I've used many computer programs on many machines for many
years, and my thoughts on the perfect hardware and most valuable
software are always changing.
Back in the mid 1980s, my ideal hardware was a large 386 tower
running Windows 386 with that most killer of all applications
. . . a word processor. In more recent years it was the
BBS client, and later the email client that got me excited. And
let's not forget the Web browser, instant messaging, and photo
editing.
There have been a number of "killer applications" over the years
that we've considered essential at different times, and opinions
remain as varied as the users of those applications.
My next killer app is the digital scrapbook.
There are many digital scrapbook programs for Macs and Windows
PCs, and they've been around in various forms for years. Last year
I played with two on the Mac, StickyBrain
and Yojimbo, but
neither really did anything for me. The problem wasn't any
deficiency on the software's part, just that it didn't match the
hardware I was using at the time. I currently use Microsoft
OneNote on a Toshiba Tablet PC, and I've found killer app
heaven.
The deficiency in the Mac programs I tried
last year was the Macs I was using them on....
To start, OneNote isn't any better or worse than Yojimbo, and it
might even be a step below StickyBrain (which is an amazing program
that can even plan music and video, where OneNote is limited to
mere voice recordings). The deficiency in the Mac programs I tried
last year was the Macs I was using them on, a 12" PowerBook and a 13" MacBook. Both computers were more
than powerful enough for the software, but note applications really
are better suited to pen input.
With a note program, you can essentially drag anything into your
notebook and store it. If you have a tablet (either a tablet PC or
a graphics tablet on your PC or Mac), you can also sketch, doodle,
or write.
What makes this uniquely powerful on the tablet PC is the
ability to search your handwritten notes, convert them to editable
text, format your handwritten text, and fully manipulate
handwriting, imported text and graphics, and your own doodles. Make
your signature bold (or even green), convert your chicken scratch
to editable text, or export it to Word with surprising
accuracy.
I use OneNote whenever I'm not at my desk, and I can send my
scrawls anywhere, to any program, as an email, whatever!
In court I scribble notes of subsequent hearing requirements,
requests from the other side, or whatever pops into my head. Unlike
the yellow legal pads I used to employ for such duty, I have
nothing to retype when I get to the office or to lose if I fail to
do so.
Yes, note programs work fine with a keyboard, but it's the pen
that really makes them come alive. It was playing with OneNote that
made me want to buy a tablet PC, and now that I've been at it for
more than a month, it has truly become my next "killer app".
As noted in Apple's current adds, Windows PCs are productive
tools that just aren't that much fun (except for the games). Simple
tasks like word processing and Web browsing are done just as
efficiently on a PC as on a Mac, but with a touch less grace and
poise.
I hope Apple comes out with a tablet style portable. Such a
machine (and a slick program like StickyBrain or perhaps an actual
Apple scrapbook program) would do the same for my killer app.
Sadly, tablets haven't caught on to the extent that Bill Gates
predicted, and until or unless they do, an Apple tablet may be just
wishful thinking.
Until then, the tablet PC and OneNote does a pretty decent job.
Further Reading
Andrew J Fishkin, Esq, is a laptop using attorney in Los Angeles, CA.
