Better MacZSync?

[dhns]

... project at http://maczsync.sourceforge.net resp. http://sourceforge.net/projects/maczsync/

Currently, there is only one developer (Jason) actively working on it. So we all should contact him.

unfortunately, Jason writes me

I\'m really sorry, but I\'m no longer working on the Zaurus Mac Sync software.  Sharp\'s change of the PIM format disheartened me a great deal, so I lost my enthusiasm both for the project and the Zaurus itself.  If anyone wishes to take up the mantle, they\'re more than welcome to do so, of course.

What has to be done imho is
* adapt from FTP access to SSH
* adapt for the newer PIM database formats (changed from ROM 2.x to ROM 3.x)

Let\'s debate:
1) form a new developer community continuing Jason\'s work?
2) who takes over the admin rights at sourceforge?

-- hns

[dhns]

After really understanding what was written recently in some other forum:

there is zdbat that can be found on http://yakty.s31.xrea.com/cgi-bin/wiki/lin...ki.cgi?zdbat#i0

With that package, it should be pretty easy to extend MacZSync to do other tasks as well for the newer Zaurii.

I have simply tried:
1) install USB driver
2) install open-ssh-server
3) install zdbat on my ROM 3.10 SL-5500G
4) open a ssh -2 Terminal session from my Mac to the Z
5) type \'zdbat addresses -r\'

and voila - there comes a Comma Separated List of the Zaurus PIM on my Mac Terminal.

Code: [Select]

# zdbat address -r

CARDID,CATEGORY,FULL,TITL,LNME,FNME,MNME,SUFX,FLAS,LNPR,FNPR,NAPR,CPNY,CPPR,SCTN
PSTN,TEL2,FAX2,CPS2,BSTA,BCTY,BSTR,BZIP,

BCTR,BWEB,OFCE,PRFS,ASST,MNGR,BPGR,CPS1,TEL1,FAX1,HSTA,HCTY,HSTR,HZIP,HCTR,HWEB,
MAL,MAL1,SPUS,GNDR,BRTH,ANIV,NCNM,CLDR,MEM1,GRPS

1,Business,"Michael, Nobody X.","",Michael,Nobody,X.,"","Michael, Nobody X.",Michael,Nobody,"Michael, Nobody X.",.com,.com,"",General manager of life,"","","","","","","","","","","","","","","","","","","","","","","",nn@nowhere.nn.or,nn@nowhere.nn.or,"",1,"","","","","",""

#

So, a Cocoa application like MacZSync could wrap and parse these commands and comma lists to sync with AddressBook and iCal and even Stickies.

-- hns

[biscuithead]

I would be willing to work on this project. I just got an SL-5600 a few weeks ago and not being able to sync up with the Mac is my largest bummer. It seems like overall it should be simpler than writing a conduit for the Palm since so much of what is happening is so standard and straightforward.

I\'m willing to sign on board to help out with the syncing project, starting with the address books and moving forward.

[dhns]

Good news!

So, a Cocoa application like MacZSync could wrap and parse these commands and comma lists to sync with AddressBook and iCal and even Stickies.

I have digged a little more into this approach - and it seems to be pretty straightforward. Therefore, I have started a project on this in our team. Please wait a little until we can release a first version of \"ZMacSync\" wrapping zdbat for beta testing.

ZMacSync is intended to sync
* address book <-> Addresses
* iCal <-> Date Book
* iCal <-> ToDo
* Stickies <-> Text Edit Notes

The status as of today is
* GUI 100% (pretty simple - just select the address of the Z and which area you want to sync)
* ssh connect to Zaurus 80% (does not yet catch all errors)
* sync 10% (parsing of responses works)

Requirements:
* Zaurus with ROM 3.10 or later (using the new PIM database)
* AJZaurusUSB or WLAN connection
* zdbat
* openssh
* MacOS X 10.3 or later

Or you install it on a Zaurus with myPDA-Zaurus-Edition - then it will sync between myPDA and the Qtopia PIM which is hidden while myPDA is running. So, again the concept of Fat Binaries (MacOS and Linux-ARM) proves its benefits.

I have installed an info page at http://www.dsitri.de/wiki.php?page=ZMacSync

-- hns

[Ovi]

Hi
Something to download at this stage? I see only a screenshot, but I (I suppose we all) would like to test it as soon there is somethng done!
After searching the net I found some japanese pages where a sync utility for zaurus is presented (http://www.ne.jp/asahi/pro/his/software/zsyn/uzsync.html)
but unfortunately even using a translation soft I could not understand how it works. There on the same place also an utility called zsync2 but this one from what I couöd understand works with MI models (before linux).
Cheers,
Ovi

[zautrix]

I wonder why you are not using KO/Pi?
As mentioned in another thread today, KO/Pi make it possible already to sync Calendar and Todos with Mac iCal.
Implementing conflict resolution and asking the user which entry to choose is not implemented in two or three days.
But you can, of course, do what you want.  I am just wondering ...

