Mobile & Wireless UPDATE, May 2, 2002

Mobile & Wireless UPDATE, Pocket PC Edition—brought to you by the Windows & .NET Magazine Network
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(below POCKET PC PERSPECTIVES)

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May 2, 2002—In this issue:

1. POCKET PC PERSPECTIVES

2. MOBILE & WIRELESS NEWS & VIEWS

3. INSTANT POLL

4. ANNOUNCEMENTS

5. RESOURCES

6. NEW AND IMPROVED

7. CONTACT US

1. POCKET PC PERSPECTIVES
(contributed by John D. Ruley, [email protected])

It's official: According to the press release that you can access through the URL at the end of this paragraph, Compaq shipped its 2 millionth iPAQ last month. The company will hit the 3 million mark even faster—Compaq's sales were up 14 percent in this year's first quarter. Months ago, I said that Microsoft's Pocket PC 2002 initiative amounted to an admission on the part of Microsoft that Compaq "got the design right" with the iPAQ. Apparently, the broad market agrees. Features that the iPAQ introduced—including a daylight-readable transflective display, a fast 200MHz ARM processor, and field-upgradable flash ROM—are now standard. Compaq is reaping the benefits of getting that combination right 2 years ago.
http://www.compaq.com/newsroom/pr/2002/pr2002042206.html

While I'm offering congratulations to Compaq, I have one serious concern: Assuming the Hewlett-Packard (HP)/Compaq merger (which is still in doubt for legal reasons) goes through, the new company will have two complete sets of Pocket PC 2002 devices: the Compaq iPAQ and the HP Jornada 5xx PDA line. Offering two completely separate Pocket PC product lines won't be in the new company's best interest. I've always liked the Jornadas, but the market has clearly spoken in favor of the iPAQ design. I found the iPAQ design radical at first, but it grew on me—and evidently it's grown on many other people.

On the one hand, I hope HP reinforces Compaq's success and focuses its mobile resources on the iPAQ. Such a focus will undoubtedly be difficult—in Europe, HP just released the Jornada 928, which offers built-in Global System for Mobile Communication (GSM)/General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) support.

On the other hand, I hope HP retains its outstanding Jornada Handheld PC (H/PC) devices. For years, I've been a fan of the H/PC form factor, and although I prefer NEC's MobilePro (which has a slightly larger keyboard), the Jornada H/PC certainly has its fans.

I heard from a Jornada H/PC fan last week, when UPDATE reader Bryce Stenberg responded to my request for suggestions about new Pocket PC features. Bryce's suggestion is "Pocket PC 2002 for H/PCs," which I think is a fine idea. The most recent update to the H/PC version of Windows CE dates back to 2000. Numerous Pocket PC 2002 features—including VPN support—are still missing from the H/PC version of Windows CE, and the UI is overdue for revision.

On a personal note: I'll be off for the next 2 weeks, taking a long-overdue vacation in Maui. Steve Milroy will fill this space while I'm gone. Aloha!

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2. MOBILE & WIRELESS NEWS & VIEWS
(contributed by John D. Ruley, [email protected])

Last month, Microsoft launched a version of Pocket PC 2002 for the Chinese market. In addition to the standard Pocket PC 2002 feature set, the Chinese version includes full-screen handwriting recognition, a customized icon bar that permits fast switching between Chinese and English-language applications, and a revised UI that, according to Microsoft, improves the speed and accuracy of Chinese handwriting recognition. Acer, ASUSTeK Computer, Compaq, Dopod Communications, Eten Information Systems, Hewlett-Packard (HP), Inventec Multimedia & Telecom, Legend Computer Systems, and MiTAC International expect to build devices based on the new OS.
http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/press/2002/apr02/04-09chinesepocketpc2002pr.asp

Does your organization support both Pocket PCs and Apple Macintosh computers? Apparently, Microsoft's Macintosh business unit is considering Pocket PC support for its Entourage email client. In the meantime, Information Appliance Associates has a partial synchronization solution available today: PocketMac synchronizes a Pocket PC's My Documents folder with one or more selected folders on the Mac and converts between Pocket PC and Mac file formats. PocketMac costs $49.95. The company is beta testing a full-featured solution called PocketMac Professional, which synchronizes contacts on the Pocket PC with Entourage on the Mac. Information Appliance Associates expects to have Calendar and Task synchronization available soon.
http://www.pocketmac.net/pocketmac_pro.htm

NEC's Packard Bell division is releasing the new PocketGear 2060 in the UK. The company claims that the PocketGear 2060 will be the market's lightest Pocket PC 2002 device at 146 grams (less than 5 ounces). The device includes all the standard Pocket PC 2002 features but seems to lack the Compact Flash (CF) slot that all US Pocket PC 2002 devices use. Pricing wasn't available at press time.
http://www.packardbell.co.uk/products/node1018.asp

