OK, this is not as elaborate as I'd like, but I spotted "pill alarms" that will let you set 6 alarms each day.

Hey! This is the one a former coworker of mine had, that I keep wishing I could find again!

Maybe I don't need to invent one. Though I do still like the week-long idea, and the voice message, so you don't forget what it was for.

And maybe you can do something similar on a cell phone.

This person said so: "My phone (Nokia 8387218649063621089 or something) has a reminder function to set an alarm for a date/time with a written message - i.e. appointment at sexual health clinic, weep over state of the world today, have a sandwich! etc)."

Here's an alarm clock that lets you record the wake-up message, and change it anytime you want.

Here's one for grownups, but it doesn't look like it got into full production.

And of course, an alarm clock that has a cassette tape player or CD player would let you stick your own tape or CD in, w/ whatever you wanted on it.

If you leave your computer on all the time, this software might let you do what I want.

Here's a watch version and the ad copy even mentions chores!!

This watch version also has text message options!! Too bad it's so guy-like. I'll have to look and see if there's a girl version. It does come in an 'around the neck' version. That's sort of interesting...

Check out this one...You knew you would get some of us looking, didn't you!? :-)

Seems like I also heard that some of the GPS systems do something like you are wanting! I couldn't find one though upon searching the internet.

Here is a link that might be useful: Talking Secretary

That's cool!

It's for your computer, right? I wonder if there's a Mac system.

What I really want is something like that on a small device about the size of a nightstand alarm clock.

But the software technology is definitely there!

I think this sort of reminder capability may be key to a cell phone purchase for me in the future.

talley sue - I think it is a brilliant idea. I think there is a market for relatively low-tech devices like that.

And I think the people who came up with the Jitterbug cell phone are on to something.

I have been looking for a battery operated, easy-to-read simple DAY-DATE-TIME clock with large letters with a magnetic back to place on my MIL's refrigerator.

My PDA actually does all my alarms for me (I just keep it in my pocket, or somewhere sort of close), and when an alarm goes off (just a series of beeps), it displays what the alarm is for on the screen (takes up the whole thing). It repeats three times before giving up, I think - you can set the time between repeats, if I remember right.

I've been thinking of upgrading to a more "robust" PDA that would allow me to use different sounds for different alarms - it would be super cool if I could record a message for each of them! I'll have to check them out and see if one has that capability.

Of course it would be cheaper if that was all just an alarm clock type thing - you could call it a "Personal Nagger"! :-)

"And of course, an alarm clock that has a cassette tape player or CD player would let you stick your own tape or CD in, w/ whatever you wanted on it."

My cell phone lets me set numerous alarms. I have a daily alarm set. It has a snooze feature. I also have weekly and sporatic alarms set. When the alarm goes off there is a written message of what the alarm is suppose to remind me to do. My cell phone is also a mp3 music player. Download songs. No need for cassette or cd. It is a Motorola RIZR Z3. This is it: http://www.t-mobile.com/shop/Phones/detail.aspx?tp=tb2&device=f1ab8dd3-e113-4a52-9abc-faa13da13657

graywings, you can just glue a flat magnet to any timepiece and stick it on the fridge. You can buy magnetic tape at the hardware store.

How large of a clock do you need? Here is a big one:

Here is a link that might be useful: 100cm lightweight flat clock

Jamie, lots of the computer-software alarms will let you use MP3 files or .wav files--so you could probably record them on your computer, and transfer them to your PDA.

Dilly_dally, I think I'm going to need a cell phone. Of course, I'll have to look to find one that will have that alarm feature. I'll look into your Motorola.

Actually, my PDA is the lowest tech one on the market, a Palm Z22 - it doesn't have the capacity to playback sound files at all (the beep is a "system beep"). That's why I'm considering the upgrade. :-)

talley, do the research to make sure you get the one that fits your needs. My last cell phone let me program the daily, weekly, monthly alarms by choosing *daily/weekly/monthly* from a *select* menu. The one I have now I cannot figure out how to do this and I believe it does not have this feature. I have to sit with it and put in "yoga class" over and over for every Saturday on the calendar with the alarm time, for the whole semester. PITA. I'm probably doing it wrong and there is an easier way but maybe not. I can't find instructions in the manual how to do it the way my other phone did and the guy at the kiosk looked confused when I tried to ask how to do this. My last phone I just had to put it in once on a Saturday and select *weekly*. Done.

One cool feature my current phone has is that you can set different alarm rings for different events. Once I get use to the song I picked for "yoga class" I do not have to check the text words to see what I was suppose to be doing. Yoga class is the 'Blue Sky' song. Vitamins is 'Lava Loops'. Let the dog out is 'Cosmic'. I couldn't live without this. Well I could, but I would be unhealthy and my dog would be constipated.

(Jamie: I meant your new PDA; and you probably already knew you could record your own .wav files somehow)

Dilly_dally, thanks for the tips. What was your old phone?

We're going to probably end up using Verizon as our service, so I'll need a Verizon-capable phone.

Can't remember what the old phone was. Nokia or Kyercera. One or the other for sure. I'd have to see it again.

I've been ORGANIZING. Yea!

:pats self on back:

I've gathered up all my old cell phones stashed in drawers around the house and they are in a bag somewhere in the basement (with the instruction manuals I found too!) I'll try to remember to check them next time I venture down there. I read that women's shelters will take them and give them to women in need. Otherwise the Lions Club collects them at Halloween every year but I've never had them ready before on time to give.

While you're inventing things, how about inventing something that will let me call up my eyeglasses so that they can tell me where I've left them.

