At Sappenin, we've made a strategic decision not to support the iPhone/iPod touch when it comes to PalmPod.
We arrived at this point for two reasons, the first being that PalmPod is primarily a tool to move contacts/calendars/todos from Palm Desktop into the original iPod. The iPhone/iPod Touch are fundamentally different technology platforms (they're only partially "iPod"), so supporting the iPhone/iPod Touch would require major reworking of the PalmPod product.
To be honest, we just haven't seen enough demand for PalmPod-like capabilities on either platform (iPhone/iPod Touch or older iPods) to justify the additional development cost -- this is the second reason for our decision.
Now, let's be clear: There's a HUGE demand for identity sync into and out of the iPhone/iPod Touch. The kicker is that this demand isn't coming from Palm Desktop users, which jives with what one would expect: Palm Desktop is a legacy application. So, while there may be a lot of people using Palm Desktop, there are not that many people trying to use Palm Desktop together with their iPhone, at least from our experience.
Our hunch is that when people purchase an iPhone, they are more open to new technologies, and many simply ditch Palm Desktop in favor of a more modern, more capable personal data store, like Outlook. Even Palm seems to be suggesting the use of Outlook these days, with its lack of investment in Palm Desktop and the creation and use of Outlook sync conduits.
With all that said, however, there are still a fair number of users who are looking to sync Palm Desktop with their iPhone/iPod.
Unfortunately, there isn't a really good way to do this on a day-to-day basis. But, if your goal is to get your Palm Desktop data onto your iPhone in a usable and accessible way, then we recommend reading our blog post here.
Monday, August 04, 2008
How to Sync Palm Desktop with your iPhone (or iPod Touch)
There are still a fair number of users who are looking to sync Palm Desktop with their iPhone/iPod Touch. To be honest, there isn't a really good way to do this on a day-to-day basis.
However, if your goal is to get your Palm Desktop data onto your iPhone in a usable and accessible way, then here's what we recommend:
1.) Utilize Outlook
Surprised? I hate to say it, but Outlook is pretty darn useful. Sure, it's bloated, and can be complicated to use -- but it generally works, and because so many people use it, it is THE primary platform that companies think about supporting when it comes to identity and communications products. If you look inside of iTunes, you'll see that Windows users have pretty much just one option when it comes to external calendar/contact sync, and Outlook is it. So, we have to start there when it comes to Palm Desktop. But, notice that I wrote "utilize", and not "use": I rarely open Outlook. Instead, I merely use it as a conduit for getting my calendars and contacts from one system to another.
1b.) Convert from Palm Desktop to Outlook
There are a number of products found via Google that claim to be able to export your Palm Desktop data into Outlook (even Microsoft claims to support some of it, though I couldn't get this to work: http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx/kb/810930). Instead, I've found that PocketCopy (http://www.chapura.com/pocketcopy_faqs.php) works best. In about 10 minutes, I had all my Palm Desktop data into Outlook, and for the most part, all my data fell into the correct fields.
1c.) Sync Outlook via iTunes
Once all your Palm Desktop data is inside of Outlook, you can configure iTunes to sync with Outlook. The next time you plug your iPhone into the USB sync cable, all you Palm Desktop data will make its way to the iPhone.
1d.) Throw away Palm Desktop
Just to be clear, stopping here requires that you begin using outlook on the desktop. It's not pretty, but it just isn't feasible to repeat step 1b every day in an attempt to use Palm Desktop as a data source -- PocketCopy is good for one-time exports from Palm Desktop to Outlook, but it wasn't designed to be used as a sync tool, so at the end of the day, this strategy requires you to throw away Palm Desktop. But keep reading, because it is possible to not have to open Outlook except on rare occasions.
2.) Use Google Calendar (with Outlook if you want your GCalendar on your iPhone)
To complement my switch to Outlook, I use Google Calendar extensively, primarily because I can access my calendar from any computer with an Internet connection. Plus, from the iPhone, I can get my calendar from pretty much anywhere as well. However, iPhone users will prefer to have their calendar data integrated directly into the native iPhone calendar application, and Google will oblige in that. Using the Google Calendar Sync (http://www.google.com/support/calendar/ ... swer=89955) you can easily, and automatically, synchronize your Google Calendar into Outlook -- it's even bi-directional. Then, using iTunes, you can sync your iPhone/iPod Touch calendar with Outlook, and you have a poor-man's Google Calendar on your iPhone.
2b.) Use Gmail
Outlook is perhaps best known as an email client. I should be clear to point out that I don't use Outlook for email AT ALL! Instead, I have an (almost) infinitely sized gmail account where I store all my email. Using the iPhone, I can use IMAP to send/receive email from the iPhone's native mail application. In fact, I don't actually really ever open Outlook. I only use it as an intermediarty for sync purposes. Email's are sent/received either in Gmail or on the iPhone. Contacts are accessed almost entirely from the iPhone (but backed up into Outlook), and Calendars are accessed from Gmail and/or the iPhone.
