A few months later, Google released a free program that not only moves data between the two calendar apps, but it also syncs the calendar entries automatically at the interval of your choice.
Google Calendar Sync is so fast and simple to use that my calendars were synced before I knew it. When you install the program, you're asked where you want to place the utility's shortcuts; by default, they'll be added to your Start menu and desktop.
Uncheck the installer's shortcut options to prevent a new icon to be added to your Start menu or desktop.
(Credit: Google)When the installation completes, the program's main window opens, prompting you to add your Google ID and password, and to select either two-way syncs, syncs from Google Calendar to Outlook, or syncs from Outlook to Google Calendar. You can also reset the frequency of updates; the default is every two hours.
Decide whether you want two-way calendar syncs, or one-way transfers between Google Calendar and Outllook.
(Credit: Google)If Outlook's not open on your machine, you'll be prompted to enter your Outlook username and password. Then the data in each calendar will be added to the other (if you selected the two-way option). When I installed the Google sync utility, I was surprised how quickly the dozens of entries in my Google Calendar were added to Outlook.
I didn't I notice any missing or garbled entries. In fact, the similarity of the two calendars' appearance was a little spooky: I thought for a second that Google had taken possession of my copy of Office. (I probably jumped the gun on that thought by a couple of years.)
Google offers some caveats about using its Calendar Sync program. For example, you need to uninstall any third-party calendar-syncing applications on your PC beforehand. If you've been using another method, you must choose which of the two calendars you want to use as your primary one and clear the entries from the other. Finally, you have to perform a one-way sync from the primary to the secondary before you can schedule automated syncs.
Another limitation of the utility is that only your pop-up event reminders will transfer from Google Calendar to your Outlook calendar because Outlook doesn't support e-mail and SMS alerts. If you encounter problems using Google Calendar Sync, check the information on Google's troubleshooting page for the program.
After seeing what Google can do to enhance Office applications, I'm thinking that a Windows-killing desktop operating system from the company isn't such a bad idea.
Nearly all broadband Internet accounts come with storage on the ISP's servers, but I'll wager not one in 10 broadband users ever store anything there. That's a shame, especially if you find yourself schlepping a USB thumbdrive or rewritable CD full of your personal files from computer to computer. There are dozens of free utilities out there that make transferring files between your local PC and an FTP or Web server as easy as dragging and dropping. The two I've been using are the open-source FileZilla FTP client, and 2Brightsparks' SyncBack, which is also available in a $30 version called SyncBackSE that adds compression, performance, and security features.
Windows' built-in FTP comes up short
You don't need any added software to send files to an FTP server from Windows: simply type the server address into Windows Explorer's address bar and press Enter to connect and view the files, or open a command prompt and type the address there. If you're working with lots of files in several folders, the Windows approach is like dressing in the dark. FileZilla and other FTP clients give you a clearer view of your file transfers before, during, and after the process.
For example, I use FileZilla to transfer files to a directory on my ISP's FTP server, as well as to update a Web site hosted on one of the company's Web servers. I created a profile for each task and can jump between the two simply by clicking the drop-down menu next to the program's Quickconnect button. FileZilla's multiple windows let me view the folder trees and contents of the local PC and the remote server side by side.
The free FileZilla FTP program lets you compare the contents of folders on your local PC and the remote FTP server.
As simple as FTP transfers are using FileZilla, you can't use it to back up files to an FTP server automatically, nor is it easy to synchronize files between two folders. That's where SyncBack comes in: the program lets you schedule file syncs and backups to FTP servers as well as to local storage devices. And you can run your backup and sync profiles manually with a single click. SyncBack lists the files that appear in the source or destination folder, but not in the other, so you can choose which files to include or exclude from the update.
Back up and sync files on an FTP server as easy as to a local folder with the free SyncBack utility from 2Brightworks.
It may sound like a trifle, but one of the greatest benefits of the FileZilla/SyncