FExplorer, the free file manager for Series 60 phones

To gain full access to the phone filesystem, you need special software to get around the limitations imposed by the phone UI. For Series 60 devices, the freeware FExplorer, written by Dominique Hugo, does that for you. You can download the latest version of FExplorer, or make a donation to support its development, at http://www.gosymbian.com/. Alternatively, a commercial product called Extended File Manager, from Psiloc (http://www.psiloc.com/index.html?id=159), has similar functionality.

The filesystem naming conventions that the Symbian OS uses are similar to those in the Windows OS. The C: drive letter is for the storage space for the system-level files in the phone's internal flash memory; D: is the RAM disk that stores runtime information; E: is the MMC card, storing applications and media files; and Z: is the Read-Only Memory (ROM) for the device's system software. The FExplorer program lets you create, delete, and manipulate directories and files in the filesystem. It also allows you to send any file to remote devices via Bluetooth, IR, MMS, or email. Now, let's explore some common files on a Nokia Series 60 smartphone.

What about Series 40 devices, you ask? Series 40 devices use the closed Nokia OS. Hence, only native applications developed by Nokia can have direct access to the filesystem. Nokia has not released any such application. In the future, the Java runtime on Series 40 devices might support the J2ME File Connection extension API, which would support file access from third-party Java applications. But for now, there is no reliable way for you to access the underlying filesystem on Nokia Series 40 devices.

The Nokia Gallery Feature

On Nokia devices, the closest thing to the file explorer is the Gallery, which is available on both Series 60 and Series 40 devices. Inside the Gallery, you can choose to access either the phone's main memory storage space or the MMC card. In each storage unit are several folders with names such as Images, Sound clips, and Video clips. Those folders hold files and subfolders. They function just like folders on a computer. When you open a file in the Gallery, the phone operating system uses the filename suffix to determine which application should be used to open any particular file. For instance, a .jpg file is opened with an image viewer; a .3gp file is opened with a video player (e.g., the RealOne player), etc. You can rename, delete, and move files around from one folder to another.

On older Series 60 devices (e.g., Nokia 3650), there is no Gallery application. On those devices, the Images application is equivalent to the Gallery found on newer Series 60 and Series 40 devices. Despite its name, the Images application holds images, audio files, video clips, and other multimedia files.

The limitation of the Gallery, of course, is that you have no control over which files are saved in it. The phone automatically saves the following media files into the Gallery:

• Image files from photos captured from the Camera application
• Audio files captured from the Recorder application
• Video files captured from the Video Recorder application
• All media files of known formats downloaded via the Services browser
• All media files of known formats downloaded from the Messages Inbox

Non-multimedia files, such as installation package files (i.e., .sis and .jar files), text files, office documents, and executable files, cannot be saved into the Gallery.

Introduction on Series 60 Phone File System

Nokia devices feature PC-like filesystems. The Gallery application supports limited access to media files. But using special software, you can get around these limits and do a lot of cool things with the files.

With all the talk about how a smartphone is supposed to have PC-like functionality, it still does not quite feel like a PC. On a PC, the data and applications are separate; the data is stored in files in the PC's hard drive, and you can use any application to manipulate any datafile in the system. For example, you can use a text editor instead of the email program to open an email message and see what's going on inside. That gives you the flexibility to determine how to use your data.

A mobile phone, on the other hand, integrates the data with its handling application. For instance, the email messages are accessible only from the Messaging application and the contacts are accessible only from the Contacts application. However, under the hood, the phone still organizes data and executable programs into files and folders. In this hack, I'll cover the concepts of the mobile phone filesystem, the tools you can use to explore it, and what you can do with the raw files.

How to Use Voice Commands?

Finally, most Nokia smartphones have a utility application for voice commands. Depending on your phone model, you can access it via the Tools Voice commands menu, or the Extras Voice commands menu, or the Settings Personal shortcuts Voice commands menu. Using the voice command utility, you can map any voice recording to a selected number of applications. For instance, you can record yourself speaking the word camera and map it to the Camera application. The voice commands for applications work similar to the voice dialing tags. You simply press and hold the right soft key for the phone to pick your spoken command and launch the matching application.

How to Quickly Switch Applications in Series 60 Phones?

The slow response of launching applications is one of the major complaints among Series 60 device users. As most users have several frequently used applications, a neat trick is to keep those applications running in the background all the time, thereby saving on startup and shutdown time.

The background applications are possible only with the multitasking Symbian operating system. This feature is not available on Series 40 devices.

You can place a running Series 60 application in the background by pressing the red "End call" key (the key with the red telephone symbol) while the application is running. The next time you open the same application, it will pop up instantly and appear in the state exactly as you left it.


You can see a list of background applications by pressing and holding the Menu key. You can select any application from the list and bring it to the foreground. If you press the c key while you are scrolling through the list, you can force the background program to exit.

How to use Speed Launcher?

If you need quick access to a user-installed application on a Nokia Series 60 device, you can use the speed launch feature, which allows you to launch an application with just one touch of the keypad from the Main menu. To do that, first you press the menu key to enter the Main menu. All the applications and top-level folders are listed in a grid of icons in this menu. For the first nine applications in the grid, you can simply press their corresponding number key to launch them. Please note that the numerical shortcut works only immediately after you enter the Main menu. If you use the navigation pad (a.k.a. joystick) to move the highlight around, the shortcuts stop working. They will work again if you go back to the idle screen and get back into the Main menu.

The 0 key does not launch any application in the main menu screen. But in the idle screen, if you press and hold the 0 key, the phone's default web browser (i.e., the Services application) is automatically launched.

You can use the Options Move menu to move the icons around in the grid and hence, change their speed launch numbers. Naturally, the application icons near the top of the grid are easier to access since they require less searching and scrolling once you are in the Main menu.

How to assign softkey shortcuts?

You might install a lot of applications, and if you're on a Series 60 phone, you might run a bunch of them at once. With all this potential disorder, you need to be able to quickly launch and switch between applications.

Nokia smartphones can be loaded with applications both factory-installed and user-installed. However, to launch any application, you must go through multiple menu items (for Series 40 devices) or scroll up and down in a grid (for Series 60 devices). It is a slow process for busy people on the move.

Different phone users want quick access to different applications. For instance, a mobile photographer probably wants to start the Camera application quickly to catch a precious moment. The frequent instant-messaging user wants to keep the Messaging application available at all times, even though he might temporarily switch to other applications from time to time.

Assign Soft-Key Shortcuts
The easiest way to add a shortcut to an application is to assign it to a soft key in the phone's idle screen (a.k.a. the home screen). On a Series 60 device, you can use the Tools Settings menu and then select Phone Standby mode to customize the soft keys. On a Series 40 device, the menu path is Settings Personal shortcuts (see .

Some Series 40 devices, such as the Nokia 6230, allow you to customize the application shortcut for the right soft key only. The left soft key is always mapped to the GoTo menu, which contains a customizable list of applications and bookmarks for quick access, and the middle soft key is always mapped to the Main menu.

Notice that only the factory-installed applications can be assigned to the idle-screen soft keys.

On some Series 60 phones, such as the Nokia 3650, assigning the Call Forwarding application to a soft key is the only way you can launch the application.