Getting Things Done using your Palm to Organize

Previously, we covered processing simple one-off items into tasks, and left the more complex things for this post. In his books and seminars, David Allen defines a project as anything having more than one step. So, a project could be spring cleaning, buying a car or an appliance, or a “real project” as we typically define it at work. So, how to we handle projects and other “stuff” that isn’t a one-off item? Let’s get into it…

Generally, when people are using a Palm OS handheld for GTD (or any Personal Information Management in general), I recommend people stick with the built-in applications to start with. It’s easy to get caught up with trying new software or finding the perfect package, instead if using it to actually Get Things Done. If the built-ins definitely aren’t working for you, then I recommend people look for something that works with the built-in PIM databases, since it keeps things compatible with common desktop applications and HotSync conduits. It also has the benefit of allowing you to choose multiple tools that work for you, and allow you to view and use your data the way you want to.

Memos are a great place for storing information. They sync with the desktop, allowing you to use desktop oriented tools to work with your information, and any changes that you make will be synced back to your mobile device. They’re just like paper in the sense that you can keep free-form lists of information in them (you can’t doodle on them though, like paper!). David Allen himself uses Palm Memos to keep lists of stuff; this post will cover techniques to rev up your organizing abilities on your Palm OS device.

First of all, you need some good categories to allow you to quickly filter your lists into relevant chunks.
I usually recommend the following categories as a minimum for use with memos: Reference, Projects, Someday/Maybe, and Lists. Most Palms come with Personal and Business as categories as well, so you can keep them if you prefer to separate things that way. You may want to have Projects – Business and Projects – Home if you have a lot on the go, or you want to compartmentalize your life to some extent. The Lists category is the catchall list category; birthday gift ideas, packing lists, checklists, etc.

Some people also use an @Agendas category in either the Tasks or Memos applications, or sometimes both. These are things you want to talk to others about. It’s handy for managers and other people who have regular “face time” with people. You’ll have to decide which application works best for you: as a Task, as a Memo, or both. As a memo, the subject would be the person’s name, and the rest of the memo would be the matter or matters you wish to discuss with them. You could then alter the memo during the discussion, and later file it in the reference category as meeting minutes. If you use a task, the subject would be the person and a summary of the matter, and the note contains the details of the conversation. The category of the task could be @Calls or @Agendas, and you could either tick it off as done when discussed, or change the category to @WaitingFor if it’s something you need to follow up on. Like an agenda memo, you can take meeting minutes or discussion notes into the note of the task. If you need it for future reference, it can either be kept in the completed tasks, or you can copy and paste the relevant information to a memo or the note on a calendar appointment, depending on your working style and where you like to keep past information. The one advantage to using a task for “face time” is that you can date it and have it show up in the tasks application as something to do that day; it would also appear in the agenda view of the calendar application, keeping it “in your face”.

In your Projects category, I recommend people keep a memo called !Projects List (or index, or dashboard, whatever works for you). Basically, it’s a running list of what you have on the go for projects at any given point of time. The exclamation point at the start of the memo title ensures it sorts to the top of your memos in the Projects category. You should have one memo for each item you have listed, and those memos should be in the Projects category. You’ll have to see how many “active” projects you feel comfortable having on your projects list; if you’re not able to work on something now, move that project’s memo to the Someday/maybe category. You can use your !Projects List as a dashboard, putting projects in their order of importance to you, and possibly list some of the Someday/maybe’s you want to work on next, so you know what’s “in the queue”.

For each of the projects, it’s project memo should have a title that describes the project succinctly. That’s what will be shown in the notes list view, and should be how you describe it in your projects dashboard. For longer term goals or projects, many people find it useful to “envision the end” and write a statement defining the successful outcome, and thus conclusion, of the project. So, a project “World Domination” could have a success statement of “Rule the world by the age of 50”. This statement will come into play during weekly reviews, and the next post in this series. Your memo should also have reference and project support material, and next actions that move you towards your successful outcome. Since we all have paper in our lives, you can note the physical location of paper files in your memo, as a reminder that you will have to look elsewhere for material pertaining to this project.

Since all of your brainstorming and next actions are ending up in your Palm memo, you might want to convert your immeadiate next actions into tasks or to-do’s. This is where we talked about DA’s or Desk Accessories in the last post. I had talked about using Accessorizer to make DA versions of the Tasks, Contacts, and Calendar applications. So, as you go through your memo and find “stuff” that needs to go into another application, you can copy the relevant material and then launch your DA launcher, and choose the application like Tasks. You would then paste the information into a new task, and set a category, due date, and other attributes. You would then tap the Home button to exit the Tasks DA, and return to your memo exactly where you were. You can do the same to create appointments. I personally use a DA called ToDoDA, which pops up a minimal task entry window over top of my current application, instead of using a DA version of the full Tasks application; same result, without blocking my whole memo screen.

The best thing about DA’s is that they get around the lack of multi-tasking in the Palm OS. Just keep in mind, you can’t launch a DA version of an application over top of the same non-DA version of an application, or launch a DA that access the same database as the underlying application (i.e. ToDoDA over Tasks). If you do, it will cause your device to reset and you will lose anything you’ve done since you last changed programs (and thus saved your data).

If you’re in sales or some other field that needs to speak with people regularly, you can use categories in your contacts. You could use ones like Prospects, Active, Inactive, FollowUp, etc as means of filtering your contacts for next actions like callbacks. You could also use one of the User-Defined fields in contacts as tags or keywords, and then use the global find to search for entries with those tags (like CB for Call Back).

You can actually use tags, keywords or statuses in any Palm application and use the Global find to look for things that require your attention. The trick is to make them distinctive, so that they won’t show up by accident, and to keep them consistent, so you always find what you’re looking for. Graffiti 1&2 based devices have built-in shortcuts that allow you to write a shortcut symbol and a two or three letter code, and it will replace your shortcut with whatever text you assign to it. Shortcut5 is a better one for Centro and Treo devices, asi it works with the keyboard and allows for more text and some macro substitutions. Teikei DA allows you to create and use Tag lists that are kept in Memos, but it tends to be a little slow on newer devices because it uses the DataManager compatibility layer. One example of statuses could be in your one of your project memos. Let’s say you brainstorm some next actions, but you can only do one at a time. So, for our “rule the world project”, you have the following next actions:

‹x› Buy media companies
‹-› Brainwash the general public
‹•› get elected to government
‹•› start a war
‹•› declare myself Emperor and dissolve the “non-functional” government.

