08-03-2004, 04:15 AM
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Editor Emeritus
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 15,171
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InfoWorld: "I know laptops, and you, PDA, are no laptop"
Oliver Rist goes on a big-time whine about PDAs in his latest InfoWorld column:
"Hewlett-Packard just released pre-production versions of its newest line of iPaq's to the usual magazine review outlets, some happy executive noodlehead read them and started drooling, and now this company has decided to move all-in. They call it 'enabling' anyone who does or might travel with the convenience of PDA technology. Well let's take a look at that, shall we? Oh yeah, it's rant time. What's so convenient about PDAs, even the newest ones? I still don't get this. It's another annoying box you have to carry around and make sure not to lose...And 'convenient' simply refers to the fact that you don't have to sit through a laptop's boot time. I know of no executive with any real use for PCs who can go on a trip carrying only a PDA."
I guess Mr. Rist hasn't really gotten any good use of his PDA. Not only do I carry a laptop everywhere, but I carry two Pocket PCs, and I use them every single day. Try using your laptop while walking down the street, or while looking up a phone number when talking to someone, or wanting to jot something quick down. Laptops just don't cut it there, and boot-up time is only one variable. That said, I have seen the executive type who just wants a PDA because they think they're supposed to carry one, only to stick it in a drawer and let it gather dust. For those, a smartphone might be enough. But summarily dismissing PDAs as a tool doesn't quite do the handheld justice -- they don't have to replace the laptop to be useful.
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08-03-2004, 04:29 AM
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Intellectual
Join Date: Aug 2003
Posts: 126
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Let's all send him angry e-mail telling him why he is wrong!
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08-03-2004, 04:41 AM
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Editor Emeritus
Join Date: Sep 2006
Posts: 3,060
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The problem, in my eyes, is that too many people get caught up in the PDAs-are-supposed-to-replace-notebooks argument. I have never pretended that my Pocket PC can replace my notebook computer. What I DO contend my Pocket PC replaces are:
calendar
address book
human reminder
mailbox
telephone
alarm clock
MP3 player
Game Boy
Bible
books
newspaper
calculator
sketchpad
...Well, you get my point.
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08-03-2004, 05:15 AM
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Intellectual
Join Date: Jul 2004
Posts: 196
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by Brad Adrian
...What I DO contend my Pocket PC replaces are:
calendar
address book
human reminder
mailbox
telephone
alarm clock
MP3 player
Game Boy
Bible
books
newspaper
calculator
sketchpad
...Well, you get my point.
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please, lets be real. it DOES NOT perform more than half those things half as well as the standalone counterpart (i.e. - MP3 player/iPod, sketchpad/pencil & pad, console emulator/GBA)
The only things listed that PPC/Palm can do comfortably for the MAJORITY of users are the calendar, address book, human reminder & calculator functions. Everything else is just a stretch and requires patience.
Anyhoo, I haven't read the article yet but I'm sure I agree with the dude. Keep in mind he's not writing for the "look at what my do-hickey can do!" kind of user.
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08-03-2004, 05:26 AM
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Executive Editor, Android Thoughts
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 3,233
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by DiGiTYZED
Quote:
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Originally Posted by Brad Adrian
...What I DO contend my Pocket PC replaces are:
calendar
address book
human reminder
mailbox
telephone
alarm clock
MP3 player
Game Boy
Bible
books
newspaper
calculator
sketchpad
...Well, you get my point.
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please, lets be real. it DOES NOT perform more than half those things half as well as the standalone counterpart (i.e. - MP3 player/iPod, sketchpad/pencil & pad, console emulator/GBA)
The only things listed that PPC/Palm can do comfortably for the MAJORITY of users are the calendar, address book, human reminder & calculator functions. Everything else is just a stretch and requires patience.
Anyhoo, I haven't read the article yet but I'm sure I agree with the dude. Keep in mind he's not writing for the "look at what my do-hickey can do!" kind of user. |
As you put, the MAJORITY of users can't use a PPC to replace all of those, but many of US can. Most readers of this site want a well-rounded machine that can fill in for dedicated devices. I enjoy my Creative Nomad, but can't carry it everywhere - I can carry my PPC. So its not as good, but its acceptable. Same argument with other items.
__________________
Dr. Jon Westfall, MCSE, MS-MVP
Executive Editor - Android Thoughts
News Editor - Windows Phone Thoughts
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08-03-2004, 05:29 AM
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Thinker
Join Date: Oct 2003
Posts: 434
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Re: InfoWorld: "I know laptops, and you, PDA, are no laptop"
Quote:
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Originally Posted by Janak Parekh
Try using your laptop while walking down the street, or while looking up a phone number when talking to someone, or wanting to jot something quick down.
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I'll take that challenge. Sorry, I couldn't resist. 
