[WOPR]

I currently use Palm Desktop and to be honest I'm quite happy with it. However I realise I could be using iSync and iCal. Are there any real advantages to it? And does it end up a bit messy bearing in mind you still have to use Palm Desktop to view Memos from the Palm.

I only started thinking about this after hearing the news that Palm is to stop supporting Macs in the next Palm OS release (6 a.k.a Cobalt).

I assume I'd also need to still use Palm Hotsync for installing stuff too.

Should I just wait until the new Missing Sync app comes out and see what that's like?

[philm]

Well, I guess this is quite a personal decision, but I moved from Palm Desktop (PD) to iSync et al. for a number of reasons.

1. Contacts into the Address Book which is then used system wide. I have a pathological aversion to saving e-mail addresses and phone numbers in more than one app.

2. Whilst I don't see much difference in interface between the PD calendar and iCal, I like the facility to share my iCal calendar with my wife and vice versa. Works very well to coordinate our work and family lives.

3 .Mac. I like to keep all my settings synced from multiple Macs, and iSync/,Mac looks after this to me.

It's a shame that we don't have an iSync memo application and PD is still required for memos.

[Westfoto]

Originally posted by philm:
2. Whilst I don't see much difference in interface between the PD calendar and iCal, I like the facility to share my iCal calendar with my wife and vice versa. Works very well to coordinate our work and family lives.

3 .Mac. I like to keep all my settings synced from multiple Macs, and iSync/,Mac looks after this to me.

Can you go into more detail as to the steps that you use for the calendar sync or share that you do with your wife?

I am looking at different software that would be server based and it all seams to much trouble for what it is worth. Both my wife and I use iSync with our palm's. The family calendar can be a mess with four kids to keep track of. And we both have our own biz. So we work for ourself's, so if there is a big job we need to make sure everything is taken care of with the family at the same time we are working to take care of the family, you get the idea.

I use .Mac and iSync already with the two computers that I use.

thanks,
West

There is another tread on a simular subject that I started here.
http://forums.macnn.com/showthread.p...hreadid=201518

[bbales]

I'm interested in what others do, also. I, too, am quite happy with Palm Desktop, but mostly for calendar and "to do" items. I also use it for contacts -- but also have some in Entourage. I have people all over the place, in fact. With the Panther and other updates, I've started using ical, a bit, and am syncing my desktop and my laptop. In short, I know have stuff everywhere, and probably need to consolidate.

[Toyin]

I started using iSync with iCal and Address book the minute they were available. I haven't looked back since. The reason I use them(including .mac) is for the 1st time ever my webmail, palm phone, and both macs are in complete synchronization. If I enter or edit an address it's picked up by all the other machines on the next sync. I also like the integration of the Address book and Mail. Coupled with Launchbar, starting a new email to anyone in my address book, requires 4 to 5 keystrokes (from any application). As for memo pad, I really don't use it on the desktop, but it does get backed up if I ever needed to restore it.

[philm]

Originally posted by Westfoto:
Can you go into more detail as to the steps that you use for the calendar sync or share that you do with your wife?

Simply using the Publish and Subscribe feature in iCal, via .Mac. I publish, she subscribes and vice versa.

[selowitch]

I'm so furious at PalmOne for abandoning native HotSyncing for Mac that I'm seriously thinking that my next PDA will be a Mac OS X-native one ... namely, an iPod!

[BZ]

(chiming in)

I too moved to iCal/Addressbook from Palm Desktop.

Pros:
- All in one joy (Mail/Addressbook/iCal/iChat awareness)
- Easy to use
- iSync for backup and sharing
- iSyncing to multiple computers (great!)

Cons:
- No memo support (PLEASE DO THIS!)
- Three different applications (not a biggy for me, but some people don't like it)
- Not "great" support for Palm syncing (no groups in iCal/Addressbook, no extra fields in Palm).

Overall though, it is the reason I went to Mail.app. I can now enter/update an email address on my Palm, sync it up, see it populate in my addresbook, available in Mail, up on .Mac and synced to another computer.

BZ

[lexhair]

I still use the Palm Desktop because I want my Address Book, To Do list and Calendar (not to mention Memos) in the same app. I've played around with iCal and the Address Book.app and to be fair, I have not exploited all their functionality but they don't work as well as the Palm Desktop does for me.