When will an updated version of PocketLoupe be released?
At this time, there are no further updates planned. We've been developing software for Pocket PC devices since 2001. For now, we're discontinuing further development of our Pocket PC products, most notably PocketLoupe, for the following reasons:
- Pocket PC sales are declining, and Dell recently dropped out of the market. The Axim series was one of the top devices our users purchased (inexpensive, VGA, with CF slot), so this is a heavy blow. Further competition from cellphones, UMPCs, Tablet PCs, and dedicated photo storage/viewer devices is likely to continue this trend.
- Pocket PC Phone Edition devices, which are becoming the dominant form-factor, typically don't have Compact Flash slots, and often don't even have full-size SD slots. They also don't tend to have VGA screens or high-end processors, or as much RAM. So even though they can technically run PocketLoupe, they are really not optimized for it. Cameras, on the other hand, are going in the opposite direction, with much larger image sizes and much larger storage cards. This is not a good combination of trends for a professional photo tool.
- With more screen resolutions and flavors of Windows Mobile (not to mention fragmentation into Smartphone with no touchscreen), the testing load is much increased, raising time and cost for each release.
- Cameras themselves are becoming much more capable at image review, with larger, brighter displays and faster software.
- Resco has a beta of their Image Viewer application that supports RAW files. In the beta it appears slow and clunky, but it does seem to work, and their application includes more editing features. We expect that although PocketLoupe is a much better RAW viewer in many ways, we'd lose a portion of our sales to Image Viewer. We don't feel that the market is large enough for two applications in this space at this time. Best of luck to Resco!
Does PocketLoupe run on Windows Mobile 5.0?
Yes, the latest version should run fine, although we have not formally tested on Windows Mobile 5.0. Please make sure to try it out before purchasing to make sure that it meets your needs.
Precisely what file formats does PocketLoupe
support?
The latest version of PocketLoupe supports the following image types, as well as others that are not listed. The best thing to do is download PocketLoupe and try it during the free trial period.
| Ext | Type | Notes |
| JPG/ JPE |
Color B&W 8-bit |
Full support Full support |
| NEF | D1 (original) D1x/h/100 D2x/h/D70/D70s E8400/E8800 CP5000 Scanner NEFs |
Not supported (would be a very small
thumb) Full support Full support Full support Full support Not supported (untested) |
| RAF | S2 Pro, F700 | Full support |
| CRW | 10D/D60/D30/300D G2/S40 S60/S70 s45/s50 |
Full support, including THM files. Full support, including THM files. Full support, including THM files. Untested - contact us if you find problems |
| CR2 | 1D MkII, 1DsMkII 20D |
Full support Full support |
| MRW | Minolta 7/7i/7Hi A2 |
Full support Full support |
| ORF | E10/c5050z E20 |
Very small thumbnail (same as on
LCD) Untested - contact us if you find problems |
| DCR | Kodak raw | Not supported (no JPEG thumbnail available) |
| PEF | Pentax *ist D | Full support |
| ERF | Epson RD-1 | Not supported (would be very small thumb) |
| TIF | with JPG thumb without JPG thumb Canon 1D/1Ds Kodak DCS series Fuji S1 Pro |
Full support Under consideration (probably a very small thumb) Under consideration (would be a very small thumb) Under consideration (would be a VERY small thumb) Untested - contact us if you find problems |
Note that actual raw data is not displayed - the large embedded thumbnails are typically displayed for time and memory reasons. If you are willing to provide sample files for any of the unknown or untested types, please drop us a line. Likewise, if you don't see your camera's format here, or you have a different firmware version that does not appear to work correctly, also don't hesitate to contact us. We may need sample images in order to add support, but please email us first so we can work out what exactly is needed. Usually, adding support for new firmware versions is a quick process, and we can often provide a beta within a very short time period once we have sample files.
Why does the latest version of PocketLoupe only run on
Windows Mobile 2003 and later?
In order to support new Microsoft Pocket PC functionality,
including VGA screen resolutions, portrait/landscape rotation,
and other new functionality, we need to use newer versions of
the Microsoft Windows Mobile development tools. These tools do
not support creating software for devices running versions
earlier than Windows Mobile 2003. If you have Windows Mobile
2002 or earlier, check with your device manufacturer to see if
you can upgrade to 2003 or later. The download page also has
some earlier versions of the software that run on 2002. The
latest full release version that runs on 2002 and earlier
(v1.60), supports the following file formats, although others
MAY work even if they are not listed here:
| Ext | Type | Notes |
| JPG | Full support | |
| JPE | Full support | |
| NEF | D1 (original) D1x/h/100 D70 CP5000 Scanner NEFs |
Not supported (would be a very small
thumb) Full support (570 pixel wide thumb) Support in 1.63b only Full support (570 pixel wide thumb) Not supported (untested) |
| RAF | S2 Pro | Full support |
| CRW | 10D/D60/D30/300D G2/S40 s45/s50 |
Full support, including THM files. Full support, including THM files. Untested - contact us if you find problems |
| MRW | Minolta 7/7i/7Hi | Full support |
| ORF | E10/c5050z E20 |
Very small thumbnail (same as on
LCD) Untested - contact us if you find problems |
| DCR | Kodak raw | Not supported (no JPEG thumbnail available) |
| TIF | with JPG thumb | Full support |
When I put my card into the Pocket PC, it asks if it
should be formatted...why?
-or- Why do the cards I format in my professional Kodak DCS
camera not work?
