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Local (laptop, not web) contact/calendar sync

johnkzin said:
So, basically, you didn't come to Android with the intent of using Android ... you came to Android with the intent of somehow replacing PalmOS.
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Spot on.

johnkzin said:
So, now, you're trying to "get Android to do things the PalmOS way" instead of "learning how things are done the Android way"? You do realize that your mindset is doomed to failure, right?
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Not true, exactly. At least, no more true than the many apps that are making Android seem more like an iPhone, or a spirit level, or what have you. I know perfectly well that Android is Android, and PalmOS is PalmOS, which is dead. But who says we can't take a look at where we came from, and see which aspects that we liked we could take with us to this new place? To me that sounds sensible, not immature. Oh, and I would ask you to refrain from getting personal.

johnkzin said:
KlaymenDK said:
Yes, that's what I did to get my data from my Palm into GMail. It cost me several evenings of work [to import contacts from CSV]
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I'm willing to bet that if you tried to assemble shelves using nails and a screwdriver, you'd have a similarly frustrating and time-costly result.
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What on earth are you talking about? I'm quite adept with hand tools but that is another matter; let's stay on topic. The pertinent point is that the Contacts Import/Export feature in GMail exists, but is incomplete. Hence, additional work is required (a lot if you have a lot of data).

johnkzin said:
Google is a cloud based enterprise. Did you really expect their platform to be anything other than cloud focused?
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Again, this is no surprise, but we should be able to improve the current situation. Say you have a Contact for the New York Times, with a note storing your subscriber ID. Could you search for that ID? No, you could not, because the only search function in Android is Google's web search. Now, pay attention: I don't have a thing against Google's web search function, but it would be handy to have exhaustive local search as well. That is what I am talking about.

johnkzin said:
Do I wish it was a more hybrid approach? Yes, I do. But I also don't have time to write my own fork of the Android code base
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Well there you go, turns out we do see eye to eye on some things. The good news is that you shouldn't have to fork the entire OS, there's bound to be ways to achieve almost anything with the built-in API -- or with the API as it looks next year.
 
KlaymenDK said:
I resent that comment. Who are you to make such a statement? If it was made in jest, you could at least have added a smiley. There are plenty of users (as you can see from the thread above) who are concerned with data privacy.
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Well, Google has always defended it's user's privacy, they've gone to court with the Department of Justice over it (twice I believe).

And really, any information on your computer, so long as it has an internet connection, isn't safe.

and if you don't trust google, that's fine, but do you have friends with google gmail accounts?

My contacts has the name, phone number, email address, and usually a picture of the person as well. Sometimes I have multiple phone numbers, sometimes I have physical addresses as well. So if Google is not to be trusted, then not only am I screwed -- so are all of my friends, with their names, phone numbers, addresses, and even a picture of them on google's servers, right now. Not to mention everything they've said in an email, Gtalk chat, or AIM chat as well. Now that I used GoogleVoice as well, any SMS they send to that number and any voicemail they leave is also on google's server and tied to the rest of the info about them from my account. If any of your friends, family, or acquaintances as a gmail account and or an android phone -- your data is already on google's servers. And keep in mind that google does hosted email as well(addresses that don't end in gmail.com) so even if you did avoid sending to people with gmail addresses, your data still might end up on google's servers without you even knowing it.

And pretty much any computer or phone connected to the internet is vulnerable. All it takes is the wrong click from you, or someone using your phone or computer. It may not even take that much.

I know you're concerned about privacy, most people are these days, but google isn't the only "threat" and chances are good that your data is already on their servers.
 
Punk, I agree to everything you just said. As interesting as this topic is, it's off-topic for this thread so I'm not going to say anything more on it here.
 
punkzanyj said:
Just to be fair, look at the back of your phone. What does it say? Says "with GOOGLE" right?

If you do not wish to use Google, that's your perogative, I'm all for people doing what they want to. But it boggles the mind that someone buys a GOOGLE product but doesn't like/need/want/trust GOOGLE.
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The only thing that boggles my mind is how you managed to cram so many errors into so few sentences.

On my notebook, its say "MSI". In no way whatsoever does that imply I trust MSI, let alone a willingness to share data with them. Running Windows XP does not in any way grant Microsoft a right to access my personal documents, or contacts, or music, or whatever.

What makes your argument even more ludicrous is that (on my Google-branded Magic, at least) I can access any POP3/IMAP mail account, not just Gmail. This fact alone invalidates your entire argument.

And the sugar coating is that the iPhone allows sync'ing contacts with any LDAP server, and calendars with CalDAV server - exactly what us business users are wishing for on the Android platform.

punkzanyj said:
But am I the only one who see people basically saying "Hey, just bought this cat. Don't like cats, how do I make it act and look like a dog?"
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Apart from the fact that your analogy is utterly wrong (see above), supporting non-Google based contact & calendar management is a MUST for Android if it ever wants to enter the business market. This requirement is why Apple added the aforementioned features to the iPhone in the first place.