[dhns]

I wonder why you are not using KO/Pi?

Simply, beacuse it was not known...

Implementing conflict resolution and asking the user which entry to choose is not implemented in two or three days.

Well, Cocoa is a very powerful toolkit. I expect more work in parsing the iCal entries on the Mac because that is not included than in conflict resolution and opening a panel which asks for Yes, No, Cancel (that is a one-liner).

But you can, of course, do what you want.  I am just wondering ...

KO/Pi seems to require to switch to a different Calendar application - it may be much better than what Sharp provides but switching is a general barrier to many users.

And I understood from the other thread that there is no AddressBook sync in KO/Pi. So it is also an 50% solution.

-- hns

[ganoe]

Just to play devil\'s advocate a bit here (and partly the reason I don\'t get involved in these sync projects), Apple is bound to release the iSync API sometime in the near future and there is a person working on reverse engineering the Zaurus sync protocol.  Plus we should probably just be trying to get Sharp to release it.  When you consider those things, these projects include a lot of reinventing the wheel.  Not that I want to discourage anyone, but I just think we could get a better solution that way.  It could certainly take longer though.

[dhns]

 Plus we should probably just be trying to get Sharp to release it.

I am just back from CeBIT - the largest Computer Fair in the world. And I was really disappointed on the PDA story Sharp was presenting: nothing! No old, no new, no any PDA. Just a translation dictionary + phones.

So I doubt whether we have a chance to get Sharp to do anything for us...

-- hns

[dzins]

Please note, I have taken the Zaurs Mac Sync application and improved it quite a bit.  The way it was, it deleted all of your OS X data and replaced it with the sync data.  So if you had anything in your OS X address book like pictures or any data it didn\'t sync, you lost it.
I am not saying the improvements I made are perfect by any means, but it is a big improvement.  You can download it and the latest source code from http://homepage.mac.com/dzins/helios

The sync engine could actually be made pretty generic pretty easily.  I was in the process of using AppleScript to gather the ToDo data and sync it with the Zaurus when I ran out of time.

I currently use theKompany rom 1.0 and theKompany PIM applications and it works very well for the addressbook.

Darwin

[Ovi]

Hi,
I\'m using your sync soft for 2-3 weeks already.The screenshot on your page shows also the ToDo option as active but in the version that I use (0.9a) only the AddressBook can be synchronized. Is there a newer version of the program available?
Ovi

[dhns]

Please note, I have taken the Zaurs Mac Sync application and improved it quite a bit.

Jason is looking for somebody who wants to become the administrator of the Zaurus Mac Sync project at SourceForge. So if you want to use that platform to distribute the modified source code, please simply contact him.

-- hns

[dzins]

Hi,
I\'m using your sync soft for 2-3 weeks already.The screenshot on your page shows also the ToDo option as active but in the version that I use (0.9a) only the AddressBook can be synchronized. Is there a newer version of the program available?
Ovi

The screenshot was from a development version I was working on that had the applescript to read the mac todo list, that\'s all it did tho.  There is no newer version.

Darwin

[dhns]

Apple is bound to release the iSync API sometime in the near future

Yes, they will probably do. On the other hand I have looked into the class-dump of a Sync.conduit and it reveals a rather complex protocol. And iSync itself uses a private Sync.framework which defines the superclass NSSyncConduit used in the plug-ins. And this is also rather complex. So I expect that reverse engineering the interface is more complex than writing a tailored sync app for the Zaurus.

Plus we should probably just be trying to get Sharp to release it.

Well, the experience of having Sharp to release something what we want does not show a high probability...

When you consider those things, these projects include a lot of reinventing the wheel.  Not that I want to discourage anyone, but I just think we could get a better solution that way.  It could certainly take longer though.

So basically there are two approaches:
a) write/get an iSync conduit for the Sharp Zaurus
 make a standalone sync solution

I completely agree from a user experience perspective that variant a) is the better solution. But my expectation is that  is much easier to achieve than a)

So, having released myPDA-Zaurus-Edition DR2, we will put more efforts on ZMacSync.

-- hns

[spiritquest]

As a zaurus newbie, just a few days old. I have the sharp rom 1.40 JP - it was an import from shirtpocket.

I am interested in if the MacSync progs work with this rom, or if anyone has tried to use them ??

Regards,

Ket