Cross Platform Computing

with my Handheld PC

By Bill Carson

I am a home-based field expediter for a major aerospace corporation, and I use my Handheld PC (H/PC) everyday. As a field expeditor, I visit suppliers and verify that they are doing all they can to meet production schedules. When in the field, I need access to my files and documents. This is where the H/PC comes in handy. It is small and light, and holds all the documents and files that I need. The catch is that I must use it with both my company-supplied Apple Macintosh and my personal Windows 95 desktop PC.

I use the Mac as my connection to the company computer network 3000 miles away at the home office. Through it I access email and other resources on the network. I typically receive original documents in MS Word or Excel format. These files are sent to me as e-mail attachments, which I receive on the Mac. These files relate to material production status, test results, etc.

Since I spend a lot of time away from the office, I must take some of this information with me on my H/PC so that I may reference the data and/or edit the files in the field. But as you may know, the Windows CE H/PC was not designed to connect with a Mac. Fortunately, transferring information between the two platforms is a relatively simple procedure.

Mac to PC to H/PC, and back again

Below I have listed the steps necessary to retrieve files from the Mac and import them into a Windows CE based machines. This procedure assumes that you have a Mac that can read from and write to PC-formatted disks. It may seem like a lot of work at first, but after a few times, it isn't that difficult.

1. Open document in Word or Excel on the Mac.
2. Name and save the document to the Mac hard drive. I typically save these files to a folder titled Transfer". These files are "transferred" from the Mac to the Windows 95 machine.
3. Insert an IBM formatted floppy disk into the Mac.
4. Copy the named document onto the floppy disk.
5. Insert the IBM formatted disk, with the named document, into the Windows 95 machine.
6. Open the document and save it with the appropriate file extension: .doc or .xls
7. Open up H/PC Explorer and transfer the document into your H/PC. The H/PC should convert the file from Word or Excel into the pocket version with no loss of formatting or data.
8. Open the document on your H/PC and edit while in the field. Save any changes.

Reverse the process to transfer the data back to the Mac.

That's all it takes!

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