Digital Camera Tips

Use a camera to give presentations, save meeting notes.

James A. Martin

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Feature: Get More Out of Your Camera

The typical mobile professional's bag bulges with a notebook, a PDA, and a mobile phone (or smart phone), not to mention business cards, folders stuffed with papers, and the occasional half-eaten ham sandwich. And there's probably an MP3 player in there somewhere, too.

So I'm loath to suggest adding yet one more thing to an already overstuffed bag. But suggest I will: On your next business trip, consider packing a digital camera.

Yes, you can take pictures with many cell phones today. But most offer image resolution no greater than 640 by 480 pixels, which simply isn't enough to capture fine details.

A digital camera can be an extremely useful tool for capturing information as well as images. I'll give you a few examples, plus provide tips on backing up your image files on the go and shopping resources.

Digicam as Business Tool

Show and Tell: Are you meeting with prospective customers to discuss your new product line? If so, showing them pictures can help you get your point across effectively. You could put together a Microsoft PowerPoint presentation or show pictures with your notebook, of course. But if the meeting room has a TV set, you can easily present a slide show by hooking up your digital camera (on which you've already stored your product photos) to the TV. Most current digital cameras come with video-out cables that connect to a TV monitor's video input jack.

Get Details: When you're at a trade show, you may see dozens of products on display in booths, the details of which you'll need to recall later. With a digital camera (and permission from the booth attendant), you can snap pictures of products for your own use later, or to e-mail to colleagues. Of course, product literature containing photos is often available in trade-show booths. But with your own camera, you can zero in on the details that interest you the most.

Record Information: I've used my Minolta Dimage Xi to capture information that would have been cumbersome or difficult to write down. For example, when I was testing the NeverLost GPS system in a Hertz rental car, there were several times when I needed to make notes about what was displayed on the GPS screen. Rather than trying to describe it in written notes, I simply snapped pictures of the screen. (Note to highway patrol officers who may be reading this: I was parked at the time.)

Copy Notes: If you're in a meeting where someone is writing on a whiteboard or flip chart, you can record those notes easily with a digital camera. If you're the one making those notes, take pictures of them afterwards and e-mail them to attendees. You could even import the images into a Microsoft Word file and add additional notes. (This tip from Gary Kustis of Lakewood, Ohio appeared in a recent newsletter and is well worth repeating.)

Backing Up Your Image Files

Now that you have all this valuable information stored on your digital camera, you need to back it up.

Most current digital cameras store images on flash memory cards, such as Secure Digital cards or Sony Memory Sticks. If you're traveling with a notebook and it happens to contain the appropriate flash memory card slot, you can just copy the image files to your hard drive.

If your notebook doesn't have built-in flash memory slots--and many don't--you'll need an external card reader. They're inexpensive, small, and lightweight. For example, SanDisk's $20 ImageMate USB 2.0 Reader/Writer connects to your notebook's USB 2.0 or 1.1 slot and comes in versions for four different types of flash memory cards: SD/MultiMediaCard, CompactFlash, XD-Picture Card, and Memory Stick/Memory Stick Pro.

You don't have to carry your notebook just to back up your digital camera files, either. For example, Kanguru's new Slim FC-RW ($250) is an external CD-RW/DVD-ROM drive with slots for flash memory cards. You can insert your camera's flash memory card into a slot on the drive and burn a backup CD of the images without needing a computer. You can also connect the drive to a TV and watch DVDs, the company says.

Delkin's USB Bridge ($70) is another option. The palm-sized device lets you connect two USB devices without a computer. Using the USB Bridge, you could connect your digital camera (as long as it has a USB port) to an external hard drive or other USB device to copy files, according to the company.

For more digital camera backup tips, see PC World columnist Dave Johnson's newsletter on the topic, "Photo Backup Tips and Tricks." Dave's tip-filled Digital Focus newsletters on digital photography are archived online.

