PALM PDA Computers

[Stardust]

Does anyone use these little gizmos? There are a lot of cheapies on ebay, I don't know much about them, so which models are any good, or indeed not so good.? I see there are quite a lot of astro programs available.

Dave

[Macavity]

Doubtless a very personal thing, but despite my "background in computing", I had always been reluctant to buy such a thing. (I wasn't really a "filo-fax man" either!). But I was pleasantly surprised with my cheap 'n' cheerful Palm Z22. It will do quite a lot of things, including run several Astronomy Software packages. No opportunity for upgrading, no external memory, small screen - Indeed PalmOS may eventually be ousted by Windows. But don't be too afraid of the "entry level" tag - Such a basic thing might enable you to decide if you like the general principal, before progressing to something grander!

P.S. I like Ebay, but might be tempted to buy from a dealer. It is not unknown to get a dud - Battery won't hold charge, buttons fail? Also I wouldn't bet my LIFE (or much!) on a basic device controlling a "GoTo" system, should that be your aim! Cheap PDAs may have non-standard connectors/interfaces - You'd have to check...

[The Warthog]

I got one about seven years ago, and found it to be a life-changing device. I had never had a to-do list that worked for me, or been able to keep track of my appointments. I was fairly good at keeping a telephone list, but things kept getting lost. With the Palm Pilot, even if I lose the device, everything is still on the computer, and you can actually use the PP desktop without plugging in the device.

I have a couple of basic astronomy programs in it, but for most things, I find the screen too small. The messier program is useful for finding difficult stuff, sometimes.

[GordonCopestake]

I use an OLD palm3 with startrack on it to give me AltAz co-ords for my dob, it depends on what you want it for. You can pay as much for a palm as you can for a pc these days. Dont forget you can buy a brand new laptop from dell for £299!

[The Warthog]

I sometimes copy the IF information from Heavens-above to the PDA scheduler. That's great for remembering when to go out and look, and where to look.

[Stardust]

Thought I'd have a dabble, just picked up a palm zire31 with a 128mb card for £19 on ebay. A friend has one and it looks like it will do the job, we'll see.

DAve

[PeterW]

Astromist is supposedly a very good telescope controlling util, my old Palm doesn't do colour, so I cannot tell how good the prog is. Worth a look.

Cheers

PEterW

[Stardust]

Thanks, I'll look that one up. I have downloaded the Planararium program which I'm finding is very good indeed. Got to be one of my best bargain buy toys for a while.

Dave

[fatblokestu]

Hi,

Just for info, I use a Palm Zire71 which has a colour screen and is very good. I have downloaded a programme called 2sky - go to www.2ky.org - which I find very useful. I always have it with me and can easily check what's up there without needing a laptop or anything else. There are additional databases of fainter stars and you can add comets or asteroids if you want.

Worth a look anyway, I have been using it for several years, have not tried anything esle so don't know how it compares but I think it will run on most Palms

hope that helps

cheers

Stu

[The Warthog]

I'm impressed! That just might be worth the investment. I could throw away all my freeware programs.

[PeterW]

As we all fear, Palms are a dying breed. Astromist has just relased a beta version for the Pocket PC. I know this is not good news for Palm users, but it allows me to give it a try..... I like the look of it a lot.

Cheers

PeterW