PDASync Tasks

• Starting PDASync
• To Enter a PDA Name
• To Enter a PDA Password
• Using the Synchronization Tab
• To View Synchronization Status
• To Configure Synchronization
• To Set Synchronization Properties
• To Cancel Synchronization
• Using the Conduit Tab
• To Configure the Installer Conduit
• To Configure the Memo Conduit
• To Configure the Calendar Conduit
• To Configure the Mail Conduit
• To Configure the Address Conduit
• To Configure the System Conduit
• To Add a Conduit
• Using the Log Tab
• To View the Log
• To Configure the Log Properties
• To Print the Log File

 


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Starting PDASync 

When you first start PDASync, if you have not assigned a name and password to your PDA you must do so.
 

To Enter a PDA Name 

Enter the PDA name. The Palm Pilot name is the unique name you give to your PDA to identify it for the system. This dialog appears only once, the first time you log in. If you have already given your PDA a name, this dialog will not display.


 

To Enter a Password 

Enter your PDA password. If your PDA has a password, a dialog asks you for it every time the application runs. If your PDA does not have a password, this dialog does not appear.


 
 
 

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Using the Synchronization Tab

PDASync opens by default to the Synchronization Tab. Synchronization begins using current or default configurations, as defined on the Conduits tab.

The application is ready to synchronize, as indicated  by the status line.  Press the "sync" button on your PDA hardware cradle and the application begins a synchronize operation based on the previous configuration of the conduits.


 

To View Synchronization Status 

The status area contains information about the current operation. This information includes status or prompt text, an animated graphic that indicates that an operation is in progress, and a progress bar that shows progress during a synchronization operation.



The animated graphic is not displayed unless a synchronization is in progress.
 

To Configure Synchronization 

The first thing you must do is establish the port setting in the Synchronization Properties dialog.
 

To Set Synchronization Properties

Clicking properties on the Synchronization tab brings up the  application properties dialog. This contains all of the PDASync  options that are not directly related to specific conduits. The options in this dialog do not require changing very often.



The following actions can be taken at this dialog:
 

• Setting the serial port

 
• Setting the port speed. The default is "As fast as possible," which is automatically negotiated between the application and the serial port. The fixed choices in this pull down are whatever speeds are supported by the API.

 
• Setting the Iconify application window after synchronization to ON (default) or OFF. The window will minimize itself to an icon automatically upon completion of the synchronization. If it is turned OFF, the window will remain open on the screen after the synchronization is completed.

To Cancel Synchronization 

Clicking on Cancel Synchronization button the synchronization is aborted.
 
 
 

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Using the Conduit Tab 

These are conduits that are available. Conduits can be added  and removed. Active conduits are indicated with a check mark. A Synchronize operation runs all of the active (checkmark) conduits ONLY.



The following actions can be taken at this dialog:
 

• Changing the Conduit Settings - brings up the configuration dialog for that particular conduit.

 
• Toggling the Conduit's Activate State - activates or deactivates the conduit.

 
• Adding a Conduit to the List - brings up the Add Conduit dialog that enables you to add new conduits.

 
• Deleting a Conduit from the List - removes the conduit from the list, after a confirmation dialog.

To Configure the Installer Conduit 

The Configure Installer Conduit  dialog allows you to determine which files (applications or databases) to install on your PDA.



In this dialog you can:
 

• Display all the files that are available for installation to your PDA. These are all the files currently in the default install directory.

 
• To add a file to the list, click the plus (+) button ton bring up the Add PDA Application dialog. Select a file and then click the Add button.



 

• To delete a file from the list, select a file and then click the minus (-) button.


The default directory is /home/<user>/PDASync/PalmPilot/install.

All files in the list are installed on the next synchronization operation.

To Configure the Memo Conduit 

This dialog enables you to synchronize text files between the desktop and the PDA as shown in the following figure.



You can use this dialog to change the data synchronization direction to:
 

• Synchronize the files (default) - merges together the memo information on your desktop and your PDA.
• Desktop overwrites PDA - replaces your PDA memo information with the memo information you have on your workstation.
• PDA overwrites desktop - replaces your desktop memo information with the memo information you have on your PDA

 

To Configure the Calendar Conduit 

This option enables you to determine how appointments are synchronized between calendar applications.



