The Search for Unity (Updated)

First, let me say that busy is an understatement, so it's (obviously) been quite a while since my last update. This is a short but sweet segue into an entry of mine from last summer about being able to access everything digital from one central device and location.

The quick answer is that applications for Windows Mobile 6 have been the answer to most of my prayers.

First and foremost, you may recall that our corporate solution for groupware is Lotus Notes. This makes us a little unconventional and finding helper applications becomes a little more difficult, but alas, it's what we're stuck with. For this, I've found a perfect solution: Commontime mNotes. It seamlessly synchronizes my e-mail, contacts, calendar, and to-do list with the built-in WM6 counterparts. I even get the little buzzes and chimes for meeting alerts. (Without them, I'd be late to every meeting I'm supposed to attend -- if I even remembered them at all.)

The downfall of Commontime mNotes is the $15.00 monthly service fee, but it's a small price to pay to free yourself from the shackles of your desktop PC.

Next on my list of groovy things is an old stand-by: IMAP e-mail. Thankfully, most e-mail services now have an IMAP option, and all of the ones I use are free. Yahoo, MSN, and Google Mail all have direct IMAP mail access for free, so I can access all three services from the messaging application on my WM6 device. I set each one up to check my e-mail at varying intervals (my Yahoo and gmail accounts are for personal use, for example, so I only have my phone set up to check those a few times per day). I realize this is nothing new, but it's something that a lot of people forget to do. Why bother logging into a desktop PC when all you want to do is read your joke of the day or send a quick note to Aunt Bunny telling her she has a mustache?

These two simple things have shortened the amount of time I spend at my desk more than I could have imagined. More convenient is the fact that my phone has a full qwerty keyboard, so composing e-mail is not much of an issue. I also happen to spend nearly 3 hours per day commuting, which gives me ample time to check my schedule and fire off a couple quick e-mails. (Yes, I'm "that guy," but I'm responsible about it -- I wait until I'm on the limited access highway and I'm not in a group of other vehicles before pulling out my PocketPC.)

Now, bear in mind that without a data plan, all of this stuff is pretty much worthless unless you're in a Wi-Fi area -- which doesn't happen for us normal folks very often.

All of that said, I still have a long way to go to restore my sanity, but things are definitely looking better, and I'm hoping to pass along another update in short order with some other tips for simplifying your connected presence.