Buyer's Resources

What if you don't have a digital camera and are now convinced you need one? Check out "How to Buy a Digital Camera" for an explanation of specs, shopping tips, and more. In "Top 10 Digital Cameras" our editors rank the best-performing models and provide pricing, specs, and test report results.

Your Digital Camera Tips

Do you use a digital camera on your business trips? If so, I'd like to hear about it. Send me e-mail.

Notebooks & Accessories

Tip: How to Find Low-Cost Notebooks

PC World notebook expert Carla Thornton's recent article, "How to Buy a Laptop on a Budget," is full of advice. Among other tips, Carla lists the features and capabilities you're likely to compromise on if you buy a notebook costing $1000 or less.

Here's what you may not get in a budget portable: top performance, weight less than 6 pounds, a screen 15 inches or larger, sophisticated ports (for connecting to a TV and so on), media card slots, high-end multimedia features, and the Windows XP Professional operating system with its additional security features.

Review: MPC's Snoop-Free Notebook

The stylin' silver MPC TransPort T2200 ($2972) features a biometric fingerprint reader embedded in the wrist rest that's designed to thwart thieves, hooligans, and the occasional miscreant. Registering your fingerprint is easy, says PC World reviewer Carla Thornton, but the security software runs extremely slowly upon boot up. Carla's advice: Use the fingerprint reader just to re-enter your password. Otherwise, it's much faster to gain access to your system using a password. The notebook performed well and comes with a number of features, such as a MultiMediaCard/SD Card/Memory Stick card reader and lots of legacy connections (including a PS/2 splitter).

News: IBM Recalls Overheating Power Adapters

If you're using an IBM ThinkPad I Series notebook purchased between January 1999 and August 2000, you're way past due for an upgrade. But if you can't bear to part with your old pal, you should at least get its AC adapter replaced. Why? Because power adapters for those portables can overheat and melt, posing a fire and electrical shock hazard to users. IBM is recalling the power adapters. Customers in the U.S. and Canada can call 800/410-5629 for a replacement. International customers should go to their nearest IBM Support Center.

Gadgets & Services

Hands On: Updated Documents To Go

DataViz's new Documents To Go Premium Edition 7 ($50, $30 to upgrade) for Palm OS devices adds native support for PowerPoint, JPEG, and bitmap image files. Documents To Go allows Palm OS users the ability to view and edit Word and Excel files and view PowerPoint presentations.

In the past, Documents To Go converted all PowerPoint presentations into a DataViz proprietary format that a PC without Documents To Go installed couldn't read. Native file support for PowerPoint means that you can now easily send and receive PowerPoint file attachments on a Palm OS device using VersaMail or SnapperMail. Or you could copy a presentation stored on your Palm OS PDA onto a SD card, then transfer the presentation onto a PC (with an SD card reader or via Bluetooth) for printing or editing. Unfortunately, the PowerPoint files are read-only. Still, for those who rely on PowerPoint slides, native file support is a welcome addition--and a step above Microsoft Windows Mobile devices, which don't include PowerPoint support.

Reader's Choice: Austin's Filling Station Is Cool Hotspot

The Filling Station in Austin, Texas has "the world's best hamburgers," along with "super chicken dishes" and free Wi-Fi access for customers, writes newsletter reader Sam Dorfman of Dallas. This laundry-turned-restaurant resembles an old gas station and features vintage car memorabilia, not to mention a dish entitled "chicken fried chicken burger," which presumably is served with a side dish of Lipitor. Burgers are $6.25 to $8.25.

Have other nominees for cool hotspots? Send them to me.

News: A Windows Mobile Browser Alternative

Opera, the alternative Web browser popular with anti-Internet Explorer types, is coming to a Windows Mobile Smartphone near you. The Norwegian browser developer Opera Software says its Windows Mobile version will feature small-screen-rendering technology that optimizes Web page viewing on Smartphones, the company says.

Suggestion Box

Is there a particularly cool mobile computing product or service I've missed? Got a spare story idea in your back pocket? Tell me about it.