I am a chiropractor with very messy notes and can't type very well. I was wondering about setting up my client notes on computer and saw your article about the Flybook. What struck me was that you said the handwriting recognition worked well. The Flybook is probably a bit small but any clues about good tablet pcs and the software they use would be much appreciated.
I see about 30 to 40 clients a week. I collect a page or so of information on the first visit and then note the adjustments I carry out and reactions and progress on subsequent visits. Steve Haines
The Flybook uses RitePen software with a touch-sensitive screen, and I was impressed by how well it worked. Mostly it fails only with trade names and similar words that are not in its dictionary -- and that includes the word Flybook. There's a review of RitePen at PDA Today, and you can download a free trial version. The same company provides EverNote not-raking software.
RitePen can be used with or without Microsoft's Tablet PC edition of Windows XP.
I have also found that the handwriting recognition works very well in "Windows powered" handhelds/PDAs running Windows CE -- I have a Dell Axim. This is a much cheaper option than a tablet PC or Tablet PC, but of course you sync the handheld with a full-sized PC.
In both cases, the systems work best with what I think of as "Junior school handwriting" -- you can do joined up writing, but use upright letters and form them reasonably carefully. It's not as fast as an italic-style scrawl. However, correcting recognition errors is a huge time-waster, so this approach is far quicker in the long run.
A notebook PC such as the Flybook has an advantage in that it has a larger screen. This allows you to use larger characters, and these are (to generalise) recognised more reliably than small ones.
Does anyone else actually use handwriting recognition?
