A ‘shared Outlook system’ is one of the top requests put to our IT consultants when they visit new or existing customers. Few need persuading that Outlook is a pretty handy way of storing and organising email, contacts and calendars. Indeed it can also synchronise with a wide range of mobile phones. The drawback is that – until recently – sharing this information with other people, or setting up ‘group’ calendars and contact lists has necessitated the purchase of a Microsoft Exchange Server, with all its attendant costs.
One company is now offering a service which purports to be an alternative to Exchange. OfficeCalendar allows its users to share Outlook calendar, email, contact, and task information with other Outlook users in an “easy and affordable” package which can be installed on a regular PC. We certainly think it looks interesting if there is a very small network where some of the advanced features of Exchange are not needed. Moreover, using this solution as a stepping-stone to an Exchange might be an option for some. If you are interested in trialling it, drop us an email.