The following actions can be taken at this dialog:
 

• Changing the host name (the default is user@host) - specifies the base calendar on the workstation or server.
• Determining a rolling date range to synchronize (the default range is six months)
• Determining what information is displayed for others to see on private appointments.
• Changing the data synchronization direction to:
• Synchronize the files (this is the default) - merges together the calendar information on your desktop and your PDA.
• Desktop overwrites PDA - replaces your PDA calendar information with the calendar information you have on your workstation.
• PDA overwrites desktop - replaces your desktop calendar information with the calendar information you have on your PDA

To Configure the Mail Conduit 

The Configure Mail Synchronization Conduit Mail dialog determines your INBOX location.



In this dialog you can define the IMAP location of the INBOX (<server.domain>) or the local location of the INBOX (<path> and <filename>).

In addition, the IMAP choice requires that you submit a login ID and password. You can save the login and password to avoid retyping. If the ID and password are NOT saved, synchronization is interrupted every time with the following dialog box.



You can chose to have the desktop mailbox overwrite your PDA mailbox (the default is OFF).

NOTE: This option should only be used if your PDA INBOX folder is not in sync with your desktop.

All other setup for mail synchronization is done on your PDA. When you  synchronize, your PDA automatically:
 

• Sends mail from the Outbox

 
• Destroys the deleted mail in the Deleted folder

 
• Does the things you have defined in the options

 

 
 
 

In the Mail synchronization options on the PDA, you can tell your PDA to:
 

• Synchronize mailbox state both ways (for example, make the two Inboxes identical, given the constraints, which include no attachments and truncation of messages. This is the same as setting the PDA  option to All.

 
• Send mail from the Outbox only and retrieve nothing. This is the same as setting the PDA option to Send Only.

 
• Synchronize mail according to a filter. This is the same as setting the PDA option to Filter. The  messages are truncated to a specified length; the range is: 250, 500, 1000,  2000, 4000, 6000, 8000. The filter can operate two ways:
 
• Ignore messages with a certain criteria and retrieve all others
• Retrieve messages with a certain criteria and ignore all others

To Configure the Address Conduit 

The Address Synchronization Conduit dialog enables you to determine how entries  are synchronized between address applications.



In this dialog you can select the data synchronization direction. The default is to merge the data.

To Configure the System Conduit 

The Configure System Conduit backs up all system information, graffiti shortcuts, and any .pdbs and .prcs files that are NOT already associated with other applications. The default is that your PDA overwrites the desktop. Refer to the following figure.



NOTE: You should choose "Desktop overwrites PDA" only if everything on your PDA has been corrupted or lost.

To Add a Conduit 

The Add Conduit dialog enables you to add new conduits to PDASync.



The available conduits come from one of three categories, represented in the pull-down menu:
 

• Personal Conduits (default) - Conduits that you may have obtained from the Web or elsewhere.

 
• System Default - The default set that the PDASync application comes with (for example, Calendar, Memo, Address). You should use conduits from this category to replace any defaults that have been deleted.

 
• System Additions - Any third-party conduits added by system administrators.


If you want to add a new conduit not currently in any of the folders, press the Import Conduit button to bring up the Import Conduit dialog.



Select a file and press the Import button. The file will be copied into the selected folder from the pull-down menu on the Add Conduit dialog.

Select a file on the Add Conduit dialog and click Add to Conduit List button. If it is a conduit previously deleted from the Conduit tab, it will automatically be added back to the list. If the Conduit is a new one, the the Associate Conduit dialog will display.



A list of the available databases will display in this list only if they are already installed on the PDA. If you want to associate a conduit with a new database, you must first install the database.

Then select a database in the list and click OK. The conduit will be added to the conduit list.

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Using the Log Tab 

This tab lets you view the activity log for  each synchronization. This area consists of a scrolling  read-only text field, which displays a real-time log of a sync or install  operation.

To View the Log 

By default, the top of the log is displayed at the top of the data window.  Because the log file can be appended, the top  of the current log may be at the bottom of the file. This means that the scroll bar  may be at the bottom of the window when the log is displayed; scrolling up reveals previous logs.



By default, the date on which the sync operation is performed is displayed at the  top and bottom of the current log. Time stamp information is added as appropriate. You can also choose to show full diagnostic information in the log through an option in the Log Properties dialog.

To Configure the Log Properties 

The log is saved to disk as a text file. You can choose Append or Overwrite the last log file.


 
 

To Print the Log File 

The log file can be printed.