Features

• Easy-to-use contact and customer-manager software
• Access, organize, and manage contact details
• Stay on top of schedule 24/7; share customer info securely
• Link to Palm OS and Pocket PC handhelds
• Forecast, track, and report on sales opportunities

Product Description

The QuickLink-Pen Elite is the latest version of the very popular and successful QuickLink-Pen, providing users with new and improved electronic note-taking capabilities: reads notes and definitions aloud; beams to Smartphones, as well as to PDAs and PCs; includes English dictionary definitions; USB connection to PC.Used just like a yellow highlighter, the QuickLink-Pen Elite allows the user to collect, electronically, notes from any printed text - anytime, anywhere!The QuickLink-Pen Elite is ideal for students, doctors, business people, or researchers who need the ability to quickly and easily take notes whenever and wherever they might be - in a library, on a plane, or in a business meeting. ... Read more

Features

• USB and IrDA infra red ports, PC compatible
• Stores up to 1,000 pages of text; text-to-speech software
• Supports English, German, Swedish, Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, and French
• Exports data to Microsoft Word, Excel, Outlook, and Internet Explorer
• 97% OCR accuracy, recognizes 6-22 point font sizes

Reviews (4)

Doesn't work with OS X
I want to like this thing, but I can't, for it does not work at all with OS X.

So, if, like me, you run Apples, just pass on by this page because the thing will not work for you.

Not as good as the C-Pen 800C
I'm measuring, first and foremost, ease and precision of scanning. Speed of scanning and ease of installation on the computer are, in my mind, about the same for both this, the Wizcom QuickLink Elite, and the C-Pen 800C. They differ sufficiently, however, in the primary question of ease and quality of scanning. For the record, I bought both at the same time, with the intent of keeping the better of the two. You can just go ahead and buy the C-Pen 800C.
I have had one horrible experience with a pen scanner by Siemens, the "Pocket Reader." It was truly useless. It scanned so poorly that I just put it aside. By the time I though to return it, Siemens was no longer making it, and I couldn't get customer service here in the U.S.
The Wizcom QuickLink Elite is not so bad. It's serviceable. I don't think it lives up to its 95% accuracy guarantee, but perhaps meets a 90% threshold, measured impressionistically. It's interface is also reasonable and satisfactory.
However, the C-Pen 800C is even more precise, truly approaching 95%. Moreover, if you discount errors in spacing from this accuracy percentage, its precision is even higher. Whereas the Wizcom is just as likely to make a content error, misread letters, etc., the 800C's errors are more likely to be the absence of a space when there should be one. A rare missed space doesn't make you puzzle over the text when you come back to it two months later.
C-Pen is also lighter, and it's rechargeable, so while it's more expensive, in the long run, you'll save on batteries.
Both have comparable single-language dictionaries, though Wizcom has more built in or for free (C-Pen allows you one free dictionary, including bilingual ones). Wizcom is a only a bit slower on the uptake, but significantly more likely to warn you "Scan too fast." I've never had that from C-Pen, and again, the precision at any speed is appreciably better with C-Pen.
Both have comparable PC and PDA compatibility capacity.

Too much capability can be a bad thing....
I chose this device over the competitor products based on (1) ergonomics, (2) local device controls, and (3) independent operation from the PC.Unfortunately, the device software has fallen prey to the age-old issues of any device that tries to perform "smart" syncing operations.It gets confused...

My goal was to use the pen as a remote scanning device and then be able to upload the scanned text to either my home PC or my laptop.I installed the desktop application on both machines with no apparent problems.However, after successfully syncing with one machine, a subsequent attempt to sync with the second machine failed miserably.One such failure caused me to permanently lose 2 hours worth of scanned input.I was horrified.

I need a scanning pen that is exactly just that.A scanner.I don't need a smart device that wants to 'remember' what I've done or what I want to do.I don't get this type of behavior with my digital camera or my flatbed scanner, so I don't expect it from a pen.When you perform an alleged upload operation, the software tries to write information back into the pen.If I'm "uploading" then I don't want anything to be "downloaded" into the pen... period.This is the bane of my tests and the failures.

There are certainly other factors that affected decision to return the equipment to the manufacturer for refund, such as sluggish processing times between scans, and extremely poor ability to read Times New Roman (note: all their samples are in Arial, but find a textbook that isn't TNR!).I could still have lived with these ideosyncracies if it weren't for the high risk of data loss.This was intended to be a time saver, but it simply wasn't.

My rating here is based on the hardware.This device could be vastly improved with a change in software philosophy.Just upload the data and don't second-guess the operator.

