A tough man needs a tough PDA. So does a tough woman for that matter. Handheld computer/communicators aren't just for desk-bound nerds any more, they're even used by people who actually get dirt under their fingernails.

And no quarry foreman or construction worker would be caught dead with a namby-pamby PDA named after a plant like "palm" or "blackberry." So luckily German industrial giant Siemens has created MOBIC -- the handheld as tough as you are.

MOBIC -- which stands for MOBile Industrial Communicator -- is a Windows CE-powered palmtop with an 8.4-inch (21-centimeter) color touch screen, so there's no keyboard to get grit in or spill coffee on. You can use a stylus, a pen, your grubby finger tip, or even a spare chunk of wood to operate it.

Liquid and dust-resistant, MOBIC's sturdy case can survive a fall of six feet (2 meters) and still keep track of your mammoth cargo containers full of auto parts or other studly cargo.

It has a port for a PCMCIA-radio card, which means you're never out of touch with the foreman or contractor while on the job site. It can handle communicating with your office's network too. You can send and receive e-mails, download software and even Web browse from the field. You can always have the latest blueprints, stress calculations -- and sports scores -- right at your fingertips.

The rechargeable batteries put in a good eight-hour day before needing to knock off. Just in time for you and the boys to hang up your hard hats and head down to your favorite bar.

http://www.ad.siemens.de/mobic/html_76/home/index.htm

-- Robert Myers