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Unfortunately, no killer app has been invented for the PDA that can make use of its power. The main reason for this, IMHO, is the inefficient input methods available at the moment: Either an external keyboard, or very unreliable handwriting recognition.

My Tungsten C has a built-in keyboard. And believe me, I use that sucker constantly.

(Killer app? I recommend Agendus and Shadow Plan -- that's 90% of my work/task/project management needs right there.)

I have even transcoded entire DVDs down to ~400 MB using dvd::rip, put them on my 512 MB SD card and have watched the entire movie on my PDA in Landscape widescreen. The resolution is excellent for a PDA and the 400 MHz X-Scale CPU is very quick. Battery life is OK, but with the BoxWave miniSync (w/Car and Wall adapters) I never worry about it.

The best part is the price of my setup:
$300 PDA
$80 Ericsson T68m BlueTooth Phone
$99 512 MB SD Card
$40 BoxWave miniSync + Accessories
$40 Iambic Agendus Pro
$40 SnapperFish SnapperMail Standard
$50 SplashData SplashWallet
$35 Mapopolis 1-year North America w/o GPS Support
$30 BlueNomad WordSmith
$15 MMPlayer
$12 ZLauncher
$10 PDAMill Solitaire
$0 OliveTree BibleReader+
$0 BigClock
$0 MyCheckbook
$0 HandyShopper
$0 HandZipperLite
$0 IconMgr
$0 SeaTraffic
$0 TuSSH
$0 upIRC (limited shareware)
$0 Warfare, Inc. (shareware demo)
====
$751

I actually paid $611 total for all the above because I purchased many of the software items listed above long ago for my previous PDAs, but the above is what someone would pay to buy it now.

I use this, Agendus a powerful to-do list solution for a palm if you've got one.

I know you wanted a PC solution but let's face it - they all mostly suck. I need something super-portable and syncable if it's going to be my to do list for the entire day. That's why I prefer the PalmOS software.

It costs a bit of money but you know, who pays for these things anyway? Well it should be you.

If you're willing to spend money, Agendus is a nice solution. Very contact orientated and takes care of the Palm side. There also Agendus for Windows which has the corrosponding functionality on the desktop. It's well worth the money if you're into these sort of things.

Someone else mentioned DateBk5, which is more task orientated.

If you just want desktop access to multiple addresses, try the latest version of Palm Desktop. But this won't solve the handheld-side problem...

Finally, why not Outlook? Yes, it costs money, and yeah, it's bollocks for e-mail, but if you install and ignore it makes a handle 'universal sync point'.

If you're willing to spend money, Agendus is a nice solution. Very contact orientated and takes care of the Palm side. There also Agendus for Windows which has the corrosponding functionality on the desktop. It's well worth the money if you're into these sort of things.

Someone else mentioned DateBk5, which is more task orientated.

If you just want desktop access to multiple addresses, try the latest version of Palm Desktop. But this won't solve the handheld-side problem...

Finally, why not Outlook? Yes, it costs money, and yeah, it's bollocks for e-mail, but if you install and ignore it makes a handle 'universal sync point'.

I can't speak for the desktop version of their software (I only use the Palm edition), but I've been very happy with Agendus by Iambic. It remedies many of the issues you raise.

They have full versions of their software for both Palm and Windows.

So what does the Newton OS do that's so nice?

• Pen usage is integral. None of this menu-bar wannabe WinDoze stuff.

PalmOS does a pretty good job at this.

• Full handwriting recognition. Yeah, Doonesbury spoofed the hell out of it when it first came out, but for five years it's been a better speller than I am. Like QPE, it uses dictionary lookup, though without the "ticker" QPE uses. Frankly, the ticker seems distracting - Newton groks full cursive, and it's easier to simply keep writing the word. If it chooses the wrong one, double-tap on the word, and a menu appears of alternatives (along with options for character-by-character recognition (good for names and acronyms) and access to keyboard or per-letter writing space).

Jot. Write on the full screen, visible ink feedback, no funny alphabets to learn.

That said, NOTHING beats NewtOS >2.0 for HWR.

• Customizable abbreviations. I write "mtg" and it expands to "meeting". You can write "mt" or "foo" and it will expand to "meeting" if you want. This further obviates the ticker.

PalmOS has shortcuts.

• Full use of the screen - you can write anywhere at any time, so no need for silkscreen Grafitti space, or even a pop-up writing area (like on Windoze). Where you write is where it shows up. If you want to write someplace in particular, tap where you want, and a caret cursor shows up. Then write anywhere and text shows up at the cursor.

Jot again.

• Comprehensive use of editing gestures - capitalize, lowercase, delete (scrub out, like you're using an eraser, only it figures it out automatically without needing to flip the pen or select "eraser mode"), select (tap and hold, option to then highlight by drawing through selection or circling it), split word, merge words, cut, copy, and paste, a visible clipboard that doesn't get in the way (and a freeware option to enable as many clipboards as you want - you can finally swap using cut-n-paste).

....All I can say is-- NewtOS rocks.

• Comprehensive data sharing between applications. Your datebook knows about names in your address book, and so does your email reader, your printer, and your fax.

ActionNames does a decent job at this. It's not built into the OS, but it's a good hack.

• Esthetically pleasing layout that still uses minimal screen real estate. Next to the Newton, the Palm (and Windoze) simply looks bad. Nice touches ranging from good choice of line widths, to choosing when icons don't need a border, even if they work like a button (and the reduction in visual noise really matters on a palmtop), to the smallest "scrollbars" out there (and knowing when not to use scrollbars).

See above. AN has some really good layouts for the organizer (the only better one I've seen is MoreInfo for Newton). That said, Newton wins on widgets.

