Installing applications

Ok, so you got a good feeling of the features the phone has, now you want more. You want to add some functionality provided by a third party application? No problem here is how.
There are several methods to install applications on the BlackBerry depending on how the application is distributed and also if it is a BB specific application or a regular J2ME app.
If what you have is a BlackBerry specific application, chances are that you have a .cod file and a .alx file in a directory or zip file.
The .cod file is the actual app, and the .alx is a descriptor of the app.
Method 1:
- Open Desktop Manager
- Connect your BB using the USB cable or bluetooth
- Click Application Loader
- Click Next
- Click Add
- Browse to the directory where you have your .alx and .cod files.
- Select the .alx file and click open
- Click Next
- Click Finish
Your application has been installed.
If you get an error message saying "There are no applications for your device" I suggest upgrading Desktop Manager to version 4.3. That solved the problem for me.
Method 2:
If you have a .jar file and no .jad you need to copy the file to the memory card just like you copy an mp3 or a jpg.
- Then on the phone go to Media
- Click the Menu key (yeah the one with the BlackBerry logo)
- Select Explore
- Browse the Memory Card to the place you stored the .jar file
- Click on it and the berry will prompt you to "Download" the app to the phone
- Just click Download, and follow the on-screen prompts.
Method 3:
Over The Air (OTA) installation
It basically involves using the Internet or Wap Browser to navigate to an online site which offers you to download an application, in this case they will send you the .jad file and the phone will use it to reach the URL where the .jar file is available for download.
Once you follow the link to the .jad file the procedure is the same as Method 2, the phone prompts you if you want to download the app (but this time it really is a download :-))