We cannot respond to all letters or e-mail, but we do read them all. Please send us questions, suggestions for improvements to the magazine, ideas for new software, or general comments. All responses, unless otherwise indicated, are from Rich Hall, Editor of Smartphone & Pocket PC magazine. You can reach Rich at Rich@PocketPCmag.com. This column contains e-mail from readers as well as selected messages from the Smartphone & Pocket PC magazine forums. The content has been edited for clarity.
Weather plug-ins for Europe
Thank you for the very good article in the Buyer's Guide issue of Smartphone & Pocket PC magazine, titled "10 Ways to Make a Good Thing Better!" (http://www.pocketpcmag.com/_archives/Buy06/tenways.aspx). It's a great source of information for someone new to Pocket PCs like me. One of the many things I saw in the article was the Weather To Go program (http://www.tonaya.com). I downloaded it and I love it, except that in only reports weather in the U.S. I live in Lisbon, Portugal. Is there anything similar that reports on the weather in Europe?
Joo Pontes Pereira, Lisbon, Portugal
Journal Bar displays current weather information for cities in the U.S. and over 230 countries.
Joao, I just went to the Omega One site and looked the description of their Journal Bar product. It provides a lot of information, including weather. I don't know how much of this is of interest to you, but the description of the weather information says that it covers "over 230 countries & thousands of cites..." Here's the direct link: (http://www.omegaone.com/journalbar/default.htm). They offer a free trial download that lets you use the program for a few days to see if you like it.
Recommendations for physicians
Dr. Zabrek, I really like your articles and would value your expert opinion on something. I am deeply interested in getting a device that has PDA and phone functions. I have seen the O2 Atom, the Treo 700w, and HP's iPAQ phone devices. In addition, Nokia is coming out with the E61. Some of the Phone Edition devices have a smaller 240x240 pixel square screen. Is that sufficient? Also, some use Windows Mobile 2003 Second Edition and others Windows Mobile 5.0. Is there a big difference between the versions of the OS? Which of these would be a good buy for a physician?
Dr Charles Lee Malaysia
Dr. Lee: I would add the Sprint or Verizon 6700 to your list. I have not played with the 700w, but have heard good things about it. I personally use and recommend the Samsung i730 to physicians in the U.S. Unfortunately all of these run on the CDMA networks in the U.S, and I assume that Malaysia, like most of the rest of the world, is standardized on GSM/GPRS wireless networks. I have not heard of the i730 or 6700 being available with an integrated GSM phone, but I'll check on that and get back to you—they may be in Asia. Also, I personally do not like using a square screen device with healthcare applications. That said, I do know some non-physicians who like it. Finally, as of now, I prefer Windows Mobile 2003 Second Edition, finding it more intuitive to use in many ways. However, Web downloads and ActiveSync transfers are better with 5.0. It's all a matter of personal preference.
Ed Zabrek, M.D. Medical Editor, Smartphone & Pocket PC magazine
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