syncing

[Randy]

On Saturday 13 September 2008 17:43:35 kubuntu-users-request at lists.ubuntu.com 
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I had the same desire you do, and came up with two solutions I tested, both of 
which worked, and found the one I preferred.  I settled on a solution using 
SyncML (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SyncML) which is a protocol common to 
many clients and servers, which made it ideal for the solution I wanted.

I sync across two machines, both of which I dual boot XP and Kubuntu.  I 
wanted to have my email, contacts, and calendar on all of them.  There are 
enough different SyncML client connectors and plugins (see Wikipedia article 
for a listing) that I could connect on any of my configurations.

Basically, the data is synchronized not machine-to-machine, but 
machine-to-server, so one has to select a SyncML hosting service.  There are 
multiple (again, see Wikipedia for a list), but the one you hear about most 
often is Scheduleworld.com.  I tried that one and didn't like the interface.  
I settled on Memotoo, which has a very user-friendly interface and I have 
gotten great tech support from them.  They do charge a small fee above 
certain volumes, but I found it worth it and pay gladly (I think it is about 
15 USD per year).  There are free services available (last time I looked, and 
I think Scheduleworld is).

There are different SyncML servers, the one I have seen most commonly 
discussed is Funambol (again, see Wikipedia for a list).

So, you put all these three together, and what do you have?  Well, there is a 
Funambol plugin for Thunderbird, so I can sync with Tbird on my Windows PC 
(not that I really use it any more), and there is also a Funambol plugin for 
Outlook, although I haven't used it an about a year, but did use the plugin 
for a while before I quit Outlook.

With Evolution I used SyncEvolution very happily to connect to both 
Scheduleworld and Memotoo (I started with Scheduleworld, and then found and 
moved to Memotoo).  

Finally, I found that with Kmail I can have real-time synchronization via 
WebDAV, and now I am happily hooked on that solution.  My calendar, contacts, 
and tasks are up-to-date on all of my machines all the time.  When I travel, 
even if I don't have my laptop, I have access to my info via the Memotoo 
website.

One other part of the solution, is that I use my Gmail account via IMAP on 
Kontact and Evolution (when I was testing both), so the same applies with 
email - I am synched on all machines at all times.

As an example of how to do this on Memotoo, here is an explanation of the ways 
you can connect Kontact to Memotoo:
http://www.memotoo.com/mescontacts.php?rub=sync

One other thing, there is also a Funambol plugin for my Blackberry, so I sync 
with it too! (have to install it via a Windows machine, though...).  

Finally, this is not dead easy; it took a little investment in time to figure 
this all out, and I'm sure it will take you a little effort to figure it all 
out on your particular configuration and what you want to do.  However, I 
consider it completely worth the effort, as it was crucial to me to have my 
email and PIM data the same on all environments.

Good luck!

Randy Earl