Hot Disks

Entrepreneur, May, 2002 by Liane Gouthro

* Keep in Touch: Turn your PC into a communications center with the Communicate! i2000 software package from 01 Communique (www.01com.com). The interface, which resembles a two-dimensional fax machine, takes some getting used to, but this $79.99 application offers a wide variety of features: It serves as a fax machine, an answering machine and even a video phone.

* Just Paste It: Transfer text to your Palm-based handheld with just a single click. BluePaste from BlueSquirrel (www.bluesquirrel.com) lets you capture text from your PC, convert it to a memo or .doc file, and then download it to your PDA the next time you HotSync. The $19.95 application won't revolutionize the way you use your Palm, but it can make transferring information a whole lot easier.

* Virtual Assistant: Can't afford an HR staff? With People Manager 3.0, you won't need to. The $179 application from KnowledgePoint (www.knowledgepoint.com) serves as your virtual HR department, organizing employee records, tracking personnel changes, offering legal advice and reminding you of important tasks and dates (like when those benefits kick in).

* A Sweeter Site: Microsoft's FrontPage 2002 (www.microsoft.com/frontpage) can make your Web site look slick, even if you don't know HTML The latest version makes adding photos easy, and offers reports so you can see who's visiting your site. FrontPage 2002 also lets you add content directly from Microsoft sites. But it isn't cheap: A standard edition FrontPage 2002 starts at $239, more than most of its competitors.

LIANE GOUTHRO, a former technology reporter at PCWorld.com, freelances from her home in Brookline, Massachusetts.