[hennesseystealth]

I finally got my Z10 and have spent a couple of days working through the differences in how email is handled compared to my old 9550. Now it is time to add CompanionLink so I can sync my ACT! database for contacts and Outlook for calendar. However, there are now two choices from CompanionLink for the Z10.

DejaOffice is a completely stand alone program that has its own contacts, calendar, etc. databases.

DejaHub syncs directly to the native contacts, calendar, and remember apps.

My question is this. If I use DejaHub, can the native contact database handle the custom fields I have in my ACT! database (5000+ records with 20-ish fields per record). My 9550 and 9530 before that could handle it no problem. I would prefer to use the native apps so they all talk to each other (caller ID, etc.)

Thanks

[hennesseystealth]

I decided to take the plunge and just test it out. DejaHub is free and there is a 14 day trial on CompanionLink Express 5 for the PC. Unfortunately, even with tech support assistance, we could never get the product to perform even the simplest task. I created two profiles, one to do a one way sync of my ACT! database and the other was to do a one way sync of the calendar in Outlook 2007.

When I tell it to sync ACT!, it goes through the process and counts out all 5000+ records and then says the sync was complete. When I go to my Z10 contacts, nothing is there. So, I tried the calendar sync and even though the profile says to push Outlook data, the program does a "quick sync" of the ACT! data again.

I ran some logs for tech support this afternoon but didn't hear anything back. From the log location on the Z10 (Android folder), I assume this is an Android port that they didn't bother to do much testing on. I will let you know if I find out anything new. I really don't want to use DejaOffice and end up with another set of databases that duplicate what the Z10 already has.

[hennesseystealth]

Sent a second email and they still won't even acknowledge receipt...

[companionlink]

I rattled the cage here at CompanionLink to make sure you get a response in the next hour or sooner.

We are a little backed up this week due to recent Android and iOS 7 launches. Usually, we are able to respond within 24 hours.

[hennesseystealth]

I rattled the cage here at CompanionLink to make sure you get a response in the next hour or sooner.

We are a little backed up this week due to recent Android and iOS 7 launches. Usually, we are able to respond within 24 hours.

I received a call today from a VERY knowledgeable person. He has taken ownership of the problem and fixed the ACT! sync issue. The problem came down to some incorrect settings in DejaHub and CompanionLink Express 5 that I was given by the original tech support person. He is going to track that person down and work with them on some additional training. I will report back how the product works as I am hoping that the sync with Outlook 2007 calendar will be better than BB Link. When I sync the calendar with Link, my Z10 has the data but the alarms almost never go off. That makes the calendar and sync worthless.

[hennesseystealth]

OK, DejaHub does work. I was able to sync ACT! with the native contact database on the Z10 and Outlook 2007 with the native calendar. The original sync (5000+ records) took about 4 hours. The second sync included just updates to the contacts and a full two way sync with Outlook (7000+ entries) and that took about 30 minutes.

What I have discovered is:

1) The native contact database is a mere ghost of what was in BB OS5. The limited number of hard coded fields makes porting in data from a CRM database useless. This is going to force me to use DejaOffice so I have a real duplicate of my CRM database. I will test that and report back. The advantage of leaving the limited data in the native contact database is that it is what the Z10 uses for caller ID and other ID functions.

2) The sync with Outlook 2007 works in both directions. No duplicate entries. However, the calendar suffers from the same stupidity regardless of using Link or DejaHub. Entries that are pushed to the phone via sync almost never trigger the alarms. Yes, they show up as a notice (not in Hub) on the screen you get if you partially flick up when the phone display is sleeping. So, again, the native calendar is useless if you need it to chime at you as a reminder. If you manually enter data into the native calendar, it does set off the alarm...and any synced alarms it forgot. Again, I am going to test this with DejaOffice. I don't think there is any reason to use the native calendar if DejaOffice works. At least I can't think of any other functions in the Z10 that use data from the calendar.

more to come.

[hennesseystealth]

Here is my update for tonight. Referencing the above two items:

1) DejaContacts in DejaOffice allowed me to map the fields I wanted from my CRM database. It didn't include every last field but it did exactly what I needed, which is what BB OS5 used to do natively...

