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If the gum, the patch, the nasal spray or cold turkey didn't work, you could try the PalmPilot.

As throngs of people vow to quit smoking as their New Year's resolution, a pair of Kansas University researchers have developed software for PalmPilots and similar personal data devices that could help smokers kick the habit.

"There are hundreds of methods out there for smoking cessation," said James Grobe, assistant professor of psychology. "We want to add one more tool to the toolbox. There's not one thing that works for everybody."

So far Grobe and Delwyn Catley, assistant professor of preventative medicine and public health at the Kansas University Medical Center, have developed the software and have done limited testing with small groups. They're seeking grant money to do a larger clinical trial.

At first, smokers are allowed to smoke when they want and record that information into the PDA. Then, the PDA begins notifying them when they can have a cigarette.

After smoking a cigarette, the smoker is asked questions such as "How pleasurable was that cigarette?" or "How much do you want to smoke again?" Grobe plans to analyze the data to develop a cycle so that smokers no longer want cigarettes.

"When you're told to smoke, it changes the quality of the experience, at least based on what people have told us," he said. "You like the cigarettes less. They're less pleasurable and less satisfying."

Part of the strategy may be developing an aversion to cigarettes. For example, Grobe said it may be most effective to make a person smoke three cigarettes in a row when they want only one.

To help people quit smoking, James Grobe, assistant professor of psychology at Kansas University, is working on a program that uses personal data assistants to tell someone when to have a cigarette. "When you're told to smoke, it changes the quality of the experience ..." he said. "You like the cigarettes less."

The principle is backed by a 1995 study that showed that people who schedule their smoke breaks had a better chance of quitting.

"We want to know why this works, and if you follow a schedule, what's the best schedule to follow," he said.

Grobe and Catley developed their software using a $50,000 grant from the National Institute for Drug Abuse. They're applying for a larger grant -- more than $100,000 per year -- for an eventual clinical trial, which could come in four years.

At least one similar product already is on the market. Lifesign, a credit-card-sized computer produced by the Reston, Va., company PICS, gradually weans smokers off cigarettes. A Harvard researcher also is working on a device.

• Smoking log PDA software • Tell us your New Year's resolution

Grobe is a former smoker who used Nicorette gum to quit two years ago. He said PDAs may soon be added to the list of common methods that smokers use to quit.

"What I tell someone who is trying to quit smoking is to not quit trying," he said. "The people who make it just keep trying."