Sync Services

[Keith Roxo]

I just noticed that Entourage will sync with the Mac programs such as iCal,
Address Book, and .Mac. I know where the calendar and and addresses sync
to, but where do my Entourage notes sync to?

Keith

 

[Paul Berkowitz]

I just noticed that Entourage will sync with the Mac programs such as iCal,
Address Book, and .Mac. I know where the calendar and and addresses sync to,
but where do my Entourage notes sync to?

To the main SyncServices "Truth" engine, accessible to any other app that
calls for them. At the moment, the only place is online .Mac iDisk, if you
have one. You can't see them there, but .Mac will then sync to another
computer also using SyncServices with Entourage. So it's your way to sync
between Entourage on two or more computers if you have a .Mac account.

--
Paul Berkowitz
MVP MacOffice
Entourage FAQ Page: <http://www.entourage.mvps.org/faq/index.html>
AppleScripts for Entourage: <http://macscripter.net/scriptbuilders/>

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PLEASE always state which version of Microsoft Office you are using -
**2004**, X or 2001. It's often impossible to answer your questions
otherwise.

 

[Corentin Cras-Méneur]

To the main SyncServices "Truth" engine, accessible to any other app that
calls for them. At the moment, the only place is online .Mac iDisk

The Missing Sync can also access them and sync them to a portable device
(eg: Palm).

Corentin

 

[Mark Connell]

The Missing Sync can also access them and sync them to a portable device
(eg: Palm).

Corentin

Are you sure? My notes don't sync to my T3 using TMS 5.1. I emailed
Mark/Space support and the reply was: "You need to enable the Entourage
conduit to sync the notes. If you need to sync that way, then you
should use the Entourage conduit, but disable the Mark/Space Contacts,
Events, and Tasks conduits then you should be fine.".

 

[Alan Schaevitz]

Are you sure? My notes don't sync to my T3 using TMS 5.1. I emailed
Mark/Space support and the reply was: "You need to enable the Entourage
conduit to sync the notes. If you need to sync that way, then you
should use the Entourage conduit, but disable the Mark/Space Contacts,
Events, and Tasks conduits then you should be fine.".

That is the same response I got from Mark/Space, too. The Missing Sync
syncs memos to their own application, MemoPad, but not to Entourage. The
approach I've taken is to use the Mark/Space conduits (Entourage conduit
disabled) as the normal sync. Then occasionally I disable the Mark/Space
conduits, enable the Entourage conduit with settings of Do Nothing for
everything but the Memo/Notes, and run The Missing Sync once. Then go back
to the normal sync. I bit kludgy, but it works for me as my memo/notes
don't change very often. Not a satisfactory solution for active notes.

I made a request to Mark/Space that The Missing Sync do a software check of
the Entourage settings and allow the Entourage conduit to run if there are
no conflicts on the individual component level. Then, you could set only
the memo/notes to sync in the Entourage conduit and disable the equivalent
MemoPad conduit from Mark/Space. Maybe if enough users ask for this, it
will happen?

 

[Corentin Cras-Méneur]

Are you sure? My notes don't sync to my T3 using TMS 5.1. I emailed
Mark/Space support and the reply was: "You need to enable the Entourage
conduit to sync the notes. If you need to sync that way, then you
should use the Entourage conduit, but disable the Mark/Space Contacts,
Events, and Tasks conduits then you should be fine.".

My notes do sync. TMS doesn't directly sync the notes from Entourage
itself, but if you enable SyncServices synching in Entourage the notes
will be synched there. After that, using the MarkSpace conduit, TMS will
pull the notes from there to send them to the Palm (I use a Clié).

If the settings are right, it should make it through,

Corentin

 

[Corentin Cras-Méneur]

That is the same response I got from Mark/Space, too. The Missing Sync
syncs memos to their own application, MemoPad, but not to Entourage.

