Joined on 04-01-2005
TechSoup Member
Does anyone know of some good calendar software that isn't Microsoft Outlook?
I managed to get everyone in a fairly large NPO organisation off of their illegal copies of Microsoft Office and onto Openoffice.org but there are a few complaints still going around. These are mainly on formating issues to do with word file formats and also macro support.
The other main issue is around their great need for a group calendar. I installed egroupware but a couple of managers complained that it didn't work properly and deleted their items - I do not know if this is true or a plan to get Microsoft Outlook back. Is their a reliable & free group calendar program around that will save their ICT budget from being devoured by Microsoft.
Note that this is in South Africa where we do not get discounted/free software from the big players.
Thanks in advance
At a nonprofit where I worked we used
Now Up To Date. It's popular among Mac users but a Windows version is available as well. Definitely not free, but it works well and easy to maintain. You buy license for each user and the server software comes free. Single license goes for around $120 each, but if your volume is high you may be able to get it down to $60-$80 range if memory serves. They also have a free trial so you can roll it out risk free to gauge your users' reception.
You'd probably also know about the
Mozilla Calendar and Sunbird. Free and works pretty well overall. But it's no Outlook.
Clement
roballen,
Good for you for discouraging illegal software use!
I am testing Evolution with one user. She likes it. It looks a lot like Outlook XP.
It sounds like you are running Windows. Evolution doesn't support Windows right now, but Novell has hired someone to work on it. (That may take a while.)
Windows users can connect to a variety of open source web-based programs like OpenXchange, OpenGroupware.Org, PHPProkejt, and others.
I suppose I should add a free calendaring program to the
Free Downloads Section.
Until that happens, here is a thread with a couple
Free Calendar options
Joined on 04-01-2005
TechSoup Member
Many Thanks,
Looks like Sunbird and Evolution both crept under my radar.
Sunbird looks like a good option - very simple but I like that - and Mozilla based stuff is quite easy to get people to agree to at the moment due to Firefox. Hope they get the Group stuff worked out soon.
Evolution will certainly be a great option if they are succesful with the windows port - I have used it before and like it. Here's the link for the
Evolution to Windows port project
As for web based solutions, it is a struggle to get them accepted here. Web based applications aren't trusted due to bandwidth and downtime considerations in this country. I've tried explaining the difference between Internet and Inranet but people go blank - they just want something they are confident will work for them.
Many thanks again for the input
Rob
As for web based solutions, it is a struggle to get them accepted here. Web based applications aren't trusted due to bandwidth and downtime considerations in this country. I've tried explaining the difference between Internet and Inranet but people go blank - they just want something they are confident will work for them
I tried two here, but people thought they were clumsy.
But I suggest not explaining anything. Just show it to them. Or if you have found something really good, just say, "This is the new system."
I am planning a terminal server for the office and it will run Linux, but when I talk to the executive director and most of the staff, I just say it's an upgrade and keep short on the brand names. This is called the "appliance approach." You just say, "Here it is."
We just added a few to the free downloads section. I use Palm Desktop. It's in the section, it's free, and it does the job for me.
HTH,
Susan
"But I suggest not explaining anything. Just show it to them. Or if you have found something really good, just say, "This is the new system."
ahz,
With all the time and effort we put into technical detail and precision, it's very sad that we so often have to resort to "tactics" of any kind.
But I agree. Sometimes you just have to say, "Here it is".
-ENO
For those of you who have come to this thread through the forums, TechSoup has just published an article on the subject,
Three Free, Easy Ways to Add a Calendar to Your Web Site, where we explain how Web calendars work and describe the features of Google Calendar, Localendar, and Spongecell.
After reading it, share your feedback here.
Joined on 01-25-2007
TechSoup Member
Thanks to your recent article I am now using the free web based calendar at www.localendar.com . It was extreamly easy to set up and updates are a snap. I love it.
Bob
[updated to fix URL link]
Bob,
Thanks for the note, glad you found something you could use in the article.
Joined on 03-15-2002
Berkeley, CA
TechSoup Member
Great article. I have also found
RSS Calendar easy to use and to incorporate on websites.
- Eric
Joined on 07-29-2007
TechSoup Member
Hi - This was a helpful article, but for some reason, when I copy and paste the HTML onto my Wordpress blog, all i get is a microsecond glimpse of the calendar, and then it disappears. Am I missing something here? Do I need an RSS feed? It happens for google, localendar, and spongecell...
amateur here! thanks for any help!
Joined on 08-20-2001
San Francisco, CA and the web
I'm not sure if I understand your problem. Are you having trouble getting any of the article links and links from posts to load in your browser? Where are you copy and pasting html from? You can open link in same browser window by clicking the link. Or you can right-click the link to open in a new browser window (or tab, if you're using Firefox or Internet Explorer 7).
Let me know if that answered your question or if I misunderstood.
Best,
Megan
Joined on 01-30-2007
TechSoup Member
I think a good solution would be google.
With a google account you can download your corporate mail and use their calendar. The Calendar has a sharing function that seems to work well.
For a small office, it's hard not to want to do a hosted solution to save support time.