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Sw4me: SMSReceptionCenter/GettingStarted ...

This is an old revision of SMSReceptionCenter/GettingStarted from 2004-11-06 21:02:42..

Contents

Installation: How to Make Sure That the Program Works

It's easy to install SMS Reception Center. You have to download the distribution, smsrc.zip, unzip the archive and run setup.exe. You will be asked about target directory and whether you want to have Sms Rc? shortcuts on your desktop and in the Start menu. Well, you've done it; now we are to ensure that the program works with your phone or modem.

Starting SMS Reception Center

Find the icon on your desktop and double-click on it.
file:deskicon.gif
Alternatively, you may use Start menu -> Programs -> SMS Reception Center.


You will see the main window of the program:
file:editor.gif


What you see is a graphic interface of the editor that we will use to define actions which are taken on each incoming message. Now we want to check if the program works with your phone, and the empty list of actions is good enough for the first steps, so don't try to change the list now. Go to the menu instead and select Run -> Install. Now you will see the popup dialog window:
file:run.gif


We are about to start the SMS Reception service. What is that service, at last?


SMS Reception Center separates two different tasks from each other: editing rulesets (action lists) for message handling is one task, and processing messages (in connection with a phone) is another one. You prepare a list of actions in the Editor, then you have to feed it to the Service which will work with the phone and act as you instructed it.


There are two modes for running the service, Desktop mode and NT Service mode. The first mode is the most appropriate for debugging and testing purposes, so we will use it now.


At this step you must select a COM port which is connected with a phone. When you use data cable, this port will be COM1 or COM2 in most cases. If infrared connection is used, there is usually some software-emulated COM-port, and you have to select this emulated port. Some NOKIA phones require vendor-specific software to work properly as a modem; this software may provide a virtual COM-port too. Virtual COM-port is usually accessible as COM3, COM4 or COM5.


Now you are about to start SmsRc service. Please ensure that you have no worthy unread messages in your phone. They will be silently removed! If you have a chance to receive a worthy message at any time, don't do this test until you learn how to store incoming messages in a text file.


Select a port and click OK button (or press Enter). Now look at the system tray at the windows task bar. You will see the SmsRc service icon there.
file:systray.gif
When you move mouse pointer to that icon, the tooltip message is displayed. If everything is alright and the program works with your phone correctly, this message will become looking like this: Ericsson (R520) on COM2, i.e. it will contain the phone's manufacturer name and model name.


Initial message is always “Connecting to phone on COMn”; if it doesn't change in a few seconds as described above, there is some problem and the program is not working with you phone now. What to do in such a situation?
file:traymenu.gif
If you click on the tray icon with right mouse button, you will see a menu. In case of problems, select “Save debug log” in this menu and choose a log file name. E-mail us (mailto:support@sw4me.com), name your phone, describe the connection you use and attach the debug log. We will try to get it working.

A simple example: writing a message to a file

Now let's go back to editor window and create an action which will store each incoming message in a text file.


Select Edit -> Insert -> Store message... and you will see dialog window with action parameters you are allowed to set up:
file:storemsg.gif
Here is the description of parameters that we'll use now:


The picture above is an illustration of variable substitutions in parameters. The Log entry format field contains a reference to the Sender variable. When a message arrives, this variable is set to the phone number of the message's originator.


When you right-click on a field that allows variable substitutuions, the popup menu with available variables appears. On this picture we see this menu with predefined variables in it: these variables are set for each incoming message automatically.

Variable substitutions are always denoted with [%Varname%].


Please choose a file name as you like, define Log entry format to be [%Sender%] wrote: [%Message%] and press Enter key to save this action.


The list of actions in the editor will now look like this:
file:edit1store.gif
Let's see how this example works. We have changed the list of actions, but the service doesn't know anything about it â” we need to use Menu -> Run -> Install... to tell the service about changes. Let's do it now...

Testing the actions
Now we want to check our action list to ensure that it will react properly on each incoming message; but you don't want to waste time and money on sending real SMS to your phone.
¢¢SmsRc == There is a feature in SMS Reception Center which is good for such a test. When Desktop
¯¯ service is running, you can go to the menu and select Run -> Test message... there; then you will see a dialog window: ¢¢file:testmsg.gif ==
file:testmsg.gif¯¯
When you fill these two fields and click on the OK button, you make SmsRc service think that there was an incoming message. This message is handled exactly the same way as any real incoming message will be handled.


In the example we're discussing now, the sender's phone and message's text that you type in this window will be appended to the text file that you have selected. When you are sure that messages are handled in the way you like, you can switch to real messages.
Unregistered users, plese remember:
SmsRc service won't handle more than 6 messages per session before registering the program, including both test messages and real ones. You should restart the service after each 6 messages processed.


 
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