It's partially true. TMS can sync through MemoPad, but it can't sync
from the Entoruage conduit. TMS can also sync from the Sync Services
database as of version 5.1. If Entourage is set to sync to the SSD as
well you should see the Entourage notes make it to the Palm,

(if not I wonder where my notes come from - I have to admit I hardly
ever use the notes - I create tasks for everything).


Corentin

 

[Corentin Cras-Méneur]

(if not I wonder where my notes come from - I have to admit I hardly
ever use the notes - I create tasks for everything).

So of course, I wanted to confirm that so I went to TMS on my MAc. For
some reason it crashes consistently and I can't get the main UI up
anymore :-\ I checked my notes in Entourage and could not find recent
additions made on the Clié though I really distinctively remember seing
my notes making it through :-\
Either it was something present inn one of their previous public betas
and gone since then, or I'm an idiot and I mistook tasks and notes (the
chances are it's the later possibility :-| ),


Corentin

 

[Alan Schaevitz]

It's partially true. TMS can sync through MemoPad, but it can't sync
from the Entoruage conduit. TMS can also sync from the Sync Services
database as of version 5.1. If Entourage is set to sync to the SSD as
well you should see the Entourage notes make it to the Palm,

(if not I wonder where my notes come from - I have to admit I hardly
ever use the notes - I create tasks for everything).


Corentin

My original post (reproduced below) is accurate. Entourage can sync notes
with .mac but does not sync with the "true" database. I ran another test.
I created a new note (Test1) on Entourage and a new note (Test2) on my Treo
650. I then did a sync using the Mark/Space conduits only. Test2 showed up
in the Mark/Space MemoPad application. Test1 did NOT sync to the Palm and
Test2 did NOT sync to Entourage, only MemoPad.

Original Post:
That is the same response I got from Mark/Space, too. The Missing Sync
syncs memos to their own application, MemoPad, but not to Entourage. The
approach I've taken is to use the Mark/Space conduits (Entourage conduit
disabled) as the normal sync. Then occasionally I disable the Mark/Space
conduits, enable the Entourage conduit with settings of Do Nothing for
everything but the Memo/Notes, and run The Missing Sync once. Then go back
to the normal sync. I bit kludgy, but it works for me as my memo/notes
don't change very often. Not a satisfactory solution for active notes.

I made a request to Mark/Space that The Missing Sync do a software check of
the Entourage settings and allow the Entourage conduit to run if there are
no conflicts on the individual component level. Then, you could set only
the memo/notes to sync in the Entourage conduit and disable the equivalent
MemoPad conduit from Mark/Space. Maybe if enough users ask for this, it
will happen?

 

[Corentin Cras-Méneur]

My original post (reproduced below) is accurate. Entourage can sync notes
with .mac but does not sync with the "true" database.

Well how can you snc to .Mac without synching through the "truth"
database?
The problem would be that Entourage syncs to the "Truth" but TMS doesn't
pull the data from there for notes.

Corentin

 

[Paul Berkowitz]

Well how can you snc to .Mac without synching through the "truth"
database?
The problem would be that Entourage syncs to the "Truth" but TMS doesn't
pull the data from there for notes.

That is correct. That's what TMS says, and that's what I said...

--
Paul Berkowitz
MVP MacOffice
Entourage FAQ Page: <http://www.entourage.mvps.org/faq/index.html>
AppleScripts for Entourage: <http://macscripter.net/scriptbuilders/>

Please "Reply To Newsgroup" to reply to this message. Emails will be
ignored.

PLEASE always state which version of Microsoft Office you are using -
**2004**, X or 2001. It's often impossible to answer your questions
otherwise.

 

[Alan Schaevitz]

That is correct. That's what TMS says, and that's what I said...

