Mike Elgan writes an interesting piece in Computerworld on the cell phone-PC Connection that, if nothing else, points up just how much of an interesting transition we are in out here in mobile land. His thesis is that PC makers, especially those rushing to join the handheld market, should make cell phones work better with PCs rather than just adding new features that most users don’t take advantage of anyway.

Two examples from the article stand out for me:

He argues, well, that quite a few cell phones can serve as broadband modems, and that most users don’t take advantage of this. I think one of the reasons for that is the complexity that exists in doing so. But Elgan goes further and points to some interesting “awareness” technology that would let the computer know when you’re close by or not, that was abandoned because of a lack of hardware support.

In the second example, he points to solutions that avoid syncing in the current traditional sense, but instead lets you use the cell phone as your document/data transport device to move from location to location, having your data and your mobility at the same time. Intriguingly, this seems to ignore the entire movement to “the cloud” where your data resides out there somewhere and you can access it from any device, anytime, assuming of course you have connectivity. As we keep moving higher and higher into the cloud we’re moving more and more away from the traditional syncing methods. Business and the enterprise is still the long term key here, and watching that transition take place is fascinating. I created quite a stir with my “game over” post on Apple and its recent announcements. If you’re paying attention, Apple is working to bridge the enterprise and consumer markets as it carries us further and further into the cloud (or is that the Air?). Loren Heiny has some interesting thoughts on this as well.

I’m going to be writing more on this in the coming weeks, but I’ve really been enjoying working with the Beta of Evernote’s Web solution that allows me to collect data and seamlessly have it synced between my Tablet PC, my desktop, and my handheld. For me, personally, it is a game changer and I think that is the type of game we’re all headed for in the future. Provided, again, that you have connectivity.

John Hill has put up a nice reminder to us all about using a Tablet PC to do RDP.  The issue??  Not being able to use the TIP.  There is a solution:

A solution has been around for some time, but a client reminded me about it today so I'm sharing it with you. ritePen from EverNote is an alternative to the Microsoft tablet input panel. In addition, ritePen gives you the ability to "write anywhere", a feature found in the first version of the MS TIP but subsequently removed.

Keep an eye on John's blog too while your at it.

EverNote Corporation the maker of the popular handwriting recognition software, RitePen, has announced the release of RitePen 2.7. The new version includes:

• Spanish handwriting recognition (more languages are in the works).
• Import of large word lists into custom vocabulary to further improve recognition of industry and user specific terms.
• Advancements in digital ink technology, desktop integration and remote operation with corporate Citrix and RDP installations.
• Enhanced Vista compatibility.
• Multiple fixes and improvements

RitePen is also bundled with a number of devices including Fujitsu's LifeBook P1500/P1600 series, Dialogue's Flybook, and others. There is a free 30 day trial available and the software costs $29.95. Here's the link.

EverNote has announced that RitePen and their notetaking software is going to be bundled with Fujitsu Tablet PCs:

From emailed press release:

EverNote® Corporation announced today that the company’s flagship information capturing software will be distributed with all new Fujitsu LifeBook® and Stylistic® notebooks and Tablet PCs. In addition, all LifeBook P1610 ultra-portable notebooks that ship with Genuine Windows® XP Professional will come equipped with EverNote ritePen® advanced handwriting recognition technology.

“For mobile professionals on the go, EverNote’s information capturing software offers a quick and easy way to increase productivity,” said Paul Moore, senior director of mobile product marketing, Fujitsu Computer Systems. “EverNote – combined with Fujitsu LifeBook notebooks and tablet PCs – improves the mobile computing experience.”

The folks behind Microsoft’s super secret killer app, OneNote 2007 (which includes OneNote Mobile), better take notice. EverNote is hot on their heels and closing fast, at least by the looks of the public technical preview of EverNote for Windows Mobile. I got a whiff of this yesterday from good buddy James Kendrick and have been giving it a try on my Sprint (HTC) Mogul and I am more than impressed with what I see. Keep in mind this is a technical preview and not a finished product yet and they caution that it is an unsupported product at the moment. In fact they say this is more of a market test than it is anything else.

