Considering asking for a refund - syncing fail
 

I"m considering to ask Apple for a refund for OmniFOcus for the iPhone. (Through the link on the receipt)

I love the product but there are two things that make this application unusable for me at the moment:

1) Syncing through Mobile Me simply does not work. From the same network my Mac syncs in a few seconds. The iPhones always takes at least minutes to do the syncing.

2) I frequently get the message that the database is corrupt or out of sync and the two options that I am given then are not good enough: i have to choose to restore from either what was on Me.com or on the iPhone. Both are probably not in sync with the Mac so I am going to lose data not matter what.

OmniGroup, this product would seriously rule if you would implement a non WebDAV syncing solution on your own servers. I would pay a subscription fee for something that is fast and stable.

First step should be to contact the support ninjas via email to [email]omnifocus@omnigroup.com[/email] or call 1-800-315-OMNI during US West Coast business hours. Omni's got one of the best customer service departments around, and it doesn't cost you anything to get their help. They can help you get your database back in sync, and it shouldn't be necessary to lose any data.

Syncing through MobileMe most certainly does work (I do it dozens of times a week), although it can be slow at times. Part of the reason it is slower on the iPhone is that the processor on the iPhone is much slower, and there's a lot of work to be done. There's also a bug in the shipping version that causes some of that work to be done in an inefficient fashion, with a fix being tested internally at Omni right now.

[QUOTE=whpalmer4;69630]First step should be to contact the support ninjas via email to [email]omnifocus@omnigroup.com[/email] or call 1-800-315-OMNI during US West Coast business hours. Omni's got one of the best customer service departments around, and it doesn't cost you anything to get their help. They can help you get your database back in sync, and it shouldn't be necessary to lose any data.

Syncing through MobileMe most certainly does work (I do it dozens of times a week), although it can be slow at times. Part of the reason it is slower on the iPhone is that the processor on the iPhone is much slower, and there's a lot of work to be done. There's also a bug in the shipping version that causes some of that work to be done in an inefficient fashion, with a fix being tested internally at Omni right now.[/QUOTE]

This is all great but the result result is still a flakey app that needs to be fixed.

From what I read in this forum the problems with syncing are structural. It is the number one issue people complain about.

I really don't want to talk to support. On this forum I've read the things they recommend for these problems. I've tried them, they don't work.

The only thing I am interested in is that beta version which might fix the syncing issues.

S.

So, you want your problems fixed, but aren't willing to invest any effort. Got it. There's a difference between randomly trying things you've read on the forum and having someone who actually understands the problem directing your actions.

[QUOTE=whpalmer4;69677]So, you want your problems fixed, but aren't willing to invest any effort. Got it. There's a difference between randomly trying things you've read on the forum and having someone who actually understands the problem directing your actions.[/QUOTE]

The problem is that this software is broken and that it should not require me contact support at all.

So far i've deleted the copy on Mobile Me and the iPhone at least half a dozen times and did a completely clean sync from my Mac to Mobile Me and from Mobile Me to my Iphone. In other words, I've started with a clean database.

Had I followed your advice then I would have talked to support at least half a dozen times. That seems like a waste of time for both parties.

This problem still happens and to me that simply means that the syncing is extremely fragile and error prone.

One thing I am going to try is to use my own server (at Rackspace) with a WebDAV share on it. I doubt Mobile Me is the problem since I generally have excellent speed to them, but it might be worth a try.

S.

Or, you might have talked to them once and gotten the problem squared away. You're assuming that you did all the things that they would have had you do, and that the problem isn't perhaps related to your database that you used to regenerate the others. Not necessarily so. Notice the general lack of postings from people who talked to the support ninjas several times and are still getting that error message?

[QUOTE=st3fan;69711]So far i've deleted the copy on Mobile Me and the iPhone at least half a dozen times and did a completely clean sync from my Mac to Mobile Me and from Mobile Me to my Iphone. In other words, I've started with a clean database.
[/QUOTE]

First off, I'm sorry for the trouble. I'm sure this has been frustrating.

You've started a new database on the phone, but - and this is purely hypothetical, since I don't have hard information to go on - if the problem is triggered by the state of the database on your Mac, these steps won't prevent the problem from recurring.

(We've also seen cases where external factors - like Apple's separate iDisk sync code - cause problems. Nuking the database on the phone won't clear those up, but switching servers might.)

We'd love to help you fix this, but the forum tips cover the problems that we know are common; you seem to be encountering something else.

At this point, [EMAIL="omnifocus-iphone@omnigroup.com"]contacting us[/EMAIL] or asking for a refund seem to be the most time-efficient options, if switching servers didn't clear it up.

I setup a WebDAV server on a Rackspace host. Wow it is so much faster than Mobile Me. This totally makes the sync speed acceptable again. Will try this for a week or so and then report back.