If you don't have an IR-enabled printer, please be aware that it's possible to purchase an IrDa printer adapter from Actisys (at http://www.actisys.com) or a serial-to-parallel cable from Greenwich Instruments (at http://www.greenwichinst.com). The PrintBoy manual has more information about these two options. I used a Palm IIIc and a Hewlett Packard 2100TN for this review.

Installation
Installation follows the normal Palm procedure. Just unzip the software archive and use the Palm Desktop install tool to install PrintBoy onto your Palm device during your next HotSync operation. Once that step is completed, you've already finished the hard part. From there you simply tap on the PrintBoy icon on the Palm unit's launcher screen, which will bring you to the main PrintBoy screen, as seen in Figure A.

FIGURE A

The main PrintBoy screen allows you to choose what type of information you want to print.

Selecting a print job
You can choose to print your addresses, appointments, to-do items, memos, mail messages, or whatever text has been copied to the clipboard. Depending on the applet you picked, you might be asked to select a date range, as seen in Figure B.

FIGURE B

This screen is used to choose the dates for the appointments you wish to print.

Alternatively, you might be prompted to select a particular memo or To Do List category, as shown in the upper righthand corner of Figure C.

FIGURE C

You can choose to print all of your To Do items or just a certain category.

Once your selection is made, simply point your Palm handheld's IR port toward the one on your printer, and as long as you're within a few feet, your print job will start almost immediately.

Print quality
What sets PrintBoy apart from some other Palm printing solutions is the output. Instead of unformatted text, you get real graphical output that's virtually indistinguishable from what you might receive if you were printing from the Palm Desktop on your PC. The only difference I noted was the lack of footnotes detailing the exact time of printing, but I certainly don't miss them.

I even prefer the PrintBoy printout in several ways. The print, especially on the month view, is a bit larger, the dates are bolder, and the overall effect provides much easier viewing. The Memo Pad printouts are certainly clear and professional enough to hand to your boss or coworkers without any additional cleanup, as long as you're careful with your spelling.