personal digital assistant

personal digital assistant (PDA), lightweight, hand-held computer designed for use as a personal organizer with communications capabilities; also called a handheld. A typical PDA has no keyboard, relying instead on special hardware and pen-based computer software to enable the recognition of handwritten input, which is entered on the surface of a liquid crystal display screen. In addition to including such applications as a word processor, spreadsheet, calendar, and address book, PDAs are used as notepads, appointment schedulers, and wireless communicators for sending and receiving data, faxes, and electronic-mail messages. Introduced in 1993, PDAs achieved only modest acceptance during the remainder of the decade due to their relatively high price and limited applications, but improved software and lower prices subsequently led to more widespread use. See also palmtop .

personal digital assistant A generic term describing small, hand-held computers. Originally personal digital assistants had limited functions mainly centred around personal organization such as a diary or an address book. However, they are now very sophisticated devices which provide, amongst other facilities, access to the Internet.

personal digital assistant (PDA) A pocketbook-sized computer with a combined touch-sensitive membrane covering an LCD panel as its main input and output device. The user writes on the screen with a penlike stylus, and the objects drawn are echoed on the screen. It is possible to interpret handwriting by means of character-recognition techniques, to store what is written or drawn as images for later retrieval, or for the screen to display menus and check boxes so that selections may be made with the stylus. Applications include calendars, diaries, and personal organizer functions. Communications with other computers are also available.