It-Wouldn't-Be-A-Palm-Computer-Without Award
There are two kinds of Palm computer users: those who use their trusty handheld straight out of the box and never add any functionality, and those who download new software to their machines. OK, there are probably other types of Palm computer users, but work with me here. While there are thousands of add-on products to download, there are two products that are so intrinsic to boosting functionality that they should probably be built-in.

HackMaster by DaggerWare
The PalmOS system software is fine as it is, but there are just some things that can only be done by bypassing it entirely. Unfortunately, writing and installing a system patch is a huge pain, and almost sure to provoke conflicts with other patches. HackMaster is Edward Keyes' solution to these woes. It provides a standard method for managing, installing, and uninstalling system extensions. Virtually all system-level utilities for the Palm device use the HackMaster interface. Without it, the Palm computer would be a much less powerful and convenient device.

AportisDoc by Aportis
AportisDoc has become the industry-standard for displaying and interchanging electronic text and books of any size on the Palm computer. Text consumes large amounts of your Palm device's limited storage space. The DOC format stores this text in a more efficient, compressed form, enabling you to carry larger and more documents. Thousands of electronic books and useful materials are available today in DOC format, including reference works, weather reports, HTML codes, the Bible, postal and country codes, bus and subway schedules, travel guides, and sports schedules. We cover some of these each month in the PalmPower Book of the Month Club column. It should be noted that TealPoint also offers a DOC viewer, called TealDoc. But we've had some problems with TealDoc and the "standard" was the original tool developed by Aportis, so we've decided to give them this award.

Product availability and resources The following products are our Cool Tools winners. We've arranged this section so you'll be able to find the award winners according to category. There are loads of links here and some great products to check out. Click picture for a larger image. PIM City ListMaker is available from http://www.synsolutions.com. ToDo Plus and Memo Plus are available from http://www.handshigh.com. DateBk3 is available from http://www.gorilla-haven.org/pimlico/. BugMe! is available from http://www.hausofmaus.com. Action Names and SalesWarrior are available from http://www.iambic.com. Lotus Organizer is available from http://www.lotus.com/home.nsf/tabs/organizer. Be on the Outlook Desktop To Go is available from http://www.dataviz.com. Pocket Journal is available from http://www.chapura.com. Show me the money QuickSheet is available from http://www.cesinc.com. FCPlus Professional is available from http://www.infinitysw.com. QMate is available from http://www.wco.com/~sdakin/qmate.html. Database engines JFile is available from http://www.land-j.com. MobileDB is available from http://www.mobilegeneration.com. Graffiti replacements TealScript is available from http://www.tealpoint.com. Jot is available from http://www.cic.com. Most essential to putting out PalmPower Launch 'em is available from http://www.synsolutions.com. TealPaint is available from http://www.tealpoint.com. It-Wouldn't-Be-A-Palm-Computer-Without Award HackMaster is available from http://www.daggerware.com. AportisDoc is available from http://www.aportis.com.

Claire Pieterek is a long-time Palm handheld user. On a mission to ditch her Franklin Planner, she bought her first--a Pilot 5000--in May, 1996. She currently owns a Japanese-language Sony Clie 650C, a Sony Clie 710C, and a Palm Zire 71, among others. She is most at home in Chicago and Kyoto, and is a student of life, the universe, and Japanese.