The reason this is a MUST is because in many industries, it is legally forbidden to share data (either by contract, eg NDA, or by law). I work in a bank, storing client data on servers not controlled by us is out of the question. My girlfriend is an M.D., under HIPAA she may not even store patient data on a USB stick.

As you can see, not only are your arguments invalid, but I provided you with more than enough valid arguments why one would want this feature, and I pointed out to you that the #1 competitor to the Android platform has already implemented it.
 
You are not the only one
gmail sync only option unacceptable

first you need to have internet to sync between android and your desktop
what if I do not have access to internet and want to sync between my android and laptop or desktop?
second why I need to send my information or any information online to sync with my android.
third:
one day wikileak will post thousand of google account online
then every one will think twice

it is unacceptable to force everyone to use Gmail account to sync. you should have an option
to choose
 
I just don't understand , how difficult it is for Android to have one application say "Andoid Desktop" just like Palm Desktop and ALSO have this cloud sync (with gmail) functinality. We should be able to choose if we need local or cloud or both way syncing.
 
This is a shame that we don't have this solution of local client syncing of "Palm Desktop" (even in Palm) which Palm used to have 10 years back.

I bought Palm pixi thinking that it is obvious to have palm desktop like application there. I spent several weeks and tried all thrid party clients but in vain.

So shameful for palm and for Android as well as they can not give something which palm gave 10 years back.
 
MyPhoneExplorer is a desktop PC suite that allows me to sync from phone to PC, and visa versa, via wifi, infrared or USB.

Will sync Contacts and Calendar to Windows Outlook, and others, without using the web. Works with quite a few handsets.

Also does a host of other things too, such as sending/receiving and saving SMS, syncing files and photo's, etc. Even has a little Windows Sidebar gadget.

Read about it and download for free from here:-

FJ Software Development

You will also need to install a small MyPhoneExplorer app, free from the Market, to your handset.

Hope this helps. :D
 
If you use Mozilla Thunderbird or Sunbird to manage your contacts and events, you may also have have a look at BirdieSync. It's a synchronization solution which directly synchronizes your mobile device with the desktop without using the cloud. You can connect your mobile device either wirelessly or with a USB cable.

You'll find more information on BirdieSync web site.
 
ironass said:
MyPhoneExplorer is a desktop PC suite that allows me to sync from phone to PC, and visa versa, via wifi, infrared or USB.

Will sync Contacts and Calendar to Windows Outlook, and others, without using the web. Works with quite a few handsets.

Also does a host of other things too, such as sending/receiving and saving SMS, syncing files and photo's, etc. Even has a little Windows Sidebar gadget.

Read about it and download for free from here:-

FJ Software Development

You will also need to install a small MyPhoneExplorer app, free from the Market, to your handset.

Hope this helps. :D
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Yep. This is what I use for syncing contacts/calendar/files. All local to my phone and PC and it works over wifi so no cables involved.

Great app.

Dave
 
hi all !

I'm also looking for a solution.

In my dream, i'd like :

A php/mysql solution to deploy on my web serveur.
This solution will store my contacts, calendar, tasks, etc...

+ a android client software, that will connect to my web server as sync client.
If i add a contact to my phone, it is sent to my web site (so if i get a new phone, i can restore my contact list from my website). It is important for me that contact are stored in the default phone contacts, not inside the software: I want to be able to press "phone button" and retreive my contacts into it. Also, i'd like the calendar to be displayed as widget.

+ a windows client software or addon that will also make contact/task sharing possible.

That would be the best for me, i just have to manage backups of my web site, then i share my calendar/contact list between my PC and my phone all the time, anywhere, and will not depend of any third part. My private and sensitive data still mine everytime !

At this moment the only way i found to do this (actually testing it), is to install a CRM on my website.

Here what i found for (allmost) free :

vTiger : it's free, i can manage contacts, calendar, and tasks. Bad points are : no PC client software, it is web based. One android application 15$ with no trial release. So i didn't test it yet, too expensive with no warranty that it'll match my needs.

SugarCRM : that is what i'm testing now, but it seems that we have to pay the pro relase to be able to sync with mobiles. we can find several free android client softwares.

All other CRM found are not free, and very expensive, usualy dedicated to companies with several users. I'm a single user, so i don't want to pay 300$ for that !
 
Windows software?

My Phone Explorer
CompanionLink

Or if you dislike third party:
Samsung Kies
HTC Sync
Sony PC Companion

Sometimes thoroughly reading phone manuals and the CDs that come with it works wonders.
 
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