Portable, useful, and easy to use
I received QuickLink Elite pen today and have been testing it for the past 6 hours. Now I am finished, I would like to share my thought about this device with you. The box came with the content as described by Amazon. My surprise was that the 135 page color manual, I thought those were extinct! That is in addition to the PDF one in the CD.

Installation on Windows XP Pro. SP2 (Tablet edition) went smoothly, the instructions on the self run CD were easy to follow. You basically install the driver for the cable [serial at the device connector to USB (II in my case) at the PC end], then you install the desktop application which is a very basic utility that lists the files on your pen, and allows you to communicate, change settings, transfer data, and add software to your pen. Once you install the software, you will be asked to connect the device to the computer to start the communication. Initially I had a problem connecting to the device because it conflicted with Bluetooth serial ports. So I disabled the Bluetooth serial ports and removed some extra unused serial COM ports from the computer device manager. I reinstalled the pen drive from the CD, restarted the computer but before I connect again I did one more IMPORTANT step that is not mentioned anywhere. You Baud rate on the pen (go to settings, communications, baud rate) must be the same as your computer COM port (go to device manager, right click on the new COM port), choose a rate, in my case 57600 worked best. After that I managed to exchange files, install software to the pen. In addition, It tried the IrDA with my laptop, the text file was transferred instantly. PDA (iPAQ) recognize the device but transfer of files needed third-party software (Peacmaker $15). In their website, they say there will be an upgrade where third party will not be needed.

After that scanning the text went smoothly, I also scanned small image ( max 8 mm wide), installed the tables software on the pen, scanned directly on the PC ... all went very well. I scanned a type font 10 textbook, out of the total 543,24 were mis-recognized (some missing one letter, some had capital letter in the middle, while others were just a mess). That is about 95.5% accuracy, not bad, considering that I get about 85% with a flatbed scanner. It takes me about 5 to 6 seconds per line (about 5 minutes per page), so this is truly for text snippets rather than a whole page scanning. Image scanning is useful for signatures, Greek letters, etc. Quality is just OK, you can also scan tables, business cards (to outlook), URLs (get sent to favorites) with the included add-ins on the CD, and bar codes (additional downloads from the wizcom website). All in all I will recommend this device for students, researchers, & people who type slow or rather collect different set of texts from books, journals, etc. It fits 1000 pages internal memory, besides scanning directly to your word processor. It has built in English dictionary, good for language students. It also read aloud any text that is scanned (I do not see the use of this one) but the pen comes with earphone with volume controls.
All in all, this pen turn out as it was described and I think it is a keeper. Thanks for reading this long review and I hope it helped someone.
... Read more

Product Description

PDF Converter Pro 3.0 ... Read more

Features

• Combine multiple source files, such as JPEGs,Word files and Web pages, to create a single PDF file to share your work as an integrated document.
• PDF Converter delivers everything the business user needs, including powerful document and form creation, conversion and editing.
• Instantly create 100% industry-standard PDF files that can be read, printed, or processed.
• For the first time you can edit directly within a PDF file. Add copy, rearrange words, even change the position of charts and graphics.
• Convert PDF Files into Microsoft Word, Excel and Corel WordPerfect documents.

Reviews (1)

A solid alternative to Adobe Acrobat
I found this to be an amazing PDF product - but its not from Adobe.I have used Acrobat in the past, but this does things that Acrobat doesn't do - like turn PDF back into Word, and turning forms into fill-able forms. I use scansoft Paperport too, and this works perfect with the PDF files from scanners. ... Read more

Features

• Access, send, and receive e-mail messages from multiple accounts -- including work, personal or Web-based accounts
• Outlook 2003's Reading Pane, now on the right side of the screen, displays twice as much content, with reduced scrolling
• Group messages by date, size, conversation, subject, importance or other criteria for easy retrieval
• Quick Flags let you flag messages by priority or time sensitivity
• New Navigation Pane easily accesses Contacts, Calendar, Tasks, Folders, Shortcuts and Journal

Reviews (20)

E-mail is once again an enjoyable EXPERIENCE!
Outlook, is so revamped, this alone is a worthy upgrade. Three panes in Outlook 2003 make e-mail an enjoyable experience. The Mail Pane holds all of the necessary tools found in prior versions of Outlook such as the Outlook Bar, and the different folders such as inbox, calendar, etc. The second pane gives an expanded view of the different items listed in the Mail Pane, like your incoming mail, contacts and calendar, which makes reading these information resources easier on the eye and productive by providing a better view. Reading your e-mail in the third pane (Preview Pane), the user views the message in portrait layout, more content is seen compared to prior versions. Its even better to view e-mails with "Clear Type" turned on for Windows XP users. Other features such as improved Virus and Spam protection makes Outlook 2003 a great upgrade. Outlook is not placed on the desktop by default, it can also be minimized to the system tray in Windows, for users connected to an Exchange Server, this displays all the network settings available.

