PalmOne Signs Deal With Microsoft To Use Exchange ActiveSync

[Ed Hansberry]

<a href="http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&amp;cid=581&amp;e=1&amp;u=/nm/20041005/tc_nm/tech_palmone_microsoft_dc">http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&amp;cid=581&amp;e=1&amp;u=/nm/20041005/tc_nm/tech_palmone_microsoft_dc</a><br /><br />PalmOne has signed a deal with Microsoft that will allow PalmOne to put Exchange ActiveSync technology in their handheld devices, which will further bolster PalmOne's battle against RIM's Blackberry devices.<br /><br /><i>"PalmOne plans to use Microsoft's software in future versions of Treo phones that combine mobile phones and personal data organizing into one unit. Financial details of the agreement were not disclosed. By combining Microsoft's Exchange Server ActiveSync software into its devices, palmOne can eliminate the need to install additional servers -- expensive powerful computers used to run many corporate functions -- to shuttle data between e-mail servers and the mobile device."</i><br /><br />I do have to insert my "I told you so" thought. :wink: Two years ago, I posted on then <a href="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=3699">Palm's Tungsten Mobile Information Management Server</a>. While most documents and references to the Tungsten MIMS product have been removed, you can still <a href="http://palm.rever.fr/docs/pr.html?docid=xmdreh6q&lang=en&bpage=Download">read Palm's original press release</a>. The Tungsten MIMS name doesn't even appear at the PalmSource web site, though they reference some unnamed <a href="http://www.palmsource.com/enterprise/">established, flexible and open software "platform"</a> (their quotes, not mine)<br /><br />At that time I said <div class="quote"> <span class="quote">Quote:</span> Microsoft has a larger strategy in the mobile device space that goes beyond the PDA in your hand. Microsoft has a whole server infrastructure behind the Pocket PC accessible through Mobile Information Server, SQL Server and other server products, each carrying a hefty price themselves and additional client access licenses for each unit the enterprise connects to these servers, which in turn spurs sales of developer software, desktops, Office suites, etc. It is a vicious cycle that MS is enjoying all the way to the bank. </div><br />They continue to press forward with this strategy. While I never believed Palm would be even slightly successful with the Tungsten MIMS product, I never imagined they would essentially abandon it in favor of plugging directly into Microsoft's Exchange ActiveSync product.<br /><br /><b><span style="color:red">Update:</span></b> Please note this is not about the desktop software ActiveSync. It is the Exchange 2003 server component.

[huangzhinong]

Does it mean all activesync problem will show up in treo 650?

Thanks

[Shuushin]

I gotta say, one of the *main* reasons it was so easy for me to switch from Palm (I was a dedicated user since the first Palm Pilot) to PPC was that because of ActiveSync and the interface with Outlook.

Seemless.

[jimski]

Oh great, now Palms get to experience all the joys :roll: of ActiveSync. Any word on Apple reviving their Newton.

But maybe Microsoft made this deal to finally get the code for HotSync. That would be a good thing. :way to go:

[Ed Hansberry]

Oh great, now Palms get to experience all the joys :roll: of ActiveSync. Any word on Apple reviving their Newton.
See the "update" line on the original post. Thanks.

[Sven Johannsen]

Oh great, now Palms get to experience all the joys :roll: of ActiveSync. Any word on Apple reviving their Newton.
See the "update" line on the original post. Thanks.

Yea the current announcement is to allow Treos to do direct sync with Exchange servers, but wouldn't you expect that users of Exchange would be using Outlook on the desktop and therefore be confused by not having a native way to sync their PDAs with Outlook when they are not mobile?

[gorkon280]

I gotta say, one of the *main* reasons it was so easy for me to switch from Palm (I was a dedicated user since the first Palm Pilot) to PPC was that because of ActiveSync and the interface with Outlook.

Seemless.

You have GOT to be kidding me. Activesync...to pardon my french....SUCKS!

[Shuushin]

I gotta say, one of the *main* reasons it was so easy for me to switch from Palm (I was a dedicated user since the first Palm Pilot) to PPC was that because of ActiveSync and the interface with Outlook.

Seemless.

You have GOT to be kidding me. Activesync...to pardon my french....SUCKS!

Compared to piece of crap conduits and the hoops that have to be negotiated on Palm - not even a contest.

I've had many a problem with hotsync/etc. and never a problem with ActiveSync - maybe you are have the opposite experience; fine, I won't begrudge you your opinion.

And at any rate, the update makes the point pretty much moot.

