Conduits

A conduit is a plug-in module for the HotSync^® Manager, which transfers databases between a device and a desktop computer. Each application installed on the device has its own conduit. Typically, a conduit synchronizes the application database between the device and the desktop computer, but it can also carry out other tasks, for instance installing or saving an entire databases, sending emails, setting the system date and time of the device, processing the data before sending it back to the device, etc.

Technically, a conduit is a Windows DLL, which must be registered to the HotSync^® Manager application. You can develop your own conduits in C/C++, Java™ or Microsoft^® Visual Basic^®, using the Conduit Development Kit for Windows software suite from PalmSource, Inc. However, the development of a conduit can be a difficult task; thus HB++ offers a tool for quickly developing a conduit suitable for your applications.

During the synchronization (triggered by pressing the HotSync^® button in the cradle, for example), the HotSync^® manager browses the list of registered conduits, and for each of these conduits, searches if a database exists on the handheld device whose CreatorID is the same as the one of the conduit. If this is not the case, no action is carried out and the next conduit is invoked. Otherwise, several actions are carried out. The HB++ conduit generator allows you to specify this list of actions, and then creates for you a conduit DLL.

This section details point by point the basics of conduits, the functionality of the HB++ integrated conduit generator, as well as the procedure for the installation and deployment of the generated conduits.