• Clever reasonable assumptions. When I write "Lunch with Pam", I tap the lightbulb. Up pops a meeting slip, saying it is for "Lunch", with a time set to 12noon for either today or tomorrow (depending on what time of day it is when I write it), with "Pam" chosen from my address book (and a pop-up menu to choose from multiple Pams). "Call Dave", "Find John", "Remember to fix the sink" (a to-do on your calendar), "Meet with Susan next week", all work.

I could have sworn I saw an Asisst clone for PalmOS once, but now I can't find it.

• Finally, an extensible object model like you wouldn't believe. You can customize everything, from adding new kinds of stationary to your notepad (and the stationary can be "smart," e.g., graph paper) to adding menus or buttons to existing apps to replacing existing apps, etc. etc.

NewtOS - 42, PalmOS 21.

I owned a MessagePad 2100 for several years... I loved it to pieces, it was easy to use, it did everything I could ever want... except fit into my back pocket. It just got too inconvenient lugging it everywhere, so now I own a Palm IIIx with all the software listed above to make it as Newt-like as I can manage. At one point, when I had SilverScreen installed, I had the Newt icon set, too!

I like the Palm (though it's no newt), but I gotta say, the color screens and nifty video/camera/mp3/x-windows stuff on the iPaq do make me wonder...

I don't know where you're getting your data.

Palm V: Cute leather cover that turns the unit on when in your pocked due to bad design!

Get PalmV ButtonGuard v2. It turns off the button interrupts so even if you press it for a week the Palm won't drain the battery any harder. Much better improvement over the AlwaysOff hack.

Also about that leather case: I've had no trouble with it. It seems to displace the force against the screen very well. You could always get a PalmV RhinoSkin. I had one for my Palm Professional. Love it. Want one for the V.

Palm III: Flash upgradable
Palm V: Nope
Winner: Palm III

My PalmV seems to be flash upgradeable. Went from 3.0 to 3.3 (I think those were the version #s), and I have about 800K of apps in flash.

Palm V: Digs into the edge of my hand and has a habit of sliding out of my hand and plummeting to the floor.

You must have a very strange way of holding it, or you hold it too tight and have sweaty palms. I've never dropped my V because of the form factor. My Palm Pro, OTOH...

Palm V: Hot Sync contacts not compatible (won't even sync on an old Palm/Palm III cradle!!!!!)

Do you want backwards compatibility with everything? You can get a small device that connects your V serial port to any III-style accessory. Can't remember the name offhand but I believe someone has already replied with the link

For me, the V won. I needed something that was sturdy ((thin) aluminum beats plastic IMO), thin (the III is a pig) and wouldn't keep eating batteries. I get about 3 weeks out of my PalmV. I use it for appointments, phone #s, a programmable calculator (sorry can't find the link, it's by Gary Desrosiers), notes (and also BrainForest), DopeWars, diagnostic platform for the equipment I design, password storage, billing... It's a well used device.

BTW: All the apps mentioned which are replacements for standard PalmOS apps use the standard databases so I don't lose compatibility. Kudos to Iambic and Standalone Software for that feature, it was a big deciding factor when I chose their products.

I don't know where you're getting your data.

Palm V: Cute leather cover that turns the unit on when in your pocked due to bad design!

Get PalmV ButtonGuard v2. It turns off the button interrupts so even if you press it for a week the Palm won't drain the battery any harder. Much better improvement over the AlwaysOff hack.

Also about that leather case: I've had no trouble with it. It seems to displace the force against the screen very well. You could always get a PalmV RhinoSkin. I had one for my Palm Professional. Love it. Want one for the V.

Palm III: Flash upgradable
Palm V: Nope
Winner: Palm III

My PalmV seems to be flash upgradeable. Went from 3.0 to 3.3 (I think those were the version #s), and I have about 800K of apps in flash.

Palm V: Digs into the edge of my hand and has a habit of sliding out of my hand and plummeting to the floor.

You must have a very strange way of holding it, or you hold it too tight and have sweaty palms. I've never dropped my V because of the form factor. My Palm Pro, OTOH...

Palm V: Hot Sync contacts not compatible (won't even sync on an old Palm/Palm III cradle!!!!!)

Do you want backwards compatibility with everything? You can get a small device that connects your V serial port to any III-style accessory. Can't remember the name offhand but I believe someone has already replied with the link

For me, the V won. I needed something that was sturdy ((thin) aluminum beats plastic IMO), thin (the III is a pig) and wouldn't keep eating batteries. I get about 3 weeks out of my PalmV. I use it for appointments, phone #s, a programmable calculator (sorry can't find the link, it's by Gary Desrosiers), notes (and also BrainForest), DopeWars, diagnostic platform for the equipment I design, password storage, billing... It's a well used device.

BTW: All the apps mentioned which are replacements for standard PalmOS apps use the standard databases so I don't lose compatibility. Kudos to Iambic and Standalone Software for that feature, it was a big deciding factor when I chose their products.

There's some third-party stuff that does what you describe. One I like is ActionNames from iambic. This DateBook replacement lets you use different formats for day, week, and month (and 3-month) views, lets you put To Do items and appointments for the day on the same page in almost any view, and has an address book enhancement that tabs for organization. Cool stuff: iambic: software for handhelds

There is that preference to not show completed To Do items, but it is a pain to occasionally have to purge the list. I'm sure there's a third party program that does that, too...

I used to work for a software company that made software for Palm Pilots, Windows CE, and Newtons. I agree that the big companies are fairly likely to be able to get together, and create a internetworking standard for their common applications.

I don't see that happening, however, with the add-on softwares.

There's a few dozen 'Time and Expense Tracker" programs out there, each with their own features, for example. But because many of the smaller companies are set in the idea that interoperability with other products would mean that they lose sales, I doubt that it would ever change.

Anyone care to disagree?