosen to install both versions of the same book, so if I experience a issue with one I can flip to the other.

Here is what I have found so far:

• Reading of PDF seems to be the most reliable
• Reading of ePub documents seems to very slow in comparison
• PDF reading can be pain with small text, reflow helps but destroys technical book formats that has embedded code in it
• Battery life is much better

I have had a couple of crashes/hangs of the iRiver but so far it has only been with ePub files.  So guess what… I will be avoiding them like the plague.

Has other people had the similar issues?

Hopefully this will help me become less reliant to printed books!

The first thing I found was that the firmware had been quietly updated to version 1.5. The changes are significant enough to state them and say that I have been using them for a couple of days and are delighted by the changes, thank you iriver.

The major changes to the firmware include:

. New Firmware supports “Table of contents” of PDF or Epub file.
Please press”Option”button on PDF file.
Cutting blank space of PDF file
-. New Firmware supports the function, Cutting blank space of PDF file.
-. Please press Zoom button and control its size with arrow btton.
After the size control is done, please press Enter button

* Power Option & User font
-. New Firmware supports “Power Option” & “Changing font”(Office file, Text file, Memo, Diary)
-. Menu -> Settings -> Power Option or Change Font

The minor changes are for me equally important, the last one is especially welcome

a. Move Page
-. Please press “option” button and select “Move Page”
You can move the page with “arrow” button.

b. Fit to Screen of comic file
-. Please press “option” button and select “Fit to Screen on” to fit the screen size.

c. Auto Page Transition of comic file.
-. Please press “option” button and select “Auto Page Transition”
You can set auto-page speed within 3 ~ 99 seconds.

d. Dithering function of comic file
-. Please press “option” butoon and select “Dithering on” to enjoy high-definition screen

e. New Firmware support “GIF file” (by 2460*1948)

f. Playback time is imporved from 24hr(max) to 30hr(max)

The firmware can be downloaded from the iriver lounge or quickly from here!. Remember the .hex file always goes in the top level/root directory of the iriver story, the firmware update will start once you have disconnected from your computer.

What next? I need to sort out some content for the device… more on this later..