The PDA Guerilla: the pocket laptop part 2

The day after I wrote my last blog I gave my new keyboard and Word2Go a thorough test, taking notes at a two-day meeting with a client. I am glad to say that everything worked better than expected. On the first day I took 14,000 words of notes, more than I have in one day even with my laptop. That speaks to the quality of the ThinkOutside keyboard, which I find more comfortable than any other keyboard I have used on any device. And Word2Go worked well, except for the issue of odd capitalizations that happened from time to time through the day. The one thing I did miss was an automatic periodic backup feature. Overall I was happy, and although I did bring my laptop as a backup, I never got it out.

The bad news is that by the end of that first day I had developed the first signs of repetitive stress syndrome in my right hand. It was just a tingling sensation down the edge of my hand and little finger, but the warning is there.

In response I want to limit my typing as much as possible. So for instance instead of typing this blog I am writing it in my PDA using the Fitaly Virtual keyboard. This is an alternative text entry system available for both Palm and Windows Mobile PDAs from Textware Solutions (www.fitaly.com), with a keyboard designed for single penpoint typing. I have used it for about two years, and since it just involves tapping gently on the screen it is low impact.

My main effort, however, is focused on voice recognition and digital recording. I plan to install the latest version of Dragon Naturally Speaking on my laptop and dictate most of my first drafts, then load them into my PDA so I can edit them on the touch screen, which is easier than working on the laptop.

I plan to record my interviews and even business meetings rather than typing notes, which will eliminate a lot of repetitive stress from my day. And I hope to run those files through Dragon to produce transcripts that I can use for notes.

So with those technologies plus my PDA, I hope to get as close as possible to eliminating typing from my life. That is a strange thought for me after 35 years of living on my keyboard.