TapSmart HandShare provides remote access to your Palm handheld from a Windows-based computer. HandShare is similar in concept to other remote access products based on the Windows PC platform, such as Citrix MetaFrame or Symantec pcAnywhere, and more recently, Microsoft's Terminal Services. HandShare now brings all the convenience and remote access features available to Windows users to the Palm handheld. HandShare supports any of the following networks to establish a connection between the Palm handheld and the Remote Control component: Wireless (GPRS or 1xRTT), Wi-Fi (including adhoc), Bluetooth, dial-up modem, and USB.

TapSmart HandShare consists of two distinct parts that act in concert. The first is the Handheld component and it runs in the background on the Palm handheld. It provides the interface to the display screen and input events. The second is the Remote Control component and it runs on a Windows-based PC or laptop. The Remote Control component displays the Palm's screen, updating as it changes on the Palm handheld, and maps PC mouse and keyboard events into their Palm equivalents. The architecture supports future Remote Control components based on other platforms besides Windows. The HandShare installation program quickly and easily installs these components to their respective devices.

A remote access session is started by running the Remote Control component on the Windows PC, then running the Handheld component to activate a connection to the Remote Control component. Once established, the Remote Control component renders a true display of the Palm's screen on the PC. When the Palm handheld's display changes as a resulting of user input or application screen updates, the new screen image is refreshed at the PC. Mouse clicks on the rendered Palm display on the PC are mapped to appropriate screen taps on the Palm and typing on the PC keyboard results in key press events on the Palm. In this way, two users separated by distance can share the screen and control of the Palm handheld with one another.

The HandShare Remote Control component for the Windows PC supports live Palm device skins. A skin is the covering surrounding the screen display on the PC and makes it look like the specific Palm device being accessed remotely. It's referred to as live because we render application and navigation buttons and key pads on the skin that are functional. Clicking the PC mouse on these buttons causes their function to be effected on the Palm as if the real button on the actual handheld was pressed. Whenever a new Palm device is detected during the establishment of the remote access session, HandShare will automatically ask to download the appropriate live skin from the MobilityWare web site. If the web site is not reachable, or there is no specific skin for your device, HandShare will default to a generic live skin.

HandShare is ideal for the remote support of Palm users in the field. A big advantage that HandShare gives a support agent is the ability to see the problem that the user is experiencing. In real-time, the user can show the agent the problem instead of trying to describe it over the phone or a chat session. This reduces the time and frustration involved in problem identification and resolution. HandShare also facilitates the support agent in examining the Palm device and databases to further investigate the problem. Of course, if it is a simple operational issue on the user's part, the support agent will use HandShare to show the user the correct way to do the task by driving the handheld from the agent's PC.

HandShare is a powerful facilitator of live presentations, web seminars, and training sessions that involve a Palm handheld. Since HandShare gives you a real-time image of the Palm's screen display visible on a Windows PC, you can use any popular web meeting software to conduct a web seminar. No more hassle setting up Palm emulators or simulators and praying they won't crash. And your audience will be able to see your Palm, in real time, performing as intended. If you are giving a live presentation to an audience, they can see the Palm display much easier by using a large monitor connected to the PC or even a projector to display it on a bigger screen.

HandShare has several features to enhance the professional look of your presentation. For instance, you can specify the display background to be a solid color of your choice, an image file, or a web page. You can scale the screen to be bigger or smaller than its natural rendered size. You can also make annotations on the screen and can specify the drawing pen's shape, color, and size.

HandShare has built-in data compression to optimize screen updates. It also supports grey scale mapping for further optimization on slower network links.

You can also use HandShare to capture any screen image displayed on the Palm handheld into a .bmp, .jpg, .gif, .png, or .tiff file on the Windows PC. These image files can be later manipulated and included into PowerPoint slides or documents. You can also capture a series of screens by starting the record function; then as you traverse the Palm, each new screen is saved on the PC as an image file.

HandShare also lets you view Palm handheld information for remote management and support. The Device Info feature will display properties of the Palm handheld, such as OS version, screen size, HotSync name, etc. The Sync Info feature will display the HotSync logging information. The Database List feature will display a list of all databases on the Palm handheld.

TapSmart HandShare requires Palm OS 4 or OS 5 (Garnet). Typical Palm handhelds supported include the PalmOne Tungsten, Zire, and Treo 600 models, SONY Clie models, and other specialized handhelds such as the Garmin IQ3600. HandShare also requires Windows 98, 2000, or XP, and Microsoft .NET framework version 1.1 or later.

New in Version 1.3.3:

• Support for Palm Z22 and TX handhelds
• Corrected a problem when tapping exactly on the boundry of a scroll bar.