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CONDUIT SHOOTOUT
Palm Desktop and Microsoft Outlook go head-to-head
By Bob Draper
You've just purchased a new PalmVx. With excitement and anticipation you open the box, connect the HotSync cradle to your computer, and pop the installation CD-ROM into the drive. Then, as the installation proceeds, you see the dialog box shown in Figure A.
FIGURE A
 
If you have Microsoft Outlook, you can choose to synchronize with it instead of Palm Desktop. Roll over picture for a larger image.
Many Palm handheld organizers ship with Chapura PocketMirror, a collection of conduits that allow you to synchronize your Palm device with Microsoft Outlook. For more information, see http://pocketmirror.com. Now you have a choice to make. You can synchronize your Palm device with Palm Desktop or Microsoft Outlook. Which should you use?
While this choice may seem like a no-brainer, there are several advantages to using Palm Desktop. After all, although Outlook is a powerful personal information manager, it wasn't designed from the ground up to work seamlessly with your Palm device. Palm Desktop was.
As for me, I jumped in with both feet when I learned I could synchronize with Outlook. Though I had only used Outlook for email, I figured that if I could retire the Palm Desktop, then I would have one less program taking up space on my already crowded task bar!
Instead, I discovered that synchronizing with Outlook was one of those "the good, the bad, and the ugly" sort of things--and the good, bad, and ugly varied from module to module. If I knew then what I know now, I'd have proceeded a bit more cautiously.
But what will work best for you? The only way you can find the answer to that question is by comparing the individual modules side-by-side. So let's get going.
Outlook Calendar vs. Date Book At first glance, Outlook Calendar and Palm Desktop's Date Book look quite similar. But Outlook Calendar offers a number of features that make it more functional and easier to use.
My favorite feature is Outlook's Work Week View, shown in Figure B.
FIGURE B
 
Outlook Calendar offers a customizable Work Week View. Roll over picture for a larger image.
As the name implies, this view only shows the workdays, and it's customizable--you can specify when your workday begins and ends, as well as which days comprise your workweek.
For example, I work four 10-hour days, Monday through Thursday. I was able to set up Outlook to reflect that. I like being able to look at my workweek at a glance. The Week View in the Palm Desktop's Date Book, pictured in Figure C, always seemed crowded.
FIGURE C
 
Palm Desktop's Week View feels crowded. Roll over picture for a larger image.
In Palm Desktop, I used to toggle between the Day and Week Views. Now I keep Outlook's Work Week View up full time.
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