Database Develop

[Project] Android MS Exchange Client

Hi,
I am thinking of creating an Android Exchange client as I am yet to find a 100% suitable one for my G1.
I currently use TouchDown which works acceptably, but I dont think the interface is particularly in keeping with the standard Android theme. It also seems to duplicate many aspects of the G1 features (calander etc) - why not integrate?
So I was wondering if anyone had some experience of programming (I do, before someone asks) in particular with Exchange history if possible, as I could do with some help and I am all for helping the Android community.
I haven't decided yet if the app will be FOSS or closed source, but if I were to charge it would be around the 1GBP mark - I'm not trying to pay the mortgage off, but something to reimburse the time spent is always nice. Maybe a lite version for free etc.
PM me if you are interested in helping out, I will probably setup a Google Code project or something.
Rich

I am not a programmer (sorry), but I just want to say there is definitely a market for good Exchange apps. The company I work for switched to G1s recently and we bought a few Touchdown licenses just for ActiveSync. I personally hate the TouchDown interface (sorry devs, you're nice and all but I am a fan of design as well as function!). If something was created that could do TouchDown's job (or better) and fit in with Android better, you'd have some people interested for sure.

rich,
I may be interested in working on this. I just got my ADP1, and have barely started playing with it. I'm still running touchdown under the free trial period.

Exchange sync is built into Android 2.0. I haven't played with a droid, so I don't know if it's implemented more like you're talking about or not, but that's certainly worth looking into before developing from scratch.

I know that the 2.0 build should support it, however most Exchange interfaces dont work on our setup
We use a different port for the SSL connection and this seems to break most Exchange implementations (excluding TouchDown). Is the Exchange support in the AOSP Email app?? Or is it like the HTC version?

I would find this very useful. As already said we have many G1 and Magic out there using Work Email and Touchdown....

My problem with a couple of the exchange syncs is they don't include Calendars and Contacts. What good is That? When they say Work Email they mean just that, email.

richbayliss said:
Hi,
I am thinking of creating an Android Exchange client as I am yet to find a 100% suitable one for my G1.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hope you have the cash to buy an Activesync Exchange license. That is unless you're planning on using OWA , in which case I doubt folks would pay for an Exchange client without push.

richbayliss said:
I know that the 2.0 build should support it, however most Exchange interfaces dont work on our setup
We use a different port for the SSL connection and this seems to break most Exchange implementations (excluding TouchDown). Is the Exchange support in the AOSP Email app?? Or is it like the HTC version?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have tried the xROM based on the 2.0 AOSP and the mail client supports MS Exchange contacts and calender included.

I would certainly be very interested, especially if you managed to support exchange categories. Touchdown on my HTC Hero (v1.5) certainly doesnt, and neither does the built in HTC activesync program.
Ideally I want to have a month view calendar with the different calendar events shown on a daily timeline with a colour I can choose for each calendar category.
As far as I can find, I dont think that any of the current android/exchange syncing options even support or mention exchange categories!!!

The 2.0 email app is fully configurable to support exchange, you can change ports and ssl settings. Works perfectly.

There are a few issues that I have with the exchange solutions for Android.
1. Touchdown works, but I hate that it does not integrate into the existing framework. I know it can be done, look at SenseUI from HTC. Almost perfect! Just runs like crap on MyTouch.
2. Lack of integration (touched on point 1, but needed to be said).
3. Lack of full features. Seriously, WHY is there NO WAY to tell it what times to sync and what times not too. I don't need to get EVERY email that is sent between 10pm and 5am and then have my phone sqwaking all night. This bugs me about GMail data sync, I have to MANUALLY shut it off... ugh... Touchdown does this, SenseUI does not...
Anyway, a working, full featured integrated application would be worth paying for. Talk about enterprise licensing... People would be all over that... trust me...
Thanks,

better email program??

