.KEYWORD peeditorial0102
.FLYINGHEAD FROM THE EDITOR IN CHIEF
.TITLE Big solutions from tiny SD cards
.DEPT
.SUMMARY Recently, Editor-in-Chief David Gewirtz has been giving a lot of thought to the tiny little SD card, a highly secure stamp-sized flash memory card. The more he thinks about it, the more excited he gets. When you read this article, you will too.
.AUTHOR David Gewirtz
Recently, I’ve been giving a lot of thought to the tiny little SD card. The SD (which stands for Secure Digital) card is a highly secure stamp-sized flash memory card. Ever since the introduction of the Palm m500 and m505, Palm handhelds have come with the ability to use SD cards.
Until recently, that didn’t really excite me. I mean, compared to Handspring’s Springboard modules that were promoted as capable of doing anything (including wacky applications like a personal massager that attaches electrodes to your skin and "provides a stimulating muscle workout"), the SD card seemed mundane. But, like I said, I ‘ve started giving the SD card idea more thought. And the more I think about it, the more excited I get. And you will, too.
As the editor of PalmPower and PalmPower’s Enterprise Edition, I can have pretty much any Springboard module I want. So I can have the MP3 player, the wireless modem, the regular modem, the camera, and more. In fact, I do have them. They’re in a cardboard box behind my desk. I’ve actually, on very rare occasions, used some of them. When I went on a long trip, I did use the MP3 Springboard module. Of course, by the time I reached the other coast, not only was the battery nearly gone on my MP3 player, it was also gone on the Handspring. I’ve used (with limited success) the wireless modem. But it’s big and bulky and hangs off the back of the handheld computer.
I have used, for the purposes of experimentation, the eyemodule, which is a digital camera module. It’s cute, but it doesn’t take pictures of the quality I demand. To be fair, I’m a pretty fussy photographer, and I still prefer film. The quality of a 640×480 picture without the benefit of flash or lens adjustment just doesn’t do it for me. As an aside, if you do want to see some of my photographs, along with other stuff on my personal Web site, feel free to visit http://www.Gewirtz.com.
Most of the time, these fancy Springboard modules live in the cardboard box. As editor-in-chief of PalmPower, it’s my sacred duty to try out all the Palm OS devices on the market. On those occasions when I need to use the Handspring instead of my m505, the only modules I take with me are an 8MB memory expansion, and the backup module.
So, I add some memory. And I carry an extra backup with me. Interestingly, these are two things you can do quite nicely with Palm’s SD Cards in the Palm m125, m500, and m505.
.CALLOUT While there may not seem to be a lot of sizzle to SD cards, it’s becoming clear that they’re the equivalent of a big, juicy steak.
This is where I began to think more seriously about the SD cards. Even though the SD cards don’t capture bad photographs or let me listen to music while draining my batteries, they do let me carry more information and make better and more consistent backups. While there may not seem to be a lot of sizzle to SD cards, it’s becoming clear that they’re the equivalent of a big, juicy steak.
Now, don’t get me wrong. I’m a big fan of both Handspring and Palm. It’s just that I think Palm may be onto something pretty special with the SD Card format that I don’t think has been given enough attention.
First, let’s talk price and storage capacity. The biggest Springboard module (in terms of memory capacity) I could find was the Hagiwara 16MB Flash Module, which lists for $114 on Handspring’s site. By contrast, when you buy a Palm handheld from Palm, you get a free 16MB SD card with your purchase. In addition, you can buy additional 16MB SD cards for $39.95. There’s a contrast. 16MB Springboard modules are $114, 16MB SD cards are $39.95.
But what if you want more? Palm doesn’t appear to sell larger SD cards (they really should). But since the format is a standard, you can buy a 128MB SD card from PC Connection (the Sandisk brand) for $138.95. For a mere $24.98 more than the 16MB Springboard module, you can get a 128MB SD card. That’s big.
Actually, that’s small. Way small. You see, SD cards are also much smaller than Springboard modules. Springboard modules, at about the size of a pack of matches, are considerably larger than their SD card counterparts, which are about the size of a postage stamp. You could easily carry six to ten SD modules in the space you carry one Springboard module. In other words, if you have a standard Palm handheld case, you could drop a few SD cards in the case, and it wouldn’t bulk up. You can’t do that with Springboard modules.
So, you might be somewhat excited by the idea of saving money or some space in your case. Now let me tell you what got me really jazzed. I decided to see just how much I could carry on an SD card. To give you an idea (and to make a somewhat timely Biblical reference), the entire Old Testament, converted to PDF or DOC format, takes about 300K. Since that’s a book nearly all of us can at least picture, it’s a good reference point.
.CALLOUT On a 128MB card, the size of a postage stamp, you could carry around the contents of (hang on, this is wild) a total of 256 books!
So, let’s be conservative and say a serious business book, a reference book, a computer manual, or something of the like would take about 500k. That means, on a 16MB card, you could carry 32 books. On a 128MB card, the size of a postage stamp, you could carry around the contents of (hang on, this is wild) a total of 256 books!
So, let’s think about this for a moment. You’ve got people going into the field, whether they’re sales people, service people, technical experts, consultants, attorneys, or doctors. You could equip your staff with a bunch of Palm m125 devices or m505 devices and give each of them an SD card or two. And in the space of a postage stamp, your staff could carry with them every single reference for your company they might possibly need or even imaging they might need!
I told you this stuff would blow your mind.
.CALLOUT The key is to realize that Palm computers can now become incredibly deep, mobile, reference libraries for your company’s field information.
You need to think about the brilliance of the SD card differently. Instead of wondering how you’re going to add gadgets to a slot on a Palm handheld, the key is to realize that Palm computers can now become incredibly deep, mobile, reference libraries for your company’s field information. And because you can store so much in such a small space, you can now have your people carry around information they might need, rather than just information they absolutely need. As a result, your staff will be far better prepared than they’ve ever been before.
As I write this, I’m looking at my bookcase. It’s about three feet wide, and it has about 200 books on it. If those books were stored on an SD card, that seven foot tall bookcase could be miniaturized to the size of a postage stamp.
Have a great New Year! See you next month.
.BEGIN_SIDEBAR
.H1 Product availability and resources
For more information on the Sandisk 128MB SD card, visit http://www.pcconnection.com/scripts/productdetail.asp?product_id=269315.
For photographs, along with other stuff on the personal Web site of David Gewirtz, visit http://www.Gewirtz.com.
For more information on Palm handhelds, visit http://www.palm.com.
.H1 Easy, flexible article reprints
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.END_SIDEBAR
.BIO
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