It was a stressful day at the office. With your favorite canned drink in-hand, you are just settling into your recliner at home. Your PDA is nearby, about to remind you of a great new Star Trek movie for TV. You pop the top, never expecting the spray that shoots up from the can. You reach for the Pilot (tm) to protect it, but you fumble. Your fingernail scratches the screen, it tilts and the droplets flow under the frame, as the unit crashes to the floor. You just thought you had already had a bad day.
Since the first touch-screen PDA's appeared on the market, users have been distressed to find that the types of plastics useful for allowing one to see and touch, are not the most durable. Following are four simple ways to protect your investment.
1. Check your stylus. Scratches on the screen can impede your view. One potential source is the stylus. An inexpensive model made of a hard plastic, or one with burrs or defects on the tip, puts your screen at risk. The best models will have slightly flexible, somewhat softer tips, and a large enough barrel to control easily without bearing down against the screen. Simple 'refill' styles are available that fit standard pens. Some users have created their own McGyver-type solutions by modifying stick ink pens, but his requires a daring mindset.
2. Clean the screen. Keeping your screen clean is important. Abrasive dust or crumbs can lead to scratching, even with the most gentle stylus and writing style. We suggest blowing on the screen, then wiping it with a very soft cloth sprayed with Windex(tm) or an equivalent solution. NOTE: Spray the cloth, not the screen. The seal may not be tight enough to prevent the potentially corrosive fluid from straying into the circuit board behind the display panel.
3. Protect the screen. Some have suggested using Post-It Notes (tm) to cover just the writing area. However, these adhere poorly, can hide the permanent icons, impart little writing 'feel', and don't preserve the view of your written material. Sooner or later a fingernail, a pen, a cat claw, or some other hazard will mar an exposed portion of your Pilot with a memorable scratch. The Post-It solution provides no help here. Relatively expensive commercial screen guards (Concept Kitchen) are available for a few dollars each. Alternatively, you can make them for yourself and your associates for a few pennies each. To make 9 Pilot Covers you will need: One 8 1/2" x 11" sheet of clear plastic film. oFor Ink Jetoe styles work best. (More about this later.) A sharp paper cutter (preferably a rolling blade, or possibly a guillotine style)
1. Measuring along the 11" side, cut three 3 1/4" strips of plastic.
2. Discard the 1 1/4" edge.
3. Cut each strip, measuring along the 8 1/2" length, into three 2 1/2oe segments.
4. Discard the 1" edges. You now have 9 covers!
5. Gently slide a cover under the corners and edges of the screen frame on the Pilot. The rough surface should face up.
To change the covers as they get worn, scratched, or dirty, slide the cover into any corner, catch the edge, and pull up gently. Blot the surface first if you see any thing that might drop or spill onto the screen. The average life under heavy usage is about two weeks.
The ink jet films are designed with a micro-waffled surface to hold the ink as it dries. This prevents smearing on the otherwise smooth polymer surface. The pockets are too small to see, but you can feel that the surface is slightly rougher than the back. Fingerprints, dust particles, or splashed liquids accumulate in the pocketed surface, which protects the Pilot. However, it makes it impossible to clean, so you may wish to change your covers more often. The pockets also give a nice 'feel' to the writing surface.
4. Acquire a case. A single fall can destroy your PDA. The standard case issued with every Pilot offers very limited protection because the padding is not adequate. Cases available from U.S. Robotics (USR) or from office and luggage stores can provide better protection for your investment. Your choices are a matter of taste and style, rather than technology, provided you select one with sufficient cushioning.
These tips can save worry, loss of data, and expense. Try them and start insuring your investment now.
Oh, by the way... Have a great day!
All information contained within the magazine is ©PMN Publications 1996.