User Contrubution
This piece was submitted by Andrew S. If you have something that you feel that would bless MMM, use the link at the right to send it via email and you can be the next contribution.
In today's fast paced world I'm finding it more important than ever to stay connected. To the people I need to be in touch with and the networks that I administer. Being connected is important, but being organized is important also.
The need to be more organized is what first led me to Palm OS based PDA's back in 1999. Being connected is what keeps me using PDA's today.
My PDA of choice has always been the Palm OS variety, mostly for the simplicity and ease of use. PPC has an important role in the PDA market place as well I believe, but for the things I do and what I need in a PDA, the Palm OS based hand held remain my personal choice.
I've used a lot of PDA's over the years and recently began using the Tungsten E2, from PalmOne. It's one of the best in the market place in my opinion. One of the things that make it such an excellent device is the battery life, which far surpasses it's predecessors, and with Bluetooth and WiFi, that's becoming more important today. The availability of accessories and the ease of use in making them work is another thing that makes this device so solid.
The Palm folding keyboard is one of the accessories I use the most, for things like writing this review for example, and for sending e-mail. Initially I found it only slightly more awkward than the Palm Folding Keyboard that I used for so many years with my Palm Vx. The keys are smaller and a bit closer together, but the fact that it uses IR to communicate with the device means I can use on my older Palms as well as current ones. Although slightly more complicated in design, I appreciate the way it stows and the mechanisms that keep it shut. I've broken untold numbers of latches off of the old style of keyboard.
WiFi drivers became available last week for the PalmOne WiFi card, and set up of the WiFi card was much quicker and much simpler than I anticipated based on my experience setting up Bluetooth the week before. And to be fair, I should point out that the difficulties I had with Bluetooth were mostly related to getting the adapter to work on my PC and sharing the Internet connection, once that was done, the E2 connected to it very easily as well.
The availability of a Putty client for using SSH connections is something that's made the WiFi even more attractive and is something I hope to work with in the very near future.
Palm OS based devices have been such an integral part of my life for so long that it's hard to remember life before them. Those who are closest to me know that I dress to avoid shirts without pockets because I like to carry my Palm there, so in some ways, you could say being a Palm user has made me a better dresser, although my wife might disagree. But without a doubt, the most important thing that Palm OS based PDA's has provided is a way for me to in all ways and in all times have a Bible or four with me.
Scripture tells us in 1 Peter 3:15 to always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have, and Paul admonished Timothy to be prepared in season and out of season in 2 Timothy 4:2. Often times when I'm discussing the Bible with someone if there is a passage that I need to look up but don't remember the address exactly, I'm able to find it quickly and easily using electronic Bibles available for the Palms. I've tried many different Bibles on PDA's I've owned over the years, but I keep coming back to Laridian as my Bible of choice. It isn't free. Actually, it isn't even cheap, but the interface, and the speed with which I can look up passages, the ability to have several translations of the Bible opened at once and the available software from Laridian that interacts with the Bibles are all features that make this a top of the line product. Scripture memory is something that has often not come easy for me, but with Memorize! by Laridian, I can import verses from any of the installed translations and be tested on them by writing the first letter of each word in the passage, which has been an invaluable resource to me as well. As head usher at our church, one of my responsibilities is to take attendance, a head count really but I've found that I'm being constantly distracted by one thing or another. Laidian's Count 'Em has been very useful to me there as well, and that piece of software is free.
To wrap up, I'd say that there is a place in the life of most every one I know for a Palm OS based PDA. From the soccer moms and college students, to the pastors and network administrators, I don't see them going away any time very soon. And as I think back on the past six or seven years and I consider where Palms have come from and where they are today, it excites me to think about where they're going to be six or seven years from now.
Grace and peace.
In today's fast paced world I'm finding it more important than ever to stay connected. To the people I need to be in touch with and the networks that I administer. Being connected is important, but being organized is important also.
The need to be more organized is what first led me to Palm OS based PDA's back in 1999. Being connected is what keeps me using PDA's today.
My PDA of choice has always been the Palm OS variety, mostly for the simplicity and ease of use. PPC has an important role in the PDA market place as well I believe, but for the things I do and what I need in a PDA, the Palm OS based hand held remain my personal choice.
I've used a lot of PDA's over the years and recently began using the Tungsten E2, from PalmOne. It's one of the best in the market place in my opinion. One of the things that make it such an excellent device is the battery life, which far surpasses it's predecessors, and with Bluetooth and WiFi, that's becoming more important today. The availability of accessories and the ease of use in making them work is another thing that makes this device so solid.
The Palm folding keyboard is one of the accessories I use the most, for things like writing this review for example, and for sending e-mail. Initially I found it only slightly more awkward than the Palm Folding Keyboard that I used for so many years with my Palm Vx. The keys are smaller and a bit closer together, but the fact that it uses IR to communicate with the device means I can use on my older Palms as well as current ones. Although slightly more complicated in design, I appreciate the way it stows and the mechanisms that keep it shut. I've broken untold numbers of latches off of the old style of keyboard.
WiFi drivers became available last week for the PalmOne WiFi card, and set up of the WiFi card was much quicker and much simpler than I anticipated based on my experience setting up Bluetooth the week before. And to be fair, I should point out that the difficulties I had with Bluetooth were mostly related to getting the adapter to work on my PC and sharing the Internet connection, once that was done, the E2 connected to it very easily as well.
The availability of a Putty client for using SSH connections is something that's made the WiFi even more attractive and is something I hope to work with in the very near future.
Palm OS based devices have been such an integral part of my life for so long that it's hard to remember life before them. Those who are closest to me know that I dress to avoid shirts without pockets because I like to carry my Palm there, so in some ways, you could say being a Palm user has made me a better dresser, although my wife might disagree. But without a doubt, the most important thing that Palm OS based PDA's has provided is a way for me to in all ways and in all times have a Bible or four with me.
Scripture tells us in 1 Peter 3:15 to always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have, and Paul admonished Timothy to be prepared in season and out of season in 2 Timothy 4:2. Often times when I'm discussing the Bible with someone if there is a passage that I need to look up but don't remember the address exactly, I'm able to find it quickly and easily using electronic Bibles available for the Palms. I've tried many different Bibles on PDA's I've owned over the years, but I keep coming back to Laridian as my Bible of choice. It isn't free. Actually, it isn't even cheap, but the interface, and the speed with which I can look up passages, the ability to have several translations of the Bible opened at once and the available software from Laridian that interacts with the Bibles are all features that make this a top of the line product. Scripture memory is something that has often not come easy for me, but with Memorize! by Laridian, I can import verses from any of the installed translations and be tested on them by writing the first letter of each word in the passage, which has been an invaluable resource to me as well. As head usher at our church, one of my responsibilities is to take attendance, a head count really but I've found that I'm being constantly distracted by one thing or another. Laidian's Count 'Em has been very useful to me there as well, and that piece of software is free.
To wrap up, I'd say that there is a place in the life of most every one I know for a Palm OS based PDA. From the soccer moms and college students, to the pastors and network administrators, I don't see them going away any time very soon. And as I think back on the past six or seven years and I consider where Palms have come from and where they are today, it excites me to think about where they're going to be six or seven years from now.
Grace and peace.
posted by Antoine @ 5/16/2005 01:11:00 AM
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