3.) Consider MobileMe
Last, but not least, is the panacea of all panacea's: Apple's MobileMe. I haven't tried it yet (and it certainly seems to have been stumbling a bit lately), but Apple's MobileMe service seems like an ideal solution for those not wanting to invest in, and use, MS Outlook. In fact, the offerings of this service go above and beyond anything Outlook could offer when it comes to mobility -- users can add/delete/edit calendar and contact information from anywhere - iPhone, Desktop, Web-browser, and all of the other platforms will magically sync, without any user interaction. It's an expensive move, both in dollar terms ($99 per year) and in transitional pain (you have to start using a new calendar, new email store, etc), but the benefits of easy integration might just outweigh the costs.
Update (04/15/2009): I no longer us Outlook because Google has made it possible for me to sync my contacts and calendar between my iPhone and GMail/GCal. See here for more details.
However, if your goal is to get your Palm Desktop data onto your iPhone in a usable and accessible way, then here's what we recommend:
1.) Utilize Outlook
Surprised? I hate to say it, but Outlook is pretty darn useful. Sure, it's bloated, and can be complicated to use -- but it generally works, and because so many people use it, it is THE primary platform that companies think about supporting when it comes to identity and communications products. If you look inside of iTunes, you'll see that Windows users have pretty much just one option when it comes to external calendar/contact sync, and Outlook is it. So, we have to start there when it comes to Palm Desktop. But, notice that I wrote "utilize", and not "use": I rarely open Outlook. Instead, I merely use it as a conduit for getting my calendars and contacts from one system to another.
1b.) Convert from Palm Desktop to Outlook
There are a number of products found via Google that claim to be able to export your Palm Desktop data into Outlook (even Microsoft claims to support some of it, though I couldn't get this to work: http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx/kb/810930). Instead, I've found that PocketCopy (http://www.chapura.com/pocketcopy_faqs.php) works best. In about 10 minutes, I had all my Palm Desktop data into Outlook, and for the most part, all my data fell into the correct fields.
1c.) Sync Outlook via iTunes
Once all your Palm Desktop data is inside of Outlook, you can configure iTunes to sync with Outlook. The next time you plug your iPhone into the USB sync cable, all you Palm Desktop data will make its way to the iPhone.
1d.) Throw away Palm Desktop
Just to be clear, stopping here requires that you begin using outlook on the desktop. It's not pretty, but it just isn't feasible to repeat step 1b every day in an attempt to use Palm Desktop as a data source -- PocketCopy is good for one-time exports from Palm Desktop to Outlook, but it wasn't designed to be used as a sync tool, so at the end of the day, this strategy requires you to throw away Palm Desktop. But keep reading, because it is possible to not have to open Outlook except on rare occasions.
2.) Use Google Calendar (with Outlook if you want your GCalendar on your iPhone)
To complement my switch to Outlook, I use Google Calendar extensively, primarily because I can access my calendar from any computer with an Internet connection. Plus, from the iPhone, I can get my calendar from pretty much anywhere as well. However, iPhone users will prefer to have their calendar data integrated directly into the native iPhone calendar application, and Google will oblige in that. Using the Google Calendar Sync (http://www.google.com/support/calendar/ ... swer=89955) you can easily, and automatically, synchronize your Google Calendar into Outlook -- it's even bi-directional. Then, using iTunes, you can sync your iPhone/iPod Touch calendar with Outlook, and you have a poor-man's Google Calendar on your iPhone.
2b.) Use Gmail
Outlook is perhaps best known as an email client. I should be clear to point out that I don't use Outlook for email AT ALL! Instead, I have an (almost) infinitely sized gmail account where I store all my email. Using the iPhone, I can use IMAP to send/receive email from the iPhone's native mail application. In fact, I don't actually really ever open Outlook. I only use it as an intermediarty for sync purposes. Email's are sent/received either in Gmail or on the iPhone. Contacts are accessed almost entirely from the iPhone (but backed up into Outlook), and Calendars are accessed from Gmail and/or the iPhone.
3.) Consider MobileMe
Last, but not least, is the panacea of all panacea's: Apple's MobileMe. I haven't tried it yet (and it certainly seems to have been stumbling a bit lately), but Apple's MobileMe service seems like an ideal solution for those not wanting to invest in, and use, MS Outlook. In fact, the offerings of this service go above and beyond anything Outlook could offer when it comes to mobility -- users can add/delete/edit calendar and contact information from anywhere - iPhone, Desktop, Web-browser, and all of the other platforms will magically sync, without any user interaction. It's an expensive move, both in dollar terms ($99 per year) and in transitional pain (you have to start using a new calendar, new email store, etc), but the benefits of easy integration might just outweigh the costs.
Update (04/15/2009): I no longer us Outlook because Google has made it possible for me to sync my contacts and calendar between my iPhone and GMail/GCal. See here for more details.
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