Multiple calendars - does it make sense - especially for syncs?

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poet-man
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Multiple calendars - does it make sense - especially for syncs?

Post by poet-man »

For a short period of time now, there's the feature of multiple calendars, and I still am not sure how to use it and why it is a "great" step ahead?

I have a local calendar, another one that has to be used to sync to EPIM cloud and maybe even another one for direct sync.
What WinEPIM presents in calendar module normally is a summary of all of them, unless you have not deactivated any.
Creating an event I always should be sure in which calendar I do it. Not being able to see an event on screen might have the reason I forgot to create it OR I didnot activate one of the calendars.
Syncing to Epimcloud I should be sure all my events are there in the EssentialPIM calendar of cloud section, otherwise it will not be synced and therefore will not arrive in AEPIM.

All this (at least for me) is rather confusing. Maybe some users reading here have some sort of a breakthrough kind of usage that will offer that "great" step I still donot see???

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Re: Multiple calendars - does it make sense - especially for syncs?

Post by Scott McCairns »

For what it’s worth I am completely in agreement with you. For me this is just an added level of complexity when frankly a simple/single calendar seems largely sufficient, particularly since events and tasks can be categorized.

The consequences re: synchronization problems that you laid are especially frustrating. I thought I had a workaround by moving the EPIM Cloud calendars to the top of the panel list, that way I could simply click on a date to add an event and it would by default be added to the “syncable” EPIM calendar. However, every time an auto sync occurs, or one switches between features (e.g. to check a Password), the default order of Local calendars at the top of the list is restored, potentially leading to lost/non-syncing entries if one is not forever vigilant.

Perhaps the developers had/have a technical reason for separating Local and EPIM calendars but it is not apparent. Indeed, I had no trouble syncing between computers via Dropbox. Why should it not be feasible to simply store and access our respective .epim database files on the EPIM Cloud servers, potentially eliminating the need for multiple calendars?
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Re: Multiple calendars - does it make sense - especially for syncs?

Post by firstoftwins »

Scott McCairns wrote: Thu Aug 18, 2022 7:42 am Why should it not be feasible to simply store and access our respective .epim database files on the EPIM Cloud servers, potentially eliminating the need for multiple calendars?
A good point that’s been made many times before. Everything about EPIM has become user-unfriendly, from its usability, trustworthiness, its UI and from the relationship between its customers to the administrators on these forums and the developers. The program is buggy and getting buggier, so much so that it would be unreliable to store so much as your grandmother’s birthday details on it and depend on the app to hold on to it. As for the admin, well, you can’t even get your passcode off them for the AEPIM arm, even if you can provide proof by way of program error codes that you do in fact own it. If you haven’t got the purchase I.D. number which came with it 14 years ago, I was told last week that there was a bug in the program (you don’t say) and their nonsense rely to my efforts to get my passcode was, “Are abslutely sure that yo can't wait for a week until we trelease a fix? If yes, then forwar us your Androd version purchase details, please.” That’s just a lazy response from someone who doesn’t care, not a response from someone I can put my trust in to hold precious and valuable information.

After nearly 15 years hoping the developers would iron out the small bugs and get this program right they’ve now borked it to such an extent that it looks and behaves like a broken toy. I haven’t bothered them for my passcode because I certainly won’t be using this app again.
Last edited by firstoftwins on Thu Aug 18, 2022 8:22 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Multiple calendars - does it make sense - especially for syncs?

Post by admin »

Synchronization with EPIM Cloud allows users to quickly sync changes only, while synchronizing whole database files as suggested above would take an enormous amount of time especially for big databases.
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Re: Multiple calendars - does it make sense - especially for syncs?

Post by Scott McCairns »

admin wrote: Thu Aug 18, 2022 8:20 am Synchronization with EPIM Cloud allows users to quickly sync changes only, while synchronizing whole database files as suggested above would take an enormous amount of time especially for big databases.
How does this follow? My past experience using Dropbox to access my .epim database file was basically seamless, typically taking only a few seconds to either download or upload the file. Essentially the same database, now “converted” to my EssentialPIM Calendar under EPIM Cloud typically takes several minutes to synchronize, even with a rapid internet connection…and that’s even assuming that I’m not timed-out by some sort of gateway error.
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Re: Multiple calendars - does it make sense - especially for syncs?

