Before, I could never really find a compelling reason to carry a personal digital assistant, or PDA. It didn’t fit in the pocket very well and there was already a cell phone hanging on the belt. Most of the time the PDA would reside on the desk in its cradle.

And the wireless technology, called Bluetooth, that is used to link the PDA with the computer has been around the market for some time with mixed results. In fact, after getting burned enough times and having to run to Teddy for stress relief, we decided to give it a rest.

But Bluetooth wireless technology has continued to acquire supporters and has even set up its own group dedicated to the product.

What has prompted new interest here at Allied is the converging technology. The Audiovox XV6600WOC is a PDA and wireless telephone integrated into one device. It was released by Audiovox in late December. This particular phone is really becoming useful.

So now to the Bluetooth. I wanted to be able to sync with the desk-top work-station as I came into the office without having to place the device in the cradle. After working with it a little bit, all is fine. During this adventure I did notice that not all Bluetooth devices yet like one another. But it is useful to exchange business cards and download your email directly off the PDA and much more.

You can dial any of your Outlook contacts easily by simply choosing contacts and touching the phone number. You do not need to enter the phone number. In addition, you may leave voice messages to yourself (i.e. notes) play music, use the XP media player and more.

If you have been burned by Bluetooth, as I was, and have decidedly refused to go back and begin using it, don’t refuse now. The technology is here and working (for the most part) quite well.

Several new car manufacturers are offering it in their new (mostly upscale) models. Here is a hint, though. If you are planning to add Bluetooth to your current vehicle, then check carefully into ISO adapters. Most American auto radios do not support ISO and therefore what is described as plug-and-play becomes something far different.

Interestingly enough and the reason I chose to write about Bluetooth is this: Recent studies have shown that only about 20 percent of Americans realize what Bluetooth is and while our European neighbors are at about 60 percent.

Bluetooth is interesting, improved and will expand dramatically. I guarantee it.

As a programmer I have compiled a list of favorite sites I visit first to answer my questions, or to remember stuff I’ve forgotten.

Whether it’s ASP, VBScript, JavaScript, .NET, XML, HTML, or whatever, here’s a short, but rich list that should help you find what you need, or point you in the right direction:

www.W3Schools.com
Bar none the overall best site for basic information on just about everything from HTML, DHTML, JavaScript, XML, .NET, PHP, you name it. The site is easy to explore and you can even take a quiz to see what you remember (or don’t).

MSDN.Microsoft.com
MSDN is great, but this is the one link there I use all the time for web programming. It's a fantastic HTML/DHTML reference. The easy-to-use interface helps you find answers and many helpful examples. This is also a good central starting point inside MSDN for finding other links to .NET, CSS and more.

www.SQLJunkies.com
As the name implies, this site is all about SQL Server. This is a great community of SQL gurus discussing current and beta SQL Server platforms. The free registration gives additional benefits like newsletters, discussion forums and special offers.

www.SlayerOffice.com
This is a JavaScript treasure trove. Just visit it once and you won’t be disappointed. The source code is freely available to implement on your sites.

www.CSSZenGarden.com
Learning by example is one of the best ways to go. If you need to know tricks about Cascading Style Sheets (CSS), this is the place. Find a design you like and download the CSS style definitions to see how it was done.

Have you heard the term "Paperless Office" in your business and hoped that it would happen or perhaps heard the term and not understood exactly what it meant? The answer lies in what is described as imaging technology. Imagine, some day all of those file cabinets can become a thing of the past.

Electronic documents can be created manually, as in word processors or spreadsheets, or they can be scanned images of paper documents, like receipts. You typically store these documents on your own PC at home or perhaps on a network server at work.

The problem arises when, six months later, you or someone else needs to produce, in "hard copy" form, that specific document which now resides somewhere in electronic form. The real question now becomes: "how do I find it?"

Many different software packages will help organize your documents and make retrieval easier by the use of key words like author’s name, subject, or date filtering, or some other searchable attribute. Your software storage and retrieval software should include, at a minimum:

1. Separation by document type (examples below):
a. Human Resources
b. Customer Service
c. Job Packets
d. Accounts Payable
e. Accounts Receivable

2. Indexes of documents as needed for the different types:
a. Employee SSN
b. Customer Name, number
c. Job number
d. Invoice Number, date etc.

