Resco Explorer is the best file manager for Palm OS – period. The product is a favourite of both TamsPalm authors and TamsPalm readers…and I thus was excited to find out that the product is available for PocketPC’s. The PocketPC version is subdivided into two parts – the first part of the review focuses on Explorer itself, the second part looks at the optional plugins!
Starting up Resco Explorer presents you with a view similar to the PocketPC’s built-in file manager:
The “file view mode” can be set in the menu. Resco Explorer allows you four states of operation – they are shown below. I personally use List view and Detail view most of the time:
A tree view can be displayed next to the file browser window(the toolbars can be removed):
Moving files around your PocketPC is very easy. You can either use classic drag&drop, or use a clipboard-style concept. If a big file gets moved, Explorer displays the writing speed in the progress dialog:
Resco Explorer displays a lot of details about files:
Resco Explorer allows you to compress files into zip format on the go. These zip files can then be treated like folders, and can be used as targets for move and copy operations:
Files can also be encrypted for confidentiality:
Resco Explorer contains a recycle bin for deleted files. Whenever you delete a file in Resco Explorer, the program moves it to a hidden folder on your PocketPC. It can then be recovered from there, later:
Bluetooth file transfers are easy – you just select the files and click Send via Bluetooth:
Last but not least, Resco Explorer also has a “File Find” function that can find files on a memory card…
Overall, Resco Explorer 2005 is a significant improvement over an ipaq’s integrated file manager. The file manager functions alone are worth the purchase price of just 15$ - tune in soon for a look at the cool and free plug-ins that are included in the distribution(and a 20% discount code)!