InformationWeek: The Business Value of Technology

Palm's HotSync Server software lets users access company databases and enterprise applications from several vendors, including IBM, Oracle, PeopleSoft, SAP, and Sybase; it also supports POP3/IMAP4 E-mail applications. HotSync Server, due in early 2000 starting at $20,000 per license, is based on Riverbed Technologies' ScoutSync Server.

Additionally, Palm users will soon be able to connect to their company's server, or to their own desktop, via Palm's Ethernet Cradle, which works with 10/100 Mbps Ethernet hubs and switches. It ships in January, at $250.

Palm also plans a color-screen PDA next year, as well as new services, including the Palm Help Desk Training Program, which will offer on-site training for help-desk staffers supporting Palm-equipped workers. "Palm's goal is to aid IT departments in deploying, managing, supporting, and servicing handhelds," says Greg Rhine, Palm's VP for worldwide sales. Palm also will launch a password-accessible Enterprise Support Web site that will give support staff instant access to technical information, order placement, and repair status.

Among the third-party Palm-related products revealed at the PalmSource conference last week was TRG Products' TRGPro, a $330 handheld. It runs the Palm operating system and has a CompactFlash slot for memory expansion and input/output device connectivity. CompactFlash memory cards are available in capacities up to 340 Mbytes. The TRGPro can store data in flash memory in the event of battery outages via its FlashPro software.

PDAs and wireless technology are the next frontiers for customer access, says Bob Egan, research director at Gartner Group. "The Internet, with its current delivery mechanisms, will absolutely fail to reach users on a worldwide basis," he says, "so wireless is seen as an explosive distribution channel for E-commerce."