Mobile Technology - Writing on the Run
By John Pugh
I’m a big fan of using the right tool for the job when getting words down on (virtual) paper. I like to write but I hate dragging anything out in the field that I don’t have to. On the other hand, I’m not very good at transcribing my journals from a notebook into a document file.
I wrote a series of newspaper articles during both my Appalachian Trail thru-hike and Mississippi River trips for the Greensboro News and Record. During those trips I was largely dependent on public libraries for their computers and Internet access to post articles and photos. While libraries are wonderful about letting me use their systems, this isn’t the most optimal set-up for many reasons. Hours of operation, distance from where I was staying, and just the issue having to go to one more place just to upload 1,000 words and a few photos. There’s got to be a better way. Maybe there is. For the next trip I’m planning on using something like a Palm TX with a folding keyboard for writing and photo management. As is stands now, I do most of my writing at home on an old Handspring Visor and folding keyboard that I can’t manage to kill. I love the convenience of just whipping out the PDA and hammering out a few words at the drop of a hat. For just getting words on paper, it’s hard to beat. The battery life on those old black and white units are incredible—I’ll go for about three weeks on a set of AA’s. The downside is that I don’t have WIFI or a card reader for the photos with that setup. We did use a Pocketmail email device for much of our short emails on the river. It was very easy to upload and download text emails, but no provision for photos. There’s an audio modem on the back, so you just dial a toll-free number from any phone, hold the unit to the receiver, then get you emails. Very handy. I’ve also demo-ed a unit from Alphasmart called a Dana. It’s a Palm-based unit that’s the size of a thin laptop, with a great keyboard and usable black and white screen. Batteries last about 40 hours, and it has built-in (but slow) WIFI. For just basic word processing, this is thing is great, and it’s built like a tank. But then there’s no real provision for photos.... What I want is a flash-based PDA with lots of memory, built-in WIFI, folding keyboard, and a battery life of at least 20 hours. That, and a benevolent benefactor to foot the bill for another long trip!
John Pugh has over 5,000 miles of backpacking and paddling experience, including a thru-hike of the famous Appalachian Trail. In 2005, he and his fiance paddled 2,150 miles down the Mississippi and Atchafalaya rivers to raise awareness for the Audubon Society's Upper Mississippi River Campaign. His book on the expedtion is being released in October, 2006. More information about their Source to Sea expedition, including their journals, sponsors, photographs, river resources can be found at http://www.sourcetosea.net. #John_Pugh
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