The last modem you’ll need

The modem isn’t dead, but it’s dragging, thanks to the sub-56K bit/sec limit of the V.90 standard. That’s just too slow, especially where digital subscriber line and cable modems are available.

With no prospect for higher-speed analog modems on the horizon, vendors are doing what they can to extend the modem’s appeal and life span. Multi-Tech Systems’ answer is to bundle every conceivable phone-line device into a single box and price the box very reasonably. Multi-Tech’s MessageSaver includes a V.90 modem with 14.4K bit/sec fax capabilities, an answering machine and a speakerphone, all in a box smaller and lighter than a videocassette.

Because MessageSaver is an external device, it’s powered up even when your PC isn’t, so it can take answering machine messages (up to 30 minutes worth) and accept faxes (as many as 30 pages) even when the PC is off.

The answering machine lets you choose between regular or answer-only modes; in the latter, callers only hear your outgoing message and can’t leave you one. You can record and store a different message for each mode, if you want to switch between the two, or use the curt message that comes with the product. You can play back messages through your computer’s sound card, the modem or a telephone handset connected to the modem. You can also retrieve messages from a remote location by dialing in and entering a four-digit security code, but the MessageSaver lacks voice prompts to lead you through that process.

A dialer application includes an address book with names and telephone numbers, but you can’t import numbers you already have in another application.

All the device’s functions are controlled by BVRP Software’s PhoneTools 2.0 application. One of PhoneTools’ big drawbacks is its inability to share the COM port to which the modem is connected. That means you can’t run a remote-control application such as Traveling Software’s LapLink Professional and PhoneTools at the same time.

I wasn’t too happy with the answering machine either. You can’t set it to answer in fewer than three rings, which is silly when you’re using it only for fax or data.

The fax capabilities of the software are basic but adequate for the occasional faxer.

The MessageSaver is a fine modem, and its other features are a nice bonus. If you don’t already have a modem or fax software, it’s a good package at a reasonable price. If you already have a V.90 data/fax modem, apply your budget dollars to Symantec’s TalkWorks Pro. At $140, it’s the Cadillac of voice/fax software.

Internet Explorer 5: Have it your way

If there’s a single word that best describes the new release of Microsoft’s Web browser, it might be “customizable.”

Users can tailor the look and feel of Internet Explorer 5 in unprecedented ways, and administrators can create custom-tailored versions with the exact configurations they want.

Administrators will like the Internet Explorer Administrator Kit. The kit lets you create an installation file that gives users a version of Internet Explorer 5 with the custom settings you choose. You can restrict users from changing settings in the browser and even some on the desktop – for instance, you can remove Windows’ Run command. You can then release your custom setup file to your users on CD-ROM or via a Web site. The only problem we had with the kit was its inability to preconfigure more than 50 favorites (Microsoft’s term for bookmarks) for users – a low number, in our estimation.

Interoperability advances

Internet Explorer 5 is a refreshing break from the typical autocratic Microsoft application. It plays nice with applications from other vendors. You can associate any e-mail or newsreader program with Internet Explorer 5 as helper applications.

The same holds true for HTML editing, and calendar and contact manager applications, though Internet Explorer 5 didn’t recognize Symantec’s Act! on our system.

Netscape bookmarks are imported automatically when you install Internet Explorer 5. You can now organize Internet Explorer 5 favorites in nonalphabetical order. Unfortunately, the two features don’t go together; when you import bookmarks they get reordered alphabetically.

Old dog, new tricks

Microsoft has learned a few tricks from Netscape. The first time you run Internet Explorer 5, it offers to make msn.com your home page, just as Netscape does with Netcenter. At least Microsoft asks. Internet Explorer 5 also gives you the choice of preserving your existing file type associations. Otherwise Internet Explorer 5 will make itself the default application for launching or viewing certain file types. If you want to keep your file associations, you have to know where to look. You’ll find the opt-out check box under an Advanced button during the installation process.

Internet Explorer 5′s history list is more helpful than Navigator’s. You can actually view which day you last visited a site. We wish, however, that history items were ordered chronologically and not alphabetically; that option is only available for the current day’s sites.

