My suggestion to SoDeog is to find some way to integrate a system extension "hack" that makes things go more smoothly. One idea might be to create a hack that's a special stroke. For example, the stroke might activate a SyncTalk action that would beam the current record. This approach might better fulfill the vision of seamless communication.

For more information on hacks and where to obtain the free HackMaster extension manager, see the Product Availability and Resources section at the end of this article.

Recipients have to search for the new record
Unfortunately, SyncTalk does not give you any notice of which record you just received from the other device. All you know at the time of receipt is which of the three supported record types SyncTalk is receiving. So, after you've been beamed an address, calendar, or memo entry, you better remember some of the details if you ever want to find it again, or you've just buried data in the bowels of your device.

It would be handy if SoDeog had somehow included the ability to go to the beamed record directly once the item is added to the built-in application databases. With the received record onscreen, you could easily add whatever personal notes you wished.

No support for beaming multiple records… yet
Very commonly, you'll want to share a block of appointments, contact information, or memos with a colleague or client. You'll have to wait for the next version, according to SoDeog. Right now, you're stuck sending one record at a time.

Beamed information isn't received "cleanly" on Palm devices
Using the advance release version of SyncTalk Professional from SoDeog, Greg and I found that when he sent me some items, the beaming process left a hanging dialog on my Palm V. I'm guessing this is due to the normal advance-release-bugs and it's not present in shipping versions. It was easy to clear up, though, by tapping one of the hard application buttons.

Where's the ToDo List support?
Since there's no support for beaming ToDo or Task Lists, I can only assume SoDeog must have run into a rat's nest of database formatting and filtering problems. Obviously, ToDo support is something that should be included in a future release.

Ouch! My wallet!
Typical commercial Palm applications run from about $12 to about $50.l At $29.95, SyncTalk Professional is in the middle of the road, if a bit pricey for what it does. The product might be more worthy of its price tag if it didn't have a long laundry list of minor limitations. I suspect the current pricing will limit widespread use, particularly given the fact that each "pair" of users will be spending a combined $60 for the privilege of bridging the data divide. At this time it is unclear if SoDeog will offer free upgrades to future versions.

Summary
SyncTalk got two thumbs up for utility. As said before, it just works. However, it is a little clumsy and tap intensive, particularly on the Palm unit side where the lack of multitasking makes running the application necessary for receiving and sending beamed information. Coming enhancements should improve the usability dramatically.