Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Searching On The Run, Carol Tenopir

School of Information Sciences -- Faculty Publications and Other Works

With wireless connectivity and small laptop computers, people are no longer tied to the desktop for online searching. Handheld personal digital assistants (PDAs) offer even greater portability. So far, the most common uses of PDAs are as calendars and address books, or to interface with a laptop or desktop machine. More advanced PDAs, like Research in Motion's BlackBerry Wireless Handheld[TM], as well as new versions of the Palm PC, add entail, paging, a telephone, and limited Internet surfing. Hard-to-read screen displays and small keyboards (or no keyboard) have been a barrier to using PDAs for online searching and reading. As …