Pocket PC information

If you have files on your computer that you'd like to copy to your Pocket PC, there are several ways to achieve this:

• ActiveSync - Certainly the easiest option, you make use of the Pocket PC's ActiveSync software supplied with your Pocket PC. When your Pocket PC is docked with the desktop, you'll find you can use the connection to copy files using drag-and-drop. Go to Windows "My Computer", and you should see a "Mobile Device" icon. Double-click on this icon, and it should open up the files and folders on the Pocket PC.
• Infrared - If your Pocket PC and desktop computer (or other PDA, phone, etc) both have infrared, you can beam files to and from your Pocket PC. It's a case of lining up the infrared windows and using the apporpriate software the beam files
• Bluetooth - If your desktop computer and Pocket PC have Bluetooth, you can beam files in either direction. For more on Bluetooth, see our Bluetooth Pocket PC section
• Memory card - If your Pocket PC takes memory cards (such as MMC or SD), you could get a card reader for your PC, and use that to transfer files
• Email - A last resort, but you could email files to an email account, and then configure the Pocket PC to download emails from that account. Not ideal, but may help if you're trying to get a small file and away from your normal desktop. More on using Email on our connectivity page.

For problems with ActiveSync, see our page dedicated to Microsoft's PC synchronisation solution, Activesync

We offer some pages of help on this, as follows:

• Connecting to Email and the Internet (two box solution)
• Connecting to Email and the Internet (one box solution)
• Connecting with Bluetooth
• Connecting via Mobiles with GPRS
• Connecting with Wi-Fi
• Using WAP

You may come across Pocket PC software asking you to pick one of these options. These acyronyms represent the processor (CPU) type that powers each model of Pocket PC, and the options represent earlier days of Pocket PC development, where an application had to be compiled for a specific processor.

Just about all of the more recent Pocket PC 2002 / 2003 / Windows Mobile devices are either 'ARM' or 'PXA' (Intel XScale), and in just about all cases, ARM apps should also work on XScale processors. Early Casio Cassiopeia devices were MIPS and the early HP Jornadas were SH3.

If you see software making this distinction, it may indicate that the software may have been complied a few years ago, and therefore may not run on the latest machines. If in doubt, check with the software author.

Pocket PC devices support a number of different text input methods. When you're in a place where you can type text (such as the Word or Notes applications), you should see an icon in the middle of the bottom toolbar - a picture of a pen or a ketyboard. Tap this to open a pop-up menu that offers the following input methods:

• Keyboard - A small tappable keyboard
• Transcriber - Supports handwriting recognition
• Block Recogniser and Letter Recogniser - Two different ways of inputting text, one letter as a time, as you draw them on the screen

If you're looking for more information on PocketPC devices, and how to get the most from your PDA, consider subscribing to Palmtop User.

This full-colour magazine carries articles and information about the Pocket PC and Windows Mobile Operating System, and features reviews of software, as well as hardware reviews, articles and a host of information relevant to all users of handheld computing.

The team behind FileSaveAs are regular contriubutors to Palmtop User, compiling the magazine's online feature On The Net