John Walkosak
03-21-2005, 06:00 PM
<img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/walkosak_oct04_pdaplay01.gif" /><br /><br /><b>Product Category:</b> Games<br /><b>Manufacturer:</b> <a href="http://www.dataviz.com/"> DataViz </a><br /><b>Where to Buy:</b> Available from the <a href="http://www.dataviz.com/purchase/buy/pdaplayground/ppg_order_pg1.html"> DataViz </a> Website.<br /><b>Price:</b> $9.99 USD <br /><b>System Requirements:</b> Runs on all Pocket PCs.<br /><br /><b>Pros:</b><li>Protects my Pocket PC from intrusion by little hands;<br /><li>Sounds are user controllable and password protected (believe me, on a three hour trip, this is a godsend);<br /><li>Locks out the rest of the Pocket PC to protect against prying little hands;<br /><li>Entertaining;<br /><li>Outstanding price. <br /><b>Cons:</b><li>Cannot save any of the little masterpieces;<br /><li>Button lockout not so good on a Pocket PC Phone Edition<b>Summary:</b><br />Since I write for Pocket PC Thoughts it’s a pretty safe bet that I am a Pocket PC enthusiast. I strive to use the Pocket PC to streamline all of my daily activities. But I am also a parent, and I am not ashamed to say that I have used the Pocket PC as a mini babysitter. <br /><br />Read on for the full review!<!><br /><PAGEBREAK><br /><span><b>What Does It Do?</b></span><br /><br /><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/walkosak_oct04_pdaplay01.gif" /><br /><i>Figure 1: The main interface for the kids.</i><br /><br />I have a four year old daughter who is more than familiar with watching me use my iPAQ and she is naturally curious as to what it does. In an effort to forge the next generation of geeks, I will often let her experiment with it using things like Conduits Pocket Artist, or the like. However, since I have a large amount of critical information on my iPAQ, letting a four year old tinker with it is living a little more dangerously than I am used to. <br /><br />About a year ago I ran across a product called PDA Playground by a company called DataViz. That’s right, they’re one of the larger Palm OS software publishers with the flagship product “Documents to Go,” and PDA Playground may be the only product for Pocket PCs. PDA Playground is a set of six activities, contained within one application, which locks out the rest of the machine. <br /><br />When activated, the Playground requires that the user enter a password to exit the program, or change program parameters. This means that when PDA Playground is running, my daughter cannot leave the program, or open any other application or data file on my Pocket PC. She is also prevented from changing the application sound volume. Now, I can start the program, and hand my Pocket PC right to my daughter, and I don't have to worry about her accidentally getting into my spread sheets and changing my quotes, or worse yet, deleting files inadvertently. So when my daughter feels the urge to “work" on my Pocket PC, I can start up the playground and hand her the unit without worry.<br /><br />An important observation to note; on my iPAQ95 6315 Pocket PC Phone edition device, the send and receive buttons are still active even when the program is running. Hitting the “Talk” button twice will redial the last dialed number. This is a bit of a problem, and hopefully will get fixed at some point. The program really is aimed at older units.<br /><br /><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/walkosak_oct04_pdaplay09.gif" /><br /><i>Figure 2: The “Parents Zone” interface.</i><br /><br /><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/walkosak_oct04_pdaplay08.gif" /><br /><i>Figure 3: The Password Interface; lock it up tight.</i><br /><br />The interface for the rest of the program is so clean that my daughter has no problems finding her way around, and she can be really self sufficient.<br /><br /><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/walkosak_oct04_pdaplay01.gif" /><br /><i>Figure 4: The main interface for the kids.</i><br /> <PAGEBREAK> <br /><span><b>Yeah, But Is It Going to Get Any Use?</b></span><br />None of this means a thing if your child doesn’t like the program. Luckily, that isn’t really a problem.<br /><br />As I said earlier, PDA Playground contains six games; <br /><br /><b>Match</b> is your standard memory game in which you are shown some symbols on “cards” and then the cards flip over and you have to remember where the matches are. My daughter is really good at this, but I think I may need to have my short term memory checked.<br /><br /><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/walkosak_oct04_pdaplay04.gif" /><br /><i>Figure 5: The Match Activity.</i><br /><br /><b>Paint</b> is a digital coloring book. There are several pre-made pages, and there are fill and drawing tools and lots of stock colors. The nice thing is that these coloring book pages are simple PNG files, so it should be easy to add your own custom pages. One give away to potential expansion possibilities is the fact that these PNGs are stored in a subdirectory called “basic collection.”<br /><br /><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/walkosak_oct04_pdaplay05.gif" /><br /><i>Figure 6: The Paint Activity.</i><br /><br /><b>Draw</b> is a freeform sketchbook, using the tools from the paint collection with and without backgrounds.<br /><br /><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/walkosak_oct04_pdaplay02.gif" /><br /><i>Figure 7: The Draw Activity.</i><br /><br /><b>FollowMe</b> is another memory game similar to the old Simon game, in which ever-increasingly complex patterns of four symbols flash, and you are supposed to repeat them. Apparently my short term memory is not very good. <br /><br /><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/walkosak_oct04_pdaplay03.gif" /><br /><i>Figure 8: The FollowMe Activity.</i><br /><br /><b>ScratchOff</b> is a unique “activity,” strangely like those scratch-off instant lottery games some people play. Instead of seeing “you lose,” you reveal the coloring book pages. My daughter really likes this one, but I just don’t get it.... <br /><br /><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/walkosak_oct04_pdaplay07.gif" /><br /><i>Figure 9: The ScratchOff Activity.</i><br /><br /><b>PuzzlePath</b> is like those old sliding tile games where you are to put the tiles into a specific order. In this case there is a little person walking on the path as the tiles move, and you have to get them to a goal.<br /><br /><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/walkosak_oct04_pdaplay06.gif" /><br /><i>Figure 10: The PuzzlePath Activity.</i><br /><br /><span><b>Conclusions</b></span><br />For parents of technology loving little ones, this program will let you indulge them, without the worry of little hands deleting all of your information or applications. Plus, it’s fun!<br /><br /><i>John Walkosak is an Architect specializing in the design of hospitals and health care facilities throughout the northeast (<a href="www.hfpambuske.com">www.hfpambuske.com</a>)</i>