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Pocket PC Palm Assistance

PDA Overview

PDA stands for Personal Digital Assistant and is a type of handheld mobile technology. PDAs can be used for storing digital items such as a calendar, contacts, email, pictures, etc. as well as software programs and easily stored in your pocket. Most PDAs also have the capability to connect to a wireless network so that you can use web based applications or look up information on the Internet using your PDA.

Syncing

Syncing involves the comparison of data on your PDA and computer to ensure that the data is the same in both locations. For example if you are out running and errand and run into a friend who then invites you to an event you can pull the PDA out of your pocket and put the event in your calendar so you don't forget to attend. When you return home you may then "sync" your PDA with your home computer to ensure that the event is also placed in your computer calendar program. Likewise if you had added an item to your computer calendar program when you sync your PDA that item will be transferred to your PDA.

Pocket PC

The operating system (main program on your device which instructs the hardware and software, ex. Windows and MAC are Operating Systems) that runs on Pocket PCs is called Windows Mobile. Windows Mobile was designed by Microsoft so it looks and feels like a smaller version of your computer. When it comes to syncing Windows Mobile syncs best with a Windows computer. If you are using a Mac you will have less frustrations by using a Palm. For example you have to purchase 3rd party software in order to sync items such as your Calendar, Contacts, etc. between your Pocket PC and a Mac. You will also have a hard time finding programs in a format that you can install on your PDA using your Mac (instead you will have to use a Windows machine to install most of these applications). As with any operating system newer versions are released periodically and the same is true of Windows Mobile. My co-worker and I tend to group them into two categories: pre-Windows Mobile 5 and Windows Mobile 5 and later. This is because of the way that programs were stored on devices previous to Windows Mobile 5 (stored in RAM memory). I won't go into the technical details here, but pretty much what happened was that if the battery ran out of power on devices earlier than Windows Mobile 5, all of the programs would be erased. This was changed in Windows Mobile 5 so that if your battery loses its charge your programs will remain on the device. The latest version of Windows Mobile currently available is Windows Mobile 6 but there are still devices for purchase running Windows Mobile 5. Microsoft has released three versions of Windows Mobile 5 & 6 depending on what type of device you purchase (PDA or Smartphone). The three versions of each are listed below:

Windows Mobile 5		Windows Mobile 6
Edition	Description	Edition	Description
Pocket PC	This version of Windows Mobile comes on Pocket PC PDAs.	Classic	This version of Windows Mobile comes on Pocket PC PDAs.
Phone	This version of Windows Mobile comes on some Smartphones.	Professional	This version of Windows Mobile comes on some Smartphones.
Smartphone	This version of Windows Mobile comes on some Smartphones. Note: This version has less features than Pocket PC Phone Edition (more information on Smartphones).	Standard	This version of Windows Mobile comes on some Smartphones. Note: This version has less features than the Professional Edition (more information on Smartphones).

Palm

The operating system (main program on your device which instructs the hardware and software, ex. Windows and MAC are Operating Systems) that runs on Palms is called Palm. When it comes to syncing your device a Palm will sync well with either a Windows or Mac computer. However we have found that some companies tend to favor the Windows users as some will make the installation of their programs easier and more automated (this problem is easily overcome once one has to do a few of these installations).

Smartphones

PDA phones (or Smartphones) are gaining a lot of popularity among people because they combine the convenience of a cell phone and PDA into one device. We have heard a lot of varying feedback on a Smartphone from absolutely loving it to hating it to the point that the individual returned the phone and bought a plain PDA instead. We have also had individuals that have had to exchange a Smartphone multiple times due to what looked like a malfunction in the whole line of phones. To be fair this can be true of any technology and we have had individuals return faulty PDAs. Before someone purchases a Smartphone we often ask them to consider 5 areas; these are detailed below. Also most cell phone vendors allow you a "grace period" during which you can test out the Smartphone to ensure that it will meet your needs. We highly recommend that anyone purchasing a Smartphone checks with their cell phone vendor on this and takes advantage of it; that way you can return the phone if you are not 100% happy with it.

