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Old May 24, 2001 | 9:30 pm
  #7  
RAD
 
Join Date: Feb 2001
Location: Denver, CO USA UA_Premier Exec, Hilton Gold,Marriott Gold, Starwood Gold
Posts: 522
THE FIRST QUESTION SHOULD ALWAYS BE:

What do you want to do with it?

For example, I use my device mainly as a side-car for my brain; not a substitute for it. I don't carry paper anywhere. Everything I need to remember goes into my handheld device. For example:
  • I have over 3mb (after compression) of work-related reference material in there
  • Multiple kinds of calculators (monetary, inflation, conversion, etc)
  • An MS Word-compatible word processor
  • A powerful thought-organizer/outliner that synchronizes with my laptop
  • A secure program for storing over 160 logins & passwords
  • A password generator that creates random-but-pronouncable passwords
  • A database program to store all kinds of bits of data AND my expense reports
  • A 128-bit encrypted "notepad" for storing bank, CC and other "account" info (like FF acounts!)
  • AT&T world-wide access number search
  • Bus and light rail schedules for routes nar my home and work
  • Maps of major airports and the London Tube
  • A cross-street calculator for Manhattan
  • Utilities too numerous to list here but customize the device to my liking
  • A complete, fully synchronized copy of my desktop calendar & to-do list
  • All of my Email in-box (about 145 items not filed yet)
  • About 700 contacts (names, addresses, numbers, trivia, etc)
  • At least one E-Book at a time (Right now it's Arthur C Clarke's "2001")
  • Web pages that I wanted to read but didn't have time for (now I can read them literally anywhere, and do)
  • And of course, a few "stress-relievers" (aka games)

Notice that I don't want wireless access to mail or Internet -- my laptop does that just fine. My handhelp is a perfect companion for my laptop. Serious on-line work, network sniffing or documents are done on the laptop, everything else is with me 24/7 in my handheld.

With what device do I do all this?

A Palm Vx with the Palm Portable Keyboard.

"But a Handheld PC can do so much more!"
  • MP3 Audio? I have a MiniDisc player that sounds better and I can carry 30 CDs worth of music in a small pouch. One CD eats up a huge amount of memory on a HPC
  • Color? looks cool, but not necessary and eats up more battery power.
  • Clip-on accessories like cell phones? I have a cell phone, thank you.
  • Video? Files take up too much space but might be good for someone in Sales...
  • Add-on memory cards? I'd love one but my Palm Vx can't do that. The newer Palms DO take them, though.

Take the time to list just what you want a handheld device to do for you, then check out the available solutions. For example, there are over 10,000 software products available on the Palm platform.

So, again, what is it you NEED for your handheld device to do? Look for the software that will accomplish everything you want, then choose the hardware that runs the software.

I'm sure I'm sounding like a Palm-maniac, but if the HPC better fits what you need, buy it.

RAD

[Edited for formatting]

[This message has been edited by RAD (edited 05-24-2001).]
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