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June 29, 2001

Using handheld technology to improve your career

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It seems fitting that I am writing this column into my Handspring Visor as I sit at the airport waiting to pick up a friend. As a writer and a high-tech professional, this can be one of the most useful features, the ability to work almost anywhere at anytime without lugging around several pounds of equipment.

Everything, all the time

Your success as a high-tech careerist rests on your ability to organize. This might mean referring to a project checklist, looking up phone numbers to make calls or catching up on your tech reading while you are waiting in line at the grocery store. A handheld computer can do this and more. It doesn't require a lot of time or money to increase your productivity.

Keep it cheap

There is no need to splurge on the most expensive handheld with wireless networking to get the benefits. I carry a plain-Jane Handspring Visor Solo with 2 MB of memory. This holds hundreds of contacts, to-do items and meetings. It also holds documents, like this column, project lists, and much more. I am looking to upgrade to 8 MB mainly so I can put more web content on my Visor. I hate waiting in line so this can be a real lifesaver for me. It allows me to catch up on reading from both web sites and print magazines.

Due to a glut in the market the prices for handheld computers are dropping rapidly. I recently saw the same Visor I carry advertised for $99 at a local discount technology store. You can also find great deals on refurbished systems through the Palm, Inc. web site. (www.palm.com). As will all forms of new technology, price is becoming less and less an issue in the handheld realm.

Use it for everything

One way to get the most out of your investment is to use your handheld in as many ways as possible. To insure that I truly made use of my Visor I quickly found ways to sync it to my contact manager and date book, located a mileage log program, downloaded a drawing program (to entertain myself and my toddler, when necessary!) and even found a guitar tuner/chord book to help me when I am playing music. No longer do I carry around a paper address list, phone messages or car mileage notebooks. Everything that can, goes into the Visor.

Finally, the most useful option of your handheld is the ability to quickly make follow-up reminders whenever you deal with a client. Regular follow-ups are one way to insure that you have an on-going flow of work. Anything that helps you manage these contacts in a better fashion can have a direct effect on your bottom line.

A few recommendations

Over the months that I have had my Visor I have collected a useful set of tools. Here are a few of my favorites.

ActionNames $19.95 (www.iambic.com)

30 day demo available for download

ActionNames is a replacement for the built-in Address, To-Do, and Datebook programs that come with Palm-based handhelds. It has several nice features. It allows you to view both appointments and to-do items at the same time so you don't have to keep switching back and forth between 2 separate programs. It also allows you to associate a contact with a particular appointment or To-Do item. This allows you to very quickly jump from an appointmententry directly to the contact info for that appointment with one tap of the stylus. ActionNames doesn't change the way the contact, To-do and appointment data is stored in the handheld, so all the built-in applications continue to perform normally should you want to continue using them.

PocketQuicken $39.95 (www.landware.com)

If you are a Quicken user, then PocketQuicken can help to simplify your accounting needs. PocketQuicken imports all your account balance and categories directly from your desktop Quicken data and allows you to enter transaction wherever you may be. When you synchronize your handheld with your desktop the transactions are entered directly into Quicken. I find this especially nice for remembering how much I spent on coffee, muffins and other necessities of a high-tech life .

VersionTracker (www.versiontracker.com)

This web site is my best source for new software and updates for Palm, Macintosh and Windows computers. I check this site daily to make sure that my software is up to date and to inform me of any new software that might help me be more productive.

Regardless of the work you do, I think that anyone will find that a handheld computer, even an inexpensive one, can help you to be more productive and will enhance your high-tech career.

about this column.

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Douglas E. Welch is a freelance writer and computer consultant in Van Nuys, California. Readers can discuss career issues with other readers by joining the Career Opportunities Discussion on Douglas' web page at: http://www.welchwrite.com/dewelch/ce/

He can reached via email at douglas@welchwrite.com

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