Cell Phone Contract:
When an individual decides to purchase a Smartphone he or she is now tying his or her device into his or her cell phone contract. This means if you decide you are not happy with your cell phone service and terminate your agreement prematurely you will incur an early termination fee and have a Smartphone that will no longer work as both a PDA and cell phone. You also need to be cautious about the Internet capabilities. As mentioned above PDAs often have the capability to connect to a wireless (such as a home wireless network) network but Smartphones often have the capability of connecting to a home or business wireless network as well as your cell phone's Internet ready wireless network. You need to be aware of which service you are using because if you think you are connecting to your local library's free wireless network but are in fact connecting to your cell phone's wireless network the connection will not be free because your cell phone company charges you for using their network.

Windows Mobile:
As mentioned above their are two different versions of Windows Mobile that can come on a Smartphone (Pocket PC Phone Edition or Smartphone Edition on Windows Mobile 5 and Professional or Standard Edition on Windows Mobile 6). If you are planning on installing programs on your Smartphone make sure that you do not purchase a device with Smartphone Edition or Standard Edition as you will not be able to install most PDA programs onto these devices.

Software Requirements:
Some mobile software requires touch screen capabilities. This is yet another feature that is not included in Windows Mobile Smartphone Edition (for Windows Mobile 5) or in Windows Mobile Standard Edition (for Windows Mobile 6). As mentioned above if you are planning on installing software on your Smartphone do not purchase Smartphone or Standard Edition of Windows Mobile.

Screen Resolution:
Some of the Smartphones have a smaller screen resolution than regular PDAs. This has been an area of annoyance by some individuals as it requires them to scroll not just up and down but left and right when using some applications. A lot of cell phone vendors allow you a "grace period" in which you can return a phone if you are not satisfied with it. We recommend that you ask your vendor about this before purchasing a Smartphone; that way if you are not completely satisfied with the way the Smartphone runs your installed programs you can return it.

Processor & Memory
Generally the Smartphones have less processing power as well as program and storage memory installed on them. This means that there is the potential for your device to not run as well as a device with a faster processor or more memory. It also means that you may have less space for storing programs on your Smartphone. We highly recommend that if you purchase a Smartphone that you ensure that it has at lease 400 MHz of processing power. Additional (inexpensive) storage can also be purchased; in fact we recommend that if you purchase a PDA or Smartphone that you purchase additional memory for it.

Smartphones
Our Handheld Purchases page contains a list of some Smartphones that have been used by faculty and staff to run our recommended handheld software. These devices are not officially supported by CEC staff but are just provided as a reference for those interested in Smartphones. This list can be found here: http://library.uchc.edu/departm/cec/pda/pdaPur.html#smartphones

Extras

SD (Secure Digital) cards are a type of storage memory used in many devices such as PDAs, digital cameras, etc. SD cards can be used in PDAs to increase the amount of storage you have on your device for programs and files. It is generally cheaper to buy a PDA with less internal memory and add an SD card to it than to buy one with a larger amount of internal storage. For example it is generally cheaper for me to buy a PDA with 128 MB of internal memory and buy a 128 MB SD card for a total of 256MB of memory vs. buying a PDA with 256 MB of internal memory. You can find a 1 GB SD card for about $20. We highly recommend purchasing an SD card.

CF (Compact Flash) cards are another type of storage memory similar to SD cards. CF cards are larger in size and are used less (today) than SD cards.

RAM
RAM stands for Random Access Memory and is a temporary storage location for programs and files used on computing devices. It is used to speed up how quickly programs run on these devices as data can be exchange at a faster rate than a hard drive. However as mentioned it is a temporary storage location and by temporary RAM requires power to store the data; as soon as power is removed the data is lost. Think of the time you were typing a paper on a computer, hadn't save it, and the power went out. When you turned the computer back on your paper was gone, however other papers you had typed were still there. This is because the paper had not been saved to the hard drive and was instead in the RAM when the power went out. The reason I mention this is that PDAs prior to Windows Mobile 5 stored programs and data in RAM memory which meant that if your battery ran out of power then everything was lost which meant you always had to make sure to keep your PDA charged. Windows Mobile 5 and later uses flash memory to store programs and data on your PDA so that if the battery dies then your programs will still be there.