Handheld Computing and Information Literacy

In the coming century, the ability to identify, access, apply, and create information will be the equivalent of literacy (Bailey & Lumley, 1999). Information literacy is an information-age problem-solving process resulting in productive use of information. Users are able not only to use the desktop computer to access information and practice information literacy but also to apply handheld computers for interacting with information that resides on desktop computers and the Internet.

Four Characteristics of Handheld Computers
Four main factors set the handheld computer apart from the desktop computer: portability, accessibility, mobility, and adaptability.

1. Portability refers to the physical device. Palmtops are small enough to be taken anywhere. They fit nicely into jacket pockets and purses or clip onto belts.
   
   
2. Accessibility refers to the ability for users to get the information they need instantly. They no longer have to wait to get back to the office to check schedules or verify information.
   
   
3. Mobility refers to the user who has the ability for greater movement and is not tethered to one place.
   
   
4. Adaptability refers to the ability of the user to change his or her behavior because of this highly mobile technology. The Internet has transformed the way leaders receive information, and now the handheld computer will change the way they use and access it. Handheld computers are not only an extension of the Internet and the desktop computer but also an extension of the person and his or her information environment.