Software for portable devices

A friend showed me a couple of neat little programs for my PocketPC. Both are fairly cheap and are downloadable from the internet.

• Passwords Plus: A password database that synchronises with your desktop and PocketPC. And it’s password protected so you can keep prying eyes out. In addition to passwords, you can store all sorts of other information such as Frequent Flyer numbers, bank account numbers, as well as all those website registrations you have to keep track of. Available from http://www.dataviz.com; cost: $29.99 US. (Price rechecked Dec 2007 – still the same!)
• CityTime: A great companion for travellers or anyone needing to know the time in another city quickly. You can have up to 16 cities predefined, and can click on a world map to see the current time at many more locations. Also gives you the distance between cities, international telephone dialling codes, sunrise and sunset times, and ‘at the minute’ time zone shading to tell you whether it’s day or night in the city you need to contact. And daylight saving time in all locations is automatically updated on changeover. Available from http://www.codecity.net; cost $14.95 US (price rechecked Dec 2007 – still the same!)

[This article was first published in the December 2004 CyberText Newsletter; links and prices rechecked in December 2007.]

Portable freeware collection

The Portable Freeware Collection is a list of software that you can easily take from PC to PC (for a full definition of ‘portable freeware’ see http://www.portablefreeware.com/about.php)

(Thanks Stuart B for this recommendation; link last checked December 2007)

The freelancer’s toolset

The Freelancer’s Toolset: 100 Web Apps for Everything You Will Possibly Need – “These applications may suit contractors who work at sites where PCs are locked down, where it’s hard or slow to get approval to install your own tools, or if you just want a central web-based calendar or to-do list.”

(Thanks Stuart B for this recommendation; link last checked December 2007)

Gizmo’s 46 best-ever freeware utilities

Gizmo’s 46 best-ever freeware utilities “lists the recommended utility in each category, along with one or two alternatives that might suit you better depending on your circumstances. This list is kept up-to-date (e.g. if something better comes along or if a previously free tool goes commercial). There’s an extended list including another 70+ categories which you can get by subscribing to Gizmo’s excellent free newsletter.”

(Thanks Stuart B for this recommendation – Stuart says “So far I’ve found Gizmo’s recommendations to be 100% good.”; link last checked December 2007)