I switched to this phone (HTC Hero) from the Palm Pre and while the Pre had its issues it had some pluses over this phone. One being the email program. I know yahoo sux and all but this is my primary email for business and for some reason this phone constantly gives a login error when trying to get mail from it. WHY?? Also there is no push email? And is there or will there be swipe delete available, ever? I am new here and searched for emails before making this thread and nothing related came back. Thanks for any info

The "Google Mail" program (the one with the red and white envelope as an icon) does IMAP-IDLE/Push Mail. The HTC "Mail" program (the one with the mailbox as an icon) does not.
K-9 or k9mail also does Push mail (IMAP-IDLE). You can find it in the market or at http://code.google.com/p/k9mail/ . It also shows the error messages if something goes wrong, so you have a chance to correct your settings.

thanks, I appreciate the help. I don't see the option for push email in the google envelope, but I will try the other

Google doesn't call it push, its in settings>data synchronization>google>auto sync
I've tried for the last week to get the HTC mail apps to get mail pushed but resigned myself to just using the gmail app, which works great for push mail.

Google Mail seems to be most reliable for quick mail delivery, if you're stuck with a Yahoo account for business reasons you can set Yahoo Mail to auto-forward to Google Mail and then your Hero can download it from there. You can even set your reply-to address to Yahoo so it's transparent to the person emailing you.

that, or open a gmail account and have it pull stuff from yahoo, bypass yahoo all together and have either gmail activesync or htc mail checking in intervals

He shouldn't have to do this. The phone should come with a good built in mail client... The iPhone has a good mail client that can use Push GMAIL, Mobile Me etc... as well as Exchange support and iMap and Pop3 support... If HTC is going to ship phones with their own software on a device that goes outside of what is provided through the OS and Google then they should ensure the quality of that software.

itpromike said:
He shouldn't have to do this. The phone should come with a good built in mail client... The iPhone has a good mail client that can use Push GMAIL, Mobile Me etc... as well as Exchange support and iMap and Pop3 support... If HTC is going to ship phones with their own software on a device that goes outside of what is provided through the OS and Google then they should ensure the quality of that software.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What's wrong with K9 mail? Half the reason for having such an open platform is so that developers can create their own apps and so that there is a variety of choices for end users.
People keep comparing Android phones to the iPhone without understanding that they're VERY different platforms. One is highly customizable and extensible (Android) and the other is locked down to being the same worldwide (iPhone.)

Extensibility should never come at the price of reliability and quality. BTW there are other email Apps made for the iPhone that work very well. I was just pointing out that if you're going to bundle your software and sell your product at a premium it should be good software and not works some times under certain conditions and when the stars align just right. They are different platforms yes, but quality is quality regardless of open or closed (or perceived closed... you still have to root your phone to do a a alot of this customization you speak of which is no different than jailbreaking an iPhone if you want to be objective about it). You shouldn't have to rely on third party developers to make an app because your built in app isn't exceptional quality. If you package it with your product you should be stamping and standing by the quality of your product. Developers should add new features and apps that do things better than your existing app sure, but not because your software isn't up to snuff but because your product has already set a high standard and the developers can work hard to hit or even exceed that standard. If you have to cut some features to ensure that the features that are there are done REALLY REALLY well then so be it. Quality over quantity any day. This isn't a rail on Android as an OS as much as it is a rail on HTC for charging a premium for their phones because they package their own software with the phone that 'kinda works'. Why charge that premium and add your software to an already good phone OS if you're not going to make sure it works perfectly with industry standard features out of the box.

Google <-> Nuevasync <-> Touchdown calendar contact email sync

Is anyone else running this configuration?
Having come from a Nokia/Symbian background, I was disappointed to say the least with the standard Android/Google calendar inteface. Navigating around it from day to month to week is not intuitive, and the month view is next to useless unless all you want to know is "have I got something happening that day - oh yes, but I can't see what it is unless I actually click on the date".
I used to use Handy Calendar on Symbian, which I loved but they don't make an Android version for my Dream.
Anyway, I've recently downloaded Touchdown 30 day trial, and I'm using Nuevasync to act as an Exchange proxy between Touchdown and my GMail.
The free Nuevasync account allows syncing of calendar and contacts, but email & tasks are disabled unless I upgrade to the premium account for $25.
I just want to know if email and tasks will also work flawlessly with this setup?
It may be a moot point, since the Touchdown full app will also cost $19.99. so the whole set-up is a bit costly. Also I'm moving to a different device (HTC Desire) soon, so perhaps the HTC calendar will satisfy me - I hope so.
But in the meantime I'm really beginning to like Touchdown's calendar, and may stump up the $19.99 if I can't find anything as good.

