Palm Pilots: Tools or Toys?

dittrich writes "Found this at CNN this morning. It's an interesting point of view, the meat of whicht is that Palm Pilots don't really make us more productive, they are just cool toys that people want, not need. " That's been one of the those ongoing arguements about computers in general-do they really increase our productivity? I say yes, but every year or so, someone produces a study saying that they don't.

Comments

Tool for the absent-minded

[Eric Green]

My story:

I resisted the Palm Pilot for literally years. "A waste of time", I said to myself. After all, in the past I've used Daytimers, rolodexes, and every other possible 'personal organization tool' and ended up leaving it at home because it was too bulky, too clumsy, and myself just too disorganized (grin). The only thing I really made use of was yellow post-it notes, which cluttered my office like multi-colored snowflakes, drifting hither and fro and eventually being thrown away when I got around to sifting through them and couldn't decode my cryptic notes on them.

When a bunch of **** started happening and I was driving myself nuts trying to keep track of everything, I said "what the heck, let me try it". Well, I did. It does what it's supposed to do -- it sits on its little belt clip and works as an address book, postit-note tablet, to-do list, and calendar. There are Daytimers this compact, but they're clumsier to use -- e.g., you have to manually move your to-do list from day to day, and re-write it when you remove enough items from it to make it worthwhile, whereas the Palm does that automatically (if you so select!). Same deal with the address book.

I also found an unexpected bonus: my checkbook is balanced now for the first time in literally years. I found a little program which solves the one big problem of Quicken and other such "personal finance" packages, which is -- you can't carry your computer with you to the store or ATM!

I played a game or two on it once, but why? Usually it just sits there, waiting for when it's needed. Which is just what it's supposed to do. After all, as Monty Python said, "You never know when to expect the Spanish Inquisition!".

And oh -- my office no longer is buried under drifts of yellow Post-It notes. Now, printouts are another matter (grin).

-E

Counter-point.

[Signal 11]

: xyzzy
Nothing happens.

Seriously now, why is it that (some)managers maintain that by telling the worker both what to do and how to do it, they're making them more productive? That's what this article is saying.

And it's an article without a point - why should management care? If they feel better using toys at work, great! I have a stuffed penguin sitting next to my computer. It makes me feel good. When I feel good, I do better at work. So if I need a $500 toy to feel good - what's it matter to you?

The other possibility: it's a tool. Well, good for you if it is. I use a franklin planner, and it's cheaper than a palm pilot, and can do more. As an added bonus, my handwriting is encrypted so only I can decrypt it. :) But everybody has their own style of organization. Maybe a palm pilot fits their system better than more conventional stuff does.

Bottom line: Some anal-retentive managers insist on micromanaging everything. This article is for them. For everybody else... just let us do our job.

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