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Dear MacWindows.com

Note: After getting slapped for the lack of basic research on this story, MacWindows corrected it. A bit of "oh shit, cows will actually walk out an open door?", but better than nothing. What should have been done PRIOR to posting was to actually look at the issue so that correct information was posted the first time. Scoblellian reliance on the "lazyweb" is not in fact a substitute for doing your own work.

Oh for fuck's sake, I'm still getting whined at about "correcting" my article. I don't know how I'm supposed to "correct" this, since, unlike MacWindows *original* post, this one was based on fact and some double-checking. However, here: After having it pointed out to them in no uncertain terms that they were wronger on almost every point they raised, MacWindows went back and did some actual research, instead of blindly relying on what a PR person told them, and discovered that their article was wrong. It took them two days, but hey, you can't expect research the first time out. Oh, and they deleted the bit about Microsoft dropping non-existent VBA support in Entourage. Note to MacWindows. That's it. I'm not doing another one of these. If you're still butthurt about it, instead of kvetching at me to make changes in what I wrote, (which was, again, CORRECT when I wrote it, unlike your original post, which was NOT CORRECT when you wrote it), maybe you should keep both versions pinned to a wall so that you can remind yourself to make sure about things BEFORE you say they are so, rather than "fixing it in post". I also note that you couldn't be arsed to maybe, even without specifically naming them, THANK the group of people who pointed out the myriad errors in the original, rather than letting you march blindly on. Oh wait, there are no errors. We have always been at war with...

While I know you were probably all a-twitter as you posted "Microsoft dropped direct BlackBerry syncing in Entourage 2008; no 3rd-party support", you perhaps should have stopped twittering, and perhaps done some research. If you had, you'd have realized one simple, basic problem here:

Microsoft has never supported BlackBerry synchronization with Entourage. Ever. The MacBU has only ever written one Entourage conduit, for Palm OS devices. That's it. No BlackBerry, no Windows Mobile. Just Palm. That has been dropped for Office 2008, but it's not like that was worthy of notice in this article. However, that's not the only thing wrong with this article:

VBA macros weren't the only feature Microsoft removed from Office 2008. BlackBerry owners upgrading to Entourage 2008 were disappointed to learn the Microsoft is no longer supporting direct syncing of Entourage with BlackBerry devices. Microsoft also dropped plug-in technology that enabled third party software to sync with Entourage.

Well, again, that's actually completely wrong. Okay, the VBA bit is right. Again, Microsoft has never provided support for BlackBerry synchronization with Entourage. Furthermore, the only "plug-in technology that the Mac BU ever supported for Entourage was one plugin, the aformentioned Palm HotSync conduit. That wasn't "plug-in technology", that was a single plugin. The only technology that allows third party software to sync with Entourage isn't Microsoft's, it's Apple's: Sync Services. Entourage 2008 supports Sync Services, and that's how third party software can sync with Entourage.

The rest of the article is a mishmash of crap, and I'm guessing, bad quoting:

Mark/Space, Inc., told us that they do not have plans to enable The Missing Sync for BlackBerry to support direct connections to Entourage 2008, as it does for Entourage 2004. A Mark/Space spokesperson described the change Microsoft made and its effect on syncing.

"Compatibility with Entourage 2004 is handled via a plug-in that Microsoft created, and that we include with our products. Microsoft has chosen not to develop a plug-in for Entourage 2008."

If they did that, then they were using the Hotsync Conduit, because, again, that's the only sync conduit Microsoft ever developed for the Mac. More stupidity:

Jeffery McDonald did some investigation and found that no software vendor, including Microsoft and Apple, are planning to provide direct BlackBerry syncing with Entourage 2008:

I spent the day on the phone with Apple, Microsoft, PocketMac, BlackBerry and Mark/Space (Missing Sync). Bottom line is OfficeMac 2008 Entourage will not sync with a Blackberry. There are no plans from Blackberry-PocketMac to make a patch or program to sync to Entourage 2008. Mark/Space currently does not have a program to sync it either...What I learned was if you want to use your Blackberry and Entourage use 2004 and do not upgrade to Office Mac 2008.

Nonsense. No, wait, it's not just nonsense, it's bullshit, and lazy reporting. For one, from what I can tell, based on Mark|Space's own web site, their Blackberry product uses Sync Services to talk to Entourage 2004. No really, from the feature list for The Missing Sync for BlackBerry, v1.0.3:

Microsoft Entourage 2004 synchronization
Just activate Sync Services syncing in Microsoft Entourage 2004, and The Missing Sync for BlackBerry will be able to synchronize contacts, events, tasks and notes with your BlackBerry handset.

