The four solutions reviewed here are: the Palm's built-in applications; Action Names by iambic Software; PhoneLog by Hands High Software; and Call Tracker by Standalone Software. To varying degrees, each helps you maintain order in your telephone communication.

The built-in solution
Palm owners can use many of the device's built-in features to track phone calls. I have used the To Do List to track outgoing calls (since they require action on my part), and the Memo Pad to record incoming calls. The Palm's built-in Phone Lookup feature makes copying the name and phone number from the Address Book easier. An attached note provides space to jot down a lengthy message. Palm's shortcuts feature allows users to write short commands that insert date, time, or common phrases such as "call back" or "left voice mail". For more information on using the shortcut feature, see "Maximize your Graffiti with shortcuts" in the January, 1998 issue of PalmPower.

Categories can be used to sort phone calls, or a single category named Calls can group all calls together. Once calls are completed, they can be checked off. The To Do List has options to display or hide completed and future To Do items, which keeps things looking orderly. A due date and a priority can be assigned to the call to prioritize the importance of individual calls. The built-in Find can help to find specific calls, for example by contact name or project. You can HotSync. This makes all the call information available in the Palm Desktop or other conduit-enabled application.

There are some serious shortcomings to the built-in solution. This solution spreads call information among three applications. Copying and pasting between the Memo Pad and the To Do List for incoming and outgoing calls is very tedious. If you want to set a reminder to make an important call at a specific time, you would need to manually copy and paste the information in to the Date Book. Some outgoing calls result in left messages, requiring another person to respond before the communication is completed. Some task management applications, such as Outlook 98 have "Waiting on someone else" as a setting for the status of a To Do item, but the Palm's To Do List items can only be unchecked or checked (i.e., incomplete or completed). I found trying to use the To Do List for call management like trying to put square peg through a round hole. It is difficult to track telephone tag, in which callers trade voicemail back and forth, before getting in touch.

The Palm's built-in Phone Lookup feature only looks up names by last name or company name, depending on how addresses are displayed in the Address Book. I have them displayed by last name, which prevents lookups by company name, and first name is also not an option. If the person to call was not available at the primary telephone number (selected in the "Show in List" property of a contact detail, and the only phone number copied by Palm's Phone Lookup feature), then you would need to open the Address Book , find the contact, look up the other telephone numbers (e.g. mobile, home, other), and manually copy and paste these other numbers to the call entry one number at a time.