10.1 The iSync Concept

iSync can synchronize your address book and calendar with your iPod, Palm-based organizers, Bluetooth-enabled cellphones, and even other Macs (if you have a .Mac account). There's only one prerequisite: Your address book and calendar information must already be in Apple's own address book and calendar programs, Address Book and iCal. (See the box on page 209.)

For a quick visual reference, the main iSync window lays out all the devices you've opted to synchronize together, as shown in Figure 10-1.

Figure 10-1. Top: The iSync control panel lines up all your devices and synchronizes them with a click of the Sync Now button. Bottom: Unlike a lot of rude software, iSync can warn you of its intent to change your computer. iSync tells you when it's about to make changes and gives you the chance to call the whole thing off if you have a change of heart.

If you don't have it already, you can download a copy of the free iSync program from Apple's Web site at http://www.apple.com/isync.

NOTE

Bluetooth (named for a tenth-century Danish king, not some sort of dental condition) is a shortrange wireless technology designed to help you rid your life of cables. Gadgets like computers, cellphones, handheld organizers, and printers wired with Bluetooth capability can communicate with each other from up to 30 feet away. To use a Bluetooth phone with your Mac and synchronize any of its information with your other devices, you need a Bluetooth adapter for the Mac. Most Bluetooth adapters plug into the Mac's USB port and sell for around $50. And, of course, certain models have Bluetooth built right in (as do the latest laptops).