PIM pals: organizing your office is easy - with help from a Personal Information Manager - includes related information on DataSafe backup software service offered by Connected Corp - Software Review - Evaluation

Entrepreneur, August, 1996 by Cassandra Cavanah

A clean desk is a happy desk. Or, at least a clean desk makes for a clutter-free day - which, in turn, could lead to some fresh, new ideas. But how can you manage to keep your desk free of all the to-do lists, Rolodex cards, appointment books and little yellow Post-it notes that crop up virtually everywhere?

That's where Personal Information Managers (PIMs) come in. These compact programs let you take all the data you've been saving in little piles around your computer and put it on your PC's hard drive. It takes a little time and commitment to get up and running with a PIM - you have to input the data you need, and you'll have to learn new organization tactics. But the time you invest today is time you'll save tomorrow. There will be no more rummaging through file folders for the phone numbers you need, no more meetings that sneak up on you, and no more missed deadlines.

All PIMs are designed to handle the same basic functions: store your address book information, maintain your schedule, keep up-to-date to-do lists, and remind you of important events with audio and visual alarms. All the products reviewed here do this and much more.

Before you purchase a PIM, however, take your work style into consideration. A PIM will be your constant companion, so you have to be happy with it - if you don't like its interface, you're not likely to use it.

This column looks at two top-selling PIMs - Sidekick 95 and Ecco Pro - as well as the less popular, but extremely adept, Executive Desk.

* NEED A SIDEKICK?

Sidekick 95 from Starfish Software has been my constant companion for more than a year. Its easy-to-use interface with notebook-style tabs and task icons (for calendar, cardfile, reminders, etc.) have made me a loyal fan. Still, it's not a perfect program - I get frustrated clicking between numerous views and activities to get all my work done. For example, I might have a phone call scheduled on my call list, but, to place the call, I have to access the phone book and find the caller's number before going back to my call list to check off the call as done and look at the name of the next person I need to call.

Still, Sidekick's calendar function, with separate to-do and call lists, has helped me stay on top of my projects and personal business, while its cardfile function lets me keep my five different databases (you can keep more) at my fingertips. A reminder list imports all the information from the calendar into an easy-to-read list that launches you directly to the item you want to work on. Other features include Write, a module for keeping notes on projects, as well as a basic word processor.

Hard-core calendar users can attach due dates, priorities and even assign to-do tasks to someone else, though this function is limited because there's no easy-to-read list of the assigned to-dos.

Sidekick is also pretty creative when it comes to communicating with your contacts. In addition to a dialer function that dials a contact's phone number for you, Sidekick 95 also works in conjunction with Microsoft Exchange to send e-mail.

This program is available for Windows 3.1 and Windows 95 and requires 5MB of hard-disk space.

The Sidekick program can be downloaded for a 30-day trial evaluation from the Starfish Web site (http://www.starfishsoftware.com), and all Starfish software comes with a 90-day money-back guarantee.