Final words
Each of the packages that we tested provided a good platform for enabling mobile workers access to their e-mail. Something to bear in mind though, is that these are not just simple off-the-shelf packages. They each require considerable technical knowledge, planning, and time to install and configure satisfactorily. For example, Synchrologic documentation says "A strong understanding of Microsoft Windows 2000 Server and Microsoft Exchange permissions and configuration are recommended in order to perform the installation. A working knowledge of Palm OS and Windows CE devices is also recommended." And that was from the package that we felt installed and configured the easiest! When we were installing the majority of these packages, even on a clean system, every time we were amazed at the sheer number of updates, patches, and background system configuration changes that they required. In fact we would be hesitant to recommend any IT department try to install any of these applications on a live server. You may choose to run the mobile server applications on a separate server to the one that is running your e-mail server application instead.
In conclusion, if your business has staff people out on the road and you are currently running your mail server in-house, then it may be worth considering the move to enable your employees to receive and send their e-mail when they are out in the field. This leads to faster response times to client queries, and cuts down on company to mobile phone expenditure, particularly when it is a call from someone in the office to pass messages on or find out where the mobile worker is or what stage a particular job is up to when a simple e-mail would suffice.
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