A few days ago I wrote about syncing your Windows Mobile contacts and calendar over the Internet for free using Funambol. Today I’m going to show you how to accomplish the same task, plus the ability to synchronize your contacts and calendar with Plaxo, Mozilla Thunderbird, and Google Calendar.

Excited yet? Let me show you how neat this truly is – how would you like the ability to add an event to Google Calendar and have it automatically update on Thunderbird AND your Windows Mobile device (Smartphone or PocketPC)? Sound good? How about adding a new Contact on your phone and having it show up in Thunderbird (or vice versa)? What if I tell you that you don’t even need to install anything on your phone? Oh, and here’s the best part – the entire process is FREE.

Required Tools

Several pieces of software work in conjunction to keep everything in sync. Here’s what you will need:

On the Internet:

• a Google Calendar account (if you’re reading this, you probably have one already)
• a Plaxo account

For Your Windows Mobile Device:

• A NuevaSync account
  • Currently in Beta

For Your Computer (Windows, Mac OS X, Linux/BSD):

• Mozilla Thunderbird
  • Plaxo add-on for Thunderbird
  • Lightning add-on for Thunderbird
  • Provider add-on for Thunderbird

Sound complicated? It really is not. Here’s a visual guide that I threw together to illustrate the data directions.

Before we begin, let me state that all of these products are currently free. While I hope they all stay that way, I have not yet discovered whether or not NuevaSync will begin charging for their service once they come out of Beta. If anyone associated with NuevaSync reads this, we would appreciate a comment. Also, Plaxo has a free and a Premium service. For the purposes of this guide, the free service is all you need.

Also, please note that some of these services are in Beta, meaning that there may be bugs and/or outages. PLEASE BACK UP YOUR MOBILE DATA BEFORE YOU PROCEED! This guide may work flawlessly for you, or it may eat all the noodles in your pantry. Proceed with caution. I am not responsible for any lost data.

Step One – Web Services

1. First things first, if you want to sync with Google Calendar, you must HAVE a Google Calendar. If you have a Gmail account, you already have one.

2. Next, create an account with Plaxo. Yes, Plaxo is yet another social network, though without the I’m an attention whore kind of mentality most social networks have. Instead, Plaxo focuses on keeping information about you and your contacts up-to-date. Here’s the last few lines from their About Page:

We are dedicated to the notion that your address book, your friends list, and your content belong to you, not to us. We make it easy for you to take them with you wherever you go and to use them with an ever-expanding array of sites, applications, and devices.

I can’t stand most social networks, but I can handle Plaxo simply because they are an integral tool in keeping my sync setup working.

3. Add a Google sync point to Plaxo.

Before you sign out of Plaxo, we need to add a sync point for Google. Essentially, you are going to give Plaxo your Google Account information and have Plaxo log in and perform a Calendar sync every 15 minutes.

Click the Calendar tab at the top of Plaxo.

At the bottom of the page, look for the Add sync points link.

Choose the Google option, enter your account information, and follow the prompts. Plaxo can currently only sync your Google Contacts in one direction (from Google to Plaxo), but syncing with Google Calendar is bi-directional.

Once this step is complete, your Google and Plaxo calendars should be synchronized. Now you can move on to the Windows Mobile device setup.

Step Two – Windows Mobile Device

We’re going to use NuevaSync to connect your Smartphone/PocketPC to both Google Calendar and Plaxo. There are two main steps to this process.

1. First, create an account with NuevaSync, a service that provides over-the-air synchronization of Smartphones and PocketPCs. Their website is pretty sparse, but essentially NuevaSync acts like an Exchange Server, using the built-in ActiveSync (OTA) protocol on your Windows Mobile device. Think of it as a proxy to Google Calendar and Plaxo.

Once you’ve created your account, all you need to do is tell it sync your Calendar and Contacts with the appropriate services. You will see a status and setup screen like the one shown here. Use the change button to choose the Google and Plaxo services, and use the setup button for each to provide the appropriate login information for each service. (Note: if you are uncomfortable providing your Google and Plaxo login information to NuevaSync, you will be unable to proceed any further. I admit that it was a little disconcerting, but I have seen no consequences to date. If either account is ever hijacked, I will post back here.)

2. Configure your Windows Mobile device to connect to NuevaSync.

Guess what? You don’t have to install anything on your Windows Mobile device from NuevaSync. All you need is ActiveSync, which is already built-in. Here’s the process:

1. Launch ActiveSync (Programs → ActiveSync).
2. If you have an existing server setup, delete it (Menu → Options → select Microsoft Exchange → Delete).
3. Add a server source (Menu → Add Server Source).
4. Enter www.nuevasync.com under Server Address.
5. Make sure that the encrypted (SSL) connection box is checked and select Next.
6. Enter your NuevaSync username (your_name@mail.com) and password.
7. Under Domain, enter anything you want. The field is required to continue, but NuevaSync supposedly doesn’t use it (If this area is grey, this just means that you’re lucky enough to own a newer device and can proceed without entering anything). I entered “crap” for my domain.
8. Press Next.
9. The last screen shows the data available to sync (Contacts, Calendar, E-mail, Tasks). At the time of this writing, NuevaSync only supports syncing Contacts and Calendar. Leave the others unchecked.
10. Press Finish. Your device should now attempt an initial sync. If it does not connect, check your login information again. If it syncs, you’re in business.

