The stopwatch screen
Each application's stopwatch screen contains similar elements. Each shows an elapsed time, and allows you to calculate lap and split times. Each also shows the current date and time (Chronos doesn't show the seconds of the current time) and displays a running time down to the hundredth of a second. See Figure C and D for a comparison of each screen.

FIGURE C

The Stopwatch screen for Chronos displays the lap time only after one has been recorded.

FIGURE D

Note that PilotClock remaps the hardware buttons instead of giving you on-screen buttons.

Chronos limits the number of lap times displayed to five, and brings up another window to clear those five if you try to do a sixth. This window allows you to clear the lap times, and start over. PilotClock, on the hand, will allow up to 99 lap/split times, but only displays the last one in the window.

As mentioned earlier, PilotClock basically "locks" the power on when the stopwatch is in use. Chronos doesn't do this unless you've chosen to disable auto-off in Preferences. However, if you're timing something with longer than two minute laps with Chronos, the power will go off, rendering the stopwatch reading useless. Turning the unit back on shows that the stopwatch doesn't continue to "run" while the unit is off.

Each application allows you to control the stopwatch in a different manner. Chronos' stopwatch is started and stopped by simply tapping the screen and gives you on screen buttons for Lap and Reset. PilotClock re-assigns the hardware buttons to be Start, Stop, Lap/Split and Reset.

The timer screen
Once again, each of these applications is very similar when we get to the Timer screen, with each showing the timer (hours, minutes, and seconds), and the current date and time. Once again, you'll notice that PilotClock, in Figure E, uses the hardware buttons to control the timer's functions, Chronos, shown in Figure F does the same using on-screen buttons.

FIGURE E

PilotClock uses its own alarms, allowing you to set varying tones.

FIGURE F

The Chronos timer screen also displays the world time.

You'll notice that the PilotClock screen has information about setting the alarm "volume" and duration. PilotClock uses its own alarm sounds, whereas Chronos uses the standard system alarm. An advantage to using PilotClock is that you can specify the alarm sound and more importantly, the alarm duration (set in seconds).

An interesting feature of Chronos is the Auto Timer (set in Preferences). Setting this allows you to run a continuous timer at a specified interval. For example, setting the timer to one minute with Auto Timer would count down to one minute, sound an alarm, then start counting down to one minute again.

Once again, PilotClock locks the PalmPilot's power on when in use, regardless of the setting in its Preferences screen. Chronos will turn off at your specified auto-off interval, and will sound an alarm when the time expires. However, due to the limitation in PalmOS, which checks for alarms on one minute intervals, a Chronos timer might potentially be up to one minute late in sounding if the unit is turned off. Confused? Well, when off, the PalmPilot only checks alarms every minute. If you set a 30 second timer in Chronos and turn the unit off, it will sound when the next minute interval is passed.