I recently got a netbook (the Acer Aspire One), and really like it. However, along with this new toy ⁄ tool, comes a new set of problems. How do I keep it up to date? How can I make sure my Evernotes, contacts, calendar and work orders stay in synch? Evernotes has its own synchronization process and it works great. I simply have my desktop synch automatically and my netbook synch manually. I start Evernotes, and then tell it to Synchronize. But what about the other stuff?
I investigated a number of options, and chose Syncplicity. It is very simple and does exactly what I wanted. Syncplicity monitors my Time and Chaos folder (where my contacts and calendar and to do lists are) and my Treepad folder (where my work orders and notes are) and uploads all changes to my online account. Then when I open my netbook, Syncplicity checks and sees if there is anything new in my online account. If so, it updates my netbook. When I take notes in my netbook, it uploads those to the online account and then synchronizes with my desktop PC, so when I get back to the office all that information is there too.
Getting Started
I recommend that you make sure everything is perfect on your main computer and then empty your netbook or auxiliary computer of that data. Then synchronize everything (on the main computer) with nothing on the auxiliary machine. This way you avoid having some files copied back from your auxiliary computer to your main one.
Be careful
If you work on a file in your notebook (auxiliary computer), then you must remember not to shut it down immediately. Give Syncplicity a chance to synchronize with the cloud, it is quick, but not immediate. If you shut down before it synchronizes, then add more information to your main computer, it will create two files, the updated one from the desktop and the updated one from the Notebook. Each will be partially correct and you will have to work out the differences.
Syncplicity is not working off a network drive. You are not working on information in the cloud, you are working on information stored on your local machine. Then that synchronizes with the cloud account. It does not network your two computers but creates a data link between them. If you change both local files before synchronizing them, you will get two files.
Date: May 2009