BY RICH TEHRANI
President and Group Publisher

Have You Seen My Grandkids?

Parents and grandparents love to show their children off to anyone that will let them. It's the rare parent that doesn't carry around pictures of their precious progeny in their wallet.

I have yet to experience the joy of having children, let alone showing them off to others. Recently, though, I have found myself showing off my new 3Com Palm VII as if I'd given birth to it myself. I am fascinated with this device. Call me a nerd or a geek, but like many of you I need to increase my productivity -- I'll try anything to help me achieve that goal.

Amazingly, more than half the people I show my Palm VII to already use either an earlier version Palm computer or a Windows CE-based device. Even though I am really late to the PDA game, I still get oohs and ahs when people see me using the wireless capabilities of Palm VII. The distinguishing feature of the Palm VII is its Internet access through the use the BellSouth data network, formerly known as RAM Mobile Data.

I have been interested in acquiring a Palm computer in the past, primarily for the scheduling capabilities. What made me decide that I must try the device now is the wireless e-mail capability. I am amazed at how easy it is to send e-mail from this device. It takes only a few seconds to send short messages and based upon my tests, the e-mail is delivered in both directions extremely rapidly. I suppose I am an e-mail junkie, but I’ve found that e-mail is frequently a much more efficient communications mechanism than voice.

Although my initial configuration of the Palm VII took several hours due to problems with Goldmine and the Palm’s PC-based software, my overall experience with this device has been extremely positive. I will likely address in detail the issues I’ve had with this device in a future issue of CTI magazine.

I must commend the BellSouth data network’s ability to receive and transmit messages in a variety of locations. In the deep woods of Connecticut and on the equally rural Merritt Parkway snaking from Connecticut to New York, this device has been able to connect in just about every area that my Sprint PCS account was also working. As a passenger in a car recently traversing the Merritt, my phone service began to cut out as we drove the hilly parkway. It was becoming impossible to call my office to leave voice mail. It was very convenient, however, to just type in an e-mail message and save it in the Palm's Outbox for future delivery. The Palm VII allows me to get ideas off my chest in locations where my wireless phone either has no reception or where it is inconvenient to use a phone at all.

Another plus to the Palm VII is that it has proven to work well (in my own personal tests) in the major convention centers of both New York City and Atlanta. There were several times that my cell phone either had poor reception or couldn’t connect, and I was still able to send messages to other TMC team members on their Sprint PCS Nokia 6185 phones (which are equipped to receive e-mail).

While I am on the topic of convention centers, I must add that I have had tremendous success using the Palm to schedule my appointments -- I can't believe I didn’t purchase one of these years ago. Still, I can’t understand why the volume on this device is so inaudible. Forget hearing it on a busy trade show floor. This device needs a vibrate feature badly.

You'll now find me walking around trade shows with my Palm VII in one hand and my Nokia 6185 in the other. I certainly don’t expect to win any fashion awards. The place I will win is in the productivity game: Frankly, my biggest battle is to do more with less. Perhaps if I can save enough time using these devices, I'll be able to find time to settle down, have some children, and show you a picture or two. Would you prefer GIF or JPEG?

Rich Tehrani welcomes comments at rtehrani@tmcnet.com.