The vast majority of times, this is a
temporary problem with the Pocket PC not recognizing the card
properly. Simply eject the card, wait a few seconds, then
reinsert it again. It should be recognized. In some rare cases,
however, this can be due to an incompatibility in the card
formatting. The Pocket PC should recognize any standard FAT
formatting, including FAT32. However, cards formatted in some
cameras may not be recognized. The only current case we're
aware of is with recent firmware updates for Kodak DCS
professional SLR cameras. At least one customer upgraded his
DCS 720x camera to version 3.1.9, after which cards formatted
in his iPaq were not recognized by the camera, and cards
formatted in the camera were not recognized by the iPaq.
However, cards formatted under Windows XP were recognized by
both the camera and the iPaq. We have provided a sample storage
card to Kodak to assist in tracking down this issue, but have
not received a timeframe for any potential fix. We are also
unsure exactly which firmware and camera models are
impacted.
Why aren't Pocket PC 2000 devices other than the Compaq
iPaq supported?
PocketLoupe requires a substantial
amount of memory and CPU power to operate efficiently, and
standardizing on the processor that Pocket PC 2002 supports
means simpler testing and installation, as well as smaller
download sizes for all customers.
Why don't I see the magnifying glass icon for zooming in
on some images?
Some images do not contain large
versions that allow zooming. For example, if the entire image
fits on the screen at 100%, and no larger version exists in the
file, the magnifying glass is hidden.
What is the "smart scaling" setting in the Options
menu?
Digital camera images can be extremely large. On
some Pocket PC devices, this can overwhelm the memory and
processor. Turning this option on automatically scales down the
fullsize image while it is being loaded to keep it to a
reasonable size. This reduces the chance of running out of
memory, although it can still happen.
What does the dithering option do?
Dithering is useful on Pocket PC devices that support only a
limited number of colors, such as the iPaq 3600 series, which
uses 12-bit color, resulting in only around 4,000 possible
colors. This may sound like quite a few, but the human eye can
distinguish well over 16 million different colors. Dithering
attempts to fool your eye into believing it is seeing more
colors than it actually is. This may have the side effect of
making the image more "grainy," but the tradeoff is usually
worthwhile. Of course, if you have a Pocket PC device with
16-bit color, it can display over 65,000 colors, and you should
not use dithering.
Why can't I see my files in the file list?
The
file list typically displays all supported files anywhere on
your device EXCEPT those in the \windows and "\Program Files"
directories. PocketLoupe can locate files faster without
searching these areas, and we couldn't think of a reason anyone
would store their digital camera images there. If your files
are not in these excluded directories but are still not being
displayed, make sure you have the proper file extensions
selected in the options menu - only file extensions that have a
checkmark next to them will be displayed. For example, if you
uncheck NEF in the Options menu, no NEF files will be found.
Finally, your image files may be in an unsupported format -
PocketLoupe only supports the image extensions listed in the
table above - formats such as .BMP, .RLE, .PNG, .GIF, and
others are not supported.
Why can't I see the shutter speed, aperture setting, etc.
in the info popup?
Although our image library reads most
common data from image files, some non-standard files may not
be recognized. When this occurs, PocketLoupe displays whatever
information it can find, but some information may not be
available. If this happens frequently, let us know. Also, if
you edit the image, for example in Photoshop on your desktop
PC, the camera settings (EXIF) data may be removed when you
save the image. Of course, PocketLoupe can't display this
information once it is removed from the file. For Canon CRW
files, the way some of the exposure information is stored is
not standard, but is displayed from the associated .THM file.
Without the THM file, some exposure information may be
missing.
What is a RGB histogram, and what does it tell
me?
A histogram tells you about the image's exposure.
Each vertical bar represents the relative number of pixels at
that intensity value. Dark images have most pixels on the left
side of the histogram, and bright images have most pixels
toward the right. By reading the histogram, you can tell
whether the image is over or underexposed, or if the scene
exceeds the dynamic range of your camera. For example, if the
rightmost bar in the histogram is very tall, many of the pixels
are at maximum brightness, telling you that the highlights
(bright portions) of the image are blown out. Adjusting the
exposure to a faster shutter speed or smaller aperture will
bring the pixels on the right toward the middle of the
histogram, which means there will be detail in the bright areas
of the image. For more information, take a look at this more
comprehensive tutorial on histograms. PocketLoupe shows the
individual color channels in the histogram, allowing you to see
the exposure for the red, green and blue channels. This can not
only tell you if a color channel is saturated, but it can also
reveal color shifts. Note, however, that since PocketLoupe does
not read the color profiles embedded in some images, this
information may not always correspond precisely to what you get
in a program such as Photoshop.
When are you going to support additional file
formats?
Feel free to drop us a line at info@glasslantern.com to
tell us what other formats you would like to see PocketLoupe
support. The major issue for us is getting sample images for
all of the different cameras. We're actively looking for raw
files from cameras such as the Fuji S1, Nikon CP5700, and other
cameras. Please email us first before sending any sample
images.
Ack! I accidentally deleted a file from a storage card!
Can I get it back?
Probably not, but maybe. Immediately
eject the card to preserve the data on it. You'll need to use a
disk recovery tool to try and find the deleted file, but it may
have already been overwritten.
Why can't I view my Nikon D1 NEF images?
Files
from the original Nikon D1 do not contain a large thumbnail
image - only later Nikon cameras included this feature in their
NEF files. In addition, the small thumbnail is not stored in a
standard format, so it it not displayed. Bottom line -
PocketLoupe does not currently support NEF files from the
original Nikon D1 camera.
I keep getting an error saying the image cannot be read.
What should I do?
Unfortunately, although the JPEG
decompression library PocketLoupe uses handles a wide variety
of JPEG file types, it does not handle all possible variants.
If you receive this message often, please let us know what
camera/tools you are using at support@glasslantern.com.
We may ask for a sample image to add to our test suite, but
please wait for us to request a sample image before sending
one. Starting with version 1.20, PocketLoupe uses a new JPEG
library that should support pretty much any valid JPEG
image.