Pocket PC Handbook (Paperback)

by Dan Hanttula (Author) "Congratulations on your purchase of a Pocket PC..." (more)
Key Phrases: memory applet, lowercase mode, mobile favorites, Pocket Excel, Pocket Word, Windows Powered (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review
This book may be four times as big as your Hewlett-Packard Jornada or other Pocket PC, but it's worth reading if you're a new user of the little computers. Pocket PC Handbook is an everyday user's guide to the HP Jornada, Compaq iPAQ, and Casio Cassiopeia lines (among others) of handheld computers and the software that runs on them. The HP devices seem to get more explicit attention in these pages than the others, but the competitors' common operating system makes the book equally useful for owners of all. Author Dan Hanttula knows how to reveal the features and shortcomings of software without being dry, and he emphasizes practical tricks and shortcuts wherever possible.

The book breaks its subject down into logical units (pieces of software like Pocket Office and Pocket Streets) and then subdivides those units by task (using Paste Special in Pocket Excel, editing and removing Pushpins in Pocket Streets). It includes sequential instructions in many cases, but rarely as numbered steps--rather, it is written in paragraph form, addressing variations and potential errors as they become relevant. A chapter called "Advanced Personalization for Your Faithful Companion" reveals all sorts of excellent details, and a section on "Ten things every user should change in the Control Panel" will have most readers' Pocket PCs powered up immediately. --David Wall

Topics covered: The Pocket PC line of handheld computers, including models in the HP Jornada, Compaq iPAQ, and Casio Cassiopeia lines. This is documentation for ordinary users of these personal organizers who haven't explored all of the capabilities of Pocket Office, Pocket Streets, and the Pocket PC time-management tools, multimedia utilities, and games.

Review
"An excellent how-to book --- useful, practical, comprehensive, and easy to read... I recommend it without reservations." -- AOL Pocket Press Review March 17th, 2001

"I found it useful and thought it was an easier read than the other two PPC books I have..." -- Pocket PC message board user, March 6th, 2001

"The book is throough and quite useful for beginning and advanced users alike." -- Pocket PC Magazine, July 2001

"The guide is a great resource... specifically for the Pocket PC." -- PocketPCpassion.com, March 5, 2001

"There are those who say that had Microsoft paid more attention to Hanttula's suggestions, Windows CE would be... #1" -- Pen Computing Magazine, Feburary 2001

"This book is the best single-source reference to the power of the Pocket PC." -- Booksite.com, March 10th, 2001

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 479 pages
• Publisher: John Wiley & Sons (February 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0764535684
• ISBN-13: 978-0764535680
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 7.3 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #554,122 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

44 of 44 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Fantastic Book, More tips and tricks then you'll ever need, May 1, 2001

By	William Castello (Rio Rancho, NM United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Dan Hanttula's new Pocket PC Handbook is, without a doubt the premier Pocket PC book on the market today. As most of you loyal reader/surfers know, I was not very impressed with the first book on the pocket PC. It seemed to me that it had been rushed to press. Information in it didn't always work and it just felt off a notch. The "For Dummies" book is... well, I don't use those, much :)

In comes Dan with the new Pocket PC Handbook, commissioned by Hewlett-Packard. While this book may seem to be Jornada specific, it really isn't. All the chapters use Jornada illustrations, but the information applies to any Pocket PC. Dan has really hit the mark with this book!

The initial chapters give an overview of the hardware and software that comes with the Pocket PC. Some of the information here is Jornada specific, but you have to expect that. The next set of chapters cover getting the most from the built in applications on every Pocket PC. This is where this book really starts to shine. Dan covers hints and tricks that will help any user, regardless of their experience. The benefit of his having used the Pocket PC for a while shows, everything works as advertised and Dan has top-notch advice. The best part is that Dan offers great tips on how to customize each of the apps for your own needs, all the while explaining things. What a great approach!

In later chapters, he covers other applications that are available for the Pocket PC, including Avantgo and other well known freeware/shareware apps. He also covers different hardware available, but this is mostly for the Jornada user. The next section is all about customizing and personalizing your Pocket PC. Once again, the information here is useful and it works! These are must have chapters.

The last two sections cover items like how to interact with the Palm crowd and how to understand the limitations of your device (these aren't desktops :). Lastly, Dan covers the future of the Pocket PC platform. More good information here :) The appendixes list useful FAQ information and some great websites.

Generally, when I read a computer book, I can always find something I don't like. Not so with Dan's book. The information is timely, accurate and incredible useful. Dan's book gets 5 stars from me, an I highly recommend that you run, not walk, to your favorite book seller to buy it, no matter what Pocket PC platform you use!

32 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very useful, well organized and readable, February 28, 2001

By	Ellen Craw, Ilium Software (Ann Arbor, MI) - See all my reviews

Useful, well-organized, and very readable, this book is appropriate for users at any level. The (Hewlett Packard Official) Pocket PC Handbook is organized so to be useful for beginners, intermediate and advanced Pocket PC users. It starts out with a few chapters covering the basics, then moves on to detailed chapters covering the built-in applications. The later chapters cover more advanced information, including personalization, optional accessories and recommended third-party applications. The last 2 sections of the book cover problems and future technology, and 5 appendices contain FAQs, troubleshooting info, internet resources and other helpful information.

What makes this book such a standout, in my opinion, is the way it covers real-world use of the Pocket PC, rather than being limited to just the Pocket PC itself. For example, one of the beginners' tips is to put your name on the outside of the case, not just in the settings (too many people learn that one the hard way). There's a whole chapter about how to exchange information with Palm handhelds and other PDAs, information about external keyboards and replacement styli, and detailed information about synching Pocket PC information with cell phones and other (non-Outlook) applications and even the atomic clock. Rather than "How to Use Pocket Streets" you'll find sections like "Finding Food, Transportation and ATMs". This book is solidly in touch with the reality -- not the theory -- of day-to-day Pocket PC use.

The book's cover has an HP logo, and all the actual photos (as opposed to screen shots) of Pocket PCs show the HP Jornada, but except for a few specific sections, the information in the book is every bit as useful to Compaq iPAQ and Casio Pocket PC users as it is to Jornada owners. It is very much a Pocket PC handbook, not a Jornada handbook.

This is an extremely useful, well-organized, readable book. I'd recommend it to anyone who has -- or is seriously considering buying -- any kind of Pocket PC.

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars In-depth and VERY useful!, February 28, 2001

By A Customer

Although I own a Compaq iPAQ, I purchased this book on the advice of a friend. Designed for people who own a Pocket PC and want to use it to its fullest potiential, the "Handbook" is 25 chapters and 5 appendixes of truly helpful information. My favorite sections are Ten things every user should change in the control panel, ActiveSync: desktop communications for maximum speed & security and the Improve your text entry accuracy section. Character Recognizer users will also appreciate Appendix E, a complete list of all of the symbols you can write with the recognition program.