So, the first is complete, the second in progress, and the last three are pending. During your weekly reviews, you can search for pending items you want to convert into tasks. You could use abbrieviations as well, like CB for call back, NA for next action, that kind of thing. You may want to wrap text abrieviations in some kind of non-text wrapper (like colons, brackets, etc) to ensure that you don’t get “false positives” when searching using Global Find. For example, a search for NA will find NA, na, naturally, etc., whereas a seach for ‹NA› will only find items with that exact tag.

Some people like linking things together. It is possible to do it on the Palm platform, but hold off doing it unless you really find you need it. Linking items takes time and requires maintenance, and if your system becomes too complicated, you may not use it. The easiest way to link items is using psLink, which allows you to create Wiki-like hyperlinks between memos or between records in other databases like Tasks, Contacts, and calendars. If you decide to try linking, start by linking the projects in your !Projects List to their associated project memos. If this appeals to you, and you find it improves your productivity, then try adding in other stuff like task linking. PsLink is free, so it won’t cost you to try it.

GTD itself is a collection of tools and techniques, rather than a system, which allows you to customize it for your lifestyle and working methods. This post, like the others in this “Getting Things Done using your Palm”, are intended to provide food for thought and techniques to try to see what works for you. Pick what you think will work for you, and try it for 3 weeks to a month. If it doesn’t work for you after that period, tweak it or try something different, again for 3 weeks. In many ways it’s more important to build the habit rather than perfect the technique, especially when you’re new to GTD.

Well, that about completes this post, and gives you the tools and techniques to help you organize with you Palm. It also gives you some of the basics for the next post in this series, which will be the “Review” portion. Until next time, this is Michael Brown signing off.

Where o where have my categories gone?

Palm OS users have long had a perfectly simple list-maker and information repository in the memos application. It’s a great place to keep all sorts of information, and it’s always been quick to find using the global find or categories. The great thing about the built-in Memos app is that it syncs with just about any desktop application, like Palm Desktop or Microsoft Outlook. It’s through syncing with Outlook that many people change devices or even mobile platforms. So, for those people like myself, looking to switch from Palm OS to Windows Mobile, there’s something you really need to know if you depend on your Memos/Outlook Notes…

Windows Mobile Notes don’t support categories! So, the first time you sync your device using ActiveSync or Windows Mobile Device Center, all your nicely categorized notes will get dumped all together into the device’s My Documents\ folder, and on the next sync, it will strip the category information off and drop all your Outlook Notes back into one big, un-categorized mess. So, you might want to turn off the syncing of notes in ActiveSync or WMDC until you look at how you want to handle things. One possible option is PhatNotes for Outlook; others include changing the Outlook note title to include the category as a prefix, or organizing your notes by folders in My Documents, which will be reflected in the title of the Outlook Note after the next sync. I plan on testing out a few different options for getting my Outlook Notes onto my new device and working the way I want them, once I get it; with nearly 900 nicely organized Palm Memos syncing as Outlook notes, I don’t want to have a big mess to clean up when I move!

Originally posted to PalmAddicts here. For those looking for ideas to deal with this now, you might want to check out this blog post over at SmartPhone Magazine.

Decisions, Decisions… almost Decided!

Earlier this summer, I wrote about some of the things I, or anyone else who depends on a PDA or smartphone, should consider when thinking about changing. It boils down to one key concept; my data is my Life! It doesn’t matter if you’re digital or analog (i.e. Day Planner binder). In the days before I used a PDA, my binder held all that important data. I had to ensure it didn’t get lost, stolen, or destroyed, and I had to ensure I had a backup of critical data in case of disaster.

In today’s digital lifestyle, it’s much easier for me to backup and access my data from many platforms, but I still rely heavily on my mobile device, since it is my daily companion much like my old binder was many moons ago. So, my criteria for a mobile platform are:

1. Easy and open access to my data. I don’t like “black box” products. It’s my data, and I want to know where it is, and how it’s being stored. And it needs to be stored in such a way that multiple front-ends can access it. A good example on the desktop is Microsoft Office & OpenOffice.org for documents and spreadsheets, Adobe Acrobat or Foxit Reader for PDF’s, etc. I look at the handheld/smartphone platform the same way.

2. Let ME choose the right tool for the job. Like everyone else, I have my own way of doing things, and my own requirements for how I want my tools to work. That’s one of the beautiful things about the Palm OS platform. It provides all the basics one needs to get started, and yet is easily extensible to meet everyone’s unique needs. When I got my first Palm IIIx, I used the basic calendar/task tools for about a week, then I bought Datebk3. It used the same databases as the built-ins, but gave me the ability to customize how I worked with my data and how it was presented and organized. Similarly, I use other tools like psMemo and MemoLeaf to work with my Memos database. Like my Dad’s always said, “use the right tool for the job”.

3. It’s not the OS that’s important, it’s the applications! Ok, well, that’s not totally true, but I’ll get to that in a minute. The point is, you can only choose the right tool for the job if you have a selection of tools to choose from. If there’s no selection, then you’re stuck working with what you find. The platform(s) you’re considering switching too should have a selection of applications that work for you NOW; after all, you plan on using it now, right? You can’t choose a platform based on what MIGHT come out sometime in the future, unless you plan on making do until the mystical, super-productive *IT* comes out.

Now, to my point about the OS not being as important. The OS is the heart of a handheld or smartphone, but the apps are what give it the “smarts”. There are things that the OS provides that are like the foundation of a house; it gives developers what they need to build on. If those things are left out of the foundation and left up to the developers to build, then they may end up implementing them in different, confusing or incompatible ways. Consumers ultimately pay the price when platforms are too tightly, or too loosely, controlled.

4. Money. You might be able to get a good deal on a new smartphone, but is it really going to be such a good deal weeks or months down the road? The cost of the phone is one thing, but what about other things like chargers, memory cards, cables, headsets, and other peripherals? What about software? Can you leverage any of your existing investments, or will you have to start over and buy new for the new platform? Are you going to be committed to a certain minimum cost of service package in order to get your new device? All things to consider before buying; a productivity device should never be an “impulse buy” based on price or slick advertising.

5. How do I get from A to B? No, I’m not talking about GPS systems, although I do want one on my next device! I’m talking about all my life’s data in my old system, that I need to get into my new system, preferably with the least amount of effort and problems! This is something I can’t stress enough, unless you have a lot of time on your hands to re-enter all your stuff! Other things to consider are:

• Will I have to implement workarounds for features I used to have that aren’t on the new platform? Think of things like notes, data fields in contacts, task features, alarms, templates, that kind of thing…
• Is there a corresponding application on the new platform for everything I did on the old one? Let’s say you regularly created office documents on your old platform, but you can only view them on the new one? How will you handle that? What about things like journals, voice recording, capture tools, business-specific applications, etc? Can you get everything over to the new platform, and how will you do it?

