PDA: Palm or Windows?
 

I am getting into this technology a little late.

Which of the two device classes has more radio-related software
written for it?

What about general software?

Does it matter which I pick?

If I use Outlook, Word and Excel on my PC, does that make the Windows
CE device the clear choice?

Ken KC2JDY

Ken
(to reply via email
remove "zz" from address)

"Ken" wrote in message
...
Which of the two device classes has more radio-related software
written for it?

PalmOS has more.

What about general software?

PalmOS has a *lot* more programs (thousands) of all kinds than the PPC
platform does. No comparison.

Does it matter which I pick?

Yes. It depends on what you will be doing and since you have as yet no
experience with these devices, you can't really tell what your eventual
interests will be. They both have their strong points.

If I use Outlook, Word and Excel on my PC, does that make the Windows
CE device the clear choice?

No. Any PalmOS device will sync with Outlook, and if you buy a later model,
say Palm 5XX series or later, a program called 'DocsToGo' (comes with the
Tungsten and M5XX series) will provide compatibility with Word, Excel, and
Powerpoint. There are also a lot of other standalone programs that offer
Word and Excel compatibility (Wordsmith and Minicalc, for starters.). I
know it sounds a little wierd, but you can't simply say that PPC devices
interface witrh MS productivity software (Word, Excel, etc.) better than
PalmOS devices in all situations. It depends on what you're doing with
those programs.

Ken KC2JDY

I'd suggest you visit either www.palmgear.com (and click the 'software' tab)
or www. handango.com for a good listing of available programs. Also,
www.memoware.com has tons of databases that are of help in electrical or
engineering work of various kinds, as well as a lot of reference works.

Being honest, I prefer PalmOS devices (I have a Tungsten T at present) but I
totally agree that both have their place. In your comparisons, be careful.
The PPC devices are rated at much faster processor speeds and have a lot
more memory than PalmOS device. But because one is running the relatively
small and nimble PalmOS and the other is running PPC/Windows CE, there is no
way to compare the two platforms just by processor speed and memory. The MS
operating system, and programs that run under it, require a faster processor
speed and more memory than the PalmOS operating system. Here is a brief
comparison (with which almost everyone will probably instantly disagree!)

PPC
- better multimedia than PalmOS devices.
- generally worse battery life than PalmOS devices.
- integration with Word and Excel is generally better.
- better gaming.
- more advanced wireless operation.
- better screens than PalmOS devices
- better corporate integration.

PalmOS
- much easier to use for most software (fewer taps on the screen to
accomplish the same operations).
- immense software base compared to PPC.
- can get Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Access compatibility easily but it
isn't built-in.
- generally smaller, lighter, and less expensive than PPC devices.
- much larger installed base of users so relatively easier to get questions
answered.
- PIM functionality much more user intuitive and 'quicker-on-the-draw' than
in PPC devices
- programs are cheaper than on PPC devices.

As always, YMMV :)

Steve

"Ken" wrote in message
...
Which of the two device classes has more radio-related software
written for it?

PalmOS has more.

What about general software?

PalmOS has a *lot* more programs (thousands) of all kinds than the PPC
platform does. No comparison.

Does it matter which I pick?

Yes. It depends on what you will be doing and since you have as yet no
experience with these devices, you can't really tell what your eventual
interests will be. They both have their strong points.

If I use Outlook, Word and Excel on my PC, does that make the Windows
CE device the clear choice?

No. Any PalmOS device will sync with Outlook, and if you buy a later model,
say Palm 5XX series or later, a program called 'DocsToGo' (comes with the
Tungsten and M5XX series) will provide compatibility with Word, Excel, and
Powerpoint. There are also a lot of other standalone programs that offer
Word and Excel compatibility (Wordsmith and Minicalc, for starters.). I
know it sounds a little wierd, but you can't simply say that PPC devices
interface witrh MS productivity software (Word, Excel, etc.) better than
PalmOS devices in all situations. It depends on what you're doing with
those programs.

Ken KC2JDY

I'd suggest you visit either www.palmgear.com (and click the 'software' tab)
or www. handango.com for a good listing of available programs. Also,
www.memoware.com has tons of databases that are of help in electrical or
engineering work of various kinds, as well as a lot of reference works.

Being honest, I prefer PalmOS devices (I have a Tungsten T at present) but I
totally agree that both have their place. In your comparisons, be careful.
The PPC devices are rated at much faster processor speeds and have a lot
more memory than PalmOS device. But because one is running the relatively
small and nimble PalmOS and the other is running PPC/Windows CE, there is no
way to compare the two platforms just by processor speed and memory. The MS
operating system, and programs that run under it, require a faster processor
speed and more memory than the PalmOS operating system. Here is a brief
comparison (with which almost everyone will probably instantly disagree!)

PPC
- better multimedia than PalmOS devices.
- generally worse battery life than PalmOS devices.
- integration with Word and Excel is generally better.
- better gaming.
- more advanced wireless operation.
- better screens than PalmOS devices
- better corporate integration.

PalmOS
- much easier to use for most software (fewer taps on the screen to
accomplish the same operations).
- immense software base compared to PPC.
- can get Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Access compatibility easily but it
isn't built-in.
- generally smaller, lighter, and less expensive than PPC devices.
- much larger installed base of users so relatively easier to get questions
answered.
- PIM functionality much more user intuitive and 'quicker-on-the-draw' than
in PPC devices
- programs are cheaper than on PPC devices.

As always, YMMV :)

Steve

On Thu, 03 Jul 2003 21:12:25 GMT, Ken wrote:

I am getting into this technology a little late.

Which of the two device classes has more radio-related software
written for it?

PalmOS

What about general software?

PalmOS: 13,000+ vs 3,000 for WinCE/PocketPC

Does it matter which I pick?

Yes.


If I use Outlook, Word and Excel on my PC, does that make the Windows
CE device the clear choice?

No, oddly, it makes Palm (and PalmOS compatables, such as Sony or
Handspring) the clear choice.

There is *no* PDA with Excel and Word with all the functionality of your
desktop or laptop versions.

The program with the closest match to what you can do with desktop Word &
Excel, according to independent reviewers, is the $70 DocumentsToGo by
DataViz for the PalmOS. Yes, the PalmOS. Reviewers have found Pocket Word
and Pocket Excel on the Pocket PC platform to be anemic and feature-poor by
comparison..

I've used it for two years alongside competitive software, and prefer it to
competitors..

snip
--
Nobody but a fool goes into a federal counterrorism operation without duct tape - Richard Preston, THE COBRA EVENT.

On Thu, 03 Jul 2003 21:12:25 GMT, Ken wrote:

I am getting into this technology a little late.

Which of the two device classes has more radio-related software
written for it?

PalmOS

What about general software?

PalmOS: 13,000+ vs 3,000 for WinCE/PocketPC

Does it matter which I pick?

Yes.


If I use Outlook, Word and Excel on my PC, does that make the Windows
CE device the clear choice?

No, oddly, it makes Palm (and PalmOS compatables, such as Sony or
Handspring) the clear choice.

There is *no* PDA with Excel and Word with all the functionality of your
desktop or laptop versions.

The program with the closest match to what you can do with desktop Word &
Excel, according to independent reviewers, is the $70 DocumentsToGo by
DataViz for the PalmOS. Yes, the PalmOS. Reviewers have found Pocket Word
and Pocket Excel on the Pocket PC platform to be anemic and feature-poor by
comparison..

I've used it for two years alongside competitive software, and prefer it to
competitors..

snip
--
Nobody but a fool goes into a federal counterrorism operation without duct tape - Richard Preston, THE COBRA EVENT.