Practical, Delightful Accessory
Posted on | February 24, 2007 at 8:39 am | 5 Comments
To continue on from yesterday’s entry, here’s just a few of the many uses I have for my indispensable Palm T|X PDA, in approximate order of most used to least used. Although the first three are all kind of tied together. And keep in mind that even though these are the primary things I use it for, it is by no means the only things it can do. (For example, I don’t have much use or time for video playback at this point.)
Storing contact information. The contact database is probably the most useful of the built-in Palm OS applications – it’s so nice to have all the names, addresses and phone numbers all in one place (and backed up on the PC). And you can separate them by category. So for example, I have one category just for all the contacts related to my dad, another for my work contacts, and another for my personal contacts. And there are plenty of import/export options from the PC. You can attach memos to contacts, and I have used that to keep track of phone conversations I’ve had with various institutions. The Palm Universal Infrared Keyboard is useful for that, as I can enter text more quickly and with better accuracy when I’m away from home than through the touchscreen. And it’s very portable.
Storing info on appointments and reminding me of them. My main piece of added software (which I used on both the old Z22 and the new T|X) is DateBk6, which is used to integrate the various built-in calendar, contact, task, and memo databases. Those standard Palm OS applications don’t really talk to each other very well out of the box. DateBk6 brings them all together in a way that’s easy and fun to play around with. It is infinitely configurable and I have yet to tap even a fraction of its capabilities. Very useful. It keeps me on track at all times and let’s me know what to do next. One thing that I like about DateBk6 is that it uses the built-in birthday database that is in newer Palm models to display the names and ages of people with upcoming birthdays on the default “Today” screen. It also has the “Floating Event” construct (i.e. a task/appointment that moves to the next day if you don’t do it on the specified day), which is not in the regular Calendar application.
Storing website passwords, PIN numbers, account numbers, and other secure information for both me and my dad, using the InfoSafe Plus application. This use/application alone almost makes it worth the money I spent on the PDA. I used to keep all my passwords in a (password protected) Excel spreadsheet and carried a printout of it in my backpack. Bad news, especially if the backpack ever got stolen. Now that data is encrypted and password protected, and also backed up on the PC (and password-encrypted there as well). I’m aware that a really dedicated person could probably hack into it and get the info, but it’s still better than what I was doing. And I keep a really good eye on the PDA at all times.
Making and using shopping lists. I use SplashShopper to make customized shopping lists. I could probably use ListPro (see below) for that instead, but I like SplashShopper’s interface better. I like how you make the “Need” list from the “All” list, and how thing disappear as you check items off. It makes coming up with my grocery list easy, and also helps me to keep track of things I need to pick up for my dad (which I use a separate list for).
Referencing miscellaneous data. I use the built-in memo feature to keep track of misc pieces of information that don’t fit in the other databases and require free-form text. Current memos I have in the T|X have titles like “Dad’s Hospital/Skilled Nursing Stays”, “I Owe Dad/Dad Owes Me”, “Order of Poker Hands”, “DC Comic Sale Dates” (cut/pasted from the DC website), “Nancy’s Work Schedule”, “Electric Razor Replacement Blades”, and “Future Blog Topics”.
Viewing my recent comic book purchase list. I use ListPro in conjunction with Collectorz.com desktop application Comic Collector to keep a list of my recent comic book purchases on the PDA, along with the date that I bought them. This is very useful for when I go to the comic store, since it allows me to quickly see if I’ve missed an issue or if something is late.
Viewing and entering financial transactions. I use PktQuicken, which syncs with my desktop Quicken, so I always know how much money I have in my accounts and what I’ve been spending it on. It’s password-protected for security. I can also enter transactions into it on the fly, and those will get transferred to my desktop Quicken next time I sync. One of the most useful things for me about PktQuicken is I can see when I was at a particular restaurant or whatever by looking at the date on the credit card transaction. Since Nancy and I are always trying to figure out what we did when, that’s a helpful side benefit.
Viewing my CD list. I use ListPro again, along with Collectorz.com Music Collector in order to have a complete list of all my compact discs on the PDA at all times. Since I have around 4000 CDs to keep track of, this is invaluable when CD shopping or when comparing musical notes/tastes with people. I also have a separate list in ListPro for my CD Want List, along with the online retailer price of those CDs.
