Step forward iSilo, a sophisticated reader for viewing HTML documents and text files on your Pocket PC. The best thing about the software is that it uses a little trick to make these files as small as possible, saving you space on your device. With the help of its sister-Windows application iSiloX, the program converts documents originally saved as Web pages or text documents into TXT format.

As a pay off for the mighty compression rates offered by iSilo, you unfortunately lose some links in the conversion process. Some graphic formats aren't displayed properly when converted, but fonts and tables remain largely unaltered.

Aside from a few niggly display problems though, iSilo represents a great way of compressing HTML and text documents for viewing on your mobile device.

Download iSilo 6.04 in Softonic

Thankfully, MADE is designed to address some of these limitations and provides an altogether more well-rounded text editor. In fact, the scope of the documents you can create with the program is only really limited by the amount of memory your device houses.

Provided you have the processing power, you can open very large text documents, handle multiple files simultaneously and edit files with different encoding formats (UTF-8 and UCS-2). The program allows you to work with files stored on your internal memory as well as those saved to an expansion card.

However, the thing I like the most about MADE is the sheer range of functions it offers, meaning you can copy, paste and undo changes; customise the text size and font, add bookmarks, and customise the colors of the environment.

If you use your Pocket PC to write anything then MADE makes for a far superior solution than the Windows Mobile notepad.

Download MADE 2.0.0 in Softonic

Notes are, to this reviewer at least, one of those functions you’d expect that your PDA could really handle: after all, how much use is a Pocket PC that can’t adequately handle note-taking tasks? However, Microsoft’s built in support for Notes is so prohibitively designed that many users find they use it once then forget all about it.

PhatNotes brings power and multi-functionality to Notes. PhatNotes allows you to set up multiple databases of notes, each with multiple categories, which sync automatically when you connect your Pocket PC to your main computer. This makes it easy to categorize and sort your notes in a simple and convenient manner. Or, if you choose, select and drag text from any drag’n’drop friendly application (Firefox, for example) straight into PhatNotes’ desktop application, and in seconds, it’s saved to your PDA. Similarly, PhatNotes supports Microsoft Word documents on its own. As far as we could discern, there were no key features missing from this support. Indeed, PhatNotes has arguably the better interface.

In its basic functions, PhatNotes is easy to use, quick and reliable, but in some more complex operations, we found it a little less intuitive. Synchronising attachments (image files, for example) seemed like a useful function to have. It would be nice to quickly and simply add a map or a photo to a note which you’re taking with you on the road.

While the documentation provided with PhatNotes helped us set up attachment syncing in minutes, the feature itself is somewhat lacking. Any file you wish to attach to a note must already be in the shared documents folder for your device on your desktop PC. In other words, it pretty much already needs to be on your handheld. With the leaps and bounds being made in storage these days, we think that the time has come for programs like PhatNotes to automatically handle this sort of task. A feature we’d like to see in the future is attaching any file on your desktop PC to a note, and PhatNotes automatically making a copy of that file in your sync folder. After all, surely the general idea here is automation, not making the user check whether a file is in some folder.

Another gripe, though with potentially less impact, is the process for deleting databases. It would seem obvious that if you wanted to delete a database, you could select it (either on the PDA or the desktop computer), select ‘delete’ from a context menu, confirm and that’s it. However, PhatNotes asks us to disconnect our Pocket PC, delete the database on both it and the desktop, and then reconnect. This ungainly process could easily be automated, if necessary with a special warning, or an option to leave the database on the pocket PC, desktop PC or neither.

It is what PhatNotes brings to the table though which should be remembered. Despite the trouble with attachments and databases (features which Microsoft hasn’t even tried to include), are tempered by a very simple and enjoyable user experience with the more basic of its features. This program offers lots now, and hints at more to come… just like the developer that created it.

Download PhatNotes Professional Edition 5.3 in Softonic

Instead, why not give SplashNotes a try and keep on top of everything using your PDA. The software allows you to manage all kinds of notes and lists on your mobile device, helping you to ensure that you never forget anything and giving you the power to jot down and manage literally any information you like.

Entering information into the program is really easy but where the program really excels is in its categorisation tools. You can create as many categories as you choose and organise them all using an expandable tree structure.

In order to master the program you'll need to spend a fair amount of time practicing in order to discover its many hidden features. Luckily though, there's a very comprehensive online user guide to help you out.

If you want an information manager that gives you total control over your notes, you won't go far wrong with SplashNotes.

Download SplashNotes 1.1 in Softonic

This application allows you to record and organise anything you like on your handheld device, such as tasks, ideas, appointments, duties, dates and shopping lists. CreativeNotes proves to be pretty powerful, letting you add as much data as you like while retaining a high degree of organisation. It gives you different ways of inputting information, whether it's through the (rather fiddly) virtual keyboard, or ticking different check boxes.

The program lets you manage your data in a very logical manner, with functions for sorting and filtering information by category, attaching drawings or handwriting to notes, and applying different colours for different tasks. Using a hierarchical tree structure, you can expand or close nodes to keep things as neat as possible. The ubiquitous password-protection is also included.

If you're looking for a way to take notes and sort them more effectively then CreativeNotes represents a very practical solution.

Download CreativeNotes 3.0 in Softonic