Personal communicator having improved zoom and pan functions

A mobile, hand-held personal communicator 10 includes a casing 12 for housing a cellular phone, modem, and data processing system. Graphics image files 142 are stored and can be selectively displayed on a touchscreen display 26, 28. A zoom function magnifies areas of a graphics image 142, such as a fax image, that has been received and stored in the personal communicator. When the zoom function is selected, the user touches the screen, and a magnification frame 168 or window appears. When the user removes his/her finger, the area within the frame is magnified. The user can also drag the frame 168 around the screen, while still touching the screen, to select a specific area to be magnified when the user releases the screen. A pan function allows the user to shift the image 170 within a viewing area 142. The user can pan the image 170 by touching the display at an initial touch point 188, and moving his/her finger keeping it in contact with the screen, to shift the touch point to a new touch point 190. Upon releasing the new touch point, the image is redrawn in a new position corresponding to the change in position between the initial 188 and new 190 touch points.