February 2013 - David Overton's Blog

Version 2 of Sync for SkyDrive [9th March 2013] A new version of the application is now in the Windows Store. You can find details of it here . Thank-you for your interest in Sync for SkyDrive. Following all the feedback from version 1, I’ve finished version 2 and submitted to the Windows Store. When it is released I will update this with store location. The tool is not free, but it is at the lowest price point I can make for the Windows Store (from the UK). The purpose of the tool is very simple, to enable you to synchronise chosen folders from Microsoft SkyDrive to a Windows RT (or Windows 8) device. While I would like this to be something that happened automatically, the processing time required does not fit into the Microsoft allowed timings for a Windows RT/8 device for battery consumption, so this is still a “user initiated process”. While Windows 8 has a synchronisation tool for the desktop, Windows RT does not, so here is my offering in this space. How does it work The tool scans chosen folders on SkyDrive and the matching folders on your Windows RT device and draws up a list of differences. You can then choose which of these files to sync across. The first time this happens, if you have manually copied down files from SkyDrive, then you will need to “match” them as the time / date stamps for each file will be different. The tool matches the files and highlights the file with the latest date, so it is not too difficult. Once you have completed this, which is done only once, then a few clicks will always bring your local store and SkyDrive up to date. Warning This tool will be overwriting files in the process of it’s actions. While every attempt has been made to ensure that this is not damaging, no responsibility is taken if data is lost through the use of the tool. Having said that, no-one has reported data loss. If you think you are experiencing this, please contact me immediately! Discussion forums I have opened up 3 forums to enable discussions in a more structured way...

It has taken a while to get there, however this project is now complete. I’ve managed to write a tool that keeps my SkyDrive and my Windows RT slate in sync. I’m now going through the process to publish this in the Windows Store for all to use and enjoy. [updated 8th Feb 2013] I've received a lot of feedback about the colours, gradient fills, rounded corners etc. I am working on a minor update that will change the colours and then a major update that completely change the layout, work on a folder by folder basis. [updated 12th Feb 2013] To see what the next version will look like and the feature changes, please look at my change log post . [updated 25th Feb 2013] The next version has finally been submitted to Microsoft. Details can be found here . What does the tool do? The tool scans a chosen set of folders on your hard disk and compares these to a corresponding set on SkyDrive. It then notes any where the file date or size is different, or where they only exist on one system (either as an updated file on your local storage or SkyDrive). It then presents these in a list which you can either choose to Sync up. How long the sync takes depends on how much data you have and the speed of your network, however to boost performance the system kicks of several copies at once to maximise your bandwidth. As scanning SkyDrive is a slow process, a local two sync file will be placed on your local storage to speed up the sync and Simple SkyDrive Sync will use these to improve performance as best as it can. As the whole process will take some time, there is an option in Simple SkyDrive Sync to keep the screen active. This will stop your Windows 8 or Windows RT device from going to sleep or suspending the application. If the application is suspended, it will need to start the process again as the file information will be out of date. Privacy information Since I have no need of data about you, the system only communicated with SkyDrive from Microsoft and therefore I will collect no information from you. Should the...