OfficeCalendar v2.4 offers advanced Microsoft Outlook calendar sharing with synchronization of appointment color labels and additional synchronization options.
Lookout Software, Ltd. has released OfficeCalendar v2.4, an easy-to-use software alternative to Microsoft Exchange Server that allows Microsoft Outlook users to share Outlook calendars, contacts and tasks, create a group calendar, and much more.
According to industry sources, Microsoft Outlook leads the email client market worldwide, with over 250 million users and an approximate 60% market share. Of these users, only 33% use Microsoft Exchange Server as a platform for messaging. The rest of these users are mostly small to mid-size businesses who are looking for an alternative to Exchange Server. “Exchange Server is simply too much for small businesses, due to relatively expensive hardware and maintenance costs, as well as complex installation and implementation,” says Tom Garrett, VP of Customer Service and Support for Lookout Software, Ltd.
OfficeCalendar is the solution to this problem, providing a low-cost alternative to Exchange Server that is easy to install and maintain. OfficeCalendar works directly with Outlook, so no extra hardware is necessary. OfficeCalendar is also designed to be installed by the average computer user, not an IT professional, and it’s easy to use as well. It takes just a few minutes to install on a network, and in no time users can synchronize their Outlook data with the click of a button.
“For our small office of 5 people, OfficeCalendar was significantly less expensive than Microsoft Exchange, plus we were able to set it up ourselves without having to hire an IT consultant,” says Mike Harris, an OfficeCalendar user.
In addition to easily sharing Outlook calendars, contacts and tasks, users can also create a group calendar to simplify scheduling. The group calendar allows a user to view other coworkers’ calendars together on one calendar on their own Outlook screen. Controlled comprehensive sharing security also assigns users the rights to access, read, write/edit, and delete other Outlook appointments and contacts.
“For a MS Outlook user, it’s intuitive. I’ve taught other pastors how to use MS Outlook and now I recommend OfficeCalendar to everyone! This product is everything I wish it would be,” says Steve Wipperman, Pastor of Our Savior Lutheran Church, who uses OfficeCalendar to share his calendar and contacts with his secretary. “My calendar appears on her desktop side-by-side with her own so she can compare, add, subtract, edit, etc.”
OfficeCalendar v2.4 offers even more optimization features than before, such as calendar color label synchronization and optional automatic synchronization at the startup of Outlook. Calendar color label synchronization gives users the ability to quickly determine which appointments are meetings, holidays, personal or business, etc., at a glance without having to open the details of the appointment item. Automatic synchronization at the startup of Outlook instantly updates shared Outlook data between users.
Each person wishing to share Outlook calendars, contacts, and/or tasks using OfficeCalendar must have a copy of Microsoft Outlook 2000, XP, or 2003. However, OfficeCalendar can work with a mixture of these Outlook versions. (OfficeCalendar does not work with Microsoft Outlook Express, a different product from Microsoft Outlook.)
About Lookout Software
Lookout Software was founded in the summer of 2003 with the goal of providing practical and affordable software solutions that solve common business problems for small to mid-size businesses.
OfficeCalendar v1.0 was released by Lookout Software in May 2004, and since that time has evolved through several versions to the most recent, v2.4. Lookout Software staff and developers are continually striving to better OfficeCalendar and gladly embrace feedback from customers.
To download a free 14-day trial version of OfficeCalendar v2.4, or for more information about Lookout Software and OfficeCalendar, visit the company’s website at www.officecalendar.com.
