Day 130- GCal updater

130-GCal Updater

A few months ago, I wrote a post on syncing all your calendars together in order to get your life focused. At the time, I thought it was not too difficult. But Google has made it even easier. With just a quick download, you have a program that will automatically sync your calendars together--specifically GCal and Outlook.

And this is really great. I use GCal at home because it is always there and always on. Even if I cannot get to my laptop, I can borrow someone else's computer and still have access to my computer. I also like how GCal sends me e-mail reminders if I want them. And now they offer text messeges, too.

But Outlook is the office interface we use at work. Outlook is perfectly fine for us. But I hate trying to navigate the at-home interface.

I like the Outlook/GCal program because it is 100% automatic. You just tell the program how often you want your calendars synced and it will do it.

What I do not like is that this program only syncs your main GCal. If you are like me and keep seperate calendars for seperate parts of your life, GCal will not transfer everything over for you. On top of that, it takes everything from Outlook and plops it into your main calendar.

Ideally, I would like to see google fix this problem. I would like them to know that my outlook dates should go into my Work Calendar. I would also like the program to be able to take my personal activities (like dates with Xine, house meetings, and concerts) and sync them into my Outlook so that I didn't have to keep two calendars open at the same time at work.

Overall, I am excited about the GCal updater. But it really isn't all that great for advanced outlook and GCal users. If you know how to do anything beyond setting up an appointment at the right time on the right day, this program is not for you. Because frankly, this thing does not do anything you can't already do for yourself.

However, if you only keep one main calendar, you don't add labels or do any advanced calendar features, this will make you very happy.

Sorry about all the empty days without posting. It has been my goal to post once a day. But the beginning of the week was crazy busy. And then I got sick. So, now it is Thursday and I am posting for the first time.