The non-proprietary lingua franca for connecting PDAs to Enterprise data

PDAs are growing in popularity and there are many millions in use today. All of them come with pre-installed software that allows you to maintain data on things such as your schedule and contacts. This information can also be synchronized with your desktop computer.

A primary problem with this is that very few of them have applications that allow you to link with, and manipulate, your Enterprise data. For example, if you already have a contact list on your Enterprise database, why should you have to re-enter all that data in a format proprietary to the PDA and then not be able to re-sync to your Enterprise database?

A secondary, but equally major problem, relates to the timeliness of information. In today's modern commercial arena, up-to-date information is vital. If you're a salesman on the road, you don't want to have to wait until you're next in the office to synchronize your data and get the latest prices to close that vital deal. You need the information NOW.