Worth the cost of the upgrade? Buyer beware.
I like the new layout of the panes in the Outlook 2003 window but is it worth the price of the upgrade? Probably not.
I have run into a few problems since I first rated this product.
I read a couple reviews of the Office 2003 upgrade and found that others felt the Outlook 2003 upgrade is the only part of the new Office suite that is worth the cost and hassle to upgrade. I decide to take their advice (and save $) and only upgrade OL.
Two problems have arisen since then.
1. The Office Shortcut bar is no longer a part of the Office suite. This is a great disappointment to me because this is one of the great efficiency tools that Windows has to offer. Luckily, Office XP is still installed as Word/Excel/PowerPoint so I still have the bar but the buttons which applied to OL 2003 are no longer available. If you are dependent on this feature as I have become, don't upgrade the full suite or it will disappear.
2. Because of the conflicting versions of the Office suite that I am using, there isn't full functionality between the programs anymore. For example, I can no longer send the body of a Word/Excel document as the body of an email by simply clicking the "E-mail" on the toolbar in the application. This is more trivial than the first issue.

Need to fix PCS
Generally good, but two bugs remain from before:
1) Outlook PCS, which offers the only hope of exchanging with a PDA contact date organized into subfolders, is so buggy as to be unusable. A little effort by MS could make it great.
2) Appointments still get totally screwed up if you change time zones on the computer. Have to work around by pretending that you're in your home time zone when you travel, but just change the clock time.

Works Great
New interface and features are nice. I use OpenOffice.org instead of Microsoft Office, so a can't comment on the Microsoft Office integration.

Didn't notice and "AdWare" as stated by another reviewer.

I upgraded from Outlook 2000 and it went flawlessly. Found all my Rules, customized folders and Accounts without any setup.

Until the Open Source community provides an alternative on a Microsoft platform, I'll continue to use Microsoft Outlook. For $90.00, you can't beat it.

Thanks for a great product Microsoft.

Big improvement, new folder features are great
I use Outlook for managing tasks, contacts, mail and schedules. The new 2003 version is a vast improvement, at least in look and feel. The folder management is revised to split the window on the left to "favorite folders" and "all folders." Folders are a great way to organize and store emails, so this is a welcome change.

Then, the mail is organized by "today", "yesterday", and then the days of the week and back weeks. This helps to organize and trim out the inbox, which can get cluttered. For this attractive new feature alone, it's worth upgrading.

The look of the user interface is consistent with Windows XP, with the snazzy shaded bars. Nice to work with. Other improvements --the calendar also has been expanded, and tasks and contacts have new features, too. For example, the mail reading pane is larger, less scrolling required (yay!) and you can organize messages by subject thread to delete an entire series. Pretty cool.

If you are a dedicated Outlook user, the upgrade is well worth it, in my opinion. ... Read more

Features

• Information management tool for delivering great customer service
• See customers at a glance and detailed information instantly
• Synchronize information between key applications
• Import contacts from QuickBooks, Microsoft Excel, Outlook, and more
• Create group mailings instantly; familiar look and feel of QuickBooks

Reviews (20)

Easy fixes that are never implemented....
ACT is a great concept and has moved the CRM world. BUT it has changed little in the last 10 years and desperately requires a new release. The three most important updates required are a) better e-mail - integration with Outlook would be fine, b) much improved mass maintenance, lookups, and reporting and c) a more stable and robust data platform. Continued reliance on what are essentially DB 2 files (anyone out there remember them?) is silly and is the reason that file corruption and data loss is endemic with ACT. ACT is a goldmine for BEST and it's being milked, but one wonders how much money is being invested in improving the product. A little attention to fixing the product's many problems would give a significant boost to the software. I have to believe that a mass upgrade from version 6 would also be good for BEST's profits.

These problems have existed for a long, long time, and users have waited for the ACT people to resolve them. 6.0 was an exercise in half measures and disappointment. For that reason, we've come to believe that BEST Software has broken trust with us as their customers. They have broken trust with their certified consultants by being unresponsive to them. Many of us have concluded that they don't deserve our business anymore. We're looking for others that do. And when we find our solution, we'll buy through Amazon, a company that constantly tries to provide better service and a better platform for its customers.