6. Get touchy-feely with it! C’mon, get your mind out of the gutter; this is a tech blog! Ask yourself, how does it feel to use? Is this something I can and want to carry with me all day? How does the device work for me, compared to my old one? If you’ve come from a phone-style device, chances are you’ll be ok with something that uses T9 style keyboards, be it physical or touchscreen. If you’ve come from using a large QWERTY-style keyboard, then you may not be as comfortable with a T9 keypad or a small touchscreen. So, if you’re thinking of a drastic change, maybe you should go to a store or borrow a friend’s and play with it for a bit. Sure, there are devices with high-res touchscreens, soft keyboards, and other fancy features, but if you can’t type anything it to it, how productive will you be? Another point to consider is how you use your device; do you create a lot of content, or just consume it? Are you a one finger typist, or are you a two-hander?

7. What am I willing to live without in order to switch to the new platform? Chances are, if you’re looking to change platforms, then you’re tired of dealing with something on your old platform. But the grass isn’t always greener on the other side, so you have to ask yourself what changes are you willing to make in order to switch? What compromises will you have to make? What do you need, what do you want, and what are you prepared to live without on the new platform?

This post is about all the things I’ve had to consider given I’ve made the decision to switch off of Palm OS after 9 years of using it, and these are all things other potential “switchers” should consider carefully. I’ve been through a Palm IIIx, a TRG pro, a Handera 330, a Tungsten T, and Treo’s 600 & 650, my current device. I’ve invested hundreds of dollars in Palm software and peripherals over the years, dozens of hours getting it tweaked just right, and I have years worth of data on my Treo, data that I depend on in my daily personal and professional lives. I know Palm OS like the back of my hand, and I’ve been pushing the boundaries of what it can do for years now. But, I’m wanting to replace my hardware, which is getting a little tired, and I’m not willing to give up hardware features any more, just because the aging OS5 can’t support it. These days, most new devices have high-resolution screens, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.0, high-speed celluar data (EVDO or HSPDA), GPS, more memory and storage, high resolution cameras, and other new hardware features. Similarly, some other OS’s have new user interfaces, more advanced PIM databases, multi-tasking, more Bluetooth profiles, and other OS or built-in software features. Palm OS is no longer a cutting edge productivity OS, it’s rapidly becoming a beginner’s , but productive, smartphone OS.

So, of all that’s out there right now, what would I choose?

I was heavily leaning towards the iPhone for a while before it’s launch and for a few days after, but no more. The iPhone 3G’s 2.x software, while great for a feature phone, mobile internet device and media player, is less productive than Palm OS 2 was. Apple is targeting mass market consumers with the iPhone, and while some previous smartphone owners have bought it, most are finding it less productive than their last device. Combine that with the relative immaturity of the SDK, API’s and the lack of standardized built-in PIM applications and sync conduits, and it’s a no-go for me. Eye candy is nice, but not at the expense of usability or productivity. It may be something in a year or so, but not yet. In fact, many people are using other devices like Palm OS handhelds or other PDA’s in addition to their iPhone to make up for it’s lack of productivity applications.

The next one that typically comes to people’s minds when they think mobile devices is the Blackberry; so, is it the one for me? I don’t think so! The Blackberry is an excellent corporate platform with push e-mail and built-in PIMs rivaling those on the Palm platform. So why won’t I get a Crackberry? Basically, two reasons: the OS and the software. It’s really intended to be a corporate device, which is how RIM’s been marketing it until recently, but adding Media players and cameras doesn’t make it a personal platform. Other than themes, it’s hard to customize how you interact with the device; you have to use the menu system to do anything, you have to use the scroll wheel or function+nav keys to get around (although the trackball does make it a bit better on the Curves). There’s no touchscreen except on the just-released Storm, and it will be a while before a lot of software uses it to it’s full potential. Only the recently released Pocket Informant for Blackberry really leverages the built-in PIM’s information close to it’s potential, but it’s still behind software running on other, more-mature platforms.

Symbian/Nokia? Software is it’s limitation too, but I expect that will change in the next couple of years with their decision to OpenSource the Symbian platform. Nokia makes good phones, and sells lots of them, but most people don’t load anything other than content on them. So, not a productivity platform right now. And with Nokia killing off IntelliSync, it’s not certain where they’re going as far as desktop synchronization, so that’s another negative for me.

Google’s Android? One phone, the G1 made by HTC, has been released running Android. More are due, and none are in Canada at this point, with Canadian releases likely at least a year away. In my opinion, it has the same problems as the iPhone; the SDK is immature, as is the software ecosystem. A year or two from now, it could be a whole new ball game, but that doesn’t help me now.

So, that leaves Windows Mobile, previously known as Windows CE. A ways back, Palm users used to joke about it; it made you wince (WinCE) everytime you used it. Well, it’s grown up somewhat since then. Palm OS still beats it hands down when it comes to ease of use, but Windows Mobile is now the more capable operating system. It’s mature, has a stable and thriving developer community, with lots of enhancements being made to address it’s usability issues “out-of-the-box”. HTC and Sony Ericson are making touch-friendly front-ends to WinMo, making it more consumer and finger-friendly, and less like your parents old WinDoze. With all the WinMo handset makers out there, which ones made my shortlist?

I looked at hardware features, OS revision, bundled software, manufacturer reputation, and most important, how much of an active user community there was. I also looked at what kind of third party software was available for each device, which addressed deficiencies in that device, or added value to features the manufacturer didn’t exploit to their fullest. And most importantly, I looked at what I use my mobile for, how and where I use it, and the ergonomics of how I use it; those are three important factors in choosing the type of mobile device to buy. In my case, I use my mobile both one and two-handed: one-handed as a phone or camera, and for information viewing or retrieval (reading mailing lists, news, web browsing, etc.), and two-handed for information capture, e-mail, and content creation (like this blog post, written in a memo on my 650). So, a device has to work both ways for me to consider it. Based on all that, the Treo Pro was a no-brainer as one choice for me. Does that mean it’s a slam dunk for the Treo Pro? Nope! It made the shortlist, but it’s not a shoe-in. It’s facing heavy competition from HTC’s Touch Pro, the Touch Diamond’s big brother.

