I need a way to keep certain documents in sync between multiple computers at home and at work. At work I have a desktop and laptop, and am looking to pick up a used Tablet PC for note taking (since the laptop is configured as a desktop replacement). At home I have a desktop, and a laptop (although I do not use it much, it's mainly for the wife).

What type information

• Meeting Notes at work, User Groups, etc
• Notes from printed and on-line media.
• Scratch pad for project ideas
• Scratch pad for things to do (mode detailed then tasks, and probably not going to happen soon)

Where do I want this information

• Available on all of my computers
• Preferably without requiring an Internet connection 
• Easily share information with others via email, Internet (i.e. blog), internal share point site(s).

Concerns

• Offline availability
• Getting out of sync between various data storage locations
• Some stuff I would not want sync'd to the computers at work.

Options: Below are the options I have come up with in alphabetical order. They are a combination of sync techniques and documentation software.

• Blog with offline editing tool (i.e. Live Writer)
• Folder Share
• Groove
• Manual Sync 
• OneNote
• Sharepoint Server (Personal)
• Wiki with Offline Editor and Sync 

Current Solution (In Trial): As I wrote this post, it became clear that there is no one solution, and even more so, I was really looking to solve 2 different problems. The first, is, how do I get organized, the second, is, how do I sync files.

• Continue to use Live Writer and blog as I have been. The information for the blog is meant to be shared with everyone on the Internet.
• Start using OneNote, synchronized with Groove, for meeting notes, project ideas, and general life organization.
• Look into using Groove or FolderShare to sync files between different computers. This requirement might go away as we start using Sharepoint at work more and more.

Blog

I've already started using a blog to share information with others, as well as take notes for myself. I'm currently writing this post offline with Live Writer, and will later post it online.

Pros:

• Already setup and using
• Easy to share with others
• Options for offline editing, and offline availability

Folder Share

Folder share is a free file synchronization service provided by Microsoft. I'm currently using it to synchronize my IE favorites and MP3's between multiple computers. I could use a variety of software to create and manage documents, and upon saving, the files will be sync'd between the computers I have setup.

Pros:

• Will work with a wide variety of software
• All Pro's from other document management options (assume con's are addressed by using different document management programs for different needs)

Cons:

• Concerns over syncing files in a document editing environment (i.e. if you are smart, you save every couple of minutes, or the program you are using auto-saves. This could cause issues file Folder Share)
• The best way to set up the files you want to sync, would be to put them under 1 folder. However, this might mean you will be sharing stuff you don't want to

Groove

A new collaboration application that ships with Office 2007 enterprise and ultimate, or can be purchased separately. A quick note about Groove and OneNote. If you setup a file sharing workspace, it will work. A blog post indicated that even more seemless support will be forthcoming in a future release. I can see Groove replacing folder share, but have to look into it more.

Manual Sync

I put this here just to be complete. I don't even want to go into the details of why manual sync is not the answer. It becomes so tedious, and error prone that I have just given up on it. Hence the need for the blog post.

OneNote

This is a document editor program, and requires some form of sync application. I really like the new 2007 version, it has a ton of new features, so many, that I think I might raise my target price on a tablet PC.

• It has support for multiple notebooks, sections within a notebook, and pages within each section
• There is a new collapsible view on the left that gives a view of all notebooks and their sections
• Link to other pages, making it more like a Wiki
• Capture parts of a web page and put into a OneNote page
• Recognizes text in pictures, allowing you to search
• Live sharing session over the Internet, turns a page into a white board that everyone can write on.
• Flag items, and then view items by their flag.
• There is also a good amount of outlook integration, and with that integration, comes a bit of integration with Sharepoint.
• OneNote Mobile
• Inline Calculator
• Insert files as printouts. So if someone sends you a excel spread sheet, print it to one note, then you can write on it.
• Attach files to one note pages
• Audio and Video Recording

For sharing, there are some options. It has support for multiple computer use, however, the supported options don't work well for my situation right now. The supported options are, file share (which I don't have between work and home), Sharepoint (works is not publicly accessible, and I don't have a personal one at the moment), or USB flash drive (not sure if carrying around a USB drive is desired, although a 4GB drive on the key chain wouldn't be too bad). A personal Sharepoint server, as well as either a VPN connection at home, or VPN (should have it in 2 months), might make the folder share option a reality. VPN at work would also open up the sharepoint server at work. Finally, there is limited support in Groove (as noted above)

Sharepoint Server (Personal)

My web hosting provider, provides WSS as an add on for $19.95/year. This would open another option for the OneNote approach

Wiki

While most people think of Wiki's being Internet based, you can run them on your home computer. Why would you want to? For me, the Wiki is one of the best document editing applications out there. They have built in support for versioning, and you can easily create new "documents" and link them so easily. A the same time I setup this blog, I downloaded some Wiki software that has a internet version, as well as a desktop version (same code base) that runs in Cassinni. My plan was to use SyncBack and FTP to keep the internet and desktop version synced, but I have yet to test this.

Pros:

• Versioning
• Easy to add and link pages/documents

Cons:

• Untested offline solution
• Pretty much limited to a web page (although you could link to a word document for example)