All user interfaces in your storage and retrieval software should be modifiable by the administrator so that as new areas are addressed, they can be added or changed. Keep the master plan as simple as possible but detailed enough to find what is necessary.

Remember, although it is easy to find what you did yesterday, it is harder to find what someone else did yesterday. Only with careful planning will you find what someone else did two years ago before leaving the company.

Due to the complex nature of these software tools, understanding the proper setup and use of them is critical. Review the documentation of the storage and retrieval software to make sure you, and/or your co-workers, agree on the proper level of "techno-babble." In other words, make sure it is useable.

Also included with a top-line document retrieval and storage system should be the ability to convert documents from one format to another so that the storage can be standardized to the greatest extent.

Another of the included features which should be part of the package is electronic digital signature. This feature allows a document which has been stored electronically to be introduced as legal evidence should that become necessary.

Document storage and retrieval systems really fit well into the computer world and you are going to see more and more of these systems introduced. Not all are user-friendly, so before you plunk down the hard earned cash be sure you know and understand the systems.

Teddy Rating ***

What is a Task, you ask?

Microsoft Outlook has the ability to create an “electronic” task list, reducing the number of scraps of paper lying around reminding you to do something.

In four simple steps you can be on your way to staying on task.

1) Click the “Tasks” button on the bottom left hand side of your navigation pane.
2) Look for the word “Tasks” on upper left of task box and right under it look for “click to add a new task.” Double click there and you are on your way to reducing the clutter, and being more productive.
3) Fill in the subject line, start and due dates and then add a reminder that will pop-up before the task is due.
4) Click the “Save and Close” button.

Now look at your task list or Outlook Today view and there it is. You can access your open tasks by clicking on them and update progress. When you have completed the task, click on the empty checkbox next to the task to put a checkmark in it and cross it off your list!

If you would like to learn how to assign tasks to other people in your office, stay tuned. I will explore that feature soon.

(Instructions are for Microsoft Outlook 2003 – steps should be similar for other versions).

Teddy rating ****

Taking a class on any computer software can be a mind bending experience in many ways. Think classroom training is too expensive? Don't have time to take a class? Feel intimidated in front of other students? Think the class might be paced too fast for you? Consider the alternative many people take: buying a book and laboring through it an hour or so every night after work or school. It might take you several days or weeks to work your way through a book, even ones that promise you can "learn it in 24 hours".

All of these reasons are valid, and we have heard them all, before our students complete our training classes, that is. Our training classes are full of useful information, presented by instructors that use the software to solve the same kinds of problems you need to solve. We help you make the most of your precious time and money by skillfully guiding you through the training material. We teach all ages, the timid, and the bold. Our goal is to make you comfortable with key features of the software that will save you time, increase your confidence and productivity, and reduce frustration in your daily use of the software.

Whether you are learning something new, or just brushing up on something old, I believe the three keys to good training are having an instructor who will take the time to completely answer your questions, who helps you out when you’re stuck, and hands-on lab work. It is also important that the individual lessons can be easily re-created once you get back to your home or office. All of our students receive professionally printed student guides which include sample data used in the lab assignments.

Bring your questions, or examples of things you have tried to do, with you to our classes. We will help you come up with a solution, and follow up with you AFTER you complete the class, if needed.

At Allied, we provide more than just a traditional "training class"; we provide real solutions to everyday problems. Expect quality in your learning experience, and remember the only dumb question is the one you don't ask.

At Allied, we believe that Knowledge is Power, and that knowledge can offer you opportunities you only dreamed of.

Spending too much time formatting text with the same font over and over again? Can you press the BOLD, ITALIC, and UNDERLINE buttons on the toolbar with your eyes closed because you've done it so many times?

Next time try using the "Format Painter" on the standard toolbar. It's the one that looks like a little paintbrush. Try these steps:

1. Click anywhere in the word (Assume the word "Monday" is formatted as BOLD and ITALIC, for example) that has the font format you want to copy to specify the formatting source.