Website needs better product description
ACT! 6.0 for 2004 includes ACT! For PalmOS for free. Why couldn't I have learned by reading the product description on Amazon.com BEFORE the product arrived at my house? I didn't appreciate paying for extra/unneeded copies of ACT! for PalmOS when it was included for free in the main product.

ACT 6.0 Service Trap, beware of hidden fees!
Pure Crap! Be aware that Amazon offers a great price, but the product comes with zero support. Upon receiving ACT, I intstalled it and tried to sync the database with others in our office. With no success after following the on-screen and manual directions, I called Best Software to ask for help.

There first question was "Where did you purchase the product?" When I told their rep that I purchased it from Amazon, she scolded me for not purchasing direct from the company. She then told me that ACT purchased through Amazon has no support and it would cost $199.00 to sign up for a one year support contract.

This is the first time I have ever purchased software from a company and had them refuse to answer a simple question in the first week of trying to use their product.

Over all, a very poor experience and I am sure we will not waist our time purchasing another product from Best Software. Simply calling a company "Best" does not insure that they will live up to their billing.

Very good CRM software
I like this software because of the features that are very important for my business. I recommend this software if you are not using Outlook or any other contact management software. Unfortunately it is price is a bit high.

Nightmare
If you want to store contact information, using the old pen and paper is better than ACT! We have an ACT database storing roughly 3,000 contacts. It is EXTREMELY slow. Integration with Outlook 2000 or 2003 (havent tried xp) is just about inoperable. I recommend that if you have to the tools and knowledge to create your own contact database, do it. It can then be tailored exactly to how the user needs it. ... Read more

Features

• Capture and use notes on laptop or desktop computers or Tablet PCs
• Versatility of paper notes; efficiency of digital organizational tools
• Capture info in multiple ways; store in one place; easy to use
• Be more productive anywhere you work with notes
• Great for in meetings, classes, phone conferences, and more

Features

• Provides customer/contact management, automated processes, and workgroup tools
• Instant access to centralized customer and contact information
• Time management tools; easily automate mass mailings and track results
• Share critical information across the whole team, inside and outside the office
• Analyze leads, sales, and marketing; sort sales by product or probability

Features

• Contact and customer-manager software for up to 5 users
• Access, organize, and manage contact details
• Stay on top of schedule 24/7; share customer info securely
• Enhanced group scheduling; link to Palm OS and Pocket PC handhelds
• Includes Microsoft SQL Server 2000 Standard Edition

Features

• Helps connect selling professionals with small businesses
• Easily access, organize, and manage contact details
• Time management tools; track sales opportunities
• Integrates with Palm OS and Pocket PC handhelds
• Easily share and synchronize contacts and calendars

Features

• This stand-alone version of Lotus Organizer has all the tools you need to control your schedule
• Use it to set up appointments, track your business and personal contacts, and create to-do lists
• Autodial phone numbers, make notes, and sort your information with just a mouse click
• Share calendars online to set up meetings and trade schedules through the Internet
• Area Code Changer helps find all contacts within a particular area code

Features

• Scans business cards into searchable database, no typing required
• Transfers data to your PC, contact manager, or PDA for easy access
• 600 dpi resolution, 4 seconds per business card
• Includes ABBYY FineReader software to detect card's orientation and to remove background
• USB-powered; portable design, about the size of a deck of cards

Features

• More than 140 contracts and forms .
• Over 60 interactive forms -- create essential documents with simple step-by-step interviews.
• Five completely searchable Nolo business bestsellers.
• State-specific information.
• Your information remains private.

Features

• The fastest way to book customer appointments
• View appointments by day, week, or month
• Find open appointment times quickly; schedule in seconds
• Set appointment reminders and prevent double-bookings
• Increase staff utilization

Reviews (1)

Bang for your buck!
I am a CPA who works for a small tax preparation service. We have four tax professionals and one secretary. We recently purchased Customer Appointment Manager to help maximize our number of customer appointments and eliminate our old appointment book system...Customer Appointment Manager is a steal! We've even talked about getting a multi-user version so we can all see our appointments. This software was easy to use and install. Thanks for simplifying the way we book appointments. ... Read more

Features

• Contact and customer-manager software for 5 users
• Access, organize, and manage contact details
• Stay on top of schedule 24/7; share customer info securely
• Link to Palm OS and Pocket PC handhelds
• Forecast, track, and report on sales opportunities

Features

• Personal organizer software with powerful tools
• User friendly interface; hundreds of printable calendars
• Prioritize and manage to-do list; organize contacts
• Manage and track all business and personal expenses
• Synchronization with handheld devices

Features

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