__________________
James Kendrick* ...using mobile devices since they weighed 30 lbs
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08-03-2004, 05:39 AM
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5000+ Posts? I Should OWN This Site!
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 5,616
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Re: InfoWorld: "I know laptops, and you, PDA, are no laptop"
Quote:
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Originally Posted by jkendrick
Quote:
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Originally Posted by Janak Parekh
Try using your laptop while walking down the street, or while looking up a phone number when talking to someone, or wanting to jot something quick down.
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I'll take that challenge. Sorry, I couldn't resist. |
:twak: But try it with a normal-size laptop. :mrgreen:
__________________
iPhone 4! ☠☠☠ Mid-2010 15" MacBook Pro! ☠☠☠ Gateway LT2102h! ☠☠☠ Dell XPS M1210!
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08-03-2004, 05:48 AM
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Sage
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 667
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by Brad Adrian
The problem, in my eyes, is that too many people get caught up in the PDAs-are-supposed-to-replace-notebooks argument. I have never pretended that my Pocket PC can replace my notebook computer.
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You're right; that's really the fallacy of his entire argument. In fact, it's tautological. He says...
Quote:
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I know of no executive with any real use for PCs who can go on a trip carrying only a PDA.
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Well, yeah! If you have a real use for a PC, then you need a PC. Since a PDA isn't a PC, then by the conditions you set, the PDA must fail to meet your needs. Of course, what never occurs to him is what executives with a real use for a PDA should use. I guess that was just a bit too hard to figure out. What a numnuts!
So, in the end, the real enlightenment he offers is that a PDA is not a laptop. I'm sure glad he clarified that for me, because I hadn't noticed. In the meantime, I'll get on being productive with my PPC and he can get on with not understanding what they are for.
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08-03-2004, 06:29 AM
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Neophyte
Join Date: Jul 2004
Posts: 9
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by Brad Adrian
The problem, in my eyes, is that too many people get caught up in the PDAs-are-supposed-to-replace-notebooks argument. I have never pretended that my Pocket PC can replace my notebook computer. What I DO contend my Pocket PC replaces are:
calendar
address book
human reminder
mailbox
telephone
alarm clock
MP3 player
Game Boy
Bible
books
newspaper
calculator
sketchpad
...Well, you get my point.
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This is a very important point and I totally agree with you. I never thought of my PDA to replace my laptop. In fact, at some certain point of times it can replace it temporary, just like when it saved the day in this story:
http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/foru...010f2e05f4fbcf
I also noticed Info sync world gives Pocket PC reviews below average overall score and ratings. Maybe they want us to understand that it is too difficult for a Pocket PC to have high scores!
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08-03-2004, 06:51 AM
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Philosopher
Join Date: Nov 2002
Posts: 544
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Re: InfoWorld: "I know laptops, and you, PDA, are no laptop"
[quote="Janak Parekh"]Oliver Rist goes on a big-time whine about PDAs in his latest InfoWorld column:
"Hewlett-Packard just released ..... I know of no executive with any real use for PCs who can go on a trip carrying only a PDA."
I beg to differ. I am a VP for a mid-sized Display company and I am on my laptop or a desktop about 12-15 hours per day (really). My typical uses include; AutoCAD, PowerPoint, Project, Access, Visio, OneNote, Excel and Word. Hopefullly that qualifies me for really using my laptop. I carry my PPC in my shirt pocket (no case) almost everywhere I go. When I am in the office (or one of our other facilities in North America) but away from the desk my PPC serves as a; meeting note taker, meeting date scheduler, calculator, meeting - task - and note reminder.
With the new regulations at the airport, for day trips and almost all one night trips I leave my indispensible laptop home and rely on my trusty PPC to get me through the day. When traveling, in addition to the above I use it to; read and reply to corporate e-mail (via WiFi or Bluetooth) check flight and weather information, read news clips, look up directions when I get lost, review tasks, make journal entries, listen to MP3's, and on and on. In the past year, two people in my office have dropped their laptops at the airport. One was a total loss and the other, only two weeks old, cost $900 to repair. I really look forward to the days that I don't need to lug my 5.5 lb. laptop around. Don't get me wrong I miss it after a day or so but I can operate effectively without it for a limited period of time.
No, my PPC (or for that matter, any PPC) will never replace my laptop, nor do I expect it to. I see it as an important business tool that serves a specific purpose, to increase my mobility and provide me with a data store of information at my fingertips.
BTW- I have be using a PDA as a part of my daily routine since the Palm Professional days. I have not used a paper planner since early 2000 nor have I used paper (or a laptop) to take meeting notes since 1999.
Please just let me know when the bottom is going to drop out of the PDA market so I can rush out and buy five of my current favorite model along with a few dozen batteries. That should hold me till an early retirement.
Patiently waiting for my 4700. I will believe it when I see it.
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