2. Left click the "Format Painter" button on the standard toolbar to activate the Format Painter. Notice that the mouse pointer changes from an arrow to an "I-beam" with a paintbrush.

3. Click anywhere in the text that you want to copy the font format to ("Tuesday" for example). This step applies the formatting (BOLD, ITALIC) used in the text "Monday" to the text "Tuesday" and turns off the Format Painter.

Right now you are asking yourself "how does this save me time if I need to do this for more than one word in the document?!?"

If you left-click the mouse once on the Format Painter, you copy the font formatting to only one other word.

However, if you **double-click** the Format Painter button, it allows you to left-click on as many words in the document that need the same format (for example "Wednesday", "Thursday", and "Friday").

Pressing the Escape (ESC) key on the keyboard will turn off the Format Painter when you are done copying that font format.

If you like this tip, consider attending Allied Systems' Microsoft Word class to learn more. See our website www.alliedsystemsinc.net/training.htm for more information.

XP 2, oh my, what to do? Every IT person in the country and most home computer users have been scratching their noodles trying to determine whether or not to use XP2.

Well, I have some good news and some bad news.

Service Pack 2 for Windows XP installs what the "experts" call a firewall. My initial exposure to this was: "Boy does that term fit, this software makes me so burning mad that I need a firewall or at least a fire suit."

In the business networking world, you may be guaranteed one thing: Without proper preparation you will expose, perhaps, your central computing package to failure. In fact, one large financial firm sent explicit instructions to all of its users that they would NOT support their package if XP2 was loaded. Although they have now reversed their position, it was absolutely clear from the beginning that Microsoft had introduced a new era into the software world.

Since Microsoft has arguably introduced some less-than-top-drawer packages, software users and administrators have become, and rightfully so, less than eager to install "the latest and greatest."

There is even more good news – XP Service Pack 2 actually is effective in controlling some of the hacking and even some leaking of outside information. It is not and was not intended to be the "end all" answer and it is not, but it is a step in the necessary direction.

Now to the bad news. Most home computer users and not all IT professionals have taken into consideration the potential downside to not using the latest and greatest "upgrades?" which are offered by Microsoft. Take for example the above Financial Company. Suppose prior to the time they reversed their position on implementing XP Service Pack 2 their database experienced a problem where some individual breached the security, perhaps similar to the latest release of personal information by some credit organization. The next action by those people damaged by the information breach could be to arguably say that it was caused by inappropriate management of the computer systems.

Bottom line: You can’t live with it but it’s dangerous to live without it so buckle up for the ride.

Hint: If the service pack asks you whether or not to unblock a specific piece of software and you know what it is talking about, answer yes. Also check under the control panel for a new icon called "window firewall."

Windows XP 2 Service Pack
Teddy Rating *** (with pain)

What is it? – Spyware is a program which loads into your computer usually without your knowledge but sometimes with it. Read the disclaimers when you visit different sites. Spyware is not a virus but it is annoying.

What does it do? – Spyware causes unwanted advertisements to pop-up on your screen at random times when you are using the internet and sends information back to the originating company of the spyware.

What solutions – Microsoft recently (December) released a Fix for Spyware. It is available at www.microsoft.com/downloads at no charge.

Experience – The program easily installs and does remove the majority of the problem Spyware sites. Although other products seem to find more sites, this one interfaces easily with Windows and doesn’t cause lockups plus its free.

Teddy RATING = ****

The following introductory note is provided to explain Teddy ratings. Since Teddy is our four-footed person who keeps everyone and everything on-track, he has made it clear that he will be rating software, opinion articles and more.

You might wonder how he conveys the decision to others. Click here to see Teddy in action.

(Note he isn’t there yet but will be) You will see Teddy paw 1 time for each star (*).

RATINGS
1. One Star – Needs work
2. Two Stars – Tried hard but no cookie bone
3. Three Stars – Safe to use or read but could be better
4. Four Stars – Nicely done almost perfect
5. Five Stars – Once in a while

We may need to add other rating categories as time progresses.