Review of Ilium Software's ListPro 4.1 on Clinton Fitch (Dot) Com!

Ilium Software's ListPro 4.1 Professional

If there ever was an all-in-one application, Ilium Software's ListPro may be it. ListPro is a single application that allows you to create essentially any kind of list that you desire. From grocery lists to errands and DVD collections, ListPro allows you to completely create and customize a list that is specific to your needs.

ListPro has been a part of the Ilium line up since 2001 and the latest version, 4.1, adds a striking amount of features and functionality. Designed to be completely compatible with Windows Mobile 5.0, ListPro 4.1 gives you new features such as item strike through, simplified list creation, a "Find All" feature as well as improved printing functionality. These new features and functions build on what is already a solid application and one that most Windows Mobile owners can hardly do without. Additionally, because ListPro has been around for so long, there are literally hundreds of lists available for free from the Ilium website!

ListPro is installed via ActiveSync and occupies just over 650K on your Windows Mobile device. If you purchase the Professional Edition, you will also receive the Windows desktop version of ListPro which will need about 3.2MB of hard disk space. The Professional edition will also allow you to synchronize your ListPro lists between your PC and Windows Mobile device. ListPro 4.1 is compatible with Windows Mobile 2003, 2003SE and 5.0 as well as Windows Mobile Smartphones.

Figure 1: ListPro Professional on Windows PCs

When ListPro is started, a directory listing of all available lists are displayed. If you have a list you downloaded from the Ilium site and have it either synchronized or copied to your device, you can tap it to open it. Ilium also included a Template file which gives you templates that you can use to create common types of lists. Or, if you want to create a completely new list, tap the New softkey and you will be prompted for file name and storage information.

Figure 2: ListPro Directory Listing

Figure 3: ListPro New File Setup

When creating a new list, ListPro's now includes a wizard to walk you through the basic setup of the list including the type of list you will be creating, what columns (or fields) you want in the list, and the name of the list itself. By using this new wizard, the learning curve decreases and the ability to create the “right” list is increased significantly. The new list wizard is perhaps one of the leading reasons for existing users of ListPro to upgrade and for new users to purchase the application. It greatly simplifies things and provides a high level of "out-of-the-box" functionality that previous versions lacked.

Figure 4: Add/Remove Items on the ListPro list

With the new list created, you need to populate it with fields of information. In my example, I've created a grocery list. To add a new item to my grocery list, I tap Menu>New Item.... Now I can enter in the item, the number of them I need and so forth. From here, I can also highlight an item by tapping the Hlt button. By highlighting, I get a quick visual in my list of the important items. Once I'm done I tap OK and the item is on my grocery list. This is a great way to keep track of things that you purchase every time at the grocery.

Figure 5: Entering Items on the new ListPro list

Figure 6: The completed Grocery list – Note the highlighted item

With your list created, you can now start manipulating the display to make it work best for you. By tapping the Menu>View menu, you can change how information is displayed or what information is displayed. For example, you can have the notes field displayed so you can see any notes related to the items on your list. You can also have items hidden once they are checked and can filter items. By giving you these visual options, ListPro truly becomes personalized to work best for you.

Figure 7: The Notes field shown on the ListPro list

New to version 4.1 is the Strike Through feature. When this is enabled (from the Menu>List Properties menu), the item on your list will be lined out much like you would do using a paper list. By doing this you quickly get a visual indicator of if an item has been picked up or not. Like previous versions, you can also have checked items be removed from the list all together so only those items that remain are displayed.

Figure 8: The new Strike Through feature of ListPro

Another new-to-this-version feature is the Find All function. Essentially the Find All feature allows you to query the entirety of a list for a word or phrase. This will greatly speed up searches in large lists and is a welcomed addition to ListPro.

Figure 9: The Find All feature is new to ListPro

The beauty of ListPro is the high level of customization that is available to you as a user. Simply put, there really isn't a list that you can't create with it. You can create tasks lists, gift lists, shopping lists and information lists. For example, I created a Formula One World Champions List (you can download it at http://www.iliumsoft.com/download/lists3/Formula_One_Driver_Champions.clf). This list has all of the Formula One World Champions by year, the constructor of their car and the car model itself. It is a list that is specific to a particular interest of mine to be sure, but it shows you the flexibility of this terrific application.

Lastly, because ListPro 4.1 is completely Windows Mobile 5.0 compatible, using it in Landscape mode is no problem.

Figure 10: ListPro in Landscape Mode

In addition to these new features, the long standing features of ListPro remain. You can still set alarms for lists or password protect them should your list and its content require those features. Further, you can use your Pocket PCs Infrared to beam a list form one device to another. It is a complete program with a terrific set of features. The additional features that this new version brings only enhance the usability of the application and don't distract from its main purpose: to be the ultimate list application.

The improvements in ListPro 4.1 are outstanding and make this a must-have application for those Windows Mobile users who need a good list and information store. Its performance is outstanding and it is backed by the outstanding support of Ilium Software, a company that has always proven to be a pleasant experience when it comes to customer service and technical support.

Ilium has a wide range of already made lists from ListPro users available for free download at http://www.iliumsoft.com/site/lp/lp_lists.php. On this site, you can search based on keyword on the hundreds of lists available. You can also sign up for Ilium's free RSS feed that will notify you of when new lists are available. The RSS feed is http://www.iliumsoft.com/listexchange.xml.

ListPro 4.1 is available from the Ilium website in various packages. For the Pocket PC standalone version it is $19.95 while the Professional version which included the Windows PC desktop version is $29.95. For those who have ListPro 4.0, the upgrade is free while those will previous versions can upgrade for a discounted price of $16.95. You can try the latest version of ListPro at the Clinton Fitch (Dot) Com! store by clicking here.

Clinton Fitch ~ MVP-Mobile Devices
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