• Ease of use: EasySync's integration with the HotSync Manager makes it very easy to use. There is no separate program to run or weird configuration documents to figure out. You simply change the HotSync options just like you would if you were synchronizing with the Palm Desktop software.

• Flexibility: EasySync is modular in design, meaning that if you don't want to synchronize all of your information with Notes, you can get a separate conduit to synchronize specific information with another program. Of course, if it's something other than the Palm Desktop for which you already have the conduits, you're going to have to fork out some more money.

Do you like to do it slow, baby?
Another interesting feature of EasySync deserves its own paragraph. It's the Slow Sync feature, and you can see a description of it below that I've taken straight from the help files:

Check the Slow Sync box if you want EasySync to examine each record on both the handheld and Notes as it performs synchronization. This is useful if some documents are not being synchronized, but no other problem is apparent. In normal use, you should not need to select this option.

Basically, this is just one of those features that makes you feel warm and fuzzy (debugging tools are always appreciated). It also brings up the point that EasySync does not really set speed records for synchronization in normal mode, so if you use the Slow Sync option you might want to schedule a coffee or bathroom break at the same time.

Compatibility caveats
As with any product dealing with multiple versions, there are some things to be watch out for. Here are a few:

• Don't use EasySync on a machine running multiple versions of Notes. I discovered this after having installed and configured it on a system with both Notes 4.6 and 5.0 running. I now have it working on this system, but not until after I renamed my Notes R5 NOTES.INI file and re-added an entry in my registry for Notes 4.0 (which I think the R5 install deleted). My recommendation, therefore, is the same as that I received from Lotus: do not run EasySync on a computer running multiple versions of Notes. This may be true for other conduits as well, so just be careful.

• EasySync 2.1 and R5 don't mix. Versions 2.1 and earlier of EasySync will not work with R5. The good news is that if you have version 2.1 or above you can upgrade to version 3.0a of EasySync for free. Contact Lotus for more information.

• Bleeding edge people need version 3.0: The other compatibility caveat is that if you have a Palm IIIx, Palm V, Palm VII, or IBM Workpad 3C, you must use EasySync 3.0a because EasySync 2.1 and earlier are not compatible with these devices and HotSync 3.01.

• Before you rush to switch, if you are going to use EasySync after having used another Notes/Domino synchronization product, or vice-versa, first synchronize with your old product first and please read the Read Me file for the new product thoroughly. You might have to set up synchronization to be unidirectional at first in order to avoid duplicates. Or it might suggest that you delete the information off of your Palm device entirely with a hard-reset and then synchronize so that all of the information from Notes synchronizes with your Palm organizer.