See that "Just activate Sync Services..." part? That's not a Microsoft plugin, that's Apple's fucking synchronization framework. How fucking hard is it to check this shit out? If they had, I'd not have to write this, and I'd not have the look on my face that Melissa so perfectly captured in my logo. Like this tripe:

Another Marc/Space spokesperson said Entourage 2008 users must sync to Blackberries through Apple's software:

Office 2008 requires that you first sync via Apple's Sync Services. In Entourage, you should be able to do this from the Preferences menu.

Microsoft does not offer a special conduit/plugin to sync with Entourage [2008] directly, so our software will only be able to transfer data between your handheld and Sync Services.

Since Sync Services does not recognize Entourage categories, all of your data will be consolidated into a single category called "Entourage".

We do not currently have any plans to engineer a special plug-in for this.

Again, this is how it works in 2004, according to Mark|Space's own information. No really, here's another blurb, right from Mark|Space's own site:

Sync Services-savvy
Sync Services is the sync architecture in Mac OS X. Because The Missing Sync for BlackBerry interfaces directly with Sync Services, information from other Sync Services-savvy applications, such as Microsoft Entourage 2004, will sync back and forth with your BlackBerry. As more applications ship with Sync Services support, more information will sync with your BlackBerry.

If you want to know why I don't read MacWindows, nor have for years, it's because of this attitude. No one bothered to actually fucking look at the product info, available on the web, for free. No one bothered to do a single bit of background checking. But then, had they done so, they'd have lost the OMGMSFUCKEDMACUSERSINTHEASSAGAIN vibe.

Oh, and one final bit, (thanks to people on Twitter). This line?

Microsoft also dropped support of VBA macros in Entourage 2008, while adding support for the new file formats of Office 2007 for Windows.

But it doesn't matter, does it. After all, it's just the Mac BU, right? Why the fuck should you have to do research when you're about to hammer them again, it's just the Mac BU. It's like some fucking John Lennon song, except substitute "Mac BU" for "Woman" and insert "Mac" before "World"

Technorati Tags:
Mac OS X, Microsoft Entourage, Microsoft Office 2008, Sync Services, TEH STOOPUD, MacWindows: Just say No, Mark Space Software, The Mac Web: It's full of stupid stars

Categories: Other

Posted by John C. Welch at 18:26 | Permalink

Comments

Warning for Notes users: The commenting system uses HTML.
I know this will be scary for some of you, especially Notes fans. However, open standards, rah-rah.
If you want to use less-than or greater-than signs, or other similar charachters that HTML reserves,
you'll simply have to learn to do it the HTML way. Luckily, HTML is kind of popular, no matter what
your re-educators have told you, and you can easily find help on the intertubes.

Note: After getting slapped for the lack of basic research on this story, MacWindows corrected it. A bit of \"oh shit, cows will actually walk out an open door?\", but better than nothing. What should have been done PRIOR to posting was to actually look at the issue so that correct information was posted the first time. Scoblellian reliance on the \"lazyweb\" is not in fact a substitute for doing your own work.\n\nOh for fuck's sake, I'm still getting whined at about \"correcting\" my article. I don't know how I'm supposed to \"correct\" this, since, unlike MacWindows *original* post, this one was based on fact and some double-checking. However, here: After having it pointed out to them in no uncertain terms that they were wronger on almost every point they raised, MacWindows went back and did some actual research, instead of blindly relying on what a PR person told them, and discovered that their article was wrong. It took them two days, but hey, you can't expect research the first time out. Oh, and they deleted the bit about Microsoft dropping non-existent VBA support in Entourage. Note to MacWindows. That's it. I'm not doing another one of these. If you're still butthurt about it, instead of kvetching at me to make changes in what I wrote, (which was, again, CORRECT when I wrote it, unlike your original post, which was NOT CORRECT when you wrote it), maybe you should keep both versions pinned to a wall so that you can remind yourself to make sure about things BEFORE you say they are so, rather than \"fixing it in post\". I also note that you couldn't be arsed to maybe, even without specifically naming them, THANK the group of people who pointed out the myriad errors in the original, rather than letting you march blindly on. Oh wait, there are no errors. We have always been at war with...\n\nWhile I know you were probably all a-twitter as you posted \"Microsoft dropped direct BlackBerry syncing in Entourage 2008; no 3rd-party support\", you perhaps should have stopped twittering, and perhaps done some research. If you had, you'd have realized one simple, basic problem here:\n\nMicrosoft has never supported BlackBerry synchronization with Entourage. Ever. The MacBU has only ever written one Entourage conduit, for Palm OS devices. That's it. No BlackBerry, no Windows Mobile. Just Palm. That has been dropped for Office 2008, but it's not like that was worthy of notice in this article. However, that's not the only thing wrong with this article:

VBA macros weren't the only feature Microsoft removed from Office 2008. BlackBerry owners upgrading to Entourage 2008 were disappointed to learn the Microsoft is no longer supporting direct syncing of Entourage with BlackBerry devices. Microsoft also dropped plug-in technology that enabled third party software to sync with Entourage.