[Ed Hansberry]

Yea the current announcement is to allow Treos to do direct sync with Exchange servers, but wouldn't you expect that users of Exchange would be using Outlook on the desktop and therefore be confused by not having a native way to sync their PDAs with Outlook when they are not mobile?Hotsync with Pocket Mirror on Palm CDs includes an Outlook conduit.

[huangzhinong]

Yea the current announcement is to allow Treos to do direct sync with Exchange servers, but wouldn't you expect that users of Exchange would be using Outlook on the desktop and therefore be confused by not having a native way to sync their PDAs with Outlook when they are not mobile?Hotsync with Pocket Mirror on Palm CDs includes an Outlook conduit.

That one definitly sucks in treo 900, although I don't know in other devices.

[Sven Johannsen]

Yea the current announcement is to allow Treos to do direct sync with Exchange servers, but wouldn't you expect that users of Exchange would be using Outlook on the desktop and therefore be confused by not having a native way to sync their PDAs with Outlook when they are not mobile?Hotsync with Pocket Mirror on Palm CDs includes an Outlook conduit.

Is that still included (Chapura Pocket Mirror)? I keep reading things that make it sound like it's not. It's still a third party app. It would be like us having to have Intellisync to sync with Outlook, while the Exchange sync was built in.

[gorkon280]

Please note this is not about the desktop software ActiveSync. It is the Exchange 2003 server component.

Oh is that any better then the desktop component? Somehow, I don't think so. BTW, there's also a handheld component and it's not great either. :bad-words:

[Ed Hansberry]

Please note this is not about the desktop software ActiveSync. It is the Exchange 2003 server component.

Oh is that any better then the desktop component? Somehow, I don't think so.
You have experience with the Exchange Server 2003 and the Exchange ActiveSync feature?

[Mike Dimmick]

Exchange ActiveSync was formerly Mobile Information Server (http://www.microsoft.com/exchange/evaluation/previous/miserver/). Microsoft presumably renamed it because the configuration screens for it appear in ActiveSync's options property sheets on the device (Pocket PC 2002 and 2003), and are mutually exclusive with the Outlook sync options (e.g. if you sync your inbox through EAS, you can't also sync with Outlook).

Despite that, it shares no technology with ActiveSync. In fact, it's a web application. The main sticking point with deploying EAS, at least for our small ISV/VAR, is that you need a certificate on your server, which isn't cheap. You either have to set up your own certification authority and deploy the root certificate to your handhelds or you need to pay for a certificate from an authority whose own certificate is in the device's ROM.

EAS did work well in our testing with Orange's SPV M1000 ('Typhoon'), but the company decided to go with SonyEricsson P9xx instead. The SPV was just a bit too bulky, and the keyboard on the P910 considered easier to use than the soft keyboard.

The Exchange team know how to do sync. They've had enough practice syncing with Outlook in offline store mode.

[Ed Hansberry]

Exchange ActiveSync was formerly Mobile Information Server (http://www.microsoft.com/exchange/evaluation/previous/miserver/). Microsoft presumably renamed it because the configuration screens for it appear in ActiveSync's options property sheets on the device (Pocket PC 2002 and 2003), and are mutually exclusive with the Outlook sync options (e.g. if you sync your inbox through EAS, you can't also sync with Outlook).
It is the old MIS product but fully integrated into Exchange. Much of the renaming was because having 2 products named "server" in one product would be confusing. The name "ActiveSync" has some name recognition and implies Pocket PCs and mobile devices.The Exchange team know how to do sync. They've had enough practice syncing with Outlook in offline store mode.
True, but they didn't do this. This is the Mobile Devices team's work, the same team that did MIS in the first place. IIRC, the Exchange team tapped on them to get this into Exchange rather than having the Exchange team roll their own product.

That said, it carries none of the baggage of desktop ActiveSync. The problem iwth AS is it is built on the old Windows CE Services product which was 100% serial and required RAS to be installed. If you installed CE services on NT4, you had to 1) Uninstall RAS, 2) Install CE Services, 3) Install RAS and 4) reapply the latest service pack and then reboot. Nasty. Then they wrapped all of that up in a prettier ActiveSync UI and shoehorned USB in there somewhere and Voila! A chaotic mess that is ActiveSync 3.x. My USB syncs have totally quit working. I can sync one time between reboots via USB. I do the rest via IR and the LAN. :evil: I'll get around to reformatting my hard drive one of these days to hopefully clean it up. :roll: