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Petition to Get Ximian Connector Ported to Mac OS X
babbage writes "There has been some talk recently on various mailing lists about getting a Mac OS X version of Ximian Connector extension to Evolution, which allows Evolution to interact with Microsoft Exchange 2000 servers much as Microsoft Outlook can. It is already possible to build and run Gnome and Evolution on Mac OS X, thanks largely to projects such as Fink. Ximian is aware of this interest, and has indicated that if enough users expressed a serious interest in buying the product -- the target number was 500 paying users -- they would be willing to produce a Mac OS X port of Connector. To that end, I've set up an petition to help gauge user interest."
Let me get this straight. You want people on Slashdot to admit to using Microsoft Exchange?
One note: the headline used isn't the one I was expecting. It's not that Ximian has ported Connector, but that I feel people would like to see the company offer a port in the future, and would be willing to pay for it if such a port were to become available. The way the headline is written makes it seem as if it's already happened, but that's not the case.
DO NOT LEAVE IT IS NOT REAL
From the Ximian Connector website:
Ximian(TM) Connector is a unique extension to the Ximian Evolution(TM) groupware suite that allows Linux and UNIX users to manage personal information and collaborate with co-workers using Microsoft Exchange 2000. With Ximian Connector installed, Ximian Evolution will function as an Exchange 2000 client, enabling users to manage their email, personal and group calendars, address books and tasks lists using existing company Exchange 2000 servers. As a result, workgroups, departments and companies using Ximian software can cost-effectively enhance productivity, integration and support for their growing populations of Linux desktops.
(emphasis mine)
--Mike
To the first good, cocoa based exchange compatible client. I can easily see 100k-500k licenses. I bet, Ximian can make more money on a OS X native exchange client than anything else.
But these guys seem to be blinded by the GNU cause and don't want to make money.
Think about it Entourage is priced at $150. And lacks Exchange or group scheduling functionality.
Make a cocoa based PIM with group scheduling and exchange support. You can sell it for $100-$150. Even at a modest 50,000-100,000 units sold that is $5-10 million dollars. This is not improbable given that the number of OS X customers by year end is ~3 million.
Ximian should get off their ass, hire a Cocoa programmer and develop such a product.
Hey, how about folks get Ximian Evolution to be stable and work well under OSX first?
I spent a few days compiling all of the stuff that evolution requires using Fink and it works ok, but it's still a tad unstable, and quite slow.
How many people are even using it under OSX anyways?
In my experience it was too slow under XDarwin for everyday use. Hopefully the project to port GTK+ to Quartz will work out and it can run "natively". Perhaps that would be faster. Perhaps I should just get a G4. Perhaps Apple should make an iBook with a G4 so they're affordable. Oh well...
Gabriel Ricard
psxndc
The emacs religion: to be saved, control excess.
http://www.microsoft.com/mac/download/outlook2001/ outlook2001.asp?navindex=s13c
1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21 -- Mathematics is the Language of Nature.
Unfortunately there is no client other than Ximian Evolution w/ Connector that has ever allowed full compatibility with Exchange servers.
Mail may be a nice e-mail client for most but it certainly doesn't do shared calendaring/messaging/folders etc. with Exchange Server.
Outlook for Mac was close but not perfect and M$ stopped development long ago. Another company I remember from a year ago had something that also pseudo worked but had an insane licensing structure ($$$$$).
A fool throws a stone into a well and a thousand sages can not remove it.