Got it, Tally Sue. I misunderstood. :-)

I just ordered a new (to-me) Palm (it's payday)...not just for the more versitile alarm function obviously, but that will be a nice "perk" with the other added features. I'll post back when I get it, and play with the alarm sounds...

actually, what I want in terms of alarm sounds--on the computer, for th ring on the phone, etc.--is not so much wild weirdness, but a sensible range of beeps, double deeps, high beeps, low beeps, slow beeps, buzzes, so i can have a variety of relatively nondescript sounds.

I wonder what is available to the visually impaired? It wouldn't surprise me if gadget is out there, but being marketed to a small audience. I know the stuff we get for DH isn't typically found all over, but has lots of applications for other people besides hard of hearing.

Gloria

Sort of like, those "rumble strips" along the edge of the subway platform are useful for us sighted people,and moms w/ kids (you may not walk on the bumps).

And the ramps in the curbs, and at building entrances, are phenomenally useful for people w/ strollers, briefcases on wheels, luggage, etc.

That's actually what I was thinking too, Tally Sue - just different sounds for different types of alarms. But I might try voice recording just because I can... :-)

Our cordless land-line phones have different ring tone varieties that we can use...we have it set up so that hubby's mom and brother both ring with slightly different notes, so we know when it's them on the phone. Very handy feature.

Dilly Dally, I ordered the PDA used from Amazon, and checked out the company selling it beforehand. It's a company called "Gazelle" (formerly Second Rotation) that pays consumers for thier old cell phones, gadgets, etc, and then either re-sells them or recycles them. Very cool. I think thier web site is at gazelle.com, though I'm not positive. Another idea for those old cell-phones (they pay shipping and will send packaging too, from what I read).

I have a Mac at work (and at home), and you can change the error beep, but at least on the old ones, you only had one choice of beep. Then you had to use a monkey eep, or a drop of water, orall sorts of other stupid sound effects.

I just want different beeps. The other ones annoy me.

But I guess if my computer calendar didn't have that option, but *would* play .wav files or mp3 files, I could put my own simple, classic, yet varied beeps into the system.

Or, I could make a recording of myself saying, "If you don't tidy up now, you'll just have to do it later!!"

or, "The folks on the forum are watching you!"

I was so fortunate to recieve a BlackBerry for my BDay. It has the calender that you can enter anything from a recurring Bday/Aniversary, to a reminder to take books back to library. Has reminder times from 15 min to 1 wk! Keeps all my need-to-know stuff, no school days, concerts, pay bill reminders, etc. Now I know how much people love their BB's. I still do not know,however, why they throw them at people...;)

Posted by quiltglo:I wonder what is available to the visually impaired?

I have a visually impaired friend with a talking wrist watch. I liked the idea and got a talking timepiece for myself that is made to hang from a keychain. I don't have a clock in my car and don't like to take my eyes of the road to read the clock on my phone. Now I can just squeeze the timepiece hanging with the keys on the ignition and it gently tells me the time.

Jamie, I will check that out. Thanks. Maybe they will take my Windows95 laptop. LOL. Mainstream support for Windows 95 ended in 2000 and extended support for Windows 95 ended in 2001. I hate to toss it in a landfill but nobody wants it, not even a retirement home or school. It does not have enough ooomph in it to accept a new OS.

A quick update - I have my new palm all set up, and I had a bunch of different "beep" sounds for alarms. But then I got all "geek-like", and had to download a file of short midis of movie and TV theme songs instead...and honestly, I love it! It makes me smile to hear the theme for Indiana Jones when it's time to work out and swap laundry (both in the basement, so it seems fitting), and "The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly" when it's time to clean the kitchen. The Star Wars Death March plays when it's time to plug my pda into the charger before bed. Everything is shortened, of course, so it only plays for a few seconds.

I have a "twinkly" sound for the nights when I need to turn the water on for the sprinklers in the morning, and the Simpson's theme for alarms pertaining to hubby (such as when to pick him up at the airport next Wednesday). The song "Take On Me" is my alarm for starting the laundy after work...I still need to pick one for the night I have to put the recycling out.

Anyways, all that to say, what a perfectly great idea - I love it - so much more fun and motivating than the same "beep" for everything! :-)

all those alarms almost make it worthwhile to go buy a new Palm.

What model did you get?

Mine is a Palm TX - top of the line (ie, last model they've made). It's normally $300, but I got mine second-hand from a seller on Amazon for half-price. :-)

You can get a lesser one though and still get all the alarms...I installed a calendar program called Datebk6 that works with the native (already there) databases, but is a much more "robust" program for scheduling and such. It shows my "To Do" list right in my calendar (instead of just separately with the reg. to do's), and has this cool tool called "floating events" that you create, and they just keep floating from one day to the next until you check them off. Nice for things that I don't really have time scheduled for, but I want to get them done if I do have time. The "normal" palm apps don't let you set separate alarm sounds for calendar events, but this Datebk program does (it costs just under $30 to register, but will still work even if you never register it - it just starts "nagging" you to register after 45 days). I do plan to register it next month. Then I downloaded the sound files as one program for free to add on.

You can color-code events, set repeating events for almost any day/week/month combination, and set templates so you don't have to enter the same event over and over if it occurs again, but not enough to be repeating. And of course it has catagories and you can set up separate calendars for separate people, etc. - kind of as complex or as simple as you want it to be. You can download earlier versions if you want smaller files to fit on something simpler like a Z22. I guess the T models run the latest version just fine though.

If you wanted a "smartphone", Palm makes several of those too - you could go to thier web site and see if anything interests you. Handspring pda's come with the Palm OS too, if I recall correctly. Datebk does make a version for Pocket Pc's as well, so all that to say that you'll be able to run it on pretty much anything you buy. It's pretty much guaranteed to work on any mobile device, because it uses those built-in databases already installed.

And now I sound like a commercial, so I'll shut up (and no, I have no monetary interest in any of the aforementioned companies, aside from what *I* am paying/have paid *them*). :-)