Post by admin »

What's the size of your database? Also, Dropbox sync is performed only when you open/close EPIM, not during the process.
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Re: Multiple calendars - does it make sense - especially for syncs?

Post by Scott McCairns »

admin wrote: Thu Aug 18, 2022 11:27 am What's the size of your database? Also, Dropbox sync is performed only when you open/close EPIM, not during the process.
Dropbox file is about 6Mb.

But as I stated in the post, this same database was essentially ported over to my Cloud calendar. So rather odd that any synchronization attempt, particularly ones when closing my Calendar app when very few changes have been made, will take up to 5minutes to complete.
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Re: Multiple calendars - does it make sense - especially for syncs?

Post by admin »

Imagine how much time it would take if you DB was say 6 GB instead of 6 MB. And there are many users whose DBs are even bigger.

Increased sync time with EPIM Cloud is due to the increased load on the servers. We're working on that.
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Re: Multiple calendars - does it make sense - especially for syncs?

Post by firstoftwins »

admin wrote: Thu Aug 18, 2022 11:49 am We're working on that.
Yes, I'm sure you're having to work on a great deal. But okay, that aside, I can accept the reasons behind why the database shouldn’t be held on the cloud to be accessed by various devices. I keep a 5g Truecrypt database on the cloud for safe-keeping and it does take a while to upload after I’ve finished with it. But this takes nothing away from the fact that EPIM has more bugs in it than a tramp’s vest. And these bugs aren’t just trifling little annoyances anymore, like data displays on various modules or problems with settings. These problems are now costing users valuable data that can never be retrived, just by syncing one-way from WinEPIM to AEPIM, and there’s not so much as even a hint that these huge flaws in general database-keeping will ever be fixed. Where’s the testing behind these upgrades before they’re rolled out to your trusting customers? Do you even care about the amount of valuable and precious data I’ve accumulated and now lost after entrusting it to you and your testers to look after it?
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Re: Multiple calendars - does it make sense - especially for syncs?

Post by admin »

It's nearly impossible to loose any data (due to backups and due to the fact that all the items which are removed during sync always end up in trash and can easily be restored from there). If that happened to you, please elaborate more about the case providing us with as much details as possible so that we could understand and fix the cause of the problem.
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Re: Multiple calendars - does it make sense - especially for syncs?

Post by firstoftwins »

admin wrote: Thu Aug 18, 2022 3:25 pm It's nearly impossible to loose any data (due to backups ...
No, this is nonsense. As per your help page, only 3 backups are made at 24-hour intervals, and the first backup in that period is replaced by the last. So no, it’s not impossible to lose data. That lost data may very well have been lost at the beginning of the week unnoticed. If you’re going to add insult to injury by making these claims about the integrity of your database management, do your homework first to ensure it doesn’t ruin your efforts by referring to your own help page. https://bit.ly/3pvpis2

In a simple relational database design such as the one EPIM uses where one table record relates to another record in another table, there should be no loss of data during a basic one-way exchange. Your database design is flawed, and you shouldn’t try to blame the users of your design by telling them their data is safe from the few backups made by that design, especially when those backups are so few and close together by default.
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Re: Multiple calendars - does it make sense - especially for syncs?

Post by admin »

You can always increase the number of backup copies to keep. Same applies to backup intervals, as well. Although, I somehow think the point of your post isn't to get a support here since your answer didn't contain any useful info about the problem you mentioned.

So, firstoftwins, this is your first and last warning, your current attitude will not be tolerated and off topic will simply be removed.
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Re: Multiple calendars - does it make sense - especially for syncs?

Post by firstoftwins »

So, instead of accepting responsibility for the loss of your user's data you're blaming the user for that loss instead and are now threatening to silence me, even though the point of my posts is to get support and they do contain a wealth of information specifically about the problems your App have caused. Not a good look, admin, but cancel me if your sorry situation demands it. I don't use your buggy little toy anymore anyway. Cheerio.
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Re: Multiple calendars - does it make sense - especially for syncs?

Post by poet-man »

@FOT
To pick at others if they donot agree to what you say is senseless. As you call into the forest, it echoes back.
EOT
Everything I mention comes out of my experience. I'm not an expert. Feel free to try anything I suggest ... but always at your own risk.
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Re: Multiple calendars - does it make sense - especially for syncs?

Post by VictorParkerPIM »

Thanks Admin for the great job you do.
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