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Spring Cleaning... and Planning Basics
April 10, 2004
Don’t worry, I’m not talking about washing the windows and fertilizing the lawn, though this is certainly the right time of year to think about those sorts of things. This article is about making sure that your handheld is in tiptop condition and ready to help you face whatever comes next.
Applications
Take a look at the applications on your handheld device. Are you using all of them, or can some of the ones that are no longer used be deleted in order to save valuable memory space? Even more importantly, are all of your applications current? Not every developer or company regularly notifies users of updates, so it’s a good idea to check on your own quarterly or at least every six months. You could potentially be missing out on important bug fixes and new functionality that may not cost you a cent. I’m rather well-connected in the handheld industry, but while doing the research for this article I came across two software updates that I hadn’t heard about yet.
Security
This is a very important topic to which none of us pays close enough attention. Handhelds are extremely portable by their very nature, and that also means that they are quite easily lost or stolen. Do you keep your passwords and sensitive personal data in your handheld? Even if you don’t, you may not want just anyone to know when and where your appointments are, the phone numbers and email addresses of your family, friends, clients, and employees, etc.
Better security at the very minimum means setting the password on your device and using it. I lock my device each day when I leave the office, as that is the time it’s most likely to fall into the wrong hands. And I have the Owner information kept up to date as well, so that if my Tapwave Zodiac is lost a potential good samaritan knows how to reach me and that they will be rewarded for returning the device.
Sensitive information requires even more attention—and encryption. I’ll be the first to admit that I haven’t been very smart in this regard, as I’ve kept all of my internet passwords, shareware registration codes, etc. in plain old Shadow Plan lists— no encryption, password, or anything. I recently started using PassWords Plus from Dataviz, and I’m feeling much better about my personal information. Other top applications in this category are PDA SafeID from Handmark and SplashID from Splashdata.
Backups
Here’s another one of those subjects we don’t pay enough attention to— backing up our data and keeping it safe. I’m slightly more paranoid than most, in that I HotSync my device at least twice daily, I backup to an SD expansion card, and I also backup the most important files on my laptop by burning them to CD once a week. I use Right Back Up from Stand Alone Software to backup the files on my Zodiac to an SD expansion card; other good choices in this category include BackupMan from Bits n’ Bolts and BackupBuddy VFS from Blue Nomad. I use BackupBuddy on the desktop as well, to ensure that everything is backed up each time I sync my handheld.
Handheld Protection
Finally, the last thing to thinkn about is how you’re protecting your handheld. A variety of strategies are available, including neoprene, leather, and aluminum cases to protect against drops. Screen protection is an absolute must, and there are several good vendors to choose from (you can use the Matrix in the navigation box to your left or click here to see my past reviews of products from Brando, NuShield, ARM, and JavoEdge). Other strategies to think about include storing valuable memory expansion cards in a safe place so that they don’t get lost, regularly cleaning your handheld screen, and checking to make sure that your stylus tip is free of dirt and debris that could potentially scratch your handheld’s delicate screen.
Planning Strategies
The second part of this article concerns handheld planning strategies. If you’ve found this site or others like it that contain handheld news and reviews, then you already know that your PDA is much more than a simple organizer. That doesn’t mean that you’re getting as much out of it as you could though, especially if you’re still using the built in applications. The Datebook and To Do applications are pretty good, especially on the newer devices like the Tungsten T3 and the Sony Clie TH-55, but you still might want to consider some of your other options.
Agendus, DateBk5, and DateMan are three of the most-mentioned PIM applications for Palm OS devices, just as AgendaFusion and PocketInformant are two of the most popular applications for Pocket PC devices. I can’t give you a detailed comparison review here; I just wanted to let you know that there are some good choices out there.
Planning is a very personal thing, and there is no one right system. My system is a hybrid of the Franklin Covey “Roles & Goals” approach and Getting Things Done by David Allen. As far as software is concerned, I use both Agendus and Shadow Plan from CodeJedi. Shadow is an outliner, and the best in my personal opinion, though many people prefer Bonsai from Natara Software. I do all of my long term planning in Shadow, using the various roles in my life such as home, personal, work, etc. as top-level items and then planning out projects and subtasks underneath. I then link out my various “next actions” to the To Do list, so that I can use Agendus as a daily viewer application. Shadow does have the ability to set times and alarms for individual items, but I prefer the color coding and icon support in Agendus.
There are plenty of good resources out there for learning more about personal planning and time management using a handheld device. I’ve already gathered many of the top applications, ebooks, web sites, and user stories in the PalmSource Expert Guide that I authored on Life and Time Management. You can check it out for yourself by visiting the PalmSource web site. I also look forward to discussing this topic in more depth here in the PocketGoddess Discussion Forums— just click on the link below. We all have a lot to learn from each other, and sharing handheld tips and tricks can benefit everyone.
This article is not comprehensive by any means, but I hope it got you started thinking about what you can do get more out of your handheld investment and also to make sure that you protect it by using good backup and security strategies. Nothing’s worse than losing the data you worked so hard to gather and input. With a little forethought, you’ll never have to worry about data loss again, and can have peace of mind that even if your handheld is ever lost or stolen, no one will be able to find out anything about you or your bank account that you didn’t want them to know.
