By Chris Phillips
"What's the status of the XYZ project?" your boss asks. The XYZ project is only one of the eighteen projects you're currently managing, and you can feel your face start to flush as your mind goes blank. It sure would be nice if you had that information on your Palm device so you could reference it quickly and assure your boss you have everything under control. TrackInHand (at http://www.PalmInHand.com/TrackInHand.htm) is a new project management tool that may help you do just that.
There are a variety of project management products available for the Palm OS ranging from free databases for ThinkDB and HanDbase to commercial products that cost as much as $50. TrackInHand is one of the newest products in this market and was developed so Palm device users could organize and track a variety of projects using just their Palm computers. TrackInHand allows you to organize your projects by category and then track the individual tasks associated with each project. The current and only release is v1.0, which the author freely admits needs to be expanded. As such, he's soliciting requests for additional features from the user community.
Installation and configuration
Installation of TrackInHand is performed in the traditional manner of adding TrackInHand.prc to the Install Tool and then performing a HotSync operation.
TakeInHand sports an interface very similar to the built-in To Do application included with the Palm OS, and it functions in very much the same manner. When you open the program, you'll arrive at the blank TaskInHand main screen pictured in Figure A.
FIGURE A
When you begin, TaskInHand shows a blank slate.
Projects are created by tapping the New button. The dialogue box pictured in Figure B will open to get you on your way.
FIGURE B
It's time to create a new project.
The only thing you have to enter here is a unique project name. You can also assign your project to a category at this point. If you check the "Go To Tasks For This Project" box, you'll see the Tasks screen once you tap the Done button.
When you tap the New button, you'll see the screen shown in Figure C.
FIGURE C
Add tasks to your project here.
The only information you have to enter is a description of the task. You also have the option of assigning the status, open date, due date, and priority, and you have the ability to add three sets of notes. If you're ready to enter multiple tasks for this project, you can put a check in the "Add Another Task" box. Once you tap the Done button, you'll see another blank task form so you can add the next task. Otherwise, once you tap Done, you'll return to the task list for this project. Tapping Done again will return you to the main screen where you'll see the title of your new project.
