770 PIM suites vs Palm OS PIM suite

[Rodney Topor]

How well do the two (?) available PIM suites for the 770 (DejaPIM and GPE-PIM) compare with the Palm OS PIM applications (Contacts, Calendar, Tasks) in terms of functionality, convenience, and stability?

This is an important question for me (and perhaps others) in deciding whether to change from my current Palm OS handheld to a 770.

rwt

[fietske]

the GPE functionality is very simple but all crucial features are there. The only thing i can't find is a way to backup or export my calendar

Shan

[dillera]

There really is no comparison- if you are used to rock solid syncing to/from a desktop computer then you will NOT find that with the 770.

There are many reasons why- perhaps the biggest is that Nokia has not invested the time to deploy an integrated set of PIM apps for the 770, as they don't consider it a PDA.

So you will not be happy if you are not a very clever hacker willing to spend lots of time noodling around with open source packages, compling things in Scratchbox and debugging issues.

Perhaps in time this will come, but the 770 is not anywhere near replacing a Palm or PocketPC for traditional PDA functionality.

And again, to be fair, Nokia has maintained that they are NOT marketing the 770 as a PDA. They have put an enormous amount of time and effort into the current linux distribution, and they've done a great job IMHO- it's just not a PDA at this point, and may never be one.

It really is a micro-tablet.
:p

p.s. I continue to use my Treo 650 as my pda, and don't look for that functionality in my 770...........

[gnuite]

I agree with all of dillera's points. The 770's available PIM software is nowhere near as useful as that which comes with Palm OS, because they were designed for different purposes. Palm's dedicated application buttons are also something that the 770 can't really have.

But I'm really hoping that the open source (or commercial) community will pull through and develop a comparable PIM tool as a respectable add-on for the 770, eventually...

[Mythic]

I havnt tried the last GPE version released today, it should provide greater stability and provide bugs for some obvious errors (date picker is not working, category slector was funky)

The main issues with GPE suite is a rather complicated synchronization with desktop/cellphone. It is possible to set it up, but no gui is provided for it. And it might require manual compilation of some packages and so on. Another problem is that an alarm framework is not developed yet (Nokia has provided only simple "make a sound at specified time" capabilities) therefore Calendar does not make sounds yet.

But the basic functionality is in. Depends on your needs

[Mike Cane]

Forget the 770 for PIMing for now. What the 770 does do, however, is prevent higher-end Palm sales. If you want great WiFi, the 770 is it, not a TX. So, if you have an old unit and were thinking of switching, well, switch to the 770 for WiFi and get a low-end Z (or even keep your present Palm) just for PIMs. I'm still carrying a TE. I'll be glad when I no longer have to.

[michaelalanjones]

I have to agree. I loved my Palm Zire, and it is perfect as a PIM. As a web browser, it sucked; it was like looking at the world through a keyhole. For email, the Palm was like a crayon compared to what I have now, visually anyway.

[Mike Cane]

I long for the day when a solid and well-designed PIM is available for the 770. I hope GPE and DejaPIM *both* evolve into that.

[pdafan]

I'm spoiled by the PIM on my Psion 5MX. Features I'll be needing from my next PIM software:

General:
- Calendar and Todo list integrated, ie. in the same program and with Todos and appointments visible in the same day. There's no point in having them be completely separate.
- Ability to store the data in a standalone file. This simplifies backup and allows multiple contact books and calendars (for example.)

Appointment book:
- Day, week, month and year views
- Repeatable appointments and todos with lots of options.
- Alarms
- Cross out appointments/todos
- Cut/copy/paste items
- Find
- Attachments on appointments/todos
- View all anniversaries
- View all todos
- Item types: todo, anniversary, appointment, event
- Ability to customise calendar view (start with appointments, todos, mixed view, etc.)
- Custom day view (choose hours to view)

Contacts:
- Find in all text
- Simple contact entry without having to scroll page up/down
- Cut/copy/paste
- Export to a list
- Custom screen layouts
- Sorting
- VCD card option
- Custom data entry fields (ie. remove fields I don't want, add fields I need.)

I'm at the point where I'd be willing to pay a one-time fee for software that actually does this. I don't care about syncing, but it should be supported.

For me, Deja is too sparse and doesn't seem to flow well. What's in the options screen? Just some request for a PC login! This is also the default screen that pops up :(

GPE doesn't seem ready, but it looks like it has potential. It doesn't feel like a 770 app and installation is a pain. It felt clumsy to use.

I'm sure someone will come along and write a good PIM. I'm hanging onto my 5MX for now.

[aflegg]

Like pdafan, I'm similarly spoilt by EPOC's Agenda, Jotter and Contacts applications.

GPE and DejaPIM both look like they could have potential, and with the alarm/wake-up-from-power-off-and-standby functionality currently being worked on by Nokia, these apps should both be able to meet my basic requirements.

I've raised some suggestions for GPE-Calendar to make its "New Appointment" screen have some of the small usability benefits of EPOC Agenda (such as sensible defaults for start & end times etc.); hopefully Florian'll find time to implement them :-)

Cheers,

Andrew

[fredoll]

I use the Gpe Suite and although they are still far away from Palm PIM they have a great potential.
What I would really like for calendar is a way of interfacing with ics file, it's a connected tablet after all and I would like to be able to view or better modify a shared calendar (this format is used by SunBird, iCal & co.
O Fred

[andymulhearn]

The big problem I have with GPE is not that there's no synch facility, but that I couldn't see how it replaced teh email app address book, i.e. how I would send a message to someone using an address from GPE contacts - other than cut and paste.

Lack of alarms on the calendar is another issue but I synch with my Nokia 6320 anyway so I'm not that bothered about that.

[Mike Cane]

@ desktop:

Psion was so ahead of its time. We'd all be here on an EPOC board if Psion had put out a tablet-like device instead of just keyboarded clamshells.

Someone should put together a master list of features that are desired in a PIM suite for the 770. Then devs can compete with each other to see how fast they can check things off the wishlist.

My big two: Palm-like Calendar, in that I can write *directly* onto the timeline (no separate entry screen); and appointments that are *stacked* (as they are in Palm Calendar), not side-by-side (like Palm Desktop/Outlook/PPC) -- side-by-side kills being able to read the entries.

[aflegg]

Psion did, but it didn't have HWR and it wasn't a consumer device:

http://www.ericlindsay.com/epoc/netpad.htm
http://www.mypsion.ru/library.php?aid=1032

[Mike Cane]

@ desktop:

Holy cow. I saw that once at a trade show (PC Expo?). Forgot all about it! What a contrast between it and the 770, eh?

[aflegg]

Better PIM software though ;-)

[Rodney Topor]

Thanks all for your advice. I share Mike Cane's views that the 770 needs better PIM apps. Well, PIM apps are more important than connectivity for me in a small device I carry everywhere, and I don't want to carry a Palm and a 770, so I won't get a 770 until it has PIM apps that are comparable with Palm's.