Mobile Computing 

A continuing series of articles about traveling with a portable computer .
. . This month: The Top Ten Things You Might Want to Try With Your Modem

By Christopher O'Malley



A colleague of mine who never goes anywhere without his Toshiba notebook PC
likes to insist that the word "modem" is an acronym for Means to Online
Databases and Electronic Mail. In truth, it stands for something far less
sensible (modulation-demodulation). But, being the clear-minded businessman
that he is, my friend has hit upon a fitting--if somewhat limiting--
definition of what having a modem really means to him, and the millions of
other people who call the road their office from time to time. The problem
with defining modems this way is that databases and E-mail are only two of
the tiles, albeit big ones, in the mosaic of portable communications. True,
the uploading and downloading of information from a corporate or commercial
database is often a mainstay of the mobile office. And there's no question
that E-mail can be a vital link between you, in a hotel room or at the
airport, and the world outside. It enables you to exchange messages with
customers and compatriots. And, there's the added dimension of sending and
receiving faxes, whether by E-mail service, fax modem or a portable fax
machine. Had there been an "F" in modem, fax would have undoubtedly
squeezed its way into my colleague's acronym. But these commonplace uses
for a modem don't do justice to its versatility. The ways you can leverage
the power of that little dialing dynamo when you're on the road are far-
ranging. With that in mind, I'd like to suggest we find a more encompassing
acronym for modem (I'm partial to Mobile Office Device for Effective
Managing), and offer some examples of that versatility I was touting.
Though this list may not make it on David Letterman, we can call it: The
Top Ten Things You Might Want to Try With Your Modem.

1. Make some travel arrangements
It's hardly a new online perk, but it remains one of the least used and
potentially most valuable services to a frequent flyer. You can make
airline reservations using almost any of the major online services,
including CompuServe [(800) 848-8199], Prodigy [(800) 776-3449], and GEnie
[(800) 638-9636]. What is not as well known is that almost all of these
travel services enable you to make hotel and rental car reservations, too.
Prodigy even gives you access to a host of vacation clubs, travel experts,
and restaurant guides. Before you head out on your trip, you might want to
check the weather at your destination--another service commonly available
with online travel services. When the weather is especially critical to
your business, you can call WeatherBrief [(8010 530-3181], an online
service that provides real-time weather data and maps, including radar and
satellite photographs.

2. Take remote control (of a PC)
Ever get on a plane and realize that the files you need are still on your
desktop PC? Or find that you don't even have the software you need to work
on those files? No sweat. Just call up your desktop when you hit your
hotel, operate your desktop from your laptop for a while, then tell your
desktop to send you the files, pronto. It can be almost that simple with a
modem and a "remote control" program at both ends of the line. This special
breed of communications software goes by names such as Carbon Copy, Close-
Up and Norton pcAnywhere. They all let you take charge of a PC from a
distance by enabling you to operate it as if you were sitting in front of
it. If retrieving files is all you're interested in, you might want to
check out Traveling Software's LapLink Pro, which can now transfer files by
modem.

3. Tend to personal business
Being on the road makes it that much harder to keep up on the important
financial matters of home and family, like paying your bills, managing a
portfolio and shopping for the tyke's first birthday. All are possible with
the right connections, however. Most of the major information services
offer banking and investment options (getting stock quotes, making trades,
etc.). So do dedicated online services. One is CheckFree [(800) 882-5280],
which works with personal finance software, such as Quicken and Managing
Your Money. With them, you can pay bills without writing checks. Discount
brokers such as Charles Schwab [(800) 435-4000] and Fidelity Investments
[(800) 544-6666] offer online investment services, too. And, there's no
shortage of shopping opportunities, particularly on Prodigy and in
CompuServe's "electronic mall." All you need is a credit card and a bit of
faith: You don't get to see the goods before you buy.

4. Get some help
Having trouble getting Windows to work right on your notebook? Or perhaps
your battery isn't taking a full charge? Modem to the rescue. Many hardware
and software companies now have electronic bulletin board systems that let
you drop off a question and check back later for a reply (or await a call
back). Some companies have started using fax in much the same way. Though
the response isn't immediate, for non-emergencies a fax or bulletin board
system (BBS) beats listening to elevator music until "the next available
operator" takes your call. When all is well again, you might want to help
others by sharing your experiences in an online forum, such as the one
Mobile Office runs on CompuServe.

