Fishing For The Perfect Pocket PC

[Jason Dunn]

<a href="http://www.wirelessweek.com/index.asp?layout=story&doc_id=71446&verticalID=34&vertical=Business+and+Finance">http://www.wirelessweek.com/index.asp?layout=story&doc_id=71446&verticalID=34&vertical=Business+and+Finance</a><br /><br />This column by Brad Smith (source: Christopher Coluter) talks about how Compaq designed the iPAQ Pocket PC - it's a great read and proves that creative thinking is a powerful tool when paired with great engineering.<br /><br />"Could a fish be responsible for the design of the most popular Pocket PC device available today? That's probably a stretch, but the lure of trout definitely played a part in the conception of Compaq Computer Corp.'s iPAQ personal digital assistant. An idea born in the Colorado Rockies, the PDA was an instant success, so much so that the company couldn't keep up with demand. Initial orders were 10 times what the company forecast. Now in its second generation, the iPAQ remains the leading Pocket PC platform. <br /><br />Credit for the iPAQ goes to a group of industrial designers led by Randall Martin, Compaq's director of design. Martin had been told by then-CEO Ben Rosen to break out of the mold and take some chances. 'We had been doing what everyone else was doing,' he says. 'We were basing our designs off existing platforms. We needed to go outside the normal.' "<br /><br />The article goes on to say that they came up with fictional characters, analyzed their needs, and created a device to meet those needs.<br /><br />"Contractor Bob was a construction foreman who was on the move most of the day, overseeing the work site. He needed a device that could store a lot of information, had a battery that lasted all day, was readable in bright sunlight and had some voice dictation capabilities. Among the features that June the Soccer Mom needed were multiple calendars to keep track of her children's different activities and schedules."<br /><br />What I find a little ironic is they failed on a few counts: the original iPAQs battery couldn't last a full day under heavy use with side lighting active, and we still don't have multiple calendars or the ability to work with or sync against anything but default calendar entries.<br /><br />What are your "Contractor Bob" or "June the Soccer Mom" features that are still missing from the current generation of Pocket PCs, either in software or hardware?<br /><br />For me, I'd like to be able to have a copy of my wife's calendar on my Pocket PC, and vice versa. But since Microsoft killed Outlook Net Folders, I can't even get a copy into my version of Outlook any longer, and even if I could, I couldn't get that data onto my Pocket PC. It's not like I'm going to install an Exchange server at home to get this done - Microsoft is completely missing the boat when it comes to SOHO users and their needs...

[Scott R]

My comments will largely be unwelcome here, but...

WeSync is an application for the Palm OS which allows you to have multiple calendars. The data is stored on a web server (owned by WeSync). So, you (and all of your family/coworkers/etc.) join WeSync and install the necessary Calendar (DateBook) application on your Palm. Then you make your calendar public (to the people you want to see it) and every time you do a HotSync it then updates this data on the WeSync server. I just recently found out about it (though it actually came out over a year ago) and use it to check on my wife's schedule. The interesting thing is that Palm, Inc. purchased this company some time ago but seems to have sat on the technology. I've been in contact with a rep at the company and supposedly they are working on some improvements/changes but he can't say much.

Combine this sort of thing with wireless (right now it supports limited wireless syncing of the data) and this would be even more useful. Imagine scheduling a meeting with someone and having it send an immediate wireless notification to that person. They respond and you get an immediate notification wirelessly that they've accepted the meeting.

Scott

[Ed Hansberry]

Combine this sort of thing with wireless (right now it supports limited wireless syncing of the data) and this would be even more useful. Imagine scheduling a meeting with someone and having it send an immediate wireless notification to that person. They respond and you get an immediate notification wirelessly that they've accepted the meeting.

This is exactly what Server ActiveSync will allow without a host PC. I can do this today with existing Pocket PC apps (generate and accept meeting requests based on email addresses) but it does require you to ActiveSync with the host PC, much as you HotSync.

All built in, all available since 2000 on every Pocket PC ever sold. No third party anything required.

[Scott R]

Combine this sort of thing with wireless (right now it supports limited wireless syncing of the data) and this would be even more useful. Imagine scheduling a meeting with someone and having it send an immediate wireless notification to that person. They respond and you get an immediate notification wirelessly that they've accepted the meeting.

This is exactly what Server ActiveSync will allow without a host PC. I can do this today with existing Pocket PC apps (generate and accept meeting requests based on email addresses) but it does require you to ActiveSync with the host PC, much as you HotSync.

All built in, all available since 2000 on every Pocket PC ever sold. No third party anything required.

Interesting. I'll have to check that out. I've learned something new today about the capabilities of the PPC. That said, I believe WeSync's technology is still more useful. I can actually look at my wife's schedule and see the specifics of what she has planned (and vice versa). It even allows me to let her have write access to my calendar, such that she could actually enter an appointment into my calendar. That's perhaps a bit too much power to grant. I'd prefer something in between. This would be perfect: Let her see my entire calendar (with details). Let my coworkers see my calendar (with just free time shown - no details). Let anyone request a meeting, which I could accept or deny (sounds like PPC offers this).

Scott

[nwarren]

Ed - I might be missing something here, in which case please enlighten me, but I believe ActiveSync server needs a server to run on and an Exchange 2000 Server to sync with?

This is a fine solution in the corporate envirinment, but completely impratical for SOHO.

WeSync for PPC sounds like a neat offering for the SOHO market - I guess it would have to be an additional app to enable the PPC to support multiple calendars (shame on MS!).

[Scott R]

I guess I misunderstood. Ed, please clarify. How would one make use of ActiveSync Server?

Scott