WorkPad all you need to take to conferences<\/p>\n
By Zatni Arbi<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP) What is wrong with notebook computers? Well, they
\nare either too heavy or too pricey.<\/p>\n
And their batteries always live shorter than the interval
\nbetween a seminar's coffee breaks. I have been yearning for a
\ncomputer that I can use during a whole-day seminar without having
\nto fight for a seat near a power outlet.<\/p>\n
I would not mind if the processor was a slow Pentium 75 MHz,
\nor if there were no CD-ROM drive, or if there was no sound
\ncapability. I would not even bother if it did not even run Office
\n2000; I would be happy if it would just let me type my notes for
\nhours on a single battery charge. Later on, I could transfer the
\nfile to a desktop or notebook and continue to work on the notes.
\nAn organizer, which was the precursor of the Personal Digital
\nAssistant (PDA), seemed to be a potential candidate.<\/p>\n
However, the first organizer I ever had did not really impress
\nme. It was HP's OmniGo 100. It had a calculator-sized keyboard
\nthat was impossible to use for fast typing. It ran on two AA-
\nsized batteries, and as the power ran down, the screen became
\nincreasingly unreadable.<\/p>\n
Still, the OmniGo 100 possessed several worthwhile features.
\nYou could flip the cover and turn it into a writing pad. You
\ncould learn the Graffiti shorthand, and use the included stylus
\nto jot down notes. Unfortunately, transferring the data to a PC
\nwould not be easy.<\/p>\n
Afterwards, new palm-sized devices came and went. HP, Sharp,
\nPhillips and a dozen other vendors introduced improved versions
\nof their handheld gadgets each time, but I never bothered.<\/p>\n
My skepticism actually stemmed from the realization that my
\neyes would not be good enough to read the small type on the
\nscreen anyway. Even when editors of PC Magazine and others began
\nraving about Palm devices, I was not convinced. Recently,
\nhowever, when I got an IBM WorkPad c3 as a gift from a friend, I
\nexperienced a paradigm shift.<\/p>\n
Usable<\/p>\n
IBM's WorkPad c3 PC Companion is actually a Palm V,
\nmanufactured by 3Com for IBM. Unlike the silver-colored Palm V,
\nthe WorkPad comes in black, just like the company's ThinkPads.
\nThe operating system and the standard software programs that come
\nwith it are all made by Palm.<\/p>\n
Although its screen has almost the same dimensions as the one
\nfound in the long discontinued OmniGo 100, the text on the
\nWorkPad c3's is quite sharp. It turns out that, with my reading
\nglasses, I have no problem reading the text in its Phonebooks,
\nTo-do list, etc. There are other features that have been keeping
\nthis device next to my cell phone in my pocket since Day One.<\/p>\n
First, it has a built-in Lithium Ion battery. Placing the unit
\non its cradle for just a few minutes every day will be sufficient
\nto fully recharge the battery. I have not had the chance to
\nreally test out the length of the battery life, but it seems that
\nit really has a lot of juice in store.<\/p>\n
In addition to recharging the battery, the cradle serves
\nanother important function. Through the serial port of the PC, it
\nenables me to synchronize the data and information on the unit
\nwith the information stored on my PC. All I have to do is place
\nthe unit on the cradle, press the sync button, and the
\nsynchronization will be executed automatically. If I have deleted
\nan old phone number on my PC's Palm Desktop for IBM WorkPad
\napplication, for example, the one on my WorkPad will also be
\ndeleted during the synchronization. In other words, after the
\nsynchronization, both the PDA and the PC will have the latest
\nupdated information.<\/p>\n
Like the other PDAs that use the Palm Computing platform, the
\nWorkPad also allows us to jot down our notes using the Graffiti
\nPower Writing software. However, I never bother with that,
\neither. My handwriting has become so awful after using the
\nkeyboard for so many years, and learning to use shorthand will
\nonly ruin it further.<\/p>\n
The WorkPad c3 also has an e-mail client program. I can write
\nmy e-mail, and when I synchronize it with my PC, Outlook Express
\nwill automatically load and connect to my Internet Service
\nProvider (ISP). Incoming messages will be downloaded both to the
\ndesktop PC and the WorkPad. I had to disable this function,
\nthough, because it had once copied all of the thousands of e-mail
\nmessages in my desktop Inbox into the PDA, filling its 2 MB of
\nRAM to the brim.<\/p>\n
I soon found out other uses of the PDA in addition to
\nproviding me with a calculator, an address book, a to-do list,
\ncalendars and an e-mail program. I bought myself a foldable
\nkeyboard made by Palm for S$175, and I had just what I had been
\nlooking for.<\/p>\n
This keyboard, which has four parts, can be folded into a box
\nnot much bigger than the unit itself. It is really a godsend. Now
\nI no longer have to tote my three kg notebook and its AC adapter
\ninto a conference room. All I need is the WorkPad and the
\nfoldable keyboard, and I can type my notes all day long without
\nany worry of battery run-down. IBM calls the WorkPad a PC
\ncompanion, I'd call it my personal companion.<\/p>\n
Accessories<\/p>\n
While I was looking recently at several PDAs in the computer
\nstore of the Changi airport terminal, a Singapore Airlines flight
\nattendant came over and asked some questions to the store clerk.
\nShe certainly seemed knowledgeable about Palm PDAs, forcing me
\ninto admitting that I had been asleep.<\/p>\n
Indeed, despite my past rejection of the PDA idea, it is a
\nfact that the PDA has become a fashionable as well as useful
\naccessory. You can buy a stylish case for it -- hard or soft,
\neven in a neon color. Like what you did to your cell phones, you
\ncan also buy colorful overlays to personalize it. There is even a
\ndesigner stylus that you can buy, if you really want to impress
\nthe others in your meetings.<\/p>\n
PocketPC<\/p>\n
Just last week, however, Microsoft launched its third attempt
\nat the PDA arena, and this time it may have the same level of
\nsuccess as it had with Windows 3.0. A large majority of the
\nreviewers I have read so far believe that Microsoft's PocketPC
\nhas the potential to kill Palm.<\/p>\n
That would not be easy, though. Palm has been around and has
\nbeen successful for quite some time. According to the Gartner
\nGroup, Palm has an 80 percent share of the PDA market. Clearly,
\nPalm has collected a lot of followers. Besides, there are also so
\nmany third-party software and hardware option vendors that will
\nnot abandon Palm so easily and quickly.<\/p>\n
On the other hand, the hardware for PocketPC comes from big
\nnames in the computer industry, such as Compaq, Casio and HP. The
\nlatter two have been making small computing devices for many
\nyears, although none has been as successful as the Palm. Yet,
\nwith these guys behind it, PocketPC will undoubtedly pose a real
\nthreat to Palm.<\/p>\n
The competition between Palm and PocketPC will be very
\ninteresting to watch. At any rate, competition almost always
\nbenefits customers. For the foreseeable future, however, my
\nWorkPad c3, which PT IBM Indonesia will introduce into the local
\nmarket on Tuesday, will surely remain my faithful companion.<\/p>",
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