I certainly can't speak for him. Here's the problem I had with your comparison, though: The Intel hardware platform is very long established, going back 26 years with huge amounts of software available. The Internet Tablet platform is less than two years old, and has comparatively little software support. If you want to make a valid comparison to the Intel platform, you need to look at it when it was a couple of years old - the original IBM PC and PC/XT. And yes, at that time IBM published many applications for the PC under their aegis. They knew that it was important to provide at least basic solutions for a new platform, in the critical early adoption period when third-party support had not ramped up to the level needed to keep the platform afloat.

Even if the IT isn't your 'primary' device (and in the sense you're talking about, a handheld tablet is definitely the primary device for me; phones are a far distant second in usage), there's the 'how-many-devices-do-I-need-for-this-simple-task' issue. If I'm in the middle of websurfing with the IT and need to pull up someone's physical address, why should I have to set the IT down and pick up my phone - a simple address book is well within the IT's capabilities, so it's frustrating to find it missing. If I'm reading an e-book on the IT and need to check the date for the second Tuesday in August, again, it's a simple thing; why should I have to pull out another device to do this?

So I would respond two ways to your point:

First, other people obviously do disagree with your conception of what the 'primary device' is. I don't claim to speak for a majority of the IT's potential market, but I do think Nokia needs to be more open to outside views of how the IT is used. Surveys would be good; also, as others have noted, if every review notes the lack of PIM functions, that sure sounds like a hint to me...

Second, even on a device that's not the 'primary' device, there's a certain basic level of functionality that's convenient to have and theoretically not hard to produce. Look at the iPod, for Pete's sake; I can't think of anyone who would argue that an iPod is or should be a PIM, yet it has a contacts list that puts the IT's to shame, and a built-in calendar. I don't think anyone expects the iPod to be a contacts-management powerhouse, it's sometimes just very convenient to have basic information right there instead of having to dig out your 'master device'.

As for specific PIM requests: I would be happy with a contacts list that had (in addition to what's there) one or two physical addresses, two or three additional phone numbers, and a catchall notes field that I can dump everything else into; that's all I need for quick access on the road. Likewise, a simple, easy-to-use calendar that showed basic date views and simple appointments would do me fine - something on the level of what Palm had back in 1995. I don't personally use a ToDo list, but it seems to be popular and I wouldn't think a basic one (list of text fields with a check-off) should be hard to do. A simple, clean interface is important, though; that's one thing Palm got right at the very beginning, and that's what keeps the GPE applications from being useful for me on the IT.

@tbutler, well put! Seconded.

Hear, hear ! I hereby testify and swear upon my most Precious that I do not know Mr. tbutler, have not talked to him or otherwise corresponded with him heretofore, and that no monies have been forthcoming in order to induce him into proffering these sensible words ! :-)

I agree too - but having to manage multiple device contact lists and calendars is as much a pain as not having the capability, so although I agree, I can't stress the need for easy built in syncing - and by that I don't mean install x, install y, modify a test file or two - it should have a nice easy to use wizard.

After all, most Nokia phones support Over The Air (OTA) SyncML configuration files - ie the SyncML server sends an SMS to the phone to configure it up without any user involvement - obviously the IT can't support an incoming SMS, but an easy to use wizard would seem the next best thing.

I agree getting the info onto the IT is an important aspect I overlooked. <sheepish look> On the iPod, it's pretty easy; just mount the iPod as a disk and drop vCard files into the Contacts folder. (I can export my entire Palm Desktop address book as a vCard file, drop it into the folder, and have the iPod read the whole thing; fields the iPod doesn't recognize are put under the Notes section with their original tag (such as X-Palm-Custom1).

The iPod's a read-only setup, so something like that probably wouldn't work for the IT; a SyncML solution would be nice, especially since there are apparently a number of third-party SyncML options out there, but I'd be satisfied if you could just import a vCard list like what Palm Desktop exports. GPE Contacts will import vCard files, but it won't read the multiple-contact files that Palm Desktop produces; only single-contact files. This makes the import function practically worthless for me, as trying to import even 30 contacts one-at-a-time is too tedious - let alone the 100+ addresses I have.

Nokia have had the brilliance to incorporate Navicore with the device.

So isn't it screamingly obvious to expand Contacts fields to include full address and post code with a ‘look up’ button to Navicore which then pin points the location and gives us turn by turn directions to get there.

[QUOTE=tbutler@mac.com;59512
<snip>
but I'd be satisfied if you could just import a vCard list like what Palm Desktop exports. GPE Contacts will import vCard files, but it won't read the multiple-contact files that Palm Desktop produces; only single-contact files. This makes the import function practically worthless for me, as trying to import even 30 contacts one-at-a-time is too tedious - let alone the 100+ addresses I have.[/QUOTE]

If I remember correctly I exported several hundred contacts from a Palm as a single .vcf file, which GPE imported rather well. I've been using GPE from my first 770 and now on my 800. While I do at times miss some of the funtionality of the Palm it is coming along rather nicely. Several user suggestions have been incorporated that I know of, I don't think Palm even knew or cared I was alive.

Best Regards,

Peter

[ Just came back from a week on the road, waded through 11 - ELEVEN ! - pages of new posts, including two major pieces of news, and posting here in this old thread, because the new ones are much too active :-) ]

Wow. Look the other way for a couple of days, and suddenly we have not one, but two summertime "coups de théâtre" : an OSS browser (Mozilla, no less...) *and* an open SIP client coming up ! Blam-blam, two of my favourite pet peeves down in one week, talk about some double-action... next thing you know, we'll have a bureaucrat-compliant calendar that sings - er, syncs :-)

Now I understand why Tex and Mara were so smug lately, and Qim suddenly popped in for a chat... everyone knew the good news were coming, damn you :-)

Well, I've been a major grumbler lately, so I need to be fair play and congratulate everyone not only for these (beta) apps, but also the processes they're coming through, and the trends they are forming, which all give a lot of credibility to Qim's "roadmap".

I think these are all good omens for us ITT dwellers. Well... especially for N800 owners, in fact :-)

As for myself I now have to decide what's best to do :

- hope that the OS2007HE upgrade comes soon enough, and hope that it includes support for the new browser and SIP client, at least (that's a lot of hoping, but it seems hoping works these days :-)

- eat my hat and buy a second-hand N800, despite its lack of cover, etc., etc.

- wait for the N900 successor and hope that it marries the software and power of the new platform with the 770's "road-warrior" design...

The rest of July and August shall be spent meditating. But come September I shall have to choose... Any hints welcome :-)

edit: through PM, if necessary ;-)

[spooky B-movie hypnotist's voice]

"Give me your money! Give me your money! This is a hint! This is a hint!"

[/spooky B-movie hypnotist's voice]