No Cloud Sync for Me

I am still using Handspring Visor with Gnome Evolution. But now my Sony floppy disk camera kicked the bucket (do I sound old with these “antiques”? Seems like it was just yesterday…). Rather than spend the money on a new camera (with which I seldom take photos), I might as well bite the bullet, toss that money into a smartphone with built-in camera. Sooner or later my Visor is going to go the same way as my Sony. I would rather not be in a pinch when that happens. And my phone too is getting old.

Sooo…I’ve been looking at Android, WebOS and Meego. Android is nice, but is a big target to malware. WebOS is available but have to install a 3rd party app to get back the To-Do and Memo tools. Meego isn’t quite ready yet.

But the biggest problem seems to be getting something that will work with Gnome Evolution without having to go to the “cloud” (read Google or some other service). I want to keep everything in my own secure space, thank you very much. I back everything up on media and store across town (if you can call LA a town) in a safe deposit box, just in case.

I have data going back to my XT and later my PalmPilot (now I am giving away my age :-). It is the most important stuff I would get PO’d about if it ever got lost or corrupted (or hacked, I keep my important info on my offline network, backup to it every 30 days and delete it from the online system. Yes, I am talking about physical separation here, not a firewall, except when backing up of course. But during the backup the internet is down. Do I sound paranoid?).

Any suggestions that can get me through this electronic jungle…?

Thanks.

In a word: Blackberry. Sorry, I love Linux but I have to stay loyal to the original and most corporate friendly smartphone.

Yes, looks like Blackberry may be the best way to go. I got a Motorola Bravo upgrade with data plan at AT&T to experiment. But it is all I hoped it was not going to be. Certainly no replacement for PalmOS.

The Barry Project may be my best hope. At least, I can sync over USB and not be forced into the cloud.

We'll see if they still charge me for the "restocking" fee.

I would go with Android. Buy apps through the marketplace or Amazon App store and you will be fine. One thing I love about Android is how using apps you can customize it very easy which is really nice.