2) DejaCalendar in DejaOffice also did a nice job of syncing with Outlook 2007. While the native calendar won't give you much indication that an alarm went off, DejaCalendar did vibrate and then open DejaCalendar to the event's alarm page. The funny thing is the notifications settings on my Z10 say to use sound and the LED for reminder notifications and NOT to vibrate. My notifications are bass ackwards. I will be working with tech support to figure this last item out.

On a final note, I have been searching for a simple way to delete data from my Z10. Usually, I just want to blow away the data in my calendar and push data fresh from Outlook. DM used to allow that but Link won't. DejaHub is free and has a stand alone function to allow you to wipe device data selectively (contacts, calendar, memo, task). If you need to delete data, download DejaHub on BB World.

[companionlink]

Thanks for sharing this feedback. We're thrilled to see our software and apps made your life with Z10 a little more productive.

[hennesseystealth]

An update on the time it takes to sync. After doing the initial sync, the follow on sync's only take about 1-2 minutes as it uses the quick sync function which only deals with changes. Still working on getting the alarms to sound properly.

[niss63]

Thanks for an immensely helpful thread. I've just downloaded DejaOffice and DejaHub. Your thread has made this transition so much easier.

[hennesseystealth]

I want to point out a few oddities that still haven't been resolved with DejaCalendar. I cannot get an alarm to sound under any circumstances. Now, this was also an issue in the native calendar for synced events but would work for manually entered events. Tech support says they can't duplicate that issue. I am running 10.2.0.1443.

Also, if the phone is turned off, when you turn it on any alarms that triggered while the phone is off will not display unless you physically open DejaCalendar. This didn't happen with the native calendar in OS5 using DM sync so you need to understand this difference. The other thing that happens is any alarms that do trigger after you turn on the phone will not display unless you have gone into DejaCalendar and cleared out the alarms that happened when the phone was off.

Lastly, the user interface isn't consistent with BB10 designs. So, you will have to get used to the items that are on the top bar which are normally in the ...menu. I am still trying to decide if I am going to purchase CompanionLink Express 5. I really need the alarms to sound and would like to see a commitment that the program will be more than just an Android port. Then again, it may just be an issue with the leaked OS I am running. Time will tell.

[hennesseystealth]

Tech support solved my issue this morning. It was a simple setup mistake that I believe is due to a difference between the way the Android version works and the BB10 Android port, or at least where you find the settings in each. The settings inside DejaCalendar do not allow any adjustment for alarms. However, the main settings for the entire DejaOffice package do. It wasn't obvious to look there since the alarms deal with DejaCalendar. Apparently, that setting in the Android version is inside DejaCalendar. So, all is good and I will be buying CompanionLink Express 5 this morning.

[hennesseystealth]

Another update. After working fine for a couple of days, I got an SQLite error message from CompanionLink on my laptop about an hour after I did a sync. Since then, the alarms will not sound or vibrate at all. The events are synced correctly in DejaCalendar and I have synced several times to see if I can get things to work again but nothing has been successful.

[companionlink]

Give us a call and we'll look into that for you.

[hennesseystealth]

Give us a call and we'll look into that for you.

I sent logs and additional info to tech support 2 days ago. I guess they are working on it now.

[niss63]

I sent logs and additional info to tech support 2 days ago. I guess they are working on it now.

I'm thinking they are backed up - responses are 2 - 3 days in coming.

Posted via CB10

[companionlink]

I'm thinking they are backed up - responses are 2 - 3 days in coming.

Indeed, we are very busy this week!

One of our techs just called you (hennesseystealth) a few minutes ago but got your voicemail. They'll try again today. Or, PM me a better number to reach you at.

[hennesseystealth]

Indeed, we are very busy this week!

One of our techs just called you (hennesseystealth) a few minutes ago but got your voicemail. They'll try again today. Or, PM me a better number to reach you at.

Waited on hold for 20 minutes and then was told that the person who called me around noon today wasn't working today. I am at my normal number and also sent an email saying I would be here after 2pm PDT.

No call today either.

[saxxman]

Just found this thread and am liking the direction and input. Thanks guys!

I've been using CompanionLink, for a while, to sync Desktop Outlook 2007. Just upgraded to v.6. Buy this initial sync does take a while.

Subscribed...

[hennesseystealth]

Here is an update on my experiences with DejaOffice on my Z10.

1) If you want to get notifications, you MUST open DejaOffice after turning on the phone. For some reason, it will NOT send notifications unless it has been opened at least once after a phone shut down.

