Archive for 2010
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Quick Pro and Con list – Outlook 2011 for the Mac
Saturday, November 6th, 2010I have been prepping a series of basic Outlook 2011 class that was scheduled to start the day after the software was released. I was lucky enough to be able to use a legal manufacturer copy on a client machine for a few weeks beforehand.
What I am listing here is the general information I’ve gotten from websites and my playing with the software. I have hopes that a few releases will make this into software I really like. As it is, it’s software I don’t actively hate. Much of the information here is loosely based on a wide comparison matrix- Outlook 2011 for Mac vs. Apple Mail, Entourage 2008, and Outlook 2010. Some of it is my opinion but most of it is from my searching other reviews.
If you are an Entourage 2008 user this will be less buggy, especially backups. It IS a 1.0 release so is NOT a fully ready version (no matter what the press releases say). Do I own it now? – Yes. Would I have bought it yet if I weren’t a trainer? – No. However, I expect that after a few of my heavy-duty issues are fixed I will move my home machines onto Outlook.
If you are thinking about switching to Outlook 2011 for the mac you should first do some searches and see what people are saying about the features you can’t live without. If you don’t find issues that affect you, have at it. I find there are so many issues that are missing or broken that I will describe it as a “not-ready-for-primetime” release – which can be said for most 1.0 releases. For me, the biggest issue is that I can’t work without my google calendar. Gmail, google cal, and dropbox are HUGE for me. As of this posting there is no iCal or Google calendar Sync. It is “planned for a future releaseâ€.
Pro
- Not one Giant DB like Entourage – spotlight search works well. Time machine backups are much, much faster BUT getting a partial restore from a backup is a real pain
- Faster than Entourage 2008
- Import .pst file from Windows Outlook
- Import Rules can be very buggy
- It is really easy to add Exchange or POP/IMAP accounts
- Has the Win 2007/2010 ribbon (is this a pro?)
- Overlay Calendar when viewing multiple calendars
- Shows calendar preview in Meeting Invites
- Single Inbox option for multiple accounts
- Quick Look preview of attachments
- Imports International Holidays easily
- Valid addresses are easier to see
- HasEntourage’s My Day (a way of viewing tasks and some appointments when application is closed)
- Scheduling and Mailing List Managers same as Entourage
- Search Options are easy AFTER you give up on having separate filters (Filter creates search in the main window – they took away the separate filter/search window.
- Redesigned AppleScript directory
- On My Computer – Both Pro AND Con. What this means is you can turn on having a “On My Computer†option. This gives you a separate, local Inbox, Calendar, Contact Groups, Tasks, and Notes. This can be VERY confusing for people. If you are using Outlook Web Access then you should be careful. Anything saved to “On My Computer†is local only and will not be available from elsewhere
- Meetings still in inbox and not replied to are faded out on mac and easy to spot, not like this on Windows
- Better HTML mail then Entourage
- Create Meeting from Message
Con
- Default Compose setting cant be set at the account level (HTML vs plain)
- No Read or Delivery receipts
- Newsreader removed
- No Plug-Ins
- No Switch Identities
- No More Favorites bar
- No Ruler/Tab Management
- No Custom Numbering Sequences
- Can’t export .pst file only .olm – what does that mean? You can’t export your mail/calendar, etc for most uses
- Smart Folders/Search Folders – folders is the WRONG NAME
- No autoarchive, no mbox format
- Outbox is temporary only. You can’t keep it on the screen.
- Appends signature – does not replace it
- Category rename makes duplicates
- Recurring tasks and time zones is buggy
- NO SYNC SERVICES
- No resend
- No Edit Message (remove html backrougnd or other garbage on received mail
- No Cleanup Text
- No Redirect
- Send as attachment strips your signature
- Autocomplete is buggy
- NO Exchange server 2003 or earlier
- No Outlook Social calendar
- No backstage view (not a con in my view, but was for one source I list below)
- No Kerberos
- If choice between 2010 or 2011 – 2010 is MUCH better
- Pricing is punishing multiple mac users – like me
- Conversation View can confuse subjects and mix the view
- No Task Status Reports
- No Voting Buttons
- NO PROJECTS like in Entourage
- No Paste as Quotation
- No Increase/Decrease Quotes
- Filter and Search are the same – this is a loss of functionality from other products
- This is HUGE for me – Date Navigator will not select custom days
- OH.. and Diane Ross MVP in the forums? Rude.
I dug some of this out myself but the rest I got from the following sites:
TidBits
NetworkWorld
BoyGeniusReport
Addictive Tips
PC Mag
Mashable
NYT – David Pogue
Telegraph UK
Techworld
Macworld
Mac2Microsoft
OfficeForMac
Support.Microsoft
Mac.zicos
TechNightOwl
Liquida
Creating documents with an easy screen capture
Saturday, November 6th, 2010Screensteps
My husband found this software and I am going to try it out. If you make documentation with screen captures like I do, you might find this helpful. I will post more on this after I’ve had a chance to play with it.
Google SSL Search
Wednesday, October 27th, 2010Looking for decent (but not free) CSS templates?
Monday, October 18th, 2010There is a new one at Project Seven you should check out.
http://www.projectseven.com/products/templates/pagepacks/mirage/index.htm
Using Jquery?
Saturday, October 16th, 2010Here is a great resource with Jquery components on it.
http://hanshillen.github.com/aegisdemo/
On Image Maps and Alt Attributes
Friday, October 15th, 2010I am lucky enough to choose what I use in my design work and therefore can avoid using Image Maps on websites. The cons almost always outweigh the pros, though there are some unique cases where nothing else will really do the job. Recently I came across this link on this topic that seemed to be a pretty good overview with coherant examples.
Here it is
Are you reseting your CSS?
Tuesday, October 5th, 2010If you write CSS and don’t know what I mean by that, click the link below.
If you do know what I mean by that, click the link below.
If you are learning about CSS and are up for some detailed info… you get the idea.
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/scriptjunkie/gg257960.aspx
So… what is a CSS reset? Well are you familiar with the idea that each browser renders web page content differently? Good. So as a designer, one of the things you can do to not spend quite so much time pulling your hair out is to ask the browsers to turn off many of the things that make them different before they load our design. The articel on Script Junkie shows the tops CSS resets (I’m pretty much an Eric Meyer stalker so you can guess which I use). It is worth the read.
Open Office
Tuesday, October 5th, 2010If you need a simple and free office-like set of products, check out Open Office.
http://www.openoffice.org/.
I use Office for Windows and Mac, Google Docs, and Open Office depending on which machine I am using. Now, it’s a given that I’m a bit weird, but don’t worry software geekdom is not contagious.
From the Blog
- WordPress, I both love and hate you
Saturday, April 28th, 2012 - A Learning and Development Professional’s Continuing Education
Wednesday, March 21st, 2012 - Photoshop CS6 Sneek Peek #3
Monday, February 13th, 2012