Installation
	Documentation/Help Files
	Samples/Code Quality
	Usability
	Redistribution
	Overall Rating
	Best possible rating is 4 stars

Overview: HPC.Connect is a set of three ActiveX controls that allows you to programmatically control a handheld PC from the desktop computer. HPC.Connect does not allow you to create applications that run on an HPC, but rather desktop applications that interact and exchange data with a handheld PC. HPC.Connect provides the ability for file manipulation, database control, and system control of the remote device entirely from the desktop computer.

From top to bottom this product is a winner! HPC.Connect is a first class product that every control maker should emulate.

   Installation - The installation of HPC.Connect flawless. It does not require that you have Windows CE Services installed, so you can checkout the controls, code samples, and documentation on any PC. The install program uses Install Shield, and allows you to select the destination directory as well as the components to install in three categories (typical, compact, and custom). The custom category allows you to select Program Files, Example Files, and Help Files. I like this feature, it allows you to checkout just the portions that you are interested in. The uninstall was also flawless, completely removing all the files it installed.

    Documentation/Help Files - I was really impressed that a Word *.DOC file manual was included. This is really handy if you wish to print it out and scribble notes on it and highlight notes. Even though the doc file contains all the information that the help file does, it shows a commitment to providing everything that customers desire. The documentation and help files clearly describe the product and show well commented code samples for everything. This is where many control venders fall short, they often provide a useful control, but make it difficult to implement because of documentation that is lacking, but not HPC Technologies. The documentation and help files include code samples, and virtually every line of code is commented so you know exactly what is happening at each point. Each code sample also includes a commented header that describes the overall functionality of what the sample is suppose to do - very nice.

    Samples/Code Quality - The HPC.Connect demo includes several sample projects that show the use of each control.

Database Samples - There is a demo that shows how to browse through the databases on the HPC using the HPCDatabase control and return the name, size, and number of records in each database. A second database sample shows how to open and close a database by name, return the number of records, the number of fields in each record, the type of field, and it allows you to browse through and edit the fields. It also shows how to create and delete databases. A third database sample shows how to fill a grid control with the records and fields of a database.

File Sample -  The demo includes one sample that shows basic file manipulation. The demo only really shows how to copy a file to the HPC and a create a shortcut link on the HPC's desktop that points to the file. The HPCFile control allows copying, renaming, and deleting of files, as well as retrieving the attributes of files, everything you could possible want to know about a file -- many more properties for files are available on the HPC than on a desktop system, and this control reaches them all. The control also has a CreateShortcut method that allows the easy creation of shortcut (*.lnk files) on the HPC. Being that I'm a file manipulation/parsing maniac, I thought the sample could have shown other uses such as retrieving a list of files based on their properties and things like that.

System Samples - The HPCSystem control was pretty cool. It also comes with three sample programs. The first showed how to retrieve the the power status of the device. It knows what type of power it is operating on, external or battery, as well as the level of battery charge, the charging state, and even if there is a battery installed. The sample also includes code that shows how to calculate how much battery time is left. The other two samples show how to view and manipulate the registry on the remote device.

    Usability - I found the controls very easy to use. There are not a lot of properties to set every time you do something. The controls also include a built in connect dialog that can be enabled and disabled, very nice.

    Redistribution - VBCE.com permits royalty-free distribution of applications built using HPC.Connect. The controls are contained in three separate OCX's so you only have to redistribute the ones that your application uses. Redistribution is perhaps the only area that HPC.Connect needs to improve on. By this I mean that it requires that MFC42.DLL (919k) and MSVCRT.DLL (274k) are needed as dependent files. I'm a real stickler when it comes to dependent files, the fewer there are, the better.

    Overall Rating - Overall this is a superior product that leaves very little to improve on, it's easy to use, well documented, and doesn't leave you wishing for more. The purchase price of $129 is well worth the investment in such a nice control pack.

Other products from HPC Technologies:
HPC.Gamepack^TM is a collection of engaging and addicting games designed exclusively for the Windows CE operating system. Games will be released in in Q2 98.

Company Information:
VBCE.com
E-Mail: webmaster@vbce.com
Web Site: http://vbce.com