I had initially ruled out the Diamond (and the Touch Pro) because of concerns about the usability of the device. The Touch’s screen is physically smaller than the iPhones, and the software keyboard took up 2/3 of the screen when exposed. On the Diamond, it was a deal breaker; I lost too much screen real estate to the method of input. But then I started to really look at the ergonomics of how I interacted with my present 650 while I did my common tasks, and I realized I do use it differently based on one or two handed use. For serious content creation, the Touch Pro has the slide-out QWERTY keyboard, whereas one-handed use usually involves the D-pad navigator and the menu keys, or the phone keypad. There’s the odd exception to the rule like today, where some of this was typed one-handed on the 650’s QWERTY keyboard while standing on the bus, bouncing down Limebank Road. So, given that perspective, I only ruled out the Diamond, and kept the Touch Pro on the short list.

The Touch Pro betters the Treo Pro in most hardware specs: more memory, faster CPU, dedicated graphics chip, better camera and better video frame rates on video recordings, higher resolution VGA touchscreen, and accelerometer, light and magnetic stylus sensors. On the other hand, the Treo Pro has a QWERTY candybar/slab style the same size as the iPhone, a 3.5mm headphone jack, a larger battery, and lots of hardware buttons for common actions and functions. They both run Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional, with similar software bundles, with the major differences being in their software User Interfaces. The Touch Pro has TouchFlo 3D, which adds some iPhonesque finger swiping interfaces, while the Treo Pro eschews eye-candy for a more business-like Today screen with added features. Being that both devices are manufactured in HTC’s facilities, their build qualities will be the same; HTC actually provided some design experience on the Treo Pro, and Palm chose to license some HTC software for use on the new Treo.

So, which one will it be? Like the Highlander says, “There can only be one” (in reality, it’s because that’s all I can afford; I do have kids to feed!). Like a reality TV show, you’re going to have to wait for the results post when I reveal which got cut, and which went home with me, and why. Stay tuned!

Originally published at PalmAddicts here.

Decisions, Decisions…

Lately, I’ve been thinking about switching cell phone carriers. I’ve been with Bell in Canada for years, but Bell’s never been really quick about getting new devices out to market in a reasonable period of time, and lately they’ve been dropping the ball with regard to smartphones. They no longer have any Palm OS devices for sale, and the only Palm Treo’s they have are the Windows Mobile 5 versions, the 700wx. Now, with today’s announcement that Bell and Telus (two Canadian CDMA carriers with cross-service agreements) will be charging for incoming Text (SMS) Messages, that’s merely another reason to start looking elsewhere. In the past, keeping one’s telephone number was a kind of handcuff tying you to your service provider, but since number portability has come to Canada about a year ago, there’s nothing tying you to your provider other than your contract and the quality of service you receive (both technical, like coverage, and customer service).

Bell and Telus’s announcement could not have been planned any worse. The much-hyped iPhone 3G is coming to Rogers this Friday, and Rogers announced that they will be continuing their existing policy of free incoming text messages, which may inspire some people to switch not only carriers, but phone platforms. But not all is happy in Ted Roger’s neighborhood; Rogers is taking huge flack from **potential** iPhone buyers (remember, the iPhone hasn’t made it up north legally, yet!). Their phone plans for the iPhone are nowhere near what they are like in the US. Realistically, ALL our phone voice and data plans are nothing like the US market’s plans. To understand why, you need to understand the Canadian wireless market.

Up North, we have two CDMA carriers, Bell and Telus, and they have cross-service agreements. Bell is entrenched in the East, and Telus in the West. To gain access to each other’s markets, they’ve made deals to make use of each other’s infrastructure, so there isn’t going to be a huge difference in plan pricing, since ultimately your service could be carried over the other’s network. On the GSM side, we have a similar situation; about a year or so ago, Rogers bought up the only other major GSM provider, Fido, and rolled Fido’s network and clients into it’s own fold. There’s Virgin Mobile and Koodo, but they’re not major players here and they only do feature phones, not smartphones, so I’m basically discounting them for this analysis. So, as far as pricing for wireless service goes, you have two choices: your present carrier or the other one (your classic “us or them” scenario). With no real competition up here, there isn’t any competitive pricing for consumers. So, choice up here really comes down to the phone platform itself. If you want a particular device, you are choosing a particular carrier. If that carrier has an exclusive on a device, then they can pretty much do what they want for pricing and plan details. It’s this kind of lack of choice that has led to the creation of Bill C-555, The Get Connected Fairly Act, which I’ll come back to later.

So, at this point in time, choice really comes down to the phone PLATFORM. Why Platform? Because you’re choosing a combination of hardware features, OS, and the biggie, Applications! People use the phone platform to DO something; talk, message, listen or watch media, surf, take pictures, that kind of thing. Feature phones have done these things with a closed OS and application set. If the phone didn’t do something out of the box, it never would. Smartphones allow you to install other applications to add features that aren’t present in the “out-of-the-box experience”. With iPhone firmware 2.0 and the iPhone 3G, it is transitioning from a closed platform to a more open one, which has people excited about it’s potential as a new smartphone platform. For new smartphone users, the iPhone should be a great experience as a platform, since it’s user friendly and “sexy”. For existing smartphone users, it’s not so clear-cut, so it’s time to make some decisions…

If you’ve been using a PDA or smartphone up to now, chances are you’ve got a lot of data wrapped up in various applications, and you have your productivity geared up for performing certain tasks on you mobile device. So, jumping to a new device just because it’s new and “sexy” may be productivity suicide if you suddenly find yourself without the applications or data you need to be productive. And yet, you’re still locked into a multi-year contract with your provider for your new toy, which you can’t use as well as your old one. So, the important thing to remember is “do your homework!” Research the platform(s) you’re considering changing too. Look at the tasks you presently perform with your mobile, and what data you need in order to be productive or entertained. Where is that data kept? How will you migrate it to the new platform? What other tasks do you use your present mobile for, and do they have equivalents on the new platform? How does it feel to use, and how well can you interact with the user interface? What accessories do you presently use with your mobile, and are they compatible with the new one? If they’re not compatible and you really need them, does an equivalent one exist for the new platform? If it has extra wireless features like Wi-Fi or Bluetooth, will it work with your existing accessories or other products (like access points or headsets that can have many different protocols or profiles)?

In my case, I have a large investment in Treo peripherals. So, I would obviously like to reuse them where I can. If I choose a platform that doesn’t support my peripherals, I would want to make sure that it supports standards that would avoid “proprietary connectors” wherever possible, so I don’t have to go through this whole “incompatible peripherals” situation again in the future. I also have a large investment in Palm OS/Treo software, so it would be less expensive and less work for me to choose the Centro from Rogers from a software perspective, but the Centro is over priced on Rogers ($299 vs $99 on AT&T in the US!). The other downside is that it’s the same old Palm OS that’s been around since my Treo 650 came out years ago, running on similar hardware with minor upgrades in features, software, RAM and camera, but major upgrades in stability.

