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Back to school: Get ready with Windows Mobile

By Gail Burke
It seems that as soon as we all truly start enjoying our summer break, it’s time to start planning for back to school. As each year passes, the preparations required for back to school become more complicated, the school supply lists get longer, and the “must-have” school clothes get harder to find. For my family, organization is the key to a smooth return to school, and I rely heavily on my Windows Mobile phone to see me through this busy time.

My phone is a Samsung Omnia from Verizon Wireless running Windows Mobile 6.1; procedures may differ slightly on your phone.

This year, in addition to my Windows Mobile Calendar and e-mail, I'm also relying on other applications, such as Microsoft Office Excel Mobile and Office Word Mobile, part of the Microsoft Office Mobile suite of applications. I use these applications to keep important information at my fingertips, to track my budget, and to help make my shopping easier and more efficient.

Managing my schedule

One of the most important tools in my arsenal against the back-to-school chaos is my Windows Mobile Calendar. As I head into the last few weeks before the start of school, I make sure I have entered important dates and reminders on my calendar to avoid missing appointments or forgetting important tasks. I track everything from tax-free shopping dates for school supplies to doctors' appointments for sports physicals and updated vaccinations. I even track dates of special sales that I want to take advantage of for back-to-school shopping.
Screen shot of a daily schedule in Windows Mobile Calendar
A view of my daily schedule in Windows Mobile Calendar

Managing my budget

During the best of economic times, back-to-school shopping can be hard on the budget. Given our current economic climate, it is even more important that I create a budget for my back-to-school spending—and that I stick to that budget. After I create my budget in Office Excel, I sync it to my mobile phone before I shop.

To open my budget in Excel Mobile on my phone, I click Start, Programs, and then Office Mobile. Then I click Excel Mobile and select the file that I synchronized from my computer.
Screen shot of a budget for school supplies in Excel Mobile
Budget for school supplies in Excel Mobile
Updating my budget spreadsheet on the go helps keep me on track and lets me know exactly where I stand in terms of spending on back-to-school items. When I complete a purchase, I open my budget spreadsheet in Excel Mobile and enter the amount I have spent, and my balances are automatically updated.
Screen shot of Excel Mobile budget update
Updating my budget on the go

Managing information

I used to tackle back-to-school shopping with a handful of lists created on scrap paper, napkins, and the backs of receipts—anything I could find to jot down whatever item happened to pop into my head at the time. Occasionally, I would be organized enough to combine all the napkins and scraps into one comprehensive list, hoping I hadn’t missed anything.

Helpfully, my kids’ school has moved into the information age by sending out electronic versions of school supply lists well before the start of school. These lists include all the school supplies my kids need for the upcoming year and some “shared items” the school asks parents to contribute to help defer the overall costs. Having the list available while I shop helps me to make sure I don’t miss anything and to avoid a replay of the dreaded “notebook paper disaster of '07.” No kid, after all, wants to show up for the first day of fifth grade with wide-ruled paper when all the other kids have moved on to narrow ruled!

Our school supply list comes in e-mail as an Office Word document. I download the document to my phone and view it using Office Word Mobile. Having the school’s supply list available on my phone lets me take advantage of those unplanned shopping trips that happen while I kill time during my daughter’s swimming lesson or my son’s orthodontic appointment.

To view a Word file on your Windows Mobile phone:

  • Click Start on your phone and then click Programs. Click Office Mobile.
    Screen shot of Programs screen with Office Mobile selected

  • Click Word Mobile.
    Screen shot of Office Mobile screen with Word Mobile selected

  • On the Word Mobile screen, select the Word file where you saved your shopping or school supply list to open it. You may need to navigate to and open the folder where you saved the file.
    Screen shot of shopping list in Word Mobile

Although school supplies are essential, nothing is more important than the right back-to-school wardrobe—at least in the eyes of an 11-year-old girl. Of course, nothing can break a budget like shopping for clothes, so I make sure I go in with a plan and stick to it. I have my kids “shop” online at their favorite stores. Most stores have a "wish list" option—you use it to create a list of items you want to purchase. You can e-mail the list to yourself from the site with a note. Given the rate that my kids change sizes, online shopping can be risky for us, but when we go to the store to try clothes on, I go prepared with their wish lists in hand—on my phone. Keeping the lists on my phone helps speed the process up and greatly decreases the impulse buys. My kids get the clothes they want, and I save time and money.
Screen shot of a Word Mobile list
Using shopping wish lists helps us get just the right items
Although a Windows Mobile phone can’t take care of all the tasks I have to get done to have my kids ready to start school, using my phone and all its organizational resources really makes the job easier and leaves me—and my kids—more time to enjoy these final days of summer.
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