High on the top deck of the river ferry Shah Paran, I look up and down the Ganges River as we leave the city of Aricha to continue our journey across Bangladesh. The waters of the Ganges are light brown with silt and pollution as it swirls past our boat. I gaze up and down the river, trying to ignore the fact that my wife and I are the only two Anglos aboard this ferry. I watch the non-stop river traffic of wooden boats and canoes loaded to beyond capacity as they travel across the river with cargoes of people, cows, and goods.
My wife Barbara is taking pictures with the PalmPix camera attached to her Palm IIIc. The Palm is new to her. I've been carrying my Palm IIIx for over a year and a half. For now her Palm has become her camera. As I look back, I see a crowd of men gathered around her, partially to look at her, and also partly to see one of the many "gadgets" we Americans seem to possess. It's the first time they've ever seen a PDA, much less a PalmPix camera. She explains how it works and patiently takes some pictures, showing them their pictures instantly on the color screen. All are impressed and amazed at what they see.
The night was going to be a long one as we boarded a bus from Aba, Nigeria to Abuja, the capital city, in the northern part of the country. The trip would take us down roads filled with potholes, when there were paved roads at all. The night air was stifling as we bounced down the road. The old bus had a small tray that I could pull down in front of me, so I retrieved my GoType! Keyboard and Palm IIIx and began to write. No laptop could have fit on that tray, but with the Palm I typed away. I couldn't sleep on this bus trip; the driver had a love affair with his horn that beeped in four rapid, staccato notes.
I became a Palm user and certified fan about a year before my wife got hers. I've been singing its praises ever since.
I purchased my Palm while looking for a way to write about my mission work in developing nations. Most of my work takes place in Africa, where the power system is far less than desirable, if it exists at all. Some of our travel conditions demand that we lighten the load as much as we can. A laptop isn't always practical with its limited battery life. One man I work with has blown a laptop a year in Africa, thanks to the power spikes and surges. There had to be a better way.
I chose the Palm because the store was running a special that week: a free keyboard with the purchase of a Palm. I sat down in the store, read the instruction book for an hour, and decided it would work. I wanted something so I could write in a mud hut without electricity, or while riding a camel. What I got was more than I could have ever imagined.
I originally purchased a Palm as a writing tool. It quickly took on a life of its own as we discovered all of the available software and hardware. On our mission trips, we bring humanitarian aid as well as start churches and preach the Gospel. On my Palm is Laridian's software for the New International Version of the Bible. My sermon outlines are on the memo pad. I can set it up so my scripture text is available by pushing my To Do button, and my sermon pops up when I press the memo hard button.
I keep track of daily activities using Palm Journal, and keep track of those treated with medical attention on HanDBase. I can play various games during long airplane flights, or download an e-book. I can use my database program for keeping track of the many prayer requests I get from people there. The Gulliver software keeps track of flight schedules, while the address book holds a list of contacts from all parts of the globe.
"It'll never work," scoffed my colleague in Abuja as I went to send email from a telephone using the PocketMail system. Four native Nigerians were standing there pointing and laughing at my little Palm while they learned I was going to use it to send email.
Email has been a special problem for us on our mission trips. Telephone systems vary as well as hookups. We had taken laptops with us with plans to e-mail those back home. No luck. The laptop wired to the local telephone company would not work. Last year I purchased the Pocket BackFlip for the PocketMail System. The wireless device snaps onto the back of my Palm with ease. After composing an e-mail message, I put the earpiece of the receiver against the earpiece of the Pocket BackFlip, and pressed the soft button on the screen. An amazing little unit, it immediately began to "talk" to the PocketMail computer back in the US with a series of beeps. Seven minutes later, all my email for the last week was now on my Palm, and our outgoing messages were on their way. My colleague was lost for words (a rarity) and the four Nigerians were now laughing and slapping each other on the back as they celebrated the PocketMail's victory. If I can find a telephone that can call out of the country, I can send and receive email in any developing nation.
We now find the Palm system indispensable with our ministry. We have used it to present a slide show using Pocket Photo, showing Untouchables in the swamps of Bangladesh pictures of the land where Jesus walked. We simply downloaded pictures I had taken of the Holy Land onto the Palm IIIc, and then used it to teach small groups.
HotSyncing is a problem for us. The cost of telephone back to the US to HotSync over the phone would be expensive. Sometimes we pay US$7 a minute in these countries. We carry a Canon BJC-80 printer, and use the IR ports to print out hard copies of our writings. The PalmPrint (www.stevenscreek.com) software has been a real blessing.
On our recent trip to Bangladesh, my batteries came loose and I lost all of my data off my Palm. Fortunately, I had just printed hard copies of my work that morning, and was able to have my wife beam me some basic programs to get me back in operation. I recovered what I had lost before the trip when I returned home and HotSynced. I run at 80+% of my 8MB of RAM, and it took over an hour to download everything back onto my Palm. From Bangladesh, that would have cost over $500 for a remote HotSync. I have since purchased a MemorySafe (www.northstarmobile.com) to backup my system. I really hope I never have to find out how well it works. But next time, I'm ready.
We even use the Palm to forecast the day's weather. I purchased a Weatherguide from Precision Navigation. It's a modified Palm modem. It reads temperatures and barometric pressure hourly when it's off the Palm, and uses the last 24 hours to forecast the upcoming 24 hours. It's quite accurate. This is especially important, as weather forecasts can be non-existent in developing nations. It has helped us to plan, and works on my Palm IIIx.
I've even used my Palm to take notes at seminars. At Amsterdam 2000 last Summer, I gathered with 10,000 other evangelists from 209 countries. I took notes on my Palm, easily entering the information using the Fitaly keyboard software.
The Palm has made mission work easier. Our baggage has become lighter, making room for more medicine and books and other items we bring to help those who have so little.
Fall in Michigan can be cool, so when we get a hot day at the end of September, we tend to try and take off as much time as we can. I went hiking along the dunes of Lake Michigan near Saugatauk one beautifully warm September day. I had a program I was doing that night, and found myself with several glorious hours to hike through the dunes and observe the leaves as they were turning beautiful shades of red and yellow. The water was cool, but I still braved the cold waters of Lake Michigan for one last swim.
I returned to the picnic area and realized I had some writing to do. I sat down with my Palm and my Palm Portable Keyboard and starting writing. As I worked, a lady walked by and said, "nice office." I looked back at her and smiled. "It sure is." -
About the author:
Rev. Jan L. Beaderstadt is a missionary and journalist, traveling to developing nations in Africa and Asia. He publishes a free monthly newsletter of interesting people that he meets in his work. For more information, contact Rev. Jan Beaderstadt at beaderstadts@juno.com
Rev. Jan L. Beaderstadt, OSL
President
Renaissance Outreach Ministry
P. O. Box 1
Turner, MI 48765-0001
(517) 867-4770
Fax: (517) 867-4771
beaderstadts@juno.com
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