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by Matt Hamblen

CHICAGO (IDG) -- Mobile computing vendors gathered here last week announced more options for remote workers. But information technology managers and analysts described the array of devices, operating systems and wireless protocols as confusing -- and even "daunting."

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IT managers said they welcome choices but worry about getting stuck supporting an operating system or protocol that won't last in the market.

"It's definitely daunting having to make choices in the current environment," said Jim Vannette, chairman of Holland Special Delivery, a delivery service in Holland, Mich., that's developing a mobile automation system for its drivers. "There's such a staggering array of options without standards."

"I'd call the situation chaotic," said Opie D. Lindsay, business development manager at Columbia Gas of Virginia in Richmond. Lindsay is considering handheld technology for service personnel but is worried about choosing technology without staying power.

Lindsay joined other users at the Mobile & PDA (personal digital assistant) Expo here, where analysts debated whether Microsoft Corp.'s Windows CE operating system or the Palm Computing platform will dominate in North America, while facing pressure from the EPOC32 operating system in Europe. There are about 3 million PalmPilots from 3Com Computing Corp. in use in the U.S., with another 1 million CE devices -- from handhelds to clamshells to mini-laptops -- running the latest Windows CE version, dubbed Jupiter.

There was no consensus on which will take the lead, although many analysts and some users feel Microsoft better recognizes the need to connect mobile computers to corporate databases, e-mail and the Internet.

Mark Desautels, managing director of the Wireless Data Forum in Washington, introduced a panel of vendors deploying wireless communications protocols. The variety of choices "certainly has been an obstacle to customer usage," he said, but some companies are now learning that they can increase productivity with wireless technology.

Some vendors seem to be willing to produce machines in any form or with any operating system in hopes of finding one that sticks, analysts said. For example, IBM previewed a Windows CE Jupiter mini-laptop in its WorkPad line. The WorkPad used to be just a handheld running the Palm operating system.