wbxml patch for Ubuntu Intrepid

From Sven Kreiss

Ubuntu Intrepid does now have an updated package. This article is obsolete.

This short article explains how to get a Nokia S60 3rd edition phone (in my case the N96) synced with Evolution under Ubuntu Intrepid using OpenSync.

Contents 1 Opensync and the Nokia N96 1.1 Let's start. How to get the right wbxml? 1.2 Result 1.3 Compatibility 1.4 To Do 1.5 Bugs that are not solved 1.6 Comments

[edit] Opensync and the Nokia N96

Open source advocates always say that you could just patch some peace of code yourself if you have a problem. It always sounds like a complicated process to do. Yesterday, I tried to sync my new N96 with Evolution and it just would not work. So I looked around on the web and found a patch to wbxml which is supposed to fix some stuff. It basically is the diff that later became the patch for the Debian version 0.9.2-5. So I looked up which version of wbxml will be in Ubuntu Intrepid and found that it will only be 0.9.2-4. I am not too eager to have full sync working between phone and evolution, but the N96 seems to handle vCards with multiple people (or a whole address book) wrong. You only get one contact (exporting evolution address book and sending to phone does not work).

So I had to do something. msynctool just would not work. Also, a bit annoyingly the N96 does not have constant bluetooth channels. SyncMLClient appeared once at channel 8 and after reboot at channel 5. You usually do not switch of the phone, but be aware that if you do, you might need to reconfigure the syncml plugin.

!!! WARNING !!! I never patched or created a package before. This just came from the need to get contacts into the Nokia N96. I am not sure myself how much damage this package could do if anything was wrong (I looked at the diff, of course, and it is fairly trivial ... at least to read). So I think there is no bad code, but there is still the question whether I applied it correctly.

[edit] Let's start. How to get the right wbxml?

• Here is the diff: http://bugs.debian.org/cgi-bin/bugreport.cgi?bug=487217 from Michael Bell
• Look at Philip Susi's entry no. 5 for a very short introduction to how to patch an ubuntu packge: http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=132726 (this is what I followed)
• A bit more detailed description of creating a package (but still short enough to read quickly to fix some errors): https://wiki.ubuntu.com/PackagingGuide/Recipes/PackageUpdate
• debsign GPG error: http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=570067 (in essence: use "debuild -S -rfakeroot -k<your_gpg_key_id>" instead of "debuild -S -sa")

[edit] Result

OBSOLETE: use official intrepid package now.

• you only need this for opensync: media:libwbxml2-0_0.9.2-4ubuntu1_i386.deb
• other packages the build commands generated automatically:
  • media:libwbxml2-0-dbg_0.9.2-4ubuntu1_i386.deb
  • media:libwbxml2-0-dev_0.9.2-4ubuntu1_i386.deb
  • media:libwbxml2-utils_0.9.2-4ubuntu1_i386.deb

[edit] Compatibility

I have no idea. It worked on my Ubuntu Intrepid Beta system as of 04 Oct 2008.

[edit] To Do

Someone with more experience needs to do it properly and get this into Ubuntu! A PPA on launchpad might also help at first.

[edit] Bugs that are not solved

• large set of changes: I could not sync my addressbook at once (around 400 contacts). I had to add around 20 people at a time, sync and then add the next 20 people. Afterwards syncs seem to work fine.
• I only tried syncing contacts and calender.

Those are just the once I came accross myself with the patched wbxml.

[edit] Comments

Please send comments to sk@svenkreiss.com.