RIM Officially Details How To Clear BlackBerry App World Cache

One of the annoying “Features” in App World is that it caches content on your device. That means there may be newer content on the App World servers but RIM is trying to be so miserly with data usage that they did not setup a cache control header or perform a regular cache check.

Instead we have had to tell readers to perform a simple yet hidden set of commands on their BlackBerry to clear the App World cache to make sure readers are seeing the latest available data and available versions. RIM has acknowledged this cache clear command but Derik let m know that they have now posted it on the BlackBerry Knowledge Base making it official in my book. Still would it kill them to just add a “Clear Cache” menu button or better yet implement a better way to cache dynamic content?

RIM’s official BlackBerry App World cache clearing directions are below:

Warning: The following procedure will clear any cache data that BlackBerry App World stores on the BlackBerry smartphone and may remove any applications that have been archived to a media card.

For smartphones that use the SureType input method or are equipped with a QWERTY keyboard:

  1. Launch the BlackBerry App World application.
  2. While pressing and holding the ALT key, type RST.

For smartphones in the BlackBerry® Storm™ Series, follow these steps:

  1. Launch the BlackBerry App World application.
  2. Ensure the smartphone is being held in the landscape position.
  3. Activate the onscreen keyboard.
  4. Press and hold the "!?123" button until it locks.
  5. Type the following characters in sequence: 34(

BlackBerry App World will close automatically and the smartphone may become unresponsive for a few moments while the cache data is cleared. This process may take several seconds, depending on how much storage space is freed. The next time BlackBerry App World is launched, logging into My World using a BlackBerry® ID will result in the applications list being refreshed, allowing archived applications to be redownloaded if desired.

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