Then there’s Windows Mobile, available through Rogers as the Treo 750. Instant compatibility with all my hardware peripherals, but only moderately cheaper than the Centro, believe it or not, at $274. I would have to invest in software replacements to achieve the same functionality I have now on Palm OS, so there’s added expenses there, but I know that all the applications I presently use have an equivalent on Windows Mobile. I would gain a Multi-tasking OS, more memory, and a better camera, a newer Bluetooth stack with Stereo Headset profile, but no Wi-Fi. I know I could bend it to my will if I have too, much like I’ve tweaked my Treo 650. To figure out how much of my software I would have to replace, I could do some testing on the Windows Mobile software simulators available from the Palm Developer Center. So, more work, a bit more money, but a newer OS that has some advantages over the Palm OS that I’ve known, loved, and sometimes cursed, for so long. Were the Treo 800w to come out this week, it might be a more clear cut winner as a platform choice, but it’s only rumoured to be coming out in the US on Sprint around July 13th. If it were to come out in Canada, I think Telus would be the first to get it, since it’s CDMA and they’re quicker on the ball than Bell when it comes to new devices. There’s even a Palm OS emulator (StyleTap), so I could run some of my Palm OS applications on Windows Mobile to smooth out the transition to the new platform.

And then there’s RIM’s Blackberry. With the devices available right now, it’s not really an option for me. It’s lacking stuff at the OS level (no vCal, no sending via Bluetooth, no DUN via Bluetooth), and it’s really lacking in the PIM applications, as well as for other applications I use right now. There is no Blackberry equivalent to DayNotez, nor is there a touch screen I can draw on when I want to like Notepad or Diddlebug. There are other applications I use regularly and would need to replace, adding to the cost of changing platforms, and in general Blackberry applications are considerably more expensive than Palm OS or Windows Mobile applications. Most of my peripherals wouldn’t work with it, but RIM does use standard connectors and protocols, so that in itself is good for the future. Wi-Fi and Docs To Go are coming on the Blackberry Bold, due out around the last week of July, which is a good thing, but still doesn’t address some of my other application needs. I don’t need push e-mail, the Blackberry’s claim-to-fame, so overall, it’s still a no-go for me.

And finally, there’s the iPhone 3G. It’s hyped, it’s new, it’s sexy, and it’s a complete mystery as to what software will be available for it until after this Friday. Out of the box it still can’t do copy & paste, or Stereo Bluetooth Headsets (A2DP). It also doesn’t do MMS, but that’s something I’ve never even used on my Treo 650, so it doesn’t matter to me. It does have Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, a stable Unix-based OS, and a pretty UI. I’m fast with a Treo or Blackberry keyboard, but I have no idea how well I’d be able to use the virtual keyboard on-screen (I can try out the keyboard at least on an iPod Touch). The price is Right at $199, but then there’s those ridiculous service plans starting at $60/month + stuff like caller ID and voicemail. There aren’t any software simulators to try out, no demo units in stores (at least until Friday), and I have no idea what software will be available that would replace my present applications, nor is there any idea what the pricing structure will be like. How well will it sync with Outlook, and what exactly will sync? How are other applications to Sync? There is supposed to be a version of the StyleTap Palm OS simulator software coming soon, so that’s a plus for smoothing out a transition. There’s also a lot of iPhone/iPod accessories available, so that’s a plus, as well as the rumored user-replaceable battery. So, basically it’s a holding pattern until after this weekend as far as the iPhone is concerned.

So, I still have some of my own homework to pursue, since I want to see how things shake out with the iPhone launch and how the early adopters fare. I try to avoid being on the bleeding edge when it comes to my personal productivity devices. But the best thing about the iPhone coming to Canada isn’t the iPhone itself. It’s the attention it’s bringing to the whole issue of wireless pricing in Canada. The $6.95 Wireless System Access Fee we all pay on our bills was initially created in the 90’s in order to help promote the development of wireless telephony throughout our country, and not just in major population centers. It’s no longer mandated by the CRTC, but the carriers are still charging it as a pure cash grab. Until now, it was hard to prove just how unfair Canadian wireless plan pricing was, since it was easy for them to say “Different hardware features, different software features, different service features”, etc. But the difference is black and white when you can compare Canadian Apples to American Apples when our currencies are so close in value. So, I would encourage Canadian readers to contact you local MPP about supporting Bill C-555, the “Get Connected Fairly Act”. Sign the online petition at http://www.davidmcguinty.com/english/Take_Action/Petition_The_House/Petition_C_555_Frais_d_acces.html or if you’re incensed about Rogers pricing for the iPhone, sign the petition at http://www.ruinediphone.com/ or better yet, sign both! The iPhone launch has a lot of media attention right now as does Bell & Telus’s SMS announcement, so it’s a great time for Canadians to rise up with one voice and tell the carriers, and our elected government representatives, “We’re not gonna take it anymore!”

Initially published to PalmAddicts here.

Freevo + Treo = Shows to Go!

I’ve been quite fond of the Freevo home theatre platform for quite a while, and it just keeps getting better and better. It’s had the ability to “re-encode” media like TV shows or movies to alternate formats, like iPod or Treo-friendly 320×240, for a while now. With yesterday’s release of Freevo, it’s now possible to automatically transcode your favorite TV shows into portable-friendly formats as soon as they’re done recording. It’s perfect for those folks who have long commutes to work. Freevo also has an RSS downloader, so you can use that to grab the PalmAddicts audio or video podcasts. Happy 9th Birthday, PalmAddicts!

Originally posted to PalmAddicts here.

Get some colour happening in your calendar

Colour is an effective means for getting a grasp on a lot of information in one place. When it comes to your calendar, it can really help you get a handle on your schedule and commitments. For those people who synchronize with Microsoft Outlook, there is an easy way to add some colour to your life. This works with Outlook 2003 and 2007, and the built-in Palm Calendar on modern handhelds. It could also be implemented on other Palm calendars like DateBk6.

First of all, get your Palm and open the calendar application. In the category picker, choose Edit Categories. At the same time, open Outlook, select the Calendar, and choose the menus Edit => Label => Edit Labels. Choose Colours that match on both Outlook and the Handheld, and edit the Labels text to match the category you’re using on the handheld. In this example below, I’d edit the “Phone Call” label to match up with the colour I’ve chosen on the handheld. Finish choosing colours for all the Palm categories, and edit the corresponding Outlook labels.

