Hello,
I'm also quite new to the C3000. I have the goal to make it a highly productive handheld computer, as my old HP 200LX (DOS palmtop) was. Here are my opinions:
Is there anything on the Sharp supplied CD-Roms that I should install (any menu translation would be helpful) ?
I have only used the CD for installing the USB driver and Intellisync (there is somewhere a howto on the web describing how to make the Japanese intellisync English. I don't know where I had it from, but possible someone else can advise, my file has the name "c3000sync.rtf", don't know if this was the original name, though.)
I don't know if there is anything more on the CD which is worth installing for non-Japanese users.
What's the best alternative ROM to use ?
Cacko 1.23beta1, IMO. It adds a lot of functionality and is relatively stable, compared to the Sharp ROM (Well, Cacko is based on Sharp, but contains enhancements).
THe other options are, as I understand, not mature enough to provide a stable productivity system which you can rely on.
What do you think are the 10 most essential apps / programs to install ?
* KDEPIM/PI (free)
* StageOne or IQNotes (whatever you prefer, I prefer StageOne) (these two are outliners for note taking, supporting sketches and mane more interesting features) (commercial)
* TextMaker for Zaurus (commercial)
* Tree!Explorer QT Plus (commercial)
* zbedic 0.9.5 with lots of dictionaries
* Opera 7.25
* qpesearch for easy file searching
* kismet with kismet-qt, just installed Slapass and evaluating it usefulness
* vim as a good console text editor (but the one which comes with TreeExplorer is sufficient for basic editing needs)
* gtar (full-featured tar as a basis for backup scripts etc.)
What I'm still looking for is a good mail program, the built-in is thebest graphical mail program I have seen so far for the Zaurus, but compared to what I'm used to (Post/LX on the HP 200LX) it is extremely limited.
What's the best way to sync with a PC ?
With Outlook? Via Intellisync to DTM (Sharps's built-in PIM database) and in a seperate step on the Zaurus: DTM to KDEPIM/PI.
If you don't need the features of KDEPIM/PI you can of course use the built-in PIMs and sync directly with them.
With a desktop PC in general, not limited to Outlook?
The KDEPIM/PI apps are available for Windows and Linux desktops, too (hence the PI=platform independent). They have a built-in sync mechanism
daniel