Ever since Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger, Palm PDA users have had no end to syncing woes. Pre-Tiger (during the iSync 1.0 days), syncing your Palm PDA with your Mac was a cinch. All that was needed was the simple installation of the iSyncPalm 1.2 Conduit for Mac. Once done, your Palm PDA is then easily integrated to sync with the Address Book and iCal.
With Tiger came the promise of a greater marriage between Palm PDA and Mac where, iSync 2.0 with its integrated Palm conduit was supposed to, in theory, make syncing your Palm PDA with your Mac even easier than before. Reality, however, quickly brought Palm PDA/Mac users to their knees, with their Palm PDA retiring into the deep recesses of their dresser drawers. There has been nominal improvement since and the divorce between the Palm PDA and Macs appears to be permanent.
Despite the best efforts of independant developers to improve Palm Desktop for Mac, the cure for the syncing woes has yet to be found, even though Palm Desktop for Mac has gone into its fourth revision with version 4.2.1revD
Internet forums are also reporting that even the popular alternative to iSync, Mark/Space’s The Missing Sync v.5.1.2 isn’t spared. The demise of the Palm PDA/Mac relationship was probably captured best by MacWorld’s, Jonathan Seff, in his article, That syncing feeling in May 2005;
“As with any major OS update, there are bound to be some problems with Tiger. But I hope Apple takes a long look at iSync and figures out how to make it play better with others.”
Who would’ve guessed then, that Apple would change their name two years later and come out with a revolutionary convergent communications device?
Whilst some Palm PDA/Mac diehards may still be holding their collective breaths for improved Palm PDA/Mac relations, the advent of the iPhone seems to suggest a stark departure from the days of the PDA. Enter the age of convergence…