Laptop GPS World

Okay, I know this will seem pretty obvious to some folks but it wasn't to me. When I was looking through the Help files in Mobile PC I came across reference to "Contacts" and "Favorites". I know what Favorites are and I have them working quite nicely. I transfered them from my Garmin iQue PDA to Mapsource, did a little editing and then transfered them into Mobile PC.

When I looked at the Help entry on Contacts it wasn't obvious what they were. When I tried to do the stuff that the Help entry described it didn't work ... didn't even make any sense based on what I was seeing (or not seeing). So I sent in a Support request.

For folks like me who don't use Microsoft Outlook, here's the answer.

...ken...

I have used Outlook with Garmin Que and Garmin Mobile XT. The function is ok but it doesn't seem to look up the address it finds in the contact automatically. You have to assign a location to a contact.

And you can't see the screen with the contact address when you are entering the address to find. Not good for people with failing short-term memories.

This makes the function not as valuable as it could be.

Terry

I just tried a couple of contacts on my laptop with Mobile PC. It found both I tried instantly. It puts an icon beside the contact in Mobile PC and a map in Outlook under the Garmin tab.

It may be due to the version of Outlook. The laptop has 2003 and the PDAs were based on Outlook 2000.

This looks interesting. Maybe I'll pursue it further.
Terry

Attached Images

Contact.jpg (52.1 KB, 13 views)

Hi Terry,

The Mobile PC integration with Outlook sounds interesting. I wonder if it might be a good option for those guys who are looking for professional contact management combined with trip routing to make deliveries and/or meetings with multiple contacts? It sounds a lot like the integration my iQue 3600 has between the Que GPS software and the Palm addressbook.

I have Office 2003 installed on my laptop except that I intentionally removed Outlook. It's almost intriguing enough to re-install Outlook ............... Naw!!!

...ken...

Ken,
I have Outlook 2000 on my main PC and the contact tab does not show in Mobile PC. I wonder if there is a minimum requirement.

It works great on the laptop with Outlook 2003.

The only problem I have with Outlook is sharing it on a local network. When PDAs are connected, Outlook is open so it won't share its base file. Its a pain having to shut it down in Task Manager on one computer just so I can use the pst file on another.

Terry

I just checked the contact I had trouble with in Garmin XT. Mobile PC couldn't find it either even though it is a valid address in the program.

I will have to do further tests to decide on its usefulness.

Terry

That sounds like one of those deals where you might try just deleting the problem contact in Outlook and creating it again to see if there's something corrupt in it. When I've traced problems like that, it's not unusual to discover a character somewhere in it that won't display but screws up any search functions.

I recall seeing somewhere that it requires a minimum of Outlook 2003 for Mobile PC to see it but I'm darned if I can recall where.

...ken...

I switched the UMPC from Outlook 2000 to Outlook 2003 and the Contacts tab suddenly appeared in Mobile PC. So, I think I can confirm it need at least the 2003 version.

I typed the address that caused a problem into Outlook 2003 on my laptop. It wasn't a direct copy from the one on the PDA. I haven't had the opportunity to try many others but will get on it. I have a TX2110ca tablet coming tomorrow so I get to start again. Yippee!

Terry

From Garmin's Website at (under the "In The Box" tab):

https://buy.garmin.com/shop/shop.do?pID=13484

Minimum Requirements:
Windows® 2000 SP2, Windows XP or Windows Vista®, 256 MB RAM, at least 800 x 480 display, 1.5 GB free disk space, USB port, DVD drive. Microsoft® Outlook® 2002 or newer required for contact integration. Internet connection required for Garmin Online™ features. Includes USB device drivers. Works on tablet PCs and ultra-mobile PCs with or without touchscreens.