Using a BlackBerry
Personal Digital Assistant
at Central Washington University
Printer friendly version.
File size approx. 335 KB in .pdf format.
Requires the Adobe Reader program
(see www.Adobe.com for free download).
Introduction
Use the track wheel (located on right-hand side of device) to scroll through menus. Click the track wheel to select items and to bring up menus. (Note: from here on, click means to press and release the track wheel).
Use the Esc or “back” button (located on right-hand side of device below the track wheel) to exit out of a screen.
You can also use some of the keys to navigate. See your BlackBerry Getting Started Guide for specific navigation keys.
There are two different ways to use the keyboard:
- Using SureType technology.
- Using the multi-tap method.
With the SureType Method, all you need to do is type away and basically let the BlackBerry figure out what you want. Despite the fact that most of the keys have two letters on them, just press the key once and keep going until you've typed in the entire word. What you type will keep changing until you have the entire word completed.
With the Multi-tap Method, you press the key once for the first letter and twice for the second.
To switch between SureType and multi-tap methods:
In any text field (open e-mail message, open Memo, etc.) press and hold the Next
 key. An ABC icon will appear in the upper right-hand corner of your screen if the multi-tap is in effect.
A BlackBerry desktop software CD comes with your device.
BlackBerry Help menu (Applications, Help) on the device.
We've put up a website at www.cwu.edu/~its/blackberry/. This site will be updated with tips and tricks as well as any problems, and their work-a-rounds if applicable, that may arise.
[Back to top]
Messages
New mail is indicated on the main screen with a closed envelope and a number next to it indicating how many new messages you have.
When you click on the Messages menu, new, unread mail appears as a closed yellow envelope. Opened mail appears as an open blue envelope. Items with a check mark next to them are Sent items which you can filter out (see tips at http://www.cwu.edu/~its/blackberry)
To read a message
- Scroll to the message you want to read.
- Click the track wheel and click on Open from the menu that appears.
When done,
- Use the Escape button on the side to exit or click the track wheel and select Close from the menu.
Your BlackBerry can handle many file types including .doc, .wpd, .txt, .xls, .ppt, .jpg, .bmp, .gif, .htm, .pdf, and .zip. If it can't open the file, it will let you know. It will open these types of files but it will be a stripped down version – just enough to get an idea of what's in the file.
E-mails with attachments have a paperclip icon next to them, just like in the client version of GroupWise.
- Open the e-mail, click and select Open Attachments from the menu.
A screen appears with a list of the attachments to the e-mail.
Note: If the person created the e-mail in HTML mode, the e-mail itself comes through as a TEXT.htm attachment.
- Use the track wheel to select the attachment you want to open and select Expand from the menu.
You'll have the option of reading the Table of Contents (if applicable) or Full Content.
- Make your selection and click View from the menu.
You can use the track wheel to move around in your file. You can also use the keyboard. For example, in an Excel file, you can use the DF  key to move left and the JK  to move to the right.
From your Messages window,
- Click to open the menu and select Compose Email.
A Select Address screen appears. This is a list of people in your Frequent Contacts book in GroupWise.
- Start typing in the name of the person you want to address your e-mail to (Hint: this is one area where the multi-tap method seems to work better). As you type, the list will shorten as it gets closer to the name you want.
- Make your selection and press the Enter
 key.
In the mail screen that appears,
- Type in a Subject and press the Enter key twice.
- Type in your message in the message field.
- Click and select Send from the menu.
Of special concern: If you do not find who you are looking for in the address book, we recommend that you not use the Lookup function you'll see on the menu. What this does is first look through the Frequent Contacts address book, then it goes to the Novell Address book. It will work once or twice but then ends up crashing the entire network. If the person you are looking for is not there, you'll need to add them to your address book first (see steps below).
From your Messages window,
- Click to open the menu and select Compose Email.
- Type in a “U” or scroll to the top of your list until you see the option to [Use Once] and click on it.
- From the menu that appears, select Email…
A One Time Email screen appears.
- Type in the e-mail address you want to send to
Hint: For the “@” sign, just press the Space key. The same can be done for the “dot”.
- Follow the same steps you did above for sending to an existing contact.
If you plan on using the address more than once, you may want to add it to your address book.
- Go to Address Book, click and select New Address from the menu.
- Fill in the First:, Last:, and Email fields (other fields are optional but it might be handy to add their phone number as well).
- Click and select Save from the menu.
You can now access that contact as you would any other.
[Back to top]
Phone
Your BlackBerry will either ring, vibrate or both depending on how you have your Profile (see page 10) set up. Also, the number the call is coming from will display on the screen.
To answer the call,
- Click and select Answer from the menu or press the Send
 key.
- Press the End
 key to hang up.
From the main screen,
- Type in the number you want dialed, then press the Send key.
Even if your BlackBerry's radio is turned off and there is no SIM card, you can still make an emergency call. Just dial the number as you would any other and press Send .
Note: If the keyboard is locked, click the track wheel and select Emergency Call from the menu.
Your BlackBerry tracks both incoming and outgoing calls. Missed calls will be indicated on the main screen with a yellow telephone icon.
- Go to Applications, Call Log
Incoming calls will appear with a + sign next to a phone icon and outgoing calls will appear with a double chevron  , also next to a phone icon.
From the Call Log screen,
- Click and select Call Voicemail (the number is pre-programmed in) from the menu.
You'll be connected to your voicemail service for your BlackBerry. This service is similar to that hooked up to your office phone. For password help, contact Sue Gardner in ITS at x3438.
[Back to top]
Calendar
When you open your Calendar, the default view is by Day. Any reminder notes you have for that day will appear at the top. Your appointments will appear in a list.