EZOS's EzWAP microbrowser is rapidly gaining ground as a standard on Pocket PC Phone Edition devices. Hewlett-Packard (HP) has licensed EzWAP for its Jornada 928 device, and O2 has licensed the microbrowser for its xda device. The browser supports Wireless Markup Language (WML), Compact HTML (cHTML), and Extensible HTML (XHTML) formats, as well as RSA security.
http://www.ezos.com/main.asp

3. INSTANT POLL

The voting has closed in Windows & .NET Magazine's Mobile & Wireless Solutions nonscientific Instant Poll for the question, "Can Bluetooth and Wi-Fi peacefully coexist?" Here are the results (+/-1 percent) from the 24 votes:

The next Instant Poll question is, "Assuming the Hewlett-Packard (HP)/Compaq merger occurs, which of the following scenarios is most likely?" Go to the Mobile & Wireless Solutions channel home page, and submit your vote for 1) The new company will retain both its iPAQ and Jornada PDA lines, 2) The new company will phase out the iPAQ PDA line, 3) The new company will phase out the Jornada PDA line, 4) The new company will introduce a hybrid product, or 5) Other.
http://www.mobile-and-wireless.com

4. ANNOUNCEMENTS

Which companies and products do you think are the best on the market? Nominate your favorites in four different categories for our annual Windows & .NET Magazine Reader's Choice Awards. You could win a T-shirt or a free Windows & .NET Magazine Super CD, just for submitting your ballot. Click here!
http://www.winnetmag.com/readerschoice

... you still have a chance to dive deep into the latest Microsoft products and future technologies at Microsoft TechEd 2002 Europe, July 1-5, 2002 in Barcelona. Sessions at TechEd Europe are similar to those at TechEd US but will be updated to take advantage of the latest technical information available. It is the largest event of its kind in Europe. Register now!
http://www.microsoft.com/europe/teched

5. RESOURCES

(contributed by John D. Ruley, [email protected])

Even outstanding products have bugs. Compaq has acknowledged a bug in the backlight on its iPAQ 38xx devices. If the unit is turned off for several hours, the backlight might not function when you turn the device back on. Resetting the device typically solves the problem in the short term, but the problem will likely recur. Compaq is working on the bug but hasn't yet offered a patch.

Compaq does have a patch for bugs in the Bluetooth Services Manager for all iPAQ H3xxx devices. Version 1.1, which you can download from the following URL, reduces startup time, improves reliability, and fixes many compatibility problems.
http://www.compaq.com/support/files/handheldiPAQ/us/download/14376.html

Where can you find up-to-date information about bugs and patches? Besides reading Mobile & Wireless UPDATE, iPAQ users (and IT departments that support them) should periodically browse Compaq's iPAQ support site at the URL at the end of this paragraph. Select your iPAQ model, then select the Reference Library link. You'll see a list of the most recent service notifications and a list of related documents.
http://wwss1pro.compaq.com/support/home/index.asp

(contributed by David Ciccone, [email protected])

Many people downloaded a prerelease copy of Pocket PC 2002 (build 2.07) from unauthorized sites that isn't official and can cause problems in your device (e.g., the iPAQ won't boot and might show a parrot—crashed ROM—or possibly freeze). To revert to Pocket PC 1.77, download the fix from Compaq's Web site at the following URL.
http://www.compaq.com/support/files/handhelds/us/download/11135.html

Philadelphia
June 10 through 12, 2002
http://www.intmediaevents.com/80211/spring02/index.html

The 802.11 Planet Spring 2002 Conference & Expo is the largest and fastest growing event devoted to 802.11 for wireless networking professionals. Learn about 802.11 basics, security, and network building. You'll also hear about real-world case studies and techniques for avoiding interference on your wireless LAN (WLAN).

For other upcoming events, check out the Windows & .NET Magazine Event Calendar.
http://www.winnetmag.com/events

6. NEW AND IMPROVED
(contributed by Carolyn Mascarenas, [email protected])

SYWARE released PocketExtra Contacts, software that expands applications on Pocket PC devices by letting users extend the Contacts application. You can create new fields to store information, group information together for fast access, and add drawings and handwritten notes to entries in your Contacts list. PocketExtra Contacts costs $9.99. Contact SYWARE at 617-497-1300.
http://www.syware.com

SoftWinter released StorageTools 1.0 for Pocket PC, a storage card management application that provides defragmentation functionality. StorageTools works with all media types, including ATA-compliant memory cards, Compact Flash cards, Secure Digital cards, PC Cards, and MicroDrives. You can format storage media with different file systems and cluster sizes. StorageTools costs $14.95. Contact SoftWinter at 815-361-3723.
http://www.softwinter.com

7. CONTACT US

Here's how to reach us with your comments and questions:

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For more information about mobile and wireless computing, visit David Ciccone's Web site.
http://www.davescompaqipaq.com