2) Notifications will only stay on screen with the dismiss button for 2-5 seconds, so if you can't get to your phone that fast to see what the notification was, you MUST have persistence turned on. Then, a minute later the notification will come back on and you can then see what it was and dismiss it.

I have run DejaOffice on 10.2.0.xxxx and 10.2.1.xxxx and get the same results. So, I have found the product to work acceptably but cannot rely on it as a wake up call. I have to use the phone's alarm function for that. All other notifications work acceptably. Tech support says they cannot replicate this action on their Z10. However, they do see what my phone sees as a result of providing them a log. No solutions as of this time.

[hennesseystealth]

After using DejaCalendar for a few more weeks, I find that it is just unusable. Today, I didn't get any reminders all day and then a whole list showed up this evening. So, I decided to try using DejaHub to sync the calendar data over to the native BB10 calendar. Unfortunately, DejaHub strips out all the reminder notices when doing the sync. So, all the calendar entries are there but they all say "no reminder." I guess I will have to go back to using BB Link to sync the native calendar with Outlook.

DejaContacts still has value for me since the native BB10 contact manager can't handle all my CRM data and custom fields. Disappointing that I have to use multiple apps to do contacts and calendar syncs.

[seven90]

Info in case helpful for someone
This program officecalendar.com is what I use in my business. The Android version has to be converted to .bar file or you can simply install the .apk if you are running 10.2.1 BB10 software. It will not connect to BB10 native calendar but works very well with a Android based calendar. (Officially they say BB10 not supported but it works very well, as BB10 phones will run Android as well) We use CalenGoo Calendar from BBWorld as well as Business Calendar from Google Play, it will sync Calendar, Tasks, Email Address's all of them or what ever you select between you Desktop Outlook calendar and your phone. All Notifications sound, and all changes sync two ways Desktop to phone and phone to desktop, runs and syncs in background on what ever schedule you setup. We run BB-Z10+Z30+Bolds+Torchs,Curves, Iphones, Samsung S4+Notes all on this system. Users can access co-workers calendars on their desktops or phones if they wish and if they are setup to do so, you can control who and what. Its quite easy to install, and they have good support. Economical alternative to MS Exchange. You install Integrated ToolBar to Outlook, a Server Portion either locally at your location or on their server and a snapshot of calendar is always updating back and forth Desktop to Phone, back and forth.

[hennesseystealth]

I think this is the final update on my configuration. Turns out that BB Link has issues with recurring events. Some show up when I sync to Outlook 2007 and some don't. So, I asked for help from CompanionLink on why my reminders aren't coming across when syncing from DejaCalendar to the native BB calendar. The answer was not obvious but it does work.

Turns out that DejaOffice is coded to disable reminders when you sync DejaCalendar to the native BB calendar IF you have alarms turned on in DejaOffice settings. This is to prevent double alarms for the same event. So, I wiped the BB calendar using DejaHub (nice feature that Link doesn't have), turned off alarms in DejaOffice, and then synced again. All my reminder notices are in BB calendar.

So, here is my configuration that works:

1) Use CompanionLink to sync ACT! and Outlook to DejaContacts and DejaCalendar respectively.
2) Make sure that DejaOffice alarms are turned off in settings.
3) Use DejaHub to sync DejaCalendar to the native BB calendar.

[wendoverwill]

Hi Hennessy! Don't know if you'll get this reply, but I wanted to ask/add something. It's been great to read your story as my situation is similar.

Like you, I have a large contact set in Goldmine that I flawlessly synced to BB7 via companionlink (using pro5 version).

I've been syncing BB10 via companion link using the "sync to outlook". Then in BB desktop I sync to that outlook set. My issue isn't calendar, it's with the contacts. I get duplicates on contact's phone numbers. In other words, not duplicate contacts, but each contact will show two or three instances of the "home" and "work" numbers. Not a killer, but very annoying. Have you seen this or know a way to solve? I've tried removing all accounts from my bb10 device and then resync but they're still there. Thanks!

[companionlink]

My issue isn't calendar, it's with the contacts. I get duplicates on contact's phone numbers. In other words, not duplicate contacts, but each contact will show two or three instances of the "home" and "work" numbers. Have you seen this or know a way to solve?

Please PM me with your email and phone number. Our GoldMine expert on our staff will contact you to try to resolve this. Duplicates are usually indicative of another problem with your setup. We'll try to find it.