So, if I am understanding correctly, the "truth" database contains
notes/memos and Entourage sync's with that (assuming the Sync Services
preference "Synchronize Entourage Notes with .Mac" is checked). But the TMS
MemoPad conduit doesn't sync notes between Palm and the "truth" database,
only between Palm and the Mark/Space MemoPad application. However, the TMS
Contacts, Events and Tasks conduits DO sync with the "truth" database. Is
that correct? If so, then we should be petitioning Mark/Space for a
Memo/Notes conduit that syncs with the "truth" database, right?

 

[Paul Berkowitz]

So, if I am understanding correctly, the "truth" database contains
notes/memos and Entourage sync's with that (assuming the Sync Services
preference "Synchronize Entourage Notes with .Mac" is checked). But the TMS
MemoPad conduit doesn't sync notes between Palm and the "truth" database,
only between Palm and the Mark/Space MemoPad application. However, the TMS
Contacts, Events and Tasks conduits DO sync with the "truth" database. Is
that correct? If so, then we should be petitioning Mark/Space for a
Memo/Notes conduit that syncs with the "truth" database, right?

I don't know that it's up to us to know or understand exactly what the
situation is behind the scenes. I wouldn't be surprised to discover that
perhaps Apple has not yet defined any Sync Services schema for "notes" -
since Apple themselves don't have a Notes app. It's quite possible that
Microsoft have created their own custom schema for Entourage Notes. This
schema might be open to all, or perhaps MissingSync would have to ask MacBU
for API access - I don't know how it works. For MissingSync themselves, it
may have been easier just to port their direct-to-MemoPad Sync from TMS 4,
or perhaps they already _do_ have their own custom schema for it in
SyncServices - I wouldn't know.

You should ask Mark/Space if there's any way they can sync to Entourage
Notes via SyncServices (something I imagine they're already considering, and
have already received requests for), and let them deal with the "how" of it.

--
Paul Berkowitz
MVP MacOffice
Entourage FAQ Page: <http://www.entourage.mvps.org/faq/index.html>
AppleScripts for Entourage: <http://macscripter.net/scriptbuilders/>

Please "Reply To Newsgroup" to reply to this message. Emails will be
ignored.

PLEASE always state which version of Microsoft Office you are using -
**2004**, X or 2001. It's often impossible to answer your questions
otherwise.

 

[Alan Schaevitz]

I don't know that it's up to us to know or understand exactly what the
situation is behind the scenes. I wouldn't be surprised to discover that
perhaps Apple has not yet defined any Sync Services schema for "notes" -
since Apple themselves don't have a Notes app. It's quite possible that
Microsoft have created their own custom schema for Entourage Notes. This
schema might be open to all, or perhaps MissingSync would have to ask MacBU
for API access - I don't know how it works. For MissingSync themselves, it
may have been easier just to port their direct-to-MemoPad Sync from TMS 4,
or perhaps they already _do_ have their own custom schema for it in
SyncServices - I wouldn't know.

You should ask Mark/Space if there's any way they can sync to Entourage
Notes via SyncServices (something I imagine they're already considering, and
have already received requests for), and let them deal with the "how" of it.

Thanks, Paul. I did forward this info to TMS, so we'll see their response.
When I asked them how to sync Entourage Notes with Palm, their response was
that you had to use the Entourage conduit. However, they seemed open to
other possibilities, including allowing the Entourage conduit and their
conduits to run in the same sync so long as there was no "sub-conduit" in
conflict (for example, in the Entourage conduit, Address Book must be set to
Do Nothing if the TMS Contacts conduit is enabled).

 

[Andy Ruff]

BTW, the Entourage Sync Service schema for notes may be found at
~/Library/Sync Services/MicrosoftOfficeNotes.syncschema

There's nothing that prevents a 3rd party from adopting our schema and
synchronizing notes with Entourage. We had to create our own schema exactly
for the reason Paul noted, Apple didn't have one already defined as they
have no apps that synchronize notes.

-Andy

--
Andy Ruff
MacBU Program Management
Entourage Weblog: http://blogs.msdn.com/entourage/

This posting is provided ³AS IS² with no warranties, and confers no rights.