Category Archives: BlackBerry Applications

Use Google Mobile App, Google Sync, and Google Apps(Gmail) to backup your BlackBerry Contacts and Calendar

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In April 2009, I purchased my very first smartphone, a BlackBerry Curve 8330.  Even though I had been a techie for many years now, this decision brought me to the next level.  The BlackBerry became my new laptop on short trips, using it for navigation, local search, emails, instant messaging, social networking, news, and even as a portable entertainment center for music and movies.

I instantly could see I would rely heavily on this device, and therefore wanted to maximize its usage in every regard but especially in staying connected with people.  Contact information and calendar management soon became a big deal to me.  I could be organized and motivated like never before.

The first thing I did was reach about to a bunch of people I knew had used BlackBerries and inquired about their favorite applications, and where they went to research for further information.  While I had received a great amount of feedback from people, their was one commonality I found in the responses from every techie that I had asked. Download the Google Mobile App, Gmail, Google Maps, and Google Sync.

This was hands-down the best recommendation I had received. The Google Mobile App was simply a bundle of applications similar to how the Google Pack is offered on computers. Within that application, installing Google Maps and Gmail was as simple as could be. The key element to the whole equation was the Google Sync application. By using that application, one can sync all their contacts from Gmail on the computer wireless over-the-air directly to their BlackBerry.  The same functionality exists with the Google Calendar application where you can sync it to your BlackBerry native Calendar over-the-air. One can also sync multiple calendars using this functionality.

Now, the central place for my contact management on my BlackBerry would be my computer which is way easier for me to enter information in.  I was able to export contacts from my other email account address books, and import them into Gmail.  I was able to cleanup and organize the contact cards a lot better on the computer. Ultimately, I could now choose to delete my BlackBerry Contacts and Calendar databases at any time, and I would be able to sync it back  using Google Sync.

This comes in very handy when doing upgrades to your BlackBerry or if it crashes on you, it would have to be a bother to have to ask for hundreds of contact’s information again. With the ease of a computer to manage contacts, it now makes sense to add restaurants, place of interests, home addresses, work addresses, and other information most people don’t usually enter on their mobile phones.  By having this information, I can easily get directions to locations using Google Maps without having to type anything.  I can do local searches using a variety of applications.  I also can feel safe and secure knowing that my calendar and contacts will always reside safely on Gmail and Google Calendar, and can easily be restored to my BlackBerry without even hooking up a cord to a computer.

Integration Solutions for Social Networking

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Over the past few days, I have been testing out many different solutions for making status updates to various social networking sites whether on a BlackBerry, laptop, or desktop.

Overall, the most effective method in my opinion has been using an instant messenger client called Google Talk and sending an instant message status update to a service HelloTxt (im@hellotxt.com). Using this method, one can simultaneously update your status messages on Facebook, MySpace, and Twitter. Regardless of whether you are using  a computer or blackberry, one can certainly go to the website hellotxt.com and update your status through there if you prefer that over instant messaging. For me, I like the google talk option because it is quicker on the blackberry and simple enough to use on a computer. Hellotxt also can make updates to additional sites such as Flickr for photos and Delicious for link-sharing. One can also email updates to Hellotxt, however, the problem I ran into there is that I use an email signature that I don’t want going into every status update. Some people may desire that for promotional purposes.

There were other services such as Ping.fm that accomplish this task as well, however, they seemed to have a significant lag time when updating your twitter status. Still, not a bad option, if needed.

If you take MySpace and Blackberry usage out of the equation, there are other options equally as good if not better. The first thought that comes to mind is using Tweetdeck. Tweetdeck is an Adobe Air application for use on computers, not blackberry. Adobe AIR is a little-known application bundled with the latest version of Adobe Reader 9. They have an application gallery available with Adobe AIR which has some great applications. I have tested a few so far…Accuweather by Stratus, DeskTube, eBay Desktop, MePing, Ping on AIR, Tweetdeck, Thwirl, and Seesmic Desktop to name a few of them. Out of all of these, I think Tweetdeck is the greatest application. With TweetDeck, it is simple to update your facebook and twitter statuses, as well as view all your friends status updates on both networks. The interface is sweet and it is definitely cool to be able to monitor both networks in one application.

One other option that has great potential is Digsby. Digsby is an all-in-one connector meaning you can get all your instant messenger clients into one application, as well as connecting the application to Facebook, Twitter, and MySpace. This could be a great application with all that functionality in one program, the major drawback is the interface is pretty low-tech. Some people may really like that part of the application, and it is certainly a simple option for pulling all your social networking and instant messaging into one application. I definitely recommend giving it a try to see for yourself.

The questions remaining in the research:

When will this functionality be available for Facebook Profile Pages for Organizations, Businesses, Fan Pages, or groups?

Are there are any limitations to MySpace pages for Artists, Musicians, Comedians, etc. using the same functionality as individual profiles?

Will there be the ability to configure more than one account twitter/facebook/myspace on these solutions?

Is there a hellotxt application available through Adobe AIR?