Well, again, that's actually completely wrong. Okay, the VBA bit is right. Again, Microsoft has never provided support for BlackBerry synchronization with Entourage. Furthermore, the only \"plug-in technology that the Mac BU ever supported for Entourage was one plugin, the aformentioned Palm HotSync conduit. That wasn't \"plug-in technology\", that was a single plugin. The only technology that allows third party software to sync with Entourage isn't Microsoft's, it's Apple's: Sync Services. Entourage 2008 supports Sync Services, and that's how third party software can sync with Entourage.\n\nThe rest of the article is a mishmash of crap, and I'm guessing, bad quoting:

Mark/Space, Inc., told us that they do not have plans to enable The Missing Sync for BlackBerry to support direct connections to Entourage 2008, as it does for Entourage 2004. A Mark/Space spokesperson described the change Microsoft made and its effect on syncing.\n\n\"Compatibility with Entourage 2004 is handled via a plug-in that Microsoft created, and that we include with our products. Microsoft has chosen not to develop a plug-in for Entourage 2008.\"

\n\nIf they did that, then they were using the Hotsync Conduit, because, again, that's the only sync conduit Microsoft ever developed for the Mac. More stupidity:

Jeffery McDonald did some investigation and found that no software vendor, including Microsoft and Apple, are planning to provide direct BlackBerry syncing with Entourage 2008:\n\nI spent the day on the phone with Apple, Microsoft, PocketMac, BlackBerry and Mark/Space (Missing Sync). Bottom line is OfficeMac 2008 Entourage will not sync with a Blackberry. There are no plans from Blackberry-PocketMac to make a patch or program to sync to Entourage 2008. Mark/Space currently does not have a program to sync it either...What I learned was if you want to use your Blackberry and Entourage use 2004 and do not upgrade to Office Mac 2008.

\n\nNonsense. No, wait, it's not just nonsense, it's bullshit, and lazy reporting. For one, from what I can tell, based on Mark|Space's own web site, their Blackberry product uses Sync Services to talk to Entourage 2004. No really, from the feature list for The Missing Sync for BlackBerry, v1.0.3:

Microsoft Entourage 2004 synchronization\nJust activate Sync Services syncing in Microsoft Entourage 2004, and The Missing Sync for BlackBerry will be able to synchronize contacts, events, tasks and notes with your BlackBerry handset.

See that \"Just activate Sync Services...\" part? That's not a Microsoft plugin, that's Apple's fucking synchronization framework. How fucking hard is it to check this shit out? If they had, I'd not have to write this, and I'd not have the look on my face that Melissa so perfectly captured in my logo. Like this tripe:

Another Marc/Space spokesperson said Entourage 2008 users must sync to Blackberries through Apple's software:\n\nOffice 2008 requires that you first sync via Apple's Sync Services. In Entourage, you should be able to do this from the Preferences menu.\n\nMicrosoft does not offer a special conduit/plugin to sync with Entourage [2008] directly, so our software will only be able to transfer data between your handheld and Sync Services.\n\nSince Sync Services does not recognize Entourage categories, all of your data will be consolidated into a single category called \"Entourage\".\n\nWe do not currently have any plans to engineer a special plug-in for this.

Again, this is how it works in 2004, according to Mark|Space's own information. No really, here's another blurb, right from Mark|Space's own site:

Sync Services-savvy\nSync Services is the sync architecture in Mac OS X. Because The Missing Sync for BlackBerry interfaces directly with Sync Services, information from other Sync Services-savvy applications, such as Microsoft Entourage 2004, will sync back and forth with your BlackBerry. As more applications ship with Sync Services support, more information will sync with your BlackBerry.

Microsoft also dropped support of VBA macros in Entourage 2008, while adding support for the new file formats of Office 2007 for Windows.

My mind actually boggles at the wrong-ness of how wrong that wrong sentence is. VBA??? In ENTOURAGE? This entire article is nothing but what you get when, instead of 10,000 monkeys on typewriters, you have one stoned gibbon with a charcoal stick.\n\nBut it doesn't matter, does it. After all, it's just the Mac BU, right? Why the fuck should you have to do research when you're about to hammer them again, it's just the Mac BU. It's like some fucking John Lennon song, except substitute \"Mac BU\" for \"Woman\" and insert \"Mac\" before \"World\"\n\n\n

Technorati Tags:\nMac OS X, Microsoft Entourage, Microsoft Office 2008, Sync Services, TEH STOOPUD, MacWindows: Just say No, Mark Space Software, The Mac Web: It's full of stupid stars\n