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by Marc Logemann.
Original Post: Sync4j and SyncML in general
Feed Title: Marc's Java Blog
Feed URL: http://www.logemann.org/day/index_java.xml
Feed Description: Java related topics for all major areas. So you will see J2ME, J2SE and J2EE issues here.
Lately i thought about a clever solution to syncronize my palm T3 device with my mobile phone regarding contacts (and perhaps calendar). So i started my research at PalmSource. They are offering a outlook conduit and my mobile phone also can sync with outlook, so i thought this is the fasted solution, but a few minutes later, i recognized, that when using the outlook conduit, i cant use the plam desktop application anymore. I just wanted to use the outlook as sync platform, not for the usage on my desktop. So i trashed the conduit idea and thought that SyncML is the way to go anyway.
Palm beeing one of the members of the SyncML Initiative would be the perfect candidate... i guessed. First dissapointment, there is no standard SyncML client on the plam and even more frustrating, the palm desktop software cant act as SyncML server, because its not a SyncML server. To say it in one sentence, Palm doesnt offer anything when it comes to SyncML. What a company.
But i am a developer, so how hard can it be to download some OSS stuff and do it for myself. First i downloaded a Palm SyncML client, its commercial, but i am willing to pay a few dollars. This was easy, then i downloaded the only OSS SyncML Server i found: Sync4j. And now the pain returned. You have two choices: 1. the distro which can be applied to the Sun J2EE RI and 2. a bundle with JBoss. Both options were horrable, because i exptected something like an EAR file, which i can just plug into any server of my choice. I tried the JBoss+Sync4j Bundle and failed because the docs seem outdated and doesnt apply to current filenames and directory structures anymore. After 30 minutes of frustration i trashed also this approach.
Long story, short analysis: Why the hell is the hole SyncML initiative still a joke. You see clients everywhere (on each damn mobile nowadays) but no server implementations besides commercial ones which cost an arm and a leg. I really expect a bundled SyncML server inside my Palm Desktop app or at least something like a Portal which is affordable. So what does SyncML offer us today? Its really not new anymore...
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