Better Exchange email and calendar for Froyo?

So i love the captivate for phone calls, web, movies and other things, but when it comes to email and calendar it sort of sucks. Samsung just did a poor job. In email, deletes take forever (even with lag fix); read messages are hard to see because the transparency is whacked; calendar doesn't let me edit an event I created on the PC; no subfolders under inbox, etc.
I don't care about security - that is I don't need an APK with security removed or reduced, I just want better email.
Besides buying Touchdown do i have any options? K-9 doesn't do true push.
I was hoping we would see vanilla 2.2 ROM that used what Google was building in for Calendar and Exchange, but not yet. S
Suggestions? Anyone else as frustrated as me?

So everyone his happy with stock email and calendar, or no one uses Exchange?

alphadog00 said:
So everyone his happy with stock email and calendar, or no one uses Exchange?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
nope. i use touchdown

Pirateghost said:
nope. i use touchdown
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, but it still has some lag. I think i may be finally ready to throw in the towel on the Captivate. The form factor is great, the screen is great, and as a phone it is great; But even with the lagfix, it still takes time to open or manage anything with a decent database behind it. Samsung really made some dumb design choices.
I think i will give it one more week and see if I can stand Touchdown.

also interested in a better email. what choice do we have?

Go to the rom section, flash phoenix 4.5....live happily ever after.
It truly flies
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA App

electroau said:
Go to the rom section, flash phoenix 4.5....live happily ever after.
It truly flies
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
really?
your recommendation for better email and calendar is to flash a rom that has the same app as all the other roms?
sigh...

Android in general has a lousy email system. This isn't just a Samsung thing. The native email client just lacks so many of the essential features, especially for Corporate Active Sync accounts. I sure hope that Google makes some updates soon to this area on these phones. Touch down does the job but you're right, it's slow. As for K9, it does have true push technology. By configuring your account via IMAP, you can setup an IDLE connection which is Push. I have K9 set up with a couple other accounts and I receive notifications within seconds of mail hitting the server. However, K9 is full of features and if you're not familiar with it, it can take quite some time to get it set up just right for your account.
In regards to other ROMs with better email clients, I've flashed quite a few of them including Pheonix 4.5 and they're all pretty much the same. Currently I'm running Andromedia 1.1 (which is absolutely amazing), and the email client runs much better. But also, the whole phone is extremely fast. It's the only ROM that has actually put a WOW on my face in regards to performance. If you haven't tried that ROM I highly recommend it. As long as you do a clean flash from stock no bugs should be encountered. Everything just works and works fast!
Good luck!

I thought lag was the issue, sorry
Sent from my captivate using the flames of the phoenix

yeah man. if your phone lags, you're definitely behind the times or still running eclair. which is absolutely horrible. you need to go flash phoenix or firelfy. they have little to no lag at all and a quick as hell. i'm not sure what email you use but i use gmail and it's almost faster than i can push the buttons.

electroau said:
I thought lag was the issue, sorry
Sent from my captivate using the flames of the phoenix
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
task650 said:
yeah man. if your phone lags, you're definitely behind the times or still running eclair. which is absolutely horrible. you need to go flash phoenix or firelfy. they have little to no lag at all and a quick as hell. i'm not sure what email you use but i use gmail and it's almost faster than i can push the buttons.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
guys,
if you have not used touchdown or stock email client on an exchange server then you dont have any idea what is being talked about here....this has nothing to do with voodoo/ULF. these apps DO lag regardless of what rom you are on....i chalk it up to poor exchange support overall in android. honestly though, any of these options work better than my iphones ever did

I use the Paragon 5.1 ROM and the stock email in there to connect to Hotmail that has been set up as an Exchange Active Sync partner for mail, calendar, and contacts. I can update on phone or pc and it is really instantaneous. I enter something on my phone calendar and it shows up online within 10 seconds. Same goes for adding or editing new contacts in my phonebook.

