personal info "in the cloud" is it only me that's uncomfortable?

**ShaggyKids** · 03-20-2011, 02:03 AM

This probably should go on the list of "should have thought about this first before proceeding" but it's really bugging me that it seems in order to use an Android phone, a lot of personal information seems to have to be stored by Google.

For example, I don't really want my personal calendar and tasks on an online calendar. I feel more comfortable with it *only* accessible by me on my own computer. But it seems in order to sync/backup my "life" (which is pretty much what my phone does for me to help me be organized & remember things) this is what I must do on an Android OS.

Am I totally misunderstanding this? Does it bother anyone else or is this just a "me" thing? If it bothers you, how are you getting around this?

**DroidXcon** · 03-20-2011, 02:20 AM

Originally Posted by debsdroid

This probably should go on the list of "should have thought about this first before proceeding" but it's really bugging me that it seems in order to use an Android phone, a lot of personal information seems to have to be stored by Google.

For example, I don't really want my personal calendar and tasks on an online calendar. I feel more comfortable with it *only* accessible by me on my own computer. But it seems in order to sync/backup my "life" (which is pretty much what my phone does for me to help me be organized & remember things) this is what I must do on an Android OS.

Am I totally misunderstanding this? Does it bother anyone else or is this just a "me" thing? If it bothers you, how are you getting around this?

You do have the option not to sync your calendars/mail/contacts
settings>accounts and sync>select the account you want to modify then uncheck what you do not want syncing

**ShaggyKids** · 03-20-2011, 02:30 AM

I would want to at least back it up though so that I could restore it if need be. Not sure what I'm going to do yet. I have to make a decision SOON because I need to get my calendar and tasks set on my phone. Right now I'm still carrying around my Blackberry for this!

**Smitty_82** · 03-20-2011, 02:32 AM

Just a thought, but if you are using Gmail calendar on you PC, the information is already "in the cloud". Your phone is just another way to access it.

**DroidXcon** · 03-20-2011, 02:40 AM

Originally Posted by Smitty_82

Just a thought, but if you are using Gmail calendar on you PC, the information is already "in the cloud". Your phone is just another way to access it.

I think the issue is , she wants a calander that will only sync when she plugs in her phone to a calander that is on her desktop which is not attached to any accounts.

correct me if im wrong...

because smitty is correct , if you are using any calendar associated with an email account its in the clouds anyway

**ShaggyKids** · 03-20-2011, 02:40 AM

Originally Posted by Smitty_82

Just a thought, but if you are using Gmail calendar on you PC, the information is already "in the cloud". Your phone is just another way to access it.

No, not used it. I am coming off a Blackberry that syncs with Outlook. I never used Outlook for anything except my calendar and tasks. My email program is Thunderbird. But as I understand it, I now can no longer sync with Outlook unless I go through the Google calendar and tasks somehow

**ShaggyKids** · 03-20-2011, 02:42 AM

Originally Posted by DroidXcon

I think the issue is , she wants a calander that will only sync when she plugs in her phone to a calander that is on her desktop which is not attached to any accounts.

You are absolutely correct.

I do not do my major email on my phone.

**DroidXcon** · 03-20-2011, 02:56 AM

Originally Posted by debsdroid

You are absolutely correct.

I do not do my major email on my phone.

let me think about this and look around for apps that will do this , ill let you know

the best way i can think of is if you were to root and use titanium backup, you could save all that stuff to your SD card but root is required for titanium to work

there is also my backup pro but again that backs up to a website server so that wont help.

ill keep an eye out unless someone else has some insight on the matter

**ShaggyKids** · 03-20-2011, 03:06 AM

That's so nice of you, thank you.

Right now I can't search out to many apps in the App Market. I'm on the 1400/15mb plan at VZW and my data usage very quickly jumped to being just a hair under my limit and I see that's only as of yesterday morning - it's not updated yet so now I'm scared to death! I went to my account to changeover to the unlimited plan but there is no option to backtrack this to Day 1 of this month's bill (March 4) so I have to call them to do this for me cuz otherwise I'm going to see a HUGE bill. So, I have to stay off my phone for online stuff until they open up the phone lines again in the morning.

**DroidXcon** · 03-20-2011, 03:07 AM

This seems promising says it will back up your data to the SD card
has a decent rating of 4 stars out of 625 users
ill keep looking for other answers though

**DroidXcon** · 03-20-2011, 03:08 AM

Originally Posted by debsdroid

That's so nice of you, thank you.

Right now I can't search out to many apps in the App Market. I'm on the 1400/15mb plan at VZW and my data usage very quickly jumped to being just a hair under my limit and I see that's only as of yesterday morning - it's not updated yet so now I'm scared to death! I went to my account to changeover to the unlimited plan but there is no option to backtrack this to Day 1 of this month's bill (March 4) so I have to call them to do this for me cuz otherwise I'm going to see a HUGE bill. So, I have to stay off my phone for online stuff until they open up the phone lines again in the morning.

you can use wifi if you have that set up at your house or piggy back off a neighbors wifi

**ShaggyKids** · 03-20-2011, 03:12 AM

I do have wi-fi so maybe I can make that work. I just found this one:

http://www.androidcentral.com/google...t-outlook-2010

But I have Outlook 2007 and this doesn't support 64bit operating systems and I have 64 bit Vista on my desktop and 64 bit Win7 on my laptop.

