Tech Update #1: Computer
As I will be keeping the blog updated during my travels, I need to wrap my hands around various technology issues of how to do it with some level of success. Why is blogging so important? Mainly, because I will be away for close to a half a year and want to keep in touch with my friends and family. But I also want to document the journey and record my immediate reactions, observations and feelings which are sometimes lost after trying to write the travelogue back home. I’m not a big fan of a pen/paper (or ‘low-tech’) solution. For one, I love to write using a wordprocessor as my thoughts are rarely perfectly organized and I like to re-write, move around or delete text as I’m writing. With a pen and notebook this is clearly impossible. Plus, I don’t like to re-type whatever I already wrote once.I have looked at various devices using my priorities of keeping weight down (given my self-propelled mode of travel;)) and be power independent, at least to some degree. Clearly, I had to abandon the ‘high-tech’ solution also: laptops. They are just too heavy, expensive and power-hungry. Don’t want to travel around with equipment that screams ‘Please, steal me!!!’
Moreover, I need to keep in mind that updating my blog will only be possible by using Internet cafes (cheap and slow in South Asia). The ‘pen/paper’ solution would keep me sitting in them longer as I would write up reports, the ‘high-tech’ one, on the other hand, would often raise suspicions (a huge problem in China where folks using laptops outside main ‘business travel’ areas are viewed with some distrust, in Tibet even more so) or cause troubles when connecting laptops to online networks, or both.
So, as this is 2006, I have looked at many available PDAs (personal digital assistant), a computer category, I had only limited experience with (gave up on my Palm way back in the late 1990s). In recent years, PDAs have become quite powerful and I found one model that would perfectly suit my requirements: HP iPAQ h2215. Rugged, recommended by MountEverest.net for extreme expeditions (Poles, High altitude Mountaineering, etc.) and with decent battery life. It is a 2 year old model running Windows Mobile 2003. I bought it used for $175, rather than paying over $400 for comparable current offerings from HP. After adding a foldable keyboard, some CF cards for extended storage, extra batteries and a battery adapter for AA, it’ll be a reasonable solution. Plus, I already have a couple of CF cards and a small USB CF reader. The reader will be useful for transferring my notes from the PDA to computers in Internet cafes. The only requirement is that the machines have to run on Win98 SE, or later. Otherwise, the USB device won’t be recognized. But I will have a small CD with a software driver. I wish Internet cafes worldwide have installed Win XP and Bluetooth technology but we are still far from it;)). And remember, for all extra accessories, eBay is your friend!!! You can really save a bundle.
Other benefits include: storing information on it (fellow travelers reports, hotel addresses, phone numbers or any important notes); listening to music and reading ebooks (trust me, when traveling for so long, there are moments when it helps to get back to something familiar); or even view my photos or watch compressed videos (although the screen is limited to 65,536 colors only). This iPAQ model also includes Bluetooth technology (for wireless communication with other devices: keyboards, desktops, GPS, etc.) and it is easily upgradeable, via a SDIO card, to WiFi capability (for Internet browsing and email checking). Not something that I will take advantage of on the trip but certainly useful when back in the U.S.
I will keep you posted after I do some testing… Most importantly, I want to know how long I can go on w/o recharging, on a set of two Li-ion batteries and AA battery adapter charger.