Pirateghost said:
guys,
if you have not used touchdown or stock email client on an exchange server then you dont have any idea what is being talked about here....this has nothing to do with voodoo/ULF. these apps DO lag regardless of what rom you are on....i chalk it up to poor exchange support overall in android. honestly though, any of these options work better than my iphones ever did
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Seriously man? That's a bad statement. I'm not an iPhone fan but have used one in the past an can tell you that with email it blows Android away. You even get the ability to have notifications for sub-folders in active sync which is huge. However, even though email seems very basic on Android with exchange it does sync reliably for email, contacts and calendars. What specific features are you looking for?
Sent from my SGH-I897 using XDA App

greystealth said:
Seriously man? That's a bad statement. I'm not an iPhone fan but have used one in the past an can tell you that with email it blows Android away. You even get the ability to have notifications for sub-folders in active sync which is huge. However, even though email seems very basic on Android with exchange it does sync reliably for email, contacts and calendars. What specific features are you looking for?
Sent from my SGH-I897 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
notes, tasks, proper signature support, html emails. how about when you have an event in your calendar that has a phone number it would let you tap that number to call it? yes, there are hacky ways of getting these features, but nothing all wrapped up in one package...except for touchdown. the ONLY thing i dont really like about touchdown is the interface, it needs to be more customizable or blend better with the way the rest of the phone looks, instead of sticking out like a sore thumb.
i had iphones for nearly 3 years, and i currently have an ipad also, and the email was acceptable. no, android isnt caught up to that yet, but its getting there and i completely support the push forward. i would still pick my android over going back to the iphone. you do realize that it took nearly 2 years for the iphone to get proper exchange support right? since android is basically just now getting into supporting exchange (as of version 2.0? 2.1?), we should see some good stuff on the horizon in the near future.

Op, have you tried this?
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=821297&highlight=exchange
I have, and it has better folder support, and seems to work pretty well for ActiveSync. The folder navigation is much easier.
Use Root explorer, go into /system/app/ , rename Email.apk to Email.old and email.odex to emailodex.old, reboot, and your email app will be missing.
Just open this .apk with "my files" or any file manager, or Root explorer, and install.
See if that works better.
One place where the IPHone e-mail client works much nicer is when you have a lot of folders in your mailbox. Navigating is easier than the ultra-stupid "scroll like a madman left-and-right" method of the stock client.. I use ActiveSync as well, and I find the ActiveSync support, while improved in 2.2, can be very "kooky" for lack of a better term.
Hope that helps.
PirateGhost My friend moved the Touchdown client to the SD card and said he felt it was faster, but he's not lag-fixed or rooted, so I don't know what his frame of reference is. Might be something you could try.

I just installed an app called "enhanced email" Its much like the native email client but works much smoother. You can also move stuff between folders and it seemlessly integrates into all your other stuff. Check it I'm loving it so far.
Sent from my SGH-I897 using XDA App

greystealth said:
I just installed an app called "enhanced email" Its much like the native email client but works much smoother. You can also move stuff between folders and it seemlessly integrates into all your other stuff. Check it I'm loving it so far.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Looks like an interesting alternative to TouchDown.
Does it support peak/off peak sync scheduling? I looked through their market listing and their forum but I couldn't find an answer.

I just checked and it does not. It also doesn't do notes or tasks. I would say that Touch down is more robust. This app is very much like the default email app but better.
Sent from my SGH-I897 using XDA App

Pirateghost said:
guys,
if you have not used touchdown or stock email client on an exchange server then you dont have any idea what is being talked about here....this has nothing to do with voodoo/ULF. these apps DO lag regardless of what rom you are on....i chalk it up to poor exchange support overall in android. honestly though, any of these options work better than my iphones ever did
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I would like to correct you as I am using FireFly and I have ZERO lag with the stock email client. I use it for email, calendar, and contact sync. I'm very happy with it and it does everything I need. So, flashing a custom ROM will make your phone faster including email...

