International Data Corporation (IDC) research shows that if the Internet is to be used as an infrastructure for group calendaring and scheduling, success will only be forthcoming when standards are in place that allow users to schedule meetings using a wide range of products.
With this in mind Lotus Development has unveiled Organizer 5.0, the first personal information manager (PIM) to offer standards-based Internet scheduling capabilities for messaging demands into the 21st century.
"The calendar-based scheduling functionality built into Organizer uses the Internet to provide individuals and workgroups with a solution for arranging meetings ", says Steve Dunbar, marketing manager for Lotus Development in South Africa.
It also offers enhanced contact, time and information management features, synchronisation with popular personal digital assistants (PDAs) and significant improvements to its user interface.
When a user invites attendees to a meeting, Organizer creates an iCalendar-based object that contains meeting details such as the date, time, description and attendees. These objects, or invitations, are then automatically sent via e-mail to the invitees.
Upon receiving a meeting notice, invitees can then respond by accepting or declining the invitation. With support for iCalendar-based busy time, users can even check whether or not the invited attendees are free at the proposed time before sending meeting invitations.
"The application also provides enhanced contact management features," he says. "These include advanced activity tracking functionality and a new contact history view allow users to easily view previous interaction with contacts, including meetings, tasks, calls, e-mails, and more."
Additional contact fields enable users to store up to 20 telephone numbers, six physical addresses, six e-mail addresses, six Web pages (URLs) and 20 custom fields per contact. Organizer now displays addresses in a variety of international formats.
In addition, the improved contact section also provides one click access to e-mail, Web sites, and automatic telephone-dialing.
Users have access to additional daily and weekly views to better suit their individual preferences. Productivity enhancements include the ability to preview any printout, schedule specific times for completion of "to do`s" or calls and set default alarms to serve as meeting or task reminders.
Designed for paper planner users who may not be accustomed to electronic PIMs, Organizer`s Day Planner View displays appointments, calls, tasks, and a new daily notes section in a single view, much like the default page layout found in most popular paper planners.
It also enables the updating of calendar, tasks and calls without having to switch views and provides the ability to convert information from the daily notes section into an appointment, task, contact, or notepad entry with a click of the mouse.
"Any entry in Organizer can be linked to a URL, says Dunbar. "Links entered into the notepad section are automatically recognised, providing access to that Web page."
The Weekly Time Slot view enables users to view their appointments for a week in a graphical format and collapse the days they do not wish to see, while the multiple calendar view allows users to see up to 15 colleagues` calendars simultaneously.
For individuals and workgroups looking to upgrade or switch PIMs, the software offers upgrades from earlier versions of Organizer and Microsoft Outlook 97 and 98, Symantec ACT! 3.x, Starfish Sidekick 97 and 98 and Day-Timer Organizer 98.
It also provides synchronisation with most popular personal digital assistants (PDAs). "Support for Windows CE devices, the Psion Series 5 and the Sharp Zaurus PDAs will be available through third-party data synchronisation providers," adds Dunbar.
Share
Editorial contacts