Use of mobile appointment scheduling devices

Abstract

One hundred thirty-eight subjects participated in a study on mobile appointment scheduling. Subjects completed a questionnaire on their primary method of managing appointments when away from their desks. Immediately afterwards, subjects completed a session of scheduling four appointments with the interviewer. The most common scheduling systems, in order of popularity, were paper-based day planners, memory, scrap paper, and PDA's. However, 43% of the claimed PDA users and 68% of day planner users switched to another, more readily accessible method when scheduling an appointment. Interviews revealed a practice of using memory or scrap paper to "buffer" appointments for later entry into the PDA or planner.