I made a mistake earlier this year (1998). It wasn’t a huge one, but it was big enough.

I bought a Newton MessagePad 2100 (MP 2100).

Don’t get me wrong. The MP 2100 was the best Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) on the market when I purchased mine in February 1998. I wanted something I could take to meetings for digital note taking. I wanted something that was small, fast, had a long battery life, and excellent handwriting recognition. The MP 2100 beat all its competitors hands down. Yes, it was more expensive — and a little bigger than the Palm Pilot. But it was better. It was faster. It even offered an optional keyboard.

So I bought one.

When I opened the box, I wasn’t disappointed. After popping in the two AA batteries, I began to write on the screen with the plastic-tipped pen. Wow! It could read my handwriting with no training at all. The unit automatically transcribed my handwriting into a text file as if I had typed it using a keyboard. The accuracy was nothing short of amazing.

The MP 2100 worked extremely well in client meetings, just as I had planned. Plus, it drew lots of positive attention. A very wise investment I thought.

Not quite.

Two months after I purchased my MessagePad, Apple dropped the price by $200. Unfortunate timing for me, but not a huge deal. I always tell my clients that price reductions are inevitable. Why should I be immune?

But then the other shoe dropped. Apple announced they were discontinuing the Newton line all together.

Now I began to worry.

Maybe I should have waited for the new PowerBook G3 computers. Apple finally seemed to get it right with these laptops, creating a portable computer with desktop capabilities.

But what was I going to do with my MP 2100? I couldn’t justify not using it after investing nearly $1,300.

What if I could sell it and apply the money towards a new PowerBook? Even though the MP 2100 was a discontinued product, I thought the used-market value would be strong since it was such an outstanding product. But whom was I going to sell it to?

How about using the Internet to sell it? Surely there must be someone "out there" who wanted to get their hands on a MessagePad — just like I wanted one of the new PowerBooks.

I figured I didn’t have anything to lose by giving the Internet a shot. I posted a FOR SALE message on the "comp.sys.newton.marketplace" newsgroup listing my MP 2100, keyboard, battery charger and leather cases. I wasn’t sure what kind of response I’d get.

I was pleasantly surprised.

I received inquiries from 19 different people located all across the country. Most wanted to know how much I wanted for the bundle. Some made instant offers.

After about a week of collecting e-mail messages and responding to questions, I agreed to sell the MP 2100 to a person in Indiana who wanted to use it at his auto dealership. We agreed on a price of $900. I would pay for shipping.

Now we had to make the actual transaction. I shipped the merchandise to him using UPS C.O.D. What a great service! By adding just $10 to the shipping price, UPS will deliver a package and collect whatever dollar amount you specify — in whatever form of payment you want. I requested a certified check.

After about a week, the $900 certified check was sent to me via UPS. Amazingly, I never even spoke to the gentleman in Indiana who purchased my MessagePad 2100. We communicated only through e-mail. What a country!

You may be wondering what happened to my search for a laptop. Well, I’m writing this article on my week-old PowerBook G3. It’s another story in timing — this time "good" timing. (NEXT)

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© 1999 Beato Enterprises Inc. May not be reprinted without permission.