Reading eBooks. I’ve let it be known about my disdain for hardbacks because of their bulkiness. Well, with eReader installed on the T|X, I don’t even have to carry paperbacks with me. I didn’t think I’d like reading a book on a small screen like that, but it actually works pretty well, especially with “autoscroll” on. And because of the backlit screen, I can read in the dark and in low-light conditions, sometimes without reading glasses. Basically, this means I’m never without something to read as long as I have the PDA with me. It’s a godsend when I find myself having to wait in line for something. I’m currently trying to read Olympos (again), though I haven’t had much time for that. I’ve also got a couple of Neil Gaiman books on it (Smoke & Mirrors, which came with the Z22, and Anansi Boys). There’s also Never Eat Alone, which also came with the Z22. Oh yeah, and Letter To A Christian Nation, which is a good book to carry around with you at all times and to force people to read. My friend Lisa read it from my PDA at one sitting when we were all out to dinner one night. I’ll soon be buying A Feast For Crows, which is big even for a paperback. There’s also a pocket dictionary installed, so I can select any word in the book text and it will immediately go to the definition of that word in the dictionary. And I love how it automatically remembers where I was at in every book separately, and how I can set my own bookmarks and annotations.
Listening to music. The T|X comes with pTunes, which is a decent little application for listening to MP3s and such. It’s really easy to transfer music files to – I just copy them directly from my PC to the memory card and pTunes finds them. And unlike an iPod, the T|X has a little mono speaker on the back, so I can play things for people without getting headphones out. (Though it has a headphone jack also.) I’ve currently got my entire Jonathan Coulton library in it, so I can play Code Monkey and Skullcrusher Mountain for whoever will sit still for them. Also, the excellent new Mitch Easter album Dynamico goes with me everywhere!
Playing Solitaire (which comes with the T|X) and Sudoku. Highly desirable in situations where I have time to kill.
Getting, reading and answering e-mail using WiFi. I use SnapperMail rather than the built-in VersaMail application. I generally don’t like to do this if I’m away from home, since I’m concerned about WiFi hotspot security.
Surfing the Internet using WiFi. Only works where I have access to WiFi, but is pretty slow and the built-in Blazer browser leaves something to be desired. But it’s good for settling emergency bets and looking up trivia answers at WiFi-equipped bars (”Quick, look at IMDB and see who starred in that movie!”).
Sending text messages using Bluetooth connectivity through my RAZR phone. It’s easier to type the messages on the T|X than it is to use the RAZR keypad. One of my friends has a pager which accepts text messages instead of a cell phone, so it’s useful for contacting her and telling her where we are.
An “emergency” or extra universal remote for my home theater system, using the NoviiRemote Deluxe application. Has loads of configuration and customization options. Makes a decent replacement for my Philips Pronto. Haven’t got it all programmed yet though.
Looking up recommended restaurant and nightlife info for any city using Zagat To Go.
Showing photos of my family etc. so that I don’t need wallet photos. This is all part of my wallet simplification plan, which I will cover in a near future entry.
That’s about it. Is it enough? Yeah, I think I got my money’s worth out of it.
Latre.
Comments
5 Responses to “Practical, Delightful Accessory”
February 25th, 2007 @ 1:19 am
Wow – amazing how much you use the thing! Back in the 90s I had one of the first (primitive) color touchscreen PDAs, after a short series of Casios and Sharp Wizards, but eventually my life became too simple to justify having anything of the kind. Nowadays I carry a sheet of addresses and numbers in my wallet, reprinted from a Word document any time they need updating, but I actually only use it for addressing postcards while traveling.
However, I do finally have an MP3 player – we had to buy a duplicate of my wife’s Mpio on eBay when we lost its proprietary cable. So now I can finally listen to the 3 months’ worth of the Phil Hendrie show I downloaded years ago when I thought I’d have time to listen to them! I’m also trying to get some podcasts, but it seems if you don’t have iTunes you need an RSS reader (like Firefox’s) for most of them, and I’m still stuck in 2003 with trusty old Mozilla…
Oh yeah, and my main phone plugs into the wall. Twice.
February 25th, 2007 @ 6:29 pm
My current PDA is a Treo700w and I have a hard time finding decent inexpensive apps. I may go back to PalmOS when I can.
February 26th, 2007 @ 4:21 am
Yeah – the NoviiRemote is what I also got onmy Palm TX. Thanks for the whole information – I’m going to check the Quicken out.
February 26th, 2007 @ 1:49 pm
I’m going to check the Quicken out.
PktQuicken does have it’s quirks (sometimes the transactions entered on the PDA don’t transfer over to the desktop), but for the most part I’m really pleased with it.
February 26th, 2007 @ 1:53 pm
My current PDA is a Treo700w and I have a hard time finding decent inexpensive apps. I may go back to PalmOS when I can.
It’s weird to me that Palm makes hardware that doesn’t run their own Palm OS. Really trying to appeal to everyone now, aren’t they?