**DroidXcon** · 03-20-2011, 03:15 AM

Originally Posted by debsdroid

I do have wi-fi so maybe I can make that work. I just found this one:

http://www.androidcentral.com/google...t-outlook-2010

But I have Outlook 2007 and this doesn't support 64bit operating systems and I have 64 bit Vista on my desktop and 64 bit Win7 on my laptop.

regardless still defeats what you are trying to accomplish correct it still needs to sync to google then sync to your phone. so you have to go through google either way

**Guntherm** · 03-20-2011, 03:30 AM

Okay first you can use My Back up Pro, it give you the option to back up to thier servers or use your SD card. Plus you can schedule it and forget it. Highly recommend, doesn't require root.

When i switched from my Dinc, i used this to put the data on the Bolt. i.e so I didn't have to restart Angry Birds, it puts the saved data back.

As to outlook.. wouldn't HTC Sync work for this? Correct me if I am wrong, but it allows syncing between Bolt and Outlook..

**ShaggyKids** · 03-20-2011, 03:33 AM

I don't know because I haven't looked at HTC Sync, but I will now

**DroidXcon** · 03-20-2011, 03:36 AM

Originally Posted by Guntherm

Okay first you can use My Back up Pro, it give you the option to back up to thier servers or use your SD card. Plus you can schedule it and forget it. Highly recommend, doesn't require root.

When i switched from my Dinc, i used this to put the data on the Bolt. i.e so I didn't have to restart Angry Birds, it puts the saved data back.

As to outlook.. wouldn't HTC Sync work for this? Correct me if I am wrong, but it allows syncing between Bolt and Outlook..

thank you very much for jumping in on this , i wasnt aware it had the sd card feature

**Guntherm** · 03-20-2011, 03:40 AM

I know Tit back is the best of the best, but if you don't root, then My Backup is the best, you can select what you want to back up and what to restore, sms, call history, the list goes on. Great product.

I am only here to learn and to share what I can. Makes the world go around.. 1 year ago I was asking all these same questions.. Too many just say search, stop asking..

**ShaggyKids** · 03-20-2011, 03:57 AM

Well, I do try to search first in most cases but when you are new to the Android-lingo sometimes I just don't know what to search for or search on the wrong terms because I'm still in Blackberry Mode, LOL!

**Guntherm** · 03-20-2011, 04:24 AM

Your fine. We get these crotchy old users, and thats all they can say.. forgettign they once asked a slew of questions to when learning. To me no question not asked is the only stupid one.

**krazy** · 03-20-2011, 06:28 AM

Honestly, at this point Google knows so much about each one of us that you have to ask yourself if it really matters if they know you have a hair appointment next Thursday?

**Guntherm** · 03-20-2011, 06:54 AM

only if they would pay for that hair appointment. LOL

**ShaggyKids** · 03-20-2011, 07:16 AM

Originally Posted by krazy

Honestly, at this point Google knows so much about each one of us that you have to ask yourself if it really matters if they know you have a hair appointment next Thursday?

Krazy, I understand what you're saying and I've asked myself the same question many times. A hair appt or similar isn't a big deal and in all honesty I really do not have such important appts that pretty much anyone and everyone could know and it wouldn't matter one diddly - probably much less to them than me

because my life isn't all that exciting - in fact it's pretty darn boring

I have a hard time climbing out of my little corner of the world - I'm a real hermit, very private person and that's probably what makes me so leery about making this move. It amazes me that we are all warned severely to guard our social security numbers with our lives for example but yet many things we do we get asked for it. Heck, some states even use it for the person's driver's license number! How many people do we give our ss# to that could easily turn around and be using them to steal our identities and we all know that's a huge problem these days.

Just because Google knows so much about us doesn't mean we have to voluntarily feed it to them with a silver spoon, though. How do we know they're not harvesting our personal contacts and selling them to third parties to send us more junk mail or even more serious breaches of privacy for example? Are we just supposed to blindly believe them just because they may say they aren't? Just how much "Big Daddy is Watching" are we all supposed to just say is ok?

So, maybe I'm paranoid but on the other hand maybe I'm not.

**ianArgent** · 03-20-2011, 07:26 AM

Cehck out HTCSync for syncing with outlook.

**mmontel** · 03-20-2011, 07:49 AM

I have a gmail account set up to use this phone but I do not have any contacts or calendar entries. Before my first sync I unchecked sync for my google account. Then using HTC sync only synced with outlook and the only email account that I have active on my TB is my verizon.net. One of the reasons I got this phone was because I could sync directly with outlook and bypass google. I am also coming from BB and I may be old school but do not like any of my info in the cloud.

**RkyMtnHigh** · 03-20-2011, 08:01 AM

Originally Posted by debsdroid

No, not used it. I am coming off a Blackberry that syncs with Outlook. I never used Outlook for anything except my calendar and tasks. My email program is Thunderbird. But as I understand it, I now can no longer sync with Outlook unless I go through the Google calendar and tasks somehow

So Sync your Bolt with your Outlook Calendar. Google Calendar is just a neat way to access everything from anywhere.