5. Read the (personalized) morning news
Virtually every online service has a news service that enables you to grab
the latest news (including sports) nearly any time of the day or night.
That's the convenience part. The really interesting part is that some
services, including CompuServe and Dow Jones News/Retrieval [(800)
522-3567], give you the option of specifying what subject areas or
companies you're interested in. The service then automatically collects
relevant articles each day for your perusal. In effect, it's a customized
"clipping" service that can draw from newswires such as the AP, UPI, and
Reuters, as well as from business news sources and newspapers, such as the
New York Times and Washington Post.

6. Download a lifesaver
Some of the neatest software around for portable PCs comes in the form of
"utility" programs that perform tricks like making your cursor bigger, or
compressing data files to one half their original size. The best part is
you can usually get this utility software for next to nothing--sometimes
absolutely nothing--by simply downloading it from an online service or BBS.
The bulletin boards that are run by local users' groups are often your best
source for these shareware and freeware programs, but services such as
CompuServe and GEnie carry some, too.

7. Create slides for a presentation
Produce 35mm slides with a modem? No, it's not a magic trick--but it may
seem like one if you're in Houston and need a new set of slides for a big
meeting in Topeka tomorrow morning. Slide service bureaus enable you to
send your graphics files via modem to one of their regional offices, which
turn the images into color slides (or overhead transparencies or prints)
and ship them back to you as quickly as the next morning. Some presentation
software packages, such as Microsoft's PowerPoint, have built-in
communications features, making the whole process a snap. Otherwise, you
can use either regular communications software or special software that the
bureaus provide. MagiCorp [(800) 367-6244], Genigraphics [(800) 638-7348]
and Autographix [(800) 548-8558] are three of the best-known slide bureaus.

8. Send an overnight letter
You have your very own courier inside your modem. For those times when
neither E-mail nor fax is appropriate, MCI Mail [(800) 444-6245] lets you
turn your E-mail messages into crisp, laser-printed documents--complete
with your company letterhead and an electronic replica of your signature--
that can be sent by overnight courier. If you're not in a rush, documents
can also go out by regular mail. AT&T Mail [(800) 367-7225] and SprintMail
[(800) 877-4646] offer similar types of paper-mail services.

9. Check out computer products
Can't get enough of computers? Or looking for a product you saw mentioned
in an article once, but could never find again? You can use your modem to
dig through the archives of dozens--yes, dozens--of computer- and
technology-related publications. CompuServe, Dialog [(800) 334-2564] and
several other information services have databases that include computer and
high-tech magazines. At least two services specialize in this area: Byte
Information Exchange, or BIX [(800) 227-2983], which primarily covers
articles appearing in Byte magazine and its online computer news service;
and Ziffnet [(800) 848-8990], which covers a much broader spectrum of
computer magazines, journals and newspapers.

10. Dial the phone
Yes, dial the phone. It may not be worth the effort it takes to boot up
your laptop just to dial one or two phone numbers from a hotel room. When
you're setting up shop at a remote office or customer site, however, it can
make you feel right at home within minutes of your arrival. Nearly all
communications, database and contact management programs enable you to dial
a phone number through your modem. Since dialing procedures vary from one
office or hotel to the next, you might want to fashion a macro that can
quickly add a "9" or an "8" with a short pause (usually denoted by a comma)
to the beginning of each number in your electronic phone book so you can
get an outside line before the modem dials. You may have to tinker with a
few area codes, too, depending on where you're calling from. --------------
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Contributing editor Christopher O'Malley, grizzled after years of carrying
portable (or not-so-portable, in the old days) computers, will be the
featured columnist of "Mobile Computing," a new department in Mobile Office
magazine that will present new ideas and tips on traveling with a portable
computer. This feature appeared in the June 1992 issue. Subscriptions to
Mobile Office are available for just $23.90 a year by calling [(800)
627-5234].


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