Here are three slides that show the process on my smartphone:

At this point, your Contacts should have been sent to and synced with Plaxo. Let’s verify this: Manually log in to your Plaxo account, click People → Address Book. See your contacts? If so, try adding a contact on your mobile device. It should soon show up in Plaxo. Try deleting that same contact in Plaxo. At the next sync, did it also disappear from your phone?

Go on to the next page (below).

I have a love/hate relationship with my MOTO Q smartphone. I love it because it helps me stay connected on-the-run, because it has a big keyboard, and because I got a great deal on it.

I hate it because it runs Windows Mobile 5, which has crashed a few times so badly that I’ve had to reset my phone, wiping out all my information.

There’s a big problem with Windows Mobile – Microsoft wants you to use their Activesync software to backup your contacts, calendar, and other files. That’s all fine and dandy, but surprise, surprise! Activesync only interfaces nicely with Outlook. Linux/Mac users, and Windows users who dislike (or can’t afford) Outlook are locked out in the cold. Sorry.

This is a HUGE problem, especially for potential GNU/Linux adopters. Here’s a typical scenario: Joe User hears about this “Linux” thing and decides to give it a shot. He tries it, likes what he sees, and is considering switching full-time, but then Joe decides to plug in his Windows Mobile-based smartphone or PocketPC. Uh oh. Nothing happens. Joe User is savvy enough to do a little searching, but quickly realizes that syncing his Windows Mobile device to Linux is going to be about as easy as convincing Microsoft to switch to a UNIX-based kernel!

Ever since I bought my phone, I’ve been looking for an easy, free way to sync my contacts and calendar without using Activesync and Outlook. I’ve spent many hours researching and testing a handful of methods, with varying amounts of success. Over the next few weeks, I’m going to post tutorials on a few of my findings.

I only have two requirements:

1. The method must not require Outlook or Activesync (or Windows Mobile Device Center, or whatever Vista calls it).
2. As the self-proclaimed ruler of the free world, I require that the entire process be FREE. No subscription services, one-time fees, or anything like that.

Let’s get started!

Method One – Funambol

One possible solution that I’ve found is by using Funambol (http://www.funambol.com). According to their site, they are the world’s leading mobile open-source project. I can’t verify if they’re truly the world’s leading project, but I DO know that they offer the easiest syncing solution that I’ve tried so far.

Step One – myFUNAMBOL Portal

If you are so inclined, you may download their server software (for Windows or Linux) and run your own sync server. For the rest of us, they offer the free myFUNAMBOL Portal. The portal is currently in beta, and they claim that sign-up is by invitation only. However, I had no problem registering directly for an account.

Create and activate your myFUNAMBOL account. Once activated, you should receive a message like this:

You may also choose to synchronize e-mail with Funambol by giving it your e-mail address and e-mail password. Be sure to register your correct phone number with Funambol, since this is how you are going to receive the phone plug-in.

Your new myFUNAMBOL portal should look something like this (click for larger view):

Step Two – Install the Phone Software

Now that the portal is working, it’s time to install the Funambol client onto your phone. From inside the myFUNAMBOL portal, choose Profile, and then drill down to the Phone option. Verify that the information is correct, and then from the drop-down list at the bottom, select Download Funambol Windows Mobile Plug-in to my phone. See screenshot below.

You should receive a text message with a link to the plug-in, or you can choose to download the CAB file directly by browsing to this link on your phone – http://my.funambol.com/me/funambol-sm-plugin.cab.

Once the plug-in is successfully installed, you just have to configure it.

Step Three – Configuration and Initial Sync

You’re almost done. The final step is to tell the Funambol client on your phone how to connect to the myFUNAMBOL portal. Enter the credentials for the account you created. The server location should be filled in for you automatically.

Once the Windows Mobile plug-in is connected to the web portal, all that’s left to do is start syncing.

Chances are high that you can just press the Sync All button to have your information sent to the portal. If you want to specify which elements to sync, choose Menu → Settings.

See the slideshow below for a visual overview of the Funambol plug-in on my MOTO Q.

There you have it. Once the initial sync is finished, log back in to your myFUNAMBOL portal and verify that your Contacts and Calendar settings have been updated.

Try it out. Add or delete a contact via the web portal and press Sync All again from the Funambol phone plug-in. The changes should update on your phone. Also, any contacts or calendar information that you add on your phone should update in the web portal. Nice.

Other Thoughts

Naturally, to make your phone sync with Funambol, you need Internet access on your smartphone or PocketPC. My mobile plan has unlimited data access, so this works well for me. If you pay for all data access, consider setting the Sync Method to Manual so as to not incur costly data charges.

For me, the main purpose of Funambol is to backup my Contacts and Calendar without Activesync or Outlook, and it does the job with aplomb. If Windows Mobile crashes and forces me to do (another) hard reset, within minutes I can reinstall the Funambol plug-in and reload my critical information. It gives me peace of mind. The best part is that it doesn’t matter what operating system your computer is running. You can still keep your information in sync.

For you Windows/Outlook users out there, you’ll be pleased to know that Funambol also offers an Outlook plug-in to synchronize your Contacts and Calendar. If you throw Google Calendar Sync (for Outlook) into the equation, you can create one lean, mean, syncing machine!

As I mentioned, I’ve spent a lot of time researching this lately, and in the coming weeks I plan to post a few more tutorials on syncing Windows Mobile information without Activesync or Outlook, including information on making it work with Thunderbird and Google Calendar. Stay tuned for my findings.

In the meantime, if all you need is a simple, elegant, and FREE method to backup your Windows Mobile Contacts and Calendar over the Internet, Funambol has you covered.

- Brian Bondari

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