arabcamel said:
I would like to correct you as I am using FireFly and I have ZERO lag with the stock email client. I use it for email, calendar, and contact sync. I'm very happy with it and it does everything I need. So, flashing a custom ROM will make your phone faster including email...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
do you have any idea how a rom works or what it consists of?
what you have said makes NO sense whatsoever based on that context. i have been working on andromeda in its various stages since DECEMBER. i have tried EVERY ROM available to us on both of my captivates, i have tried EVERY form of lagfix/filesystem available, even your coveted firefly....and i can tell you that it doesnt matter what rom you are on...there is a lag. im not talking about the time it takes you to get the email from the exchange server to the phone, or variances between outlook and the phone, i am talking about opening FOLDERS and emails. there is a lag in the system.... if you think otherwise, you are lying to yourself to make it all feel better.
also, how about you open up an item on your calendar (conference call for example) and tap on the phone number to dial the line....
go on....
im waiting....
unless of course you are using the AOSP email app which allows that....in that case, set yourself up a signature in your settings and REPLY to an email....see if that signature is there.
how come we cant get all these exchange features in ONE app? touchdown doesnt include them all, but its the best available right now
sorry, but exchange support is MINIMAL at best in Android, so please keep the 'this rom cured aids!!' talk out of it. i never said a custom rom wouldnt make your phone faster, i just said it doesnt help EMAIL WITH EXCHANGE

[Q] Fully Featured and stable Exchange Email Client?

Can anyone suggest a fully featured exchange email client? The stock one is missing what i feel are two key features:
Search and auto correct
I like the UI and the full integration with stock contacts/calendar. Also, the stock one seems to run into security errors or other unknown reasons why it won't sync and i have to add and remove the account to get it working.
Touchdown seems slapped together for the tablets and wants me to confirm everything, which is very annoying. Also, it isn't integrated with the stock stuff.

I use Touchdown on my phone and my tablet. You only have to pay for it once and it loads on both. It works very well and has tons of features.

I know you said you did not like Touchdown, but that is what I use on my Xoom as well. I do not mind the layout and while quirky at times it still gets the job done better than the stock email client.

The two biggest problems I have with touchdown are that it isn't integrated with the rest of the android system (calendar/contacts) and that it constantly pops up little warning windows... why do I need a warning when I send an email? There are other little things about the layout that bother me, such as the email action buttons that are too small, the inability to delete an email right from the main screen, etc.
I guess what I really want is Outlook on my android

padanfain said:
The two biggest problems I have with touchdown are that it isn't integrated with the rest of the android system (calendar/contacts) and that it constantly pops up little warning windows... why do I need a warning when I send an email? There are other little things about the layout that bother me, such as the email action buttons that are too small, the inability to delete an email right from the main screen, etc.
I guess what I really want is Outlook on my android
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can disable the warning windows for sending/deleting emails. You can also delete emails from the main screen by long pressing on that email and hitting Delete, FYI.

Am also using TD on my Xoom. Don't love it (stock was prettier) but lack of Search on stock Xoom client is a killer. I'm probably going to return my Xoom this weekend and try to pickup a GT 10.1 in NYC next week...we'll see if it has a different client (doubt it but their KB is diff anyway).

+1 for touchdown, you do need to tweak a couple settings like mentioned above but the MAIN thing "I" like is that it allows me to keep my business email separate from my personal.

I have been using Touchdown since I first purchased my G1. When I bought the Xoom I was able to get the email app to work to synchorize my work emails and calendar. This was OK, but I soon went back to TD for two reasons:
1) Since I don't necessarily want to see work emails on days I don't work (4 day schedule), the ability to turn off push on a schedule is a real plus.
2) Keeping work email segregated from personal lets me keep my sanity.

After the 3.1 update I went back to TD. Nice to see the registration from when I used it on my G1 still worked. It's feature set is great. I really wish they would overhaul the UI...it's flat out fugly. If they made the app with some curb appeal, it could gain traction as a serious alternative.
Sent from my Xoom using XDA Premium App