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Tuesday, April 04, 2006
Limpag: Keeping a list in your phone?
By Max T. Limpag
Celltalk
ORGANIZER. Most phones now come with a built-in organizer for tasks and meetings. While these organizers are convenient, I find manually entering tasks and then cycling through the adding of data for date, place and reminder alert using the phone keypad time-consuming and difficult.
Most modern phones now have USB connectivity and a software suite that allows the phone to be managed using a computer.
These software packages make the management of task entries in the phone considerably easier since you will be using a full keyboard.
Sony Ericsson phone users have it even better because they have the option of using Float’s Mobile Agent (fma.sourceforge.net), an excellent phone management software that is open source and free.
LISTS ARE BETTER. There are those, however, who prefer to manage tasks using a single list. I prefer my tasks lists contained in a single file arranged hierarchically.
If you are among those who prefer keeping track of tasks through lists, there’s a simpler and better way to manage your tasks through your phone—by using .txt files.
Text files are lightweight and very easy to maintain. You can either do this with your word processor of choice (Microsoft Word or Open Office Writer) or Notepad.
I do not know which of the current phone models can read .txt files but I know newer Sony Ericsson models do. I’m sure the current line of multimedia phones can read these files.
THE SETUP. I had set out to try running a wiki variant in the Sony Ericsson K750i. I’ve long depended on TiddlyWiki, a single webpage that you can edit using your browser, for my tasks list and notes.
You can run TiddlyWiki on a flash drive. This setup, called wiki on a stick, ensures that you maintain only one version of the file and protects you from overwriting notes and lists while trying to synchronize different versions.
Since the K750i also serves as a flash memory, it can serve as a repository of a TiddlyWiki. This is good enough if you only want to run a wiki on a stick set up. The problem with this is that you cannot properly view your wiki in the K750i because TiddlyWiki uses javascript, which the phone browser cannot render properly. You can read your notes but it will be wrapped in error messages and code.
I gave up on TiddlyWiki and decided to try using a .txt file on a whim. I copied my TiddlyWiki tasks lists and pasted it into a .txt file. I connected the K750i to the PC using the USB cable and saved the .txt file in the “Others” folder in the files directory.
I then tried viewing it in the phone and it was rendered properly.
For Bisaya stories from Cebu. Click here. (April 4, 2006 issue)
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