Memory
Because Palm applications require very little memory, the 8MB of RAM contained in the unit is more than sufficient to contain all the data I need to have at hand.

Hardware and software add-ons
In addition to the basic Palm IIIc with its built-in applications, I've added a variety of hardware and software to help perform the role of a laptop replacement. The hardware additions include the following items.

GoType! Keyboard
The first hardware accessory I added was a GoType! Keyboard, from http://www.landware.com/gotype/index.html. It's pictured in Figure A.

FIGURE A


The GoType! Keyboard has a clamshell design. Roll over picture for a larger image.

Although Graffiti provides a very reliable input method for the Palm device, printing characters one-by-one with a stylus is just too slow for taking meeting notes or entering large amounts of data. I needed a small and portable keyboard to supplement Graffiti.

I could have purchased the Palm Portable Keyboard (at http://www.palm.com/products/keyboard), but I chose the GoType! Keyboard for three reasons.

First, not only does the GoType! serve as a keyboard, but it's also a cradle. This allows me to leave the cradle that came with my Palm IIIc permanently attached to my home PC system. The cradle function of the GoType! allows me to synchronize my Palm IIIc with a PC and, more importantly, to connect a data cable to it. The value of this will become obvious when I next discuss using the Palm IIIc with a cellular phone.

Secondly, the GoType! works great sitting on my lap during rides on a commuter train. The Palm Portable Keyboard will fold up if placed on your lap.

Finally, the GoType! Keyboard comes with TakeNote! software, a very nice DOC editor that I'm using right now to create the initial version of this article. A DOC editor allows you to create documents far in excess of the 4096 maximum character length imposed by Palm's built-in Memo application. TakeNote! automatically synchronizes its DOC files with a PC. The GoType! Keyboard also comes with a thesaurus application, but I've never used it.

Sprint PCS phone and data cable
I wanted to be able to have wireless access to email and the Web from my Palm IIIc. I already owned a Sprint PCS Samsung 2000 phone, so I bought a data cable for it, and now it works great with the Palm device and GoType! cradle. The Samsung 2000 acts just like a Hayes-compatible modem to the Palm computer and can be used with my normal ISP (Internet Service Provider) to access the Web and email.

I like using a Sprint PCS cell phone rather than a dedicated wireless modem for two reasons. For one, I think the coverage offered by Sprint PCS is truly outstanding. I've never traveled anywhere in the US where I had any problems in using it for either voice or data purposes. There are no roaming charges, and long distance calls back to my local ISP are free.

Secondly, the cost of a data cable ($35) is a small fraction of what I'd spend for a wireless modem, and the cost of Sprint PCS service is also quite reasonable. The plan I have gives me 1000 minutes for $49.95 a month, and I pay an additional $10.00 per month to be able to use these minutes for either voice or data. Actually, I've yet to pay the extra $10.00 because the first six months of data service are free. Also, I've never come close to exceeding the 1000 minutes of airtime in a month.