Handhelds vs. Paper Day Planners

Over the past few years I have taught many people how to more effectively use their Palm handhelds. If a diehard paper dayplanner walks by during a training session, I am invariably asked, "Why do you use one of those Star Trekkie thingamabobs when you can use this?" as they heft their 10-pound, leather-bound, paper-strewn, workout planner.

Frankly, a diehard dayplanner addict should not stop using their workout equipment, er dayplanner, cold turkey. Over the years many of these people have amassed enormous amounts of information that should still be kept handy. Besides, the aerobic benefits of those monstrosities should not be overlooked.

Here are a few benefits of a Palm handheld versus a paper dayplanner. These benefits are only for Calendar and ToDo items. And let me first say that a Palm handheld is referring to a personal digital assistant (PDA) that uses the Palm operating system though it may be manufactured by Sony or Handspring or Samsung or Handera or even Palm. Many of the same benefits I'll be writing about are available in Microsoft's Pocket PC operating system which is used on Compaq and HP handhelds.

So here are the benefits:

Data can be shared easily. You can beam appointment information from one user to another very quickly and without errors (you can even add an alarm to remind the other person). If one of you has the time and meeting place wrong, you both do. No excuses for being late or not knowing where you are meeting. Any notes for the event are also sent. You can e-mail an appointment or contact information by clicking one button on your computer.

Recurring events need to be put in only once. So recurring group meetings, anniversaries, and association meetings need to be inputted only once.

Palms are proactive. A Palm has an alarm that can alert you to an appointment or event. Dayplanners do not unless the little sticky note falls out at the right time.

Better organization of data. You only need to put a person's birthday or anniversary in once and it will show up every year for you. It will even remind you a couple of days in advance to pick up a present (but you need to pick out the present).

Data is secure. You can lock the Palm so it requires a password to turn it on. Or you can lock specific items so they require a password. Dayplanners can be encrypted using horrible handwriting.

Corrections are easy to make. You don't have to erase or scratch out mistakes or reschedules.

Multiple calendar views. You can view your calendar for the day, week, or month on your Palm.

Easily add contact information. The name and phone number of your contact can appear automatically along with the event with two strokes of the stylus.

Events can become permanent records. I use this example: on March 24, 2001, my oldest son learned to ride a bike, and I will always have that with me. That data will not be thrown away when I threw out my 2001 calendar

Copy and paste. If an appointment is rescheduled, you can copy and paste the data where you want it. Or you can just edit the entry, and it will automatically go to the new date.

Automatic back-up. This is a great feature because both Palms and dayplanners can be lost or destroyed. The Palm's information is backed up on your computer.

Search for data. The find function allows you to find text or numbers in any of the programs. You can input a partial phone number or a first name, and it will seek out all matches.

Data is typed. So, if you take a note, it can be copied into a word processing program for easy use and formatting. This article was written to a great extent on my Palm while waiting for a doctor.

Reprioritize things to do. If you need to reprioritize a list of things to do, you do not need to re-write the entire list, rather tap one item.

Input on the computer. If you are like me, you can type faster than your write. So, if you have lots of appointments, take it to your computer and sync the data with your handheld.

Think of the trees!

It fits in your pocket. 'nuff said.

That was a comparison of the Calendar and the ToDo programs on the Palm. That does not include the 13,000 programs that are written for the Palm OS, many of which are free. Here are a few other uses for a handheld:

• Contact management
• Write reports
• Read news
• Calculator
• Maps
• Play games
• Family portrait
• Dictionary and Thesaurus
• Read books
• Write e-mail
• Take spreadsheets with you
• Take Word documents with you
• Clock and stopwatch
• Database access
• Doodle
• A TV remote control
• Listen to music
• Internet access
• Cell phone
• Lockbox key if you are a realtor

If you decide to join the new millennium, do it slowly. Keep your dayplanner - you already know this system. Eventually, you will use the dayplanner less frequently as you become familiar with the handheld - just as you did when you went to using your dayplanner rather than your memory.

© 2002 Beyond Expectations Services and Training, Inc.

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Mark Finster is a mortgage broker in Orlando, Fla., and has been using handheld electronic planners in 1991.

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