Now, here’s where the magic really happens. In Outlook, choose the menus Edit => Automatic Formatting. Add a new rule, and call it one of your categories. Choose the same-named label in the picker below, and then click the condition button. Click on the More Choices tab, then type in the name of your category in the Categories field. Click OK when you’re done entering your rule. Add rules for each of the categories you wish to colour code. You can also add rules to look for specific text if you tend to use keywords in your appointments.

Now, your desktop and handheld calendars are just as colourful and co-ordinated!

Originally posted to PalmAddicts here.

Getting Things Done using your Palm to Process

So, if you accepted the mission in our last episode, you now have a large collection of “stuff” sitting in the unfiled category of one or more applications on your Palm device. Now it’s time to start dealing with it.

Open each application that you put “stuff” in, go to the unfiled category and open each item there. Ask yourself “Is this actionable or not?”. If it’s not something that requires action, then you need to decide why it’s there. If it’s for future reference, then file it in the memo’s application. You can create some useful categories in the memo application that will help group similar things together, like placing them in the same “file folder”. I usually recommend the following categories as a minimum for use with memos: Reference, Projects, Someday/Maybe, and Lists. Most Palms come with Personal and Business as categories as well, so you can keep them if you prefer to separate things that way. You may want to have Projects – Business and Projects – Home if you have a lot on the go. File your memo where appropriate, and make sure the subject makes sense to you (like a summary). The subject will appear in the memo list view, and a good summary will help you find stuff later.

Let’s say your item may not be actionable now, but it’s something you may want to do in the future. That’s what the Someday/Maybe category is for. Stuff in there is “backburnered”, like a trip you might want to take, or a home improvement project you might want to do. It’s a place to keep stuff that you’ve thought of, but are not ready to do yet.

If it is actionable, then ask yourself this question “Can I do this right now in a couple of minutes?”. If you can, then just do it! Delete your item knowing you’ve just knocked off one thing you had to do.

If you can’t do it for whatever reason, then you have to decide what to do with it. First, let’s create some categories in the Tasks (or ToDo) application that will allow us to “put the wheels to the road” for when it comes time to do things. David Allen recommends using “contexts” or places to organize tasks, and recommends prefixing them with the @ symbol which has a dual meaning and a practical purpose. The dual meaning is “actionable” and “at” (as in location). By prefixing your contexts (in our case categories) with @, they will sort to the top of a list of categories, and stand out from non-actionable items.

I usually recommend the following categories or contexts for handheld use: @Work, @Home, @Errands, @WaitingFor, @Computer, and @Calls or @Phone. Since you have a handheld, and can do some things wherever you are, an @Anywhere may also be applicable if you’re able to work strictly with your mobile.

Now we have some categories, let’s start going through the items in your unfiled “inbox”. Do the things you can do in a couple of minutes: if it takes longer to track it than to do it, you’re better off just doing it! For those things that you can’t do, you have two choices; delegate it or defer it. Think about what needs to be done (and who should do it), and create a task with the appropriate description. Start it with a verb; Call Bill about project X, Buy part for car. If it’s a straight-forward, one time action, place the task into the category “where” you can do it. Call Bill would go in the @Calls category, and Buy part would go into @Errands.

Some of the items may be a part of something more complex or with more steps than a simple one-off task. For example, “buy part for car” will lead into “install part in car”. These are the things that require a bit more planning and organization than simple one-offs, so we’ll go into more detail in the next post in this series, Organizing. Now this brings us back to the audience participation part of the show; yup, more homework!

Decide what needs to be done for each thing that’s in your unfiled category. Start it with a verb, and make it specific to what needs to be done as a single action. If it’s bigger than a single action, file it in the projects category of your Memos application; we’ll look at it next time in the Organizing part of this series. Single items can be turned into tasks, and filed by the context you will be in to actually “do it” later. Calls go into @Phone, Work items go into @Work, etc. Now, let’s look at some easier ways to get stuff into a “doable” form.

Since the Palm OS is not multi-tasking, it can be frustrating switching between applications, and then having to find your place again when you want to switch back. In the past, DA’s or Desk accessories were created to allow you to pop up one application over top of another. A whole slew of little programs were created to allow access to the built-in databases. A gent named Alexander Pruss has made something even better than DA’s themselves. He’s created “the Accessorizer”, allowing you to generate a DA from most programs. This gives you the ability to pop-up one of the other built-ins (for example, Tasks) over top of say Memos, allowing you to copy from one application into another. Then you simply hit the Launcher button (the house icon) to return to the previous application. I’d highly recommend using the Accessorizer to create DA’s for Tasks, Memos, and Calendar. This will allow you to process, and later organize, the material you’ve collected and triaged.

Two things to be cautious about… One, not all applications will like to be turned into DA’s, so you may experience crashes. Start off with one application at a time, and run with it for a while before adding another. The second thing to be aware of is that you cannot pop up a DA instance of an application over top of the regular version of that application; that is, don’t pop up Memos over top of Memos, or your Palm will crash. Accessorizer can be found at 1src.com here. You’ll need a DA launcher to be able to launch your new DA applications; I use the aptly named DALauncher.

If you use the Notepad, use the title line to transcribe what you scribbled down and then use copy and paste to get it into tasks or memos. Diddlebug has a nice transfer function, which gives you a line that you can transcribe onto and then use plugins or copy/paste to get your stuff where it needs to go. The notepad title trick works equally well for voice recorder applications like mVoice; simply listen to your recording (pausing when needed) and transcribe a shortened version onto the title line.

So, you have your homework, and some tricks that can help make it a little easier. Stay tuned for my next post in this series, Organizing using your Palm. This is Michael Brown, signing off till next time.

Originally posted to PalmAddicts here.

Getting Things Done using your Palm to Collect

Previously, I tantalized you with a teaser on Getting Things Done using your Palm handheld or Treo/Centro. Well, I won’t keep you in suspense; let’s get Collecting!

In his books, David Allen talks about having a Ubiquitous capture device; something that can capture all the “stuff” that comes flying your way during the day. It can be reminders to get something, someone asking you to do something, thoughts you have about projects or things to do, and so on. Chances are, if you don’t get it down somewhere, it’ll get lost in the storm of other things vying for your attention. The thing is, a mobile device like a Treo makes for the perfect Ubiquitous capture device when it’s your constant companion.

First of all, you have to capture in a means that works for your lifestyle. Look at what you’re doing now to capture “stuff”. If you use sticky notes all the time, is it because they’re convenient, or because they’re in your face? Do you like making lists? Or are you someone who uses the phone and voicemail a lot? Where does most of your “stuff” come from, and on what medium (paper, e-mail, phone/voicemail, or in-person)? Your capture and collection techniques will need to reflect where your inputs come from, and the pace you need to capture them at.

