Road Warrior's Checklist

8 things to remember when you hit the road with your PC Companion.

BY RANDOLPH SLY

It's been a while since I've traveled with a laptop computer. I abandoned it a few years ago for the HP 100LX Palmtop PC, which provided the on-the-road computer capabilities I needed in a form factor that slipped easily into my pocket. The laptop has stayed on my desk for several years now, and my palmtop journey has continued through various generations of Windows CE units. Both the Handheld and Palm-size PC have become my constant traveling companions.

However, the convenience and relative stability of these devices can lull you into a false sense of security. A few years ago I was sitting in a restaurant 300 miles from home. My appointment was late and I needed to make some important notes on my Palm-size PC before we met. I slipped my unit out of the carrying case and ­ no stylus! Another time I took my seat for a critical meeting and turned on my Handheld PC to access important notes. Quickly I realized I had "charged" the H/PC the night before from an electrical outlet that was controlled by a switch on the wall. When I turned the light off to go to sleep, I turned off the power adapter. Other unexpected things can happen: broken displays, missing files; the list goes on and on.

Over the years these incidents have contributed to the formation of a "Things I Won't Leave Home Without" checklist list, so that I'm prepared for the worst.

Things I Won't Leave Home Without

PC or CompactFlash storage cards with a backup of my Pocket Outlook (PIM) data -- No matter how much Windows CE improves, flawless operation can never be guaranteed. Several years ago something corrupted my whole Contacts data file. Fortunately, I had all PIM data backed up on a PC storage card and quickly restored all the data.

Extra battery(ies) and backup battery -- I always carry an extra rechargeable battery (fully charged). This has been a life-saver in long meetings. Whenever I recharge my battery, I always swap it with my extra battery. This way both batteries are alternatively kept active and freshly charged. My P/PC runs on AAA batteries, so a package of Alkaline's is always in my briefcase.

AC power adapter -- In addition to recharging (most H/PCs and many P/PCs now use rechargeable batteries), AC power is essential for telecommunications, which can drain batteries quickly. I leave my CE travel kit packed at all times. It includes a second AC power adapter I bought especially for travel. Call me lazy for not wanting to crawl under my desk, but I always know I have the adapter with me.

Extra stylus -- I carry at least two extra styluses in different locations. One usually travels in my Palm-size PC case and the other in my briefcase. While I lean toward slim cases for my Palm-size PCs, many cases have a place for a stylus. I encourage people to leave the unit's stylus in its usual place and put another one in the case. You can even get attractive pen/stylus combination devices that you can keep clipped to your shirt pocket.

Modem card and cable, Phone line extension cord (8' minimum), Line cord coupler -- Every hotel setup is different. I carry an eight-foot phone cord and a line coupler. You can now buy extension cords in a retractable style for convenience. I purchased mine through a mobile specialties store, but now most of the major office equipment chains carry these. When traveling overseas, you will also need to check on phone adapters for the special country in which you are staying.

Information I won't leave home without

Know how to do hard and soft resets, and when to do them -- A soft reset is like turning your desktop PC off and on again. You loose any unsaved documents that happen to be open at the time, but nothing else. If your PC Companion locks up and you can't get it to do anything, a soft reset is a relatively safe procedure. A hard reset usually involves removing main and backup batteries. It erases data files and any third-party software programs you've installed on your PC Companion. You would only consider it if a soft reset doesn't work, and then only if you had a complete backup of your PC Companion. Some PC Companions come with a built-in rechargeable backup battery that cannot be removed. In this case, the manufacturer's user manual will tell you how to disable the backup battery for a hard reset. Know how to do these before hand, or be prepared to spend a long time waiting on an 800-number technical support line. Your PC Companion manufacturer's technical support phone number would also be a good bit of information to have with you, on a card in your wallet for safety's sake.

Have a record of your ISP Access Numbers, DNS entries, etc. -- Nothing is more frustrating than being cut off from Internet access while you're traveling. It had been my habit to always check my ISP's homepage for local access numbers before I travel. In more recent years I have just downloaded the page of numbers as a text file on my PC Companion. I also have the 800 access pre-programmed as a dial-in configuration, just in case.

Corrupted dialup configurations can occur, as well as lost User ID's and passwords. Be sure to have a record of all this data in a location other than the Remote Networking configuration itself. You can have an entry for your ISP in your Contacts list, with the configuration information in that entry's Notes page. Or you can keep it in a third-party program like eWallet.

Some ISP's require IP (Internet Protocol) and DNS (Domain Name Server) addresses in order to access the Internet. If you haven't already configured your PC Companion, all of this information is contained in the Dialup Networking on your desktop PC. The same is true for incoming and outgoing mail, your POP3 and SMTP Settings.

Checklist: Don't leave home without it
  • Storage RAM with backed up PIM information
  • Date of last backup ___________
  • Serial cable and ActiveSync software on disk
  • Modem Card (if you don't have a built-in modem)
  • Phone extension cable (8 foot minimum)
  • Phone line cord coupler
  • Extra fully-charged battery(ies), extra backups
  • AC power adaptor
  • Outlet adaptor (if traveling overseas)
  • Phone outlet adaptor (if traveling overseas)
  • Extra stylus (at least one)
  • ISP phone number(s) where I am going ________

  • My User ID is _________
    My password is ________
    My e-mail User ID is ______
    My e-mail password is _______

  • My mail-server setup is as follows:

    POP3_________________

    SMTP_________________

  • I know how to do a hard and soft reset of my unit

  • My unit is packed properly and safely

Be careful how you pack your PC Companion

PC Companions are safest when traveling in their own protective case. Even after waist-high drops, my units have continued to function. Also, be careful how you pack your PC Companion. While returning to the United States from England, I opened my H/PC to do some work in an airline lounge only to find the screen a scrambled mess! I had not dropped the H/PC or subjected it to any unusual jolts or jars. The only thing different I had done on that trip was to carry it in a backpack instead of a briefcase. I discovered that I had packed my H/PC in such a way that I was bending the unit whenever I put the pack on my shoulder.

The moral: PC Companions don't bend well!