An electronic organizer (or electric organizer) is a small
calculator
An electronic calculator is typically a portable electronic device used to perform calculations, ranging from basic arithmetic to complex mathematics.
The first solid-state electronic calculator was created in the early 1960s. Pocket-sized ...
-sized computer, often with an built-in
diary
A diary is a written or audiovisual record with discrete entries arranged by date reporting on what has happened over the course of a day or other period. Diaries have traditionally been handwritten but are now also often digital. A personal ...
application and other functions such as an address book and calendar, replacing paper-based
personal organizer
A personal organizer, datebook, date log, daybook, day planner, personal analog assistant, book planner, year planner, or agenda (from Latin ''agenda'' – things to do), is a small book or binder that is designed to be portable. It usually con ...
s. It normally has a small
alphanumeric
Alphanumericals or alphanumeric characters are a combination of alphabetical and numerical characters. More specifically, they are the collection of Latin letters and Arabic digits. An alphanumeric code is an identifier made of alphanumeric c ...
keypad and an
LCD screen of one, two, or three lines. The electronic diary or organizer was invented by Indian businessman
Satyan Pitroda in 1975. He is regarded as one of the earliest pioneers of hand-held computing because of his invention of the Electronic Diary in 1975.
They were very popular especially with businessmen during the 1990s, but because of the advent of
palmtop PCs in the 1990s,
personal digital assistant
A personal digital assistant (PDA), also known as a handheld PC, is a variety mobile device which functions as a personal information manager. PDAs have been mostly displaced by the widespread adoption of highly capable smartphones, in part ...
s in the 2000s, and
smartphone
A smartphone is a portable computer device that combines mobile telephone and computing functions into one unit. They are distinguished from feature phones by their stronger hardware capabilities and extensive mobile operating systems, whi ...
s in the 2010s, all of which have a larger set of features, electronic organizers are mostly seen today for research purposes. One of the leading research topics being the study of how electronics can help people with mental disabilities use this type of equipment to aid their daily life.
Electronic organizers have more recently been used to support people with Alzheimer's disease to have a visual representation of a schedule.
Casio digital diary
Casio digital diaries were produced by
Casio
is a Japanese multinational electronics manufacturing corporation headquartered in Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan. Its products include calculators, mobile phones, digital cameras, electronic musical instruments, and analogue and digital watches. ...
in the early and mid 1990s, but have since been entirely superseded by Mobile Phones and PDAs.
Other electronic organizers
While Casio was a major role player in the field of electronic organizers there were many different ideas, patent requests, and manufacturers of electronic organizers.
Rolodex
A Rolodex is a rotating card file device used to store business contact information. Its name, a portmanteau of the words ''rolling'' and ''index'', has become somewhat genericized (usually as ''rolodex'') for any personal organizer performing th ...
, who is namely known for their index card holders in the 1980s,
Sharp Electronics, who is mostly known for their printers and audio visual equipment, and lastly Royal electronics were all large contributors to the electronic organizer in its heyday.
Features
* Telephone directory
* Schedule keeper: Keep track of appointments.
* Memo function: Store text data such as price lists, airplane schedules, and more.
* To do list: Keep track of daily tasks, checking off items as you complete them.
* World time: Find out the current time in virtually any location on the globe.
* Secret memory area: The secret memory area keeps personal data private. Once a password is registered, data is locked away until the password is used to access the secret area.
* Alarm
* Metric conversion function: Conversion between metric units and another measurement unit.
* Currency conversion function
* Game: Some machines included a game such as Poker or Blackjack.
See also
*
Pocket electronic dictionary
*
Personal digital assistant
A personal digital assistant (PDA), also known as a handheld PC, is a variety mobile device which functions as a personal information manager. PDAs have been mostly displaced by the widespread adoption of highly capable smartphones, in part ...
(PDA)
*
Smartphone
A smartphone is a portable computer device that combines mobile telephone and computing functions into one unit. They are distinguished from feature phones by their stronger hardware capabilities and extensive mobile operating systems, whi ...
*
Pocket computer
A pocket computer was a 1980s-era user programmable calculator-sized computer that had fewer screen lines,
Some had only one line and often fewer characters per line, than the Pocket-sized computers introduced beginning in 1989. Manufacturers in ...
References
External links
Mobile computers
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