Synchronization Nightmares
Well, as I mentioned before, I got myself a new PDA. I have been spending far too much time trying to create a setup that will let me synchronize and access my calendar, contacts, to-do list, and memos from a) my PDA b) my desktop c) the Internet and d) my cell phone.
[UPDATE]: Already I have a problem — categories (for calendar events and tasks) don’t synchronize via Plaxo. :( Ah well, I guess you can’t have everything…
Initially I was being very ambitious and wanted to set up my own enterprise-level server with groupware. My requirements were simple — it had to be free, and it had to synchronize to my PDA. I looked at a few, including Zoho Office, Zimbra, and Scalix. (I got these links from this page about web 2.0 software).Most of these look really really cool, but — problem. The connectors to outlook / mobile devices are NOT free. Except for scalix — but that requires Apache 2.2 which would mean re-installing my server. Unfortunately, I only discovered this AFTER I spent a day and a half trying to install it.
Luckily, in my further searching, I came across the Holy Grail of Synchronization, and realized I could get what I needed with a simple connector of Outlook to an online calendaring application. Unfortunately, when I had a few hours to set this up, the solution suggested by the article (ScheduleWorld) was experiencing a lot of server downtime, so I set it up with Plaxo instead. You snooze, you lose!
Actually, from the screenshots, ScheduleWorld looks like the slicker interface — and it supports synchronizing directly to the phone over wireless internet for free — but I didn’t have the time or patience to wait for their servers. I may set it up if I have troubles with Plaxo.
The other reason this worked for me is that I’m not invested in Google Calendar, so I’m perfectly happy to use Plaxo’s calendar. For now, at least.
Initial impression: Very slick, and easy to use. I’ll report further on my experiences as I go.
(Now, if only I could get my Sony Ericsson W600i to synchronize with my XP x64 system, I’d be happy…)
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