Microsoft created a new Links bar that’s analogous to Netscape’s Personal Toolbar. You can delete default links or move them out of that folder and replace them with links of your choice.

Let there be music

Internet Explorer 5 also has a few new sound tricks, such as an optional radio bar that lets you tap into feeds from a couple of dozen local radio stations, including National Public Radio.

You can also install a host of other linked products, including a new, enhanced version of Windows Media Player, a full-featured multimedia client, and Microsoft Chat, an IRC client.

Microsoft has added features that should be helpful for new users. For instance, an Internet connection wizard helps novices set up their connections, then deletes itself from the desktop.

There have also been a number of usability enhancements, such as autocompletion of URLs and the automatic launching of native editors for recognized file types – that is, Internet Explorer 5 will now launch Word to open a .DOC file.

The concepts of subscriptions and channels have been de-emphasized. Subscriptions are now called offline browsing. To designate a page for offline viewing, you have to check a box associated with that page under the Organize Favorites menu. The Channels button has been pulled off the button bar and out of Internet Explorer 5 and logically grouped with Active Desktop instead.

We still had a few minor quibbles with Internet Explorer 5. You still can’t show only text on the navigation bar buttons, though you can replace the default large icons with smaller ones.

And despite Microsoft’s assertions that it had made stability a priority, Internet Explorer 5 terminated abruptly twice in the week or so we tested it. Still, Internet Explorer 5 marks the first time Microsoft has released a browser that stacks up well against the shipping version of Netscape Navigator.

Tools make the Pilot

Last year I noted that 3Com’s PalmPilot had moved from high-tech toy to useful tool. Since then I’ve discovered a few more add-on utilities that make it even more valuable.

At the top of my list is Landware’s GoType keyboard. Flip it open, fit the Pilot over a serial connector at the top of the keyboard, and you have a full-function keyboard that makes text entry much, much easier. The Pilot stands at an angle that lets you see the screen as you type. The keyboard weighs less than the Pilot and requires no batteries. It includes several programmable function keys that bring up PalmOS applications, and even has two built-in stands for the stylus on either side of the keyboard.

I’ve found only one drawback: If the Pilot automatically turns itself off after a minute or two of inactivity, you have to turn the device on and off twice to get it to recognize the keyboard again. Landware is aware of the problem and has been promising an updated driver for months.

For $80, the GoType keyboard turns my Pilot into the only computer I need to carry on trips. Landware also offers a $20 case that holds the keyboard and Pilot in one compact, stylish package.

Once I got comfortable with my new keyboard, I turned my attention to an application with which I could use it. While 3Com provides an acceptable tool for text entry with its Memo Pad and Smartcode Software’s HandStamp Pro gives me great remote e-mail, I didn’t have a spreadsheet on my Pilot.

Luckily, I found Cutting Edge Software’s $50 QuickSheet application. With it, you can create spreadsheets on the Pilot. You can also take Excel spreadsheets on your desktop machine, send them to the Pilot and edit them there. The interface is pretty intuitive; the company has done a good job of working around the limitations of the Pilot’s tiny screen. The application is unbelievably robust, supporting all the most essential Excel features, including 45 built-in functions. After you’ve made changes to a spreadsheet on the Pilot, you can upload it back to your desktop machine when you HotSync and edit it again in Excel.

To support all these applications, I upgraded my faithful companion’s hardware with 3Com’s Palm 2MB Upgrade. It’s a memory card that replaces the existing card in your PalmPilot Professional with double the memory. It also gives you an infrared port and PalmOS 3.0. In effect, it turns your PalmPilot Professional into a Palm III for as little as $50.

If I’m going to rely on my Pilot as a serious resource, I need serious protection to back it up. BackupBuddyNG from Intelligent Systems does the trick. Unlike most Pilot applications, it takes up no memory on the Pilot – it does all its work from the desktop. While a normal HotSync backs up data, BackupBuddyNG does a complete backup of everything on the Pilot and lets you restore one application or an entire configuration. It’s a steal at $20.