3. The Tablet PC In Practice

The strengths and weaknesses of tablet PCs become clear very quickly in everyday use. Here's a report on the experiences of some professional users and the low expectations of experts.

Not all experts and businesses are caught up in the hype over Microsoft's tablet PC. Fereydun Khanide, managing director of Penplan Consulting, takes a critical view of the concept: "Microsoft did not invent pen computing, and from a technical point of view, tablet PCs do not offer anything strikingly new when compared to the pen computers that are already available."

In spite of this, the new genre of devices brings unbeatable advantages like excellent handwriting recognition and sturdiness, advantages that businesses like Steinwerkstatt can appreciate. The business, which specializes in restoration, has been relying on pen PCs for some time now. The workshop's projects include restoring the castle Neuschwanstein, the Regensburg Cathedral and other historic buildings. Tablet PCs are now used to chart damage to the masonry, plan building projects and generate as realistic a cost estimate as possible. For this purpose, Steinwerkstatt installs Autocad 2000 on its tablet PCs.

Ancestral portrait gallery: lined up in the offices of the Penplan company is the complete history of stylus-controlled products. Included are Newton, Apple's PDA pioneer, and several Palm Pilots.

Using the PC hardware outside and on construction sites places high demands on it. That's why the business decided against notebooks with touch screens, which are not enough for its rough conditions of use. The Paceblade tablet PCs are better suited for this purpose. Because of the lower heat emissions of the Transmeta Crusoe CPU, they can be manufactured in a completely closed case and are thus less vulnerable to dust and water. Even if the devices' system performance is only adequate in a comparative test, it's good enough for the employees of Steinwerkstatt to do their jobs.

Scheller Cosmetics has been using pen computers since late 2000. Here's what Udo Biber, head of information systems, has to say about them: "For our sales staff out on the field, the machines have to be easy to carry and to work with," he says. "Notebooks are not a viable option for us. In the narrow aisles of drugstores, it is not possible to work with a notebook without something to put it on." Moreover, notebooks are too susceptible to wear and tear. But this is not the case with the pen computer or tablet PC. Biber pays particular attention to the sturdiness of the devices, as it is precisely the display that is exposed to harsher conditions. For him, the total cost of ownership is important, while acquisition costs are a minor consideration. Maintenance, repairs and operating failure have a more significant impact. According to Biber, "the machine that is cheaper to buy often turns out to be the more expensive one."