The growing popularity of pocket pc shareware has mirrored the popularity of PDAs and pocket pc's themselves. As more and more people discover the usefulness of using a PDA, more and more software writers are focusing their attention on this part of the market. Pocket pc shareware is available in every conceivable category, from games and game emulators to productivity suites that allow the PDA to become a true mini computer.

Before you download all that great pocket pc shareware, however, there are a few basic safety and housekeeping steps the PDA owner should take to make sure the personal information contained on that PDA is well protected.

The first step is to make sure you are running a strong virus scanning program on your PDA, and that the scanning software is up to date. All the major makers of virus scanning software, names like McAfee, Symantec and Computer Associates, make versions for PDAs.

The next step is to make sure all software patches are applied to your operating system and onboard software products. The PDA manufacturer will generally post any patches or fixes to security flaws on their website. In addition, the operating system manufacturer will periodically release fixes for security issues they have found. Applying these uPDAtes on a regular basis is your best defense against viruses and other malicious code.

Once these basic housekeeping steps are out of the way, it is time to download some fun and useful shareware onto your PDA. Freeware and shareware software downloads are available from many sources, including general software download sites, newsgroups and websites aimed at owners of PDAs. No matter what type of software you are looking for, you will probably be able to find some useful and fun shareware for your PDA.

Another thing you should be aware of id that a shareware is in many cases a commercial software in disguise. What does that mean? Well, there are two possibilities: the first one is : after you have downloaded the shareware and have been using it for a while, it will cease to work (after 30 days or 14 days), and the owners of the shareware will ask you to buy a permanent license for this software. The second scenario is that you will gt only a very basic form of the software as a shareware, and you will need to upgrade to the full version for a fee. Now, I'm not saying there is something wrong with thatwe all have to make a living. I'm just sayingbe aware of that and make a good decision.