Adrien’s blog
Stuff I like, stuff I do, stuff I make

I developed 2 python scripts to consult my gmail inbox off-line in my favorite email client (thunderbird):

• gmailretr.py downloads your inbox (or threads having the label of your choice) from your gmail account, using the libgmail API into a mbox file
• gmailboxpopd.py runs a POP3 server locally on which your favorite email client will connect to download your retrieved inbox (mbox file)

Use cases:

• you don’t have access to the internet, but someone else can bring your email back on a usb stick while keeping your privacy (emails are invisible, you don’t need to give your password)
• you have access to the internet for a short amount of time => you can download your emails online now and read them later while you’re offline.

In order to make it work, you need to be familiar with Python. You’ll also need to download and install the last version (tested from 0.1.3.3) of libgmail API.

 Download gmailbox version 0.9 (GPL)

I quite obsessed about organizing my files in a precise and clear directory structure. This also applies for my tunes. But the directory structure is a tree, and a file is physically contained by one directory at a time (unless you use links, this is a feature of NTFS that is hidden in Windows, btw).  For that reason, if you have a directory for each music genre, every song can only have ONE genre… Wouldn’t it be good to classify by "moods" instead of "genres", allowing a tune to be suitable for multiple moods?

After spending some time thinking about crazy ingenious solutions to make that possible (e.g. programming yet another music management program) , I finally realized that what I actually wanted to do was playlists! The only problem is that I want to "label my tunes with moods", like I do in Gmail; and editing a text file (i.e. the playlist) is not very convenient…

And guess what? The solution is both simple and elegant: use a music manager that allows playlist management by drag&drop!  I chose musikCube because it’s lightweight, efficient and free. I created a few "mood" playlists in the sidebar: fresh, sad, sunday morning, hardcore, and so on… Then I just drag&drop my tunes in the corresponding playlists. Finally, I can play any playlist after randomizing its order ("shuffle" can repeat some songs), according to my mood. Easy!  Moreover, a great feature of musikCube is to move or copy the files contained in a playlist to another directory, making it possible to go back to a good old directory tree structure, usefull if a friend of yours like your "sad" tunes collection for example.

Here is my first program contribution advertised on this blog.

One day I decided that I wouldn’t use MS Outlook any longer to manage my contacts. While it’s still convenient to have them always with you on your PocketPC, I also wanted to import my contacts into my Gmail account. But I couldn’t find a way to transfer them from my PPC to my PC…

I made that small c#.net program in order to export all the contacts stored on the PocketPC (using the native but invisible Pocket Outlook) into a CSV file, basing on a template (to define the fields to export).

Its usage is fairly simple: you install it on your PPC, copy the template.csv file in the root directory (after editing it if you like), then your run the program and wait for it to finish. There’s no UI at all, it’s script-like. The contacts will be exported in the contacts.csv file, in the root directory of your PPC. If you used the default template, you can directly import this resulting csv file into your Gmail account!

So far, the project is hosted by berlios under the Microsoft Shared Source license (since I’m using their POOM wrapper…).

Check that out: Pocket Outlook Export

Now it’s time to introduce myself a bit.

My name is Adrien Joly, I’m a French Masters student in Information Technology (or should I say Computer Science). Computing has been my passion since the age of 8, when my family bought a computer. I also like everything that is about technology. Because sometimes I love useless but techie stuff, I call my self a geek. But don’t worry too much though, I do have a (real) life besides, I see normal people, and can survive a few days (but not too many!) without touching a keyboard!

Ok, back to serious! I’m very into software design and mobile technologies (PocketPC, Wireless networks etc…). I’m currently doing a Masters research project at QUT, Brisbane, Australia. I’ve been doing an exchange program for my last year of studies at INSA de Lyon, France. My big concern at the moment is: What am I gonna do next?

I enjoy doing research because it’s a creative and cutting-edge job, so I’m considering doing a PhD. I can either stay in Brisbane with my current supervisor or go back to France for that, where all my family and friends are… On the other hand, I can easily find a job as a Software Architect and get well paid for that, but will that be interresting enough for me? Well, I’ll have to figure that out!

Besides I’ve been a drummer since the age of 8, and playing in bands since the age of 15. I love music (and especially performing it with a band) but that’s not the point of that blog (should it?).

Ok, that’s enough! If you want more details, check out my web page.

Hey there!

Yes, I guess what you could think at the moment: "Oh no, yet another blog"…  That’s fair enough, I would actually think the same in the first place, as many people create their "website", "space", "blog", or whatever just for the hype, without having anything interresting to share. Sharing interresting stuff is actually the point of this blog. Yeah, seriously!

Here is a list of the things I’d like to share with you on this blog:

• my experiences (tips & tricks) as a regular user, a developper, and a geek too
• my creations (programs & scripts), as they could be useful for other people
• and a bit of my life (personal), to share my experiences and opinions about things that matter for me, hoping that it could lead to some interresting discussions/debates

Ok, I’m finished with the traditionnal welcome post. I hope you’ll enjoy reading my blog sometimes and find some stuff interresting. I’d be more than happy to receive comments and any other kind of feedback in general, either negative or positive!

Have a good one!