On this page… (hide)
I have owned three or four handhelds in my quest to be organized and productive. My mom gave me my first, a Palm III. It did not last long, unfortunately. My second was a Handspring Prism that I bought in Spring of 2000. It felt durable and I used it intermittantly for a year or two. Its biggest problem was the fact that it used batteries rather than be rechargable. I followed the tried-and-true scheme of having six rechargable batteries: two spare, two charging and two in-service. But, that and the lack of decent software was too much.
I temporarily fiddled with a Compaq handheld, but only because it promised to allow me to use Linux. I tinkered with that for a while but was again greatly displeased with the lack of software.
In 2002, I bought this Zire 71. I didn't realize it had a camera, and although I've used it, I thought it was a fairly useless addition. However, the form factor was good, the Palm OS 5 seemed okay, and there was a wealth of more mature software. The first time I bought one the screen was cracked after a month of use. Since then I've remedied that.
In 2005, I bought a Treo 650.
First, I use the aluminum Rhino Skin case. I've dropped the handheld a few times, and it has come off my belt a few times. However, the case protected the handheld perfectly. So, the case has a few wounds, but not the Zire. The plastic clip popped off on me in the Summer of 2005, so I ordered the universal clip that fits the Zire 72 and it works fine. (Actually, it works better than the original clip). How did the clip break? I was going through a door and the case caught on the door and the door ripped it from me belt.
I've played with many various software packages. I did not use the handheld for almost a year, so it was totally wiped of its memory, and I did not have backups for some of my software products. I recovered what I could, and went looking for better software for what I could not.
For the longest I was sold on the Datebook 3 series of replacements for the bad Palm calendar. However, it wasn't quite there enough. I've recently begun using the Agendus Professional for the Palm (and for the desktop). I love how it organizes the to-do list. After having used it for a few months, I find myself actually using an organizer. This is a major improvement for me as I am chronically under-organized.
I hate the Grafiti. My handwriting is too sloppy to get the letters right, and my words per minute (WPM) is beyond belief. I type 80 WPM on the keyboard. I bought the FITALY keyboard in August 2004 and love it. They have software that will help you train on the keys. I have up to 25 WPM now using the stylus.
I've been tinkering with DayNotz recently. I like how it allows me to journal my day without much thought. I just write a memo and it logs the time.
Update: Nope. It was nice, but I'm resorting to using paper journals instead. Notes I want to take are context-based. For example, if I'm at work, then notes I take belong at work.
I am now using my third generation of this program. It allows multiple versions of the Bible to be installed and is fairly handy. Recent versions have made it easier for me to navigate the Bible.
(:commentable:)
Copyright © 1997-2010 Benjamin C. Wilson · All Rights Reserved.