Pocket Informant Evo 2008 - Exclusive First Look!!!

First & Exclusive Look!: Pocket Informant Evo 2008 Alex Kac of WebIS has kindly asked 4WinMobile if we wouild like a 'First Look' at the new Pocket Informant release scheduled for later this year. Naturally our answer was, YES! This is an early Alpha release but gave us and hopefully you, our members, an exclusive look at how the product is developing and an insight into just how much effort goes into such a release, especially with such a far reaching product. As this is an Alpha release, I've not made any reference to the stability of the product as there are areas that aren't finished yet. That said, its remarkably well sorted and looks extremely promising for the die-hard fans of Pocket Informant Thanks must go to Alex Kac at WebIS for the exclusive look at the PocketPC release. There is also a Smartphone release in parallel development.

Introduction Pocket Informant is one of those applications that seems to have been around since Windows CE first came about! I, personally, have been using it since it's 2002 release. It has always aimed to take the separate Pocket Outlook elements and combine them into a single, usable, coherent application. It allows fast switching between the various elements and adds functionality to the management of your day-to-day activities such as Appointments, Tasks, Contacts, Reminders such as linking and journals. The application has built up a strong and loyal following worldwide and after a few hours using the application you do wonder why you struggled with the Pocket Outlook elements for so long! It's main strength is the ability to combine your PIM data in a single manageable application that allows you to link things together, add notes and many other things that make PI the truly versatile application it is.

Installation PI 2008 installs as per all other PocketPC applications but I have been using cab files due to the fluid nature of the changes to the builds as Alex and his team refine and stabilise the application ready for release. After running the cab file and deciding where to install (see screenshot above), you are presented with the EULA page. What struck me was the warning of potential instability that could arise if installed on a Storage Card. This is nothing new with PI and I nearly always install to the Storage Card due to the hefty memory footprint of the main application. To date I have had no stability issues and not even noticed it being slower either. Once you're done with installation you can move on to the application proper....

New Functionality One of the first things I noticed when prodding around immediately after installation was the new Views screen. This is very nice and easily allows you to switch between views. The top row of icons is the Agenda, Day, Week and Month views. Underneath are the Notes, Tasks, Contacts and Search icons. The reason they are laid out this way is not only to make things a little clearer over previous versions but also a nice little addition I will come onto below.... All that's required to view is a quick tap on the icon.

Nice Touches (literally!) Well, as you can see from the first screen grab to the left, there is a new 'mode' for the forthcoming PI release - Touch Mode! No more searching for that stylus when switching views - the reason for the large icons now becomes aparent - you can use your finger to select them! Touch Mode can be switched on and off with the menu item. The other change is, I assume, to address PI's Achille's Heel - the massive number of Options that can be set. This could (and did) leave new users burdened with a bewildering array of settings to mess with! This is the My Informant section.... This option is designed to make using the application simpler by having preset templates for typical types of users. By selecting a template users can select a type that best suits their usage of the application. This is found under Roles and Features and is explored in the next section.

Roles and Features There are a number of templates available, such as Appointment focused etc., I selected Power User to see what was available. Even selecting a template allows a certain degree of flexibility in the selection of features as required. To a degree this overcomes the lack of ability to create a personalised template. I must say this is very welcome for new users to the application as it does take some of that initially daunting pain away from them. Well done WebIS!

Full Screen Mode Also available under the My Informant menu option is Full Screen. Selecting it immediately brings up a notice advising how to get back from it. I have shown a screenshot here as I felt it was a little unclear and I will let Alex know my concerns but in case changes aren't incorporated into the full release. This means the way out under WM5 and WM6 is the hardware soft keys. However, once selected, Full Screen does what it says on the tin and is there I assume for people having to manage large numbers of appointments or tasks and avoids tedious scrolling to get to the item you wish. Pressing one of the soft keys gets you back out to Normal View.

Example Appointment One strength of PI is the ability to add new items but set all sorts of options at the same time. In this example I've set a new appointment and as you can see there are a number of options you can set and at the bottom you can add notes, link contacts and various other activities. Once completed you can see the fruits of your efforts in the Day agenda view.

PI 2008 is shaping up to be a great upgrade for existing PI users but is certain to make itself a lot less daunting to new users. Alex has agreed to allow us access to the builds as they are released so we at 4WinMobile can keep you abreast of the developments in this important Windows Mobile community release. Watch this space!