Phone-oriented individuals and those with the need to capture things quickly will want to use a voice recorder. Many Treo models and the Centros come with one built-in, as do some handhelds. In the case of my Treo 650, it didn’t, so I bought (and would highly recommend) mVoice from Motion Apps. It’s handy for getting things down quickly, and for times when my hands are otherwise occupied (like when I’m crawling around the back of an equipment rack) . Voice recordings are also handy for reinforcing your credibility and reliability to others; if you get stopped a lot with “in-person” input, they’ll have a lot of faith in your ability to deliver when they see you whip out your mobile and leave yourself a voice note about their request.

“Scribblers” who use sticky notes all the time may want to use the built-in notepad application (if your Palm has one). It’s like an endless supply of stickies, that are always with you. Since it’s always with you, when you need something you wrote down earlier, it’ll be with you, and not stuck to your monitor at work. If those stickies have to be “in your face”, you might want to consider Diddlebug (free) or BugMe! ($), which allow you to set alarms on notes, giving you that “in-your-face feeling”.

Listmakers who have the time to input things can use Memos. It allows you to make free form lists of “stuff”. It’s best to use one memo for each idea or input. The point is to capture or collect at this stage; you’ll deal with it later. There are other “front ends” to the memos database, so if you find that the stock one doesn’t work for you, you can look at something like psMemo (free) or MemoLeaf ($). They add additional features while still using the Memos database; something that’s important if you sync with a laptop or desktop computer to work with your “stuff” there.

Finally, for quick “one-offs”, you can capture them right to the Tasks (or ToDo) application when time permits. Those could be an errand, a call to make, or something else similarly straight-forward and actionable.

Now, with all these capture techniques, you want to make sure you capture to the “unfiled” category of the application. Categories are a powerful organizational tool, as you’ll see later in this series. Palm OS allows for 15 categories plus unfiled, so we’ll create a few next time, make use of them later.

The best approach is to try each of these capture techniques, and see which feels the most natural to you. Definitely try the methods that seem closest to what you may be doing already. If it’s not quick and easy, you won’t do it. There’s also no reason why you can’t use several different methods for capturing “stuff”, depending on your situation at the time. For example, you could use memos for when you have time to input stuff, and the voice recorder for when you’re on the go.

Now it’s time for the audience participation part of the program; yup, homework! Try each of the methods for capturing “stuff” that you have on your plate right now. Try and get as much out of your head and the various other sources of input you have, and get it into your Palm device. If you sync to a laptop or desktop, you can copy and paste from e-mails into memos or tasks, to save yourself some typing. Here’s a tip for Outlook users: you can drag an e-mail and drop it on the tasks or notes folders to create a new item.

So, your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to collect all your “stuff” into the unfiled categories in whichever applications suit your lifestyle. Stay tuned for our next installment, when we’ll cover “processing”. This is Michael Brown, signing off for now.

Originally posted to PalmAddicts here.

Getting Things Done using your Palm

Getting Things Done, or GTD as it’s known to it’s practitioners, is a methodology for accomplishing things in your daily life. It’s not a “time management system”, it’s a process or methodology which enables you to be productive. It can be implemented using paper or digital means, or a hybrid combination of the two. In the next five posts in this series, I’ll be giving you tips and techniques to implement the five stages of the GTD methodology using a Palm handheld or smartphone. Many of the techniques I’ll be demonstrating will work equally well for other types of Mobile devices, like Windows Mobile, Blackberry and Symbian, when adapted to those platforms.

The five posts in this series will cover the core aspects of the GTD process, which are Collect, Process, Organize, Review and Do. Each post will focus on one aspect of the process, and how to accomplish it using a Palm OS based approach using the built-in applications and some freeware applications as a starting point. Since no two people are alike, and what works for one person may not work for another, I’ll also suggest alternatives that may cater to people’s different approaches to organization and productivity.

To get the full benefit of the GTD methodology you’d have to read David Allen’s books, but this series of posts are intended to give you a crash course in using a Palm handheld or smartphone to implement GTD. Next time we’ll cover the Collection phase, so make sure you stay tuned. Until next time, this is Michael Brown signing off.

Originally posted to PalmAddicts here.

Read the whole series:
Part 1 – Collect.
Part2 – Process.

My Top 10 list of things to fix for the next-gen Treo/Palm platform.

I’m no David Letterman, but here’s my Top 10 list of things Palm needs to fix in order to have a successful Next Generation Palm OS platform. Many of them apply to other manufacturers in the smartphone space, so it wouldn’t be a bad idea for them to pay heed; otherwise, they might not be laughing later on. So, heeeeere we go!

10. Consistant API’s between models in a product family. Here’s where Palm has been really blowing it the last few years. Many standard features were implemented in different ways on different Treo models. That just frustrates developers, and makes the end-user experience inconsistent. Imagine being a programmer and having to write code like this:


Function FlashStatusLed
If Treo650 Then
DoItThisWay
Else If Treo680 Then
WorkAroundOsBug
DoItThatWay
Else If Treo755p Then
DoItAnotherWay
End Function


Would you want to spend time writing code for each and every model in a product family, or would you rather write code for another platform that didn’t have those issues? That’s not to say that platforms like Windows Mobile and Blackberry don’t have their own problems, but generally, stuff from the same manufacturer/product family works the same way.

9. The Bluetooth A2DP (Stereo music headphone) profile should be built-in). Come on, $50 feature phones have it, so why should Treo owners who’ve already paid big bucks for their smartphone have to fork out extra for 3rd party additions to get the same functionality?

8. A USB connector with USB host capability. We’d like to be able to use our handheld computers/smartphones with printers, flash drives, digital cameras, and USB keyboards. Generic device and printer drivers
should come installed, with the option to download specific ones Over-The-Air or at the next HotSync, based on information the system gets from the USB id’s of the peripherals. USB On-the-Go could be a good way to go; one connector that changes modes depending on what device is hooked up to it.

And pleeeeeease, use industry standard USB mini connectors and not something proprietary! I personally have gone through the Palm III series, the not-so-aptly named “Universal Connector” on my Tungsten T, the Treo 600, and now the “Athena Connector” used on Treo’s and TX’s, and had to change peripherals and cables/chargers FOUR times now. In the future, I’m not buying anything else that doesn’t use USB or Bluetooth for connectivity – PERIOD! (I might make an exception for a Linux Powered Treo that uses the existing Athena Connector, since I already have the stuff).

