Is That a Mac In Your Pocket??
by Gary Woods

Up until now Mac users have been pretty much confined to using Palm OS based handhelds because they work right out-of-the-box with the Mac OS. But, with the release of PocketMac 3.0 Mac fans can start taking a hard look at Pocket PC 2003 based PDAs or SmartPhones.

After you install PocketMac 3.0 you'll find a new icon and folder on your Mac Desktop that opens PocketMac's iSync-like control window and puts a small PocketMac icon in your Finder toolbar. From the toolbar icon you can open PocketMac's preferences panel, which lets you specify which files to sync.

Right from the get-go PocketMac synchronizes tasks and calendar entries from Entourage or iCal contact data from Entourage, iCal, or NowContacts, and mail from Entourage or Mail. It can also sync files, songs, photos which it automatically reduces, and web pages which can be stripped of graphics.

The integration of PocketMac with standard Mac applications is great. During installation, it adds a folder to your default web browser's bookmark list, where you can save web pages that you may want to sync later. It adds similar folders in iPhoto and iTunes, so you can quickly specify files to sync from within those applications.

PocketMac even includes a theme which can be used to replace the Windows Default screen making your PocketPC look totally Mac. The direct price is $41.77 at http://www.pocketmac.net and requires Mac OS X 10.2.6 or later.

If you have any suggestions or questions for me please drop me a note at garyandlaury@santabarbaraproperties.com or see my column on the Internet at http://www.santabarbaraproperties.com or call me at (805) 729-0910