You can change your Calendar view to Week, Month or Agenda (everything in a list format) from the menu.
The menu provides options for going to previous/next Day, Week, or Month as well as a specific date.
In any view, you can use the track wheel to scroll ahead or behind.
To create a Posted Appointment (goes to your calendar only),
- Click and select New from the menu.
- Fill in Subject: and Location:
- Check if it's to be an All Day Event or select Start and End times.
- Set up when you want the reminder to beep you.
We recommend using the client version of GroupWise for setting up recurring appointments, if possible. The reason being, when you set up a recurring appointment, GroupWise will post it directly to your calendar; or if it's going out to several people, it will send them one e-mail notification that they can accept which then goes directly to their calendar. However, if you set up a recurring appointment on the BlackBerry, you will get an e-mail notification for every instance of the appointment, which you then have to accept. This is okay for a few but if it's a daily occurrence you want to set up for a year, you'll have to go through 365 e-mails!
To set up a recurring appointment,
- Scroll to the Recurrence: area in the appointment screen, click and select Change Option to set up Daily, Weekly, Monthly, or Yearly.
When the appointment has been set up to your satisfaction,
- Click and select Save from the menu.
You can send meeting requests to others from your BlackBerry.
- Go to your Calendar.
- Click and select New.
- Fill out the fields like you did for a Posted Appointment
- Click and select Invite Attendee.
In the list that appears (this is your Frequent Contacts list in GroupWise),
- Start typing in the name of the person you want to invite until the list scrolls to that person if they are already in your Frequent Contacts list (if not, you'll have add them first).
- Click and select Save from the menu.
[Back to top]
Browsing the Internet
There are several ways to get to the Internet, the easiest is to press the Convenience  key.
You'll have the option of using a Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) browser which is recommended for viewing Wireless Markup Language (WML) pages (those built specifically for cell phones and PDAs) or using the BlackBerry browser.
The BlackBerry browser has been configured to access the CWU Intranet. It's also easier to use.
You can either select a web page from the list of bookmarks (you may need to Expand the browser folder) or click and select Go To... from the menu.
If the list of bookmarks is not displayed,
- Scroll to the BlackBerry Bookmarks folder, click and select Expand from the menu.
Once the list is displayed, you can access the bookmark,
- Scroll to the desired bookmark.
- Click and select Get Link.
Bookmarks for CWU Home, the CWU Intranet, CNN.com and the Chronicle have already been added for you.
Any time you encounter a web link you want to use, either scroll to it and select Get Link from the menu or press the Enter key.
If you know the Internet address you want to go to,
- Click and select Go To.. from the menu.
A Go To.. dialog box appears.
- Type in the address you want to go to.
- Click OK or press the Enter
[Back to top]
Other Applications
This is your Task list in GroupWise.
To view your Task list,
- Go to Applications, Tasks
A list of tasks displays.
To create a Task,
- Open the Task list
- Click and select New from the menu.
- Fill in the appropriate fields.
- Click and select Save from the menu.
These show up as Posted Messages in GroupWise.
To create a Memo,
- Go to Applications, MemoPad.
- Click and select New from the menu.
- Give your Memo a Title and fill in the message field below as necessary.
- Click and select Save from the menu.
[Back to top]
Other Common Questions
Most of the stuff under Setting, Options you'll not likely need to adjust. Some areas of interest however might be in the following:
AutoOn/Off: Here you can set your BlackBerry to turn off at night and on in the morning. This helps to save the battery
Bluetooth: If you have a wireless headset, your BlackBerry can hook into it via the Bluetooth technology.
Date/Time: If you need to set the clock.
Owner: To change your name and/or title.
Security: To set a password (see steps below)
Status: To check the battery power level, signal strength and file space.
Your BlackBerry is capable of several types of notifications for incoming messages, phone calls, impending meetings, and so on. These are called Profiles and which one you are using appears in parenthesis on the main screen.
To change your Profile,
- Open the Profiles screen.
- Select one of the preset Profiles.
- Click and select Enable from the menu.
OR:
To edit a Profile,
- Scroll to the preset Profile you want to edit, click and select Edit from the menu.
- Select which item you'd like to change the notification for (i.e. Phone or Messages).
- Click and select Edit from the menu.
- Select whether you want Tone, Vibrate, or both when the device is out of the holster.
- If you selected Tone, scroll to the Tune: area and select which musical tune you'd like played.
- Make your selections for volume, number of beeps and whether or not you'd like the LED light on the top of the device to flash red when you have notifications.
You can also make different notifications for when the device is in the holster.
- Once your settings are done, click and select Save from the menu.
OR:
You can create an entirely new Profile.
- From the Profiles screen, click and select New from the menu.
- Give your Profile a name and press the Enter key.
- Make your notification types for each item as you did in the steps above.
Make sure you Save your changes!
We highly recommend you put in a password for your BlackBerry. This will prevent anyone else from being able to use it if they were to pick it up.
To set up a new password,
- Go to Settings, Options, and select Security.
The Security screen displays.
- If necessary, scroll to the Password: field (when you open the screen, it should go there first), click and Change Option to Enabled.
- Enter your desired password (twice to confirm that's what you really want) and Save.
To change an existing password,
- Go to Settings, Options, and select Security.
The Security screen displays.
- Click the track wheel and select Change Password from the menu.
- Make your changes and Save.
Note: The Security screen also has options you can change like how long before the device will lock (Security Timeout) and whether or not it will automatically lock when you put the device in the holster.
[Back to top]
Page last updated 12/31/07. Send questions or comments to blackberry@cwu.edu.
|