7. Wi-Fi and better Bluetooth. Windows Mobile and Blackberries have Wi-Fi and so does the iPhone, so Palm needs to have it too if they want to stay competitive. Wi-Fi is everywhere now, and it makes more sense to use it for streaming applications than using the Carrier’s wireless, especially in places (like Canada) where we either don’t have unlimited data plans, or they’re prohibitively expensive. Bluetooth should be upgraded to a more reliable driver stack, Bluetooth 2.0+EDR, and should include the profiles people want to use like A2DP, file transfer, BT printing and wireless input like keyboards and even mice! People use their mobile devices in different ways, so they should have the freedom to use it the way they want without having to search for other software to give them the “Out of box” experience they’re expecting. Mobile computing is becoming commonplace, and some people want a familiar “desktop feel” for working with their mobile devices. If it means including generic drivers for keyboards and mice, it’s a small price to pay to include it if it helps generate more sales and a better user experience.

6. Extensible PIM apps with a Real API! Sorry, Palm, but the DataMangler (uh DataManager) patch doesn’t count! People have Instant Messengers, e-mail, and SMS/MMS as means of communicating, as well as regular cell phone and now VOIP calling capabilities on handhelds. They don’t want to have to keep their contacts in a a half dozen different applications. The PIM apps should use an extensible database system to keep all that information in one place. Something like a light-weight SQL database that can be extended. Access has done this right by using sqlite as their PIM database engine in ALP.

The PIMS should allow for linking between the various applications. Many people want to see appointments involving or linking to a certain contact or group of people. Hierarchical tasks are also something that many people want, giving them the ability to do lightweight project management on their handhelds. Custom views are also something people want; it’s their information, let them see it the way it makes sense to them. And most important, stick to the Zen of Palm; fast, intuitive, and easy to use.

5. Better power management and battery life. Granted, my Treo 650 is two years old now, and both my batteries have seen a lot of use, but I HAVE to charge my device daily if I want to get through the day (and always have since I bought it). My wife’s Blackberry Curve goes for several days without needing a charge, and that’s with it receiving e-mail throughout the day and night. I don’t get e-mail via the carrier’s network, just the phone and SMS, and I can’t make
it past 16 hours; some days it’s flat after 10 hours. It’s gotta be better than that if you want to compete with other handheld manufacturers.

Models like the 680 and the Centro have been repeatably criticized for their lack of battery life when compared to other products. With the Linux kernel, power management should be better, especially if they implement “on-demand” CPU management. When the system is idle, like waiting for input or “sleeping” with the screen off, the system can automatically under-clock the processor, and then ramp it back up when it’s needed. For example, I wrote this post using PsMemo into the Memo’s database. Even if I’m typing fast, I’m still not taxing the CPU running at 312 MHz; it would be the exact same user experience as it was on my old IIIx running at 33 MHz. While there is all sorts of software available for the Palm platform that will under/overclock based on what applications are running, this really should be an Operating System function, and not something people have to find on their own and buy. This betters the out-of-box experience, improves performance and battery life, and when properly implemented into the OS leads to increased…

4. Stability! This has been a problem with recent handhelds, especially the 700p. Palm OS Garnet doesn’t have memory protection, so badly written applications can walk all over another app, causing a crash. Combine that with the dbcache and NVFS problems on newer units, and that has some people’s units crashing or resetting several times a day. End users won’t understand why, they’ll just say the thing is crap and move to another platform. The next generation Palm OS (from Palm Inc.) is supposed to be based on Linux, which will solve a lot of these problems. The key to success, though, will be the compatibility layer, which will allow the Garnet applications to run on the Linux kernel. Not much info has come from Palm about their layer, but a fair bit is known about Accesses’ ALP. Both companies and any manufacturers using ALP should be aware that many new sales will be based on the fact that people will want to run their favourite Palm OS applications on the new device, so the compatibility layer needs to be as stable and robust as the underlying Linux OS. Again, end-users won’t care **why** something doesn’t work; if it doesn’t work or isn’t stable and reliable, they’ll just say it’s crap and go somewhere else.

3. Listen to your customers, not just the carriers! Carriers like to “customize” devices before they go on the market. In some cases, they’ve removed functionality in order to reduce their support costs, or to force the end-user to use pricey services.

Well, heeeelllllo! Wake up and smell the coffee! It’s 2008 and Ma Bell isn’t the only player in the game. With number portability becoming the norm, people are no longer tied to a particular carrier in order to keep their number. If a carrier wants to keep customers, then they need to provide value for money. End-users tell you what is of value to them, since they’re the ones that buy the phones and pay for the contracts. Ignore them at your peril (and that goes for the carriers too!)

2. Publicly acknowledge bugs, and Fix Them! Forums, mailing lists, and instant messengers were abuzz with issues from the Treo 700p, and even the 650 back in it’s day. And people are still ticked off about the stability issues of the 700p, and the lack of an update from Palm to fix them. There’s been class action lawsuits because of issues on Palm products, and these have resulted from Palm’s poor handling of bugs and hardware problems (and Palm isn’t alone in the industry in this respect). You’d think they’d learn by now…

If you want customer loyalty, show you’re trustworthy; fess up when you screw up, and fix it to the customer’s satisfaction. Whatever it costs to fix it will save you from losing customers (and gaining lawsuits!), will likely ensure those customers are repeat customers; it may even get you new ones. Generally, a happy customer tells 2 or 3 other people while an unhappy one tells on average 8-10 other people. These days with the Internet and all it’s possible soapboxes, one unhappy customer can tell large part of the world population!

1. Marketing and Advertising! It doesn’t matter if you have a superior product to the competition if nobody knows about it or has enough reasons to buy it! (Hmmm, remember Betamax?) There are whole magazines touting Windows Mobile products, MS Mobile TV commercials, Apple iPhone commercials and fanboy advertising, Blackberry TV and print ads, but where’s Palm? I haven’t seen any advertising for Palm in Canada in recent years; I can’t speak to other markets. Palm needs to get out there and advertise. Word of mouth helps lot too, so fix the other things on this top 10 list, and your happy customers will be your most successful sales force.

In the mean time, start targeting your advertising to your different market segments, and create hardware/software bundles that meet their needs. Don’t do it by staying in house; get out there and get some new blood, take some risks and be creative. Use focus groups of real, everyday people if you have too! Apple and the iPhone have set the new bar for creating a buzz for a product; either beat it, or go home.

With Palm’s stock price heading downward, and competition heating up, Palm Inc. can’t afford to go at this as they have in the past. To paraphrase Master Yoda, “Do or do not, there is no status quo”.

Originally posted to PalmAddicts here.