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Sat, 28 Sep 2002
Synchronizing computers with iSync
After installing iSync on my iBook, I was able to sync it with my G4, which I had previously tested iSync on. While the sync went very smoothly, it's less useful than it could have been, since it's tied to .Mac.
The last time I ran iSync on my G4, I synced it to my .Mac account. When I installed iSync on my iBook, it gave me the option of merging data on this computer with .Mac or deleting & copying from .Mac. Since I didn't really maintain my addressbook on my iBook and I didn't have iCal installed until now, I chose to delete & overwrite. I also discovered that you have to install iCal before iSync, if it isn't already installed.
After completing the sync, all of the data in addressbook & iCal were copied perfectly to my iBook. Note that only addressbook & iCal data are synchronized - it doesn't do any file synchronization.
Being tied to .Mac is a significant disadvantage, since it requires you to sync one computer to .Mac before you can sync the other computer to it. It also requires you to be online or have a permanent internet connection to use it. On the plus side, it lets you synchronize even when you're traveling.
iSync would have been much more useful if it supported direct Rendezvous synchronization. It should automatically see any other Macs with iSync installed (just as iChat does), and let you sync directly with another computer. Maybe a future version will add that feature.
Being tied so closely with .Mac could be Apple's way to force users into buying .Mac accounts, and I certainly find iSync a much more compelling reason to join than the email and web hosting features. However, Apple shouldn't lock users out of basic functionality if they choose not to pay for .Mac services.
Apple releases iSync beta
Apple has released the first public beta of iSync, a Jaguar utility for synchronizing data between multiple computers, PDAs, and other devices.
iSync lets you synchronize address book and iCal data between computers & devices. Note that it doesn't do file synchronization. Your .Mac account is used to synchronize multiple computers. Synchronizing Palm devices uses the Hotsync function of Palm Desktop 4 and is still pretty rough in this version. I don't have any bluetooth equipment or compatible phones, so I couldn't test those features.
iSync can be downloaded from this AppleCare document, which also provides additional information about the beta.
Before you synchronize your Palm device, you need to set up the iSync conduit in the HotSync conduit manager. You also need to set the address, datebook, and to do conduits to do nothing, so it will synchronize with Apple's addressbook & iCal via iSync instead of Palm Desktop.
Other synchronization options are set up in the iSync application.
Synchronizing with a palm device is a bit tricky in this version, and it failed on several attempts, although I did finally manage to synchronize successfully. When you click the Sync Now button in iSync, you will get an alert saying tthat you must press the hotsync button on your palm cradle. After you press the hotsync button and it connects to your Palm device, you also need to press the continue button on that alert to allow iSync to continue the sync. If you don't time it right, it will fail to connect to your PDA.
Hopefully this will be a lot smoother in the release version.
After you sync for the first time, it may find conflicts between your computer and the device. For each conflict, it will show both records and allow you to choose which one to use. You then need to sync again to resolve the conflicts.
I also found that it made a complete mess of my calendar, installing items from subscribed calendars I wasn't showing and didn't want to appear. It also duplicated many entries that were created separately in iCal and on my Visor.
Update: I found that simply hitting the hotsync button on my Handspring cradle will launch iSync when it runs the iSync conduit. It isn't necessary to use the sync now button in iSync.
GUI front-end for installing open source software
FinkCommander provides a convenient graphical front end for the Mac OS X package manager, fink, which makes it easier to install, update, and maintain open source packages on your system.
With FinkCommander, you can easily see what packages are currently installed, which are out of date, and what must be installed or updated. You can easily update & install either from source or binary releases without having to open the terminal window or enter any commands.
All fink commands are available from the menus and toolbar, and when administrator access is required, it will use the standard Mac OS X authentication window.
To use FinkCommander, you must first install the fink package. Both are available from SourceForge.