WHAT'S
HOT
Isilo can save a fully functional web page or
a whole website in a compressed .pdb document your handheld.
SETUP
Setup requires nothing special, the only thing
to do after install is to enter the registration and associate .pdb
or .prc files to Isilo. Also with IsiloX, make sure you go into options
on Activesync to make sure that Isilo is included in the list of files
that you sync.
PROGRAM
FEATURES
Isilo makes it very easy to carry content
from the web to read later, whether it be a web board discussion a web
page or an entire site. Isilo can take the text, images, formatting
and compress it and sync it over to your handheld. Look at this exhaustive
list of features.
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The main part of Isilo is the conversion portion of the program called IsiloX, that can be downloaded for free. This PC based application is what actually converts the web content into the .pdb documents read by Isilo. IsiloX can convert .html, CSS, .txt and Palm Doc.
Not only does IsiloX convert web pages with ease it's possible to schedule it to download a site or page at a specific time. I download the entire Houston Chronicle every morning at 5am, with a link depth of 2 and it's only 1.7mb.
There are plenty of options for customizing the content you download. Link depth, whether you want images are not, where it syncs, very impressive. IsiloX also integrates with your browser, which makes converting single pages a snap, the circled button brings up the Isilo Clipper dialog.
There's an Activesync plug-in that get's the resulting .pdb from IsiloX onto your handheld. The file can be placed anywhere on your device, a storage card, folder, wherever you like.
IsiloX doesn't just make Adobe Acrobat or Repligo like copies, it actually translates a functional website to the Pocket PC. It supports tables, hyperlinks, drop down dialogs that actually work and the CSS too. The layout option is used to either fit the text to the screen or have it in it's native size.
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Now the real treat comes once you open the document in Isilo. Isilo happens to be an excellent reader. You put file documents in to categories, bookmark them and perform searches.
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Isilo allows you to set the hardware buttons and D-pad to do a variety of things. Full screen, change font sizes and of course navigate. The screen also has different regions that can be configured for to perform navigation duties. I find it helpful to map screen navigation and font sizes to the D-pad.
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What good would all those documents be if you couldn't organize them? Beyond just having a list of most recently opened documents or favorite folders, you can assign the files you create to a category. Here are some screens of the category interface.
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If you don't want to mess with the categories, you can use folder structures on you memory card or device to organize documents. You can also easily sort documents with the buttons on the toolbar.
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And if all of this wasn't enough Isilo can also operate in a free mode, sans some features of course.
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HELP
SUPPORT
Isilo has excellent customer support and
have also implemented a web forum for user discussions and tech support.
There's also plenty of information on Isilo sites and resources at this
link.
SYSTEM
REQUIREMENT
Isilo runs on any version of Pocket PC or
Windows CE if you have one of those laying around, it's 574kb installed.
The GUI version of IsiloX runs on Windows and MacOS computers. There's
a command line version called IsiloXC that runs on everything else FreeBSD,
Linux, Solaris and MacOS X.
BUGS
AND WISHES
Really no bugs in this version, it's very
solid, as always. You don't have to worry about being left in lurch
with Isilo, they are responsive to any issues that arise. The only feature
I can think of that would make Isilo better is if it were possible to
update content wirelessly. It could then be a true replacement for Avantgo.
A landscape mode would be nice, but Windows Mobile 2003SE will solve
that. On the surface Isilo is very easy to use and configure, however,
when you really start digging into them the features can be daunting.
But that's not really a bug, any application that allows this level
of configurability will take some time to get comfortable with.
PURCHASING
Isilo can be purchased at Handango
and Kagi
for a very reasonable $19.99. IsiloX is free.
PROS
- Handles website conversion very well
New features are frequently added
Excellent functionality as reader
- Highly configurable, many options available to customize your experience
CONS
Not able to update content without desktop companion
Feature set can be intimidating at first
More options on for customizing screen regions, perhaps closing the document or go full screen
OVERALL
IMPRESSION
Isilo is an indispensable part of my Pocket PC
arsenal, if you frequently find interesting web content Isilo is a must
buy. Isilo also gives you access to hundreds of documents already converted
to Isilo. When doing research papers for school, Isilo is a must; I
can carry loads of sites to use as reference material while I write.
There's also a site called Mobileread
with a huge collection of PDA friendly sites that behave very well with
Isilo. They even have directions on how to subscribe to websites, similar
to the Mobile Favorites for Pocket IE or Channels in Avantgo.