The home run that EverNote has hit here is excellent Inking ability on your mobile device that can then be synced (in a fashion) with EverNote on your Tablet PC. Though EverNote is a great Tablet PC application, I’ve never found it to my liking, but from the looks of this technical preview that I may be reevaluating that stance. You can take four different types of notes, text, Ink, photo (if your device has a camera), or sound recording. Again, I’m very impressed with the Inking and how well it transfers from the Mogul to my Tablet PC.

If you’ve been looking to give the Tablet PC application EverNote a try, today is the day. It is availalbe for free today only on Giveaway of the Day. Head on over to check it out. As of this writing, you’ve got about 18 hours left on this deal. And if you’re still on the fence, check out this GBM InkShow.

Via jkOnTheRun and Nomad83 in the GBM Fourms

Five years ago, on November 7 2002, Microsoft launched Windows XP Tablet PC Edition. Bill Gates himself was on-hand to launch the new platform at a large press event.

"The launch of the Tablet PC marks an exciting new era of mobile computing that is limited only by the imagination of its users," Gates said. "The Tablet PC is a great example of how computers are adapting to how people really work, whether they're taking notes in a meeting, collaborating wirelessly with colleagues or reading on screen. We're just scratching the surface of what is possible."

As it comes time to celebrate the 5 Year Anniversary of Tablet PCs, it's only natural to look at how far we've come since that first operating system release. So let's take a brief walk down the dusty paths of Tablet PC history and look at how far the OS has evolved in five short years.

Good news for those EverNote ink notetakers among us. EverNote Corp has just released EverNote 2.2. See below for their announcement on new features, etc. Notice that EverNote is 60% off until November 30th - $19.95! Can't beat that.

Also, be sure to check out our InkShow on EverNote.

We are pleased to announce the release of the latest and greatest EverNote, version 2.2, which offers the following new features:

- Improved search for printed and handwritten text within images
- Auto-import snapshots from your camera phone
- Google Desktop Search compatibility
- Universal Clipper with image markup
- Arranging and editing notes in separate windows
- Note List with sorting by notes attributes
- Image editing
...and numerous other enhancements

Current users, please open EverNote and check for updates from the Help menu. Paid users of desktop and portable versions and beta testers of version 2.2 are eligible for a free upgrade to 2.2.

Users of the free version of EverNote can buy EverNote until November 30th, 2007 for only $19.95, a 60% discount!

There is a lot of focus these days on notetaking applications, especially with the popularity of OneNote, EverNote, and more.

Investors Business Daily has a good wrap-up article on the various notetaking applications on the market today. It is interesting that they have taken notice of what many of us in the Tablet PC community call OneNote: Microsoft's best kept secret.

OneNote: Some call this 4-year-old application, updated last year to the 2007 edition, one of Microsoft's (NASDAQ:MSFT) MSFT best-kept secrets. Though bundled with some versions of the software giant's Office suite, the note-taking software has gotten little attention outside a dedicated core of fans and Tablet PC owners.

That could be because Microsoft doesn't, hmm, let's see - MARKET IT?

Interestingly enough, they leave EverNote off the list, but they do include a lot of the more popular webbased notetaking applications. Definitely a good read for those wanting to learn more about notetaking.

Evernote is now shipping 2.0 of the popular note taking and data collection software.

EverNote gives users a single place for all types of notes and information and to make them instantly accessible at anytime, in any place. EverNote makes it easy to store and quickly access typed and handwritten memos, webpage excerpts, emails, phone messages, addresses, passwords, brainstorms, sketches, documents and more.

There are a slew of new features including an improved UI, advanced capturing of content, and greatly improved category managment, along with an enhanced backup system. You can check out the list of features here.