Victor wrote:
> Java's serial support is bad IIRC. I don't think it even=20
> exists for the Mac.=20
> The problem with writing in Java is that we all want to=20
> sync to different=20
> PIMs that have different formats (eg. MS Outlook does *not*=20
> use vCalendar/iCal).
That's why it would be a win for a sync app to support some form
of plug-ins. NewtonLink (Unix) does this in an odd way by writing Newton
data to a file which is parsed by plug-ins for exporting/syncing with
external apps. It doesn't allow for easy syncing with the Newton,
though. I think the best way for a sync app to do this would be to
provide an abstraction layer on the desktop that could be used by
plug-ins. Each plug-in would know how to talk to the Newton sync
program, and also how to talk to a single external app. An easy way to
do this would be for the sync program to allow the plug-in to open a
cursor against a Newton soup. This puts a lot of work onto the plug-ins
though, since each plug-in would have to implement it's own sync layer.
Alternately, if the plug-in provides a data abstraction layer to the
sync program (like a cursor into the external apps data), then the sync
program could be written to handle syncing between the two cursors.
If the interface between the sync app and the plug-ins was both
public and complete, then it would encourage people writing new sync
apps to use it. In the case of Unix and OSX, for instance, you could use
the same sync program on both OSes. You'd probably use different
plug-ins for each, since each OS supports a different collection of PIMs
& such, but the sync program would be the same.
Jim Anderson
Evil Overlord Rule 206:
When my Legions of Terror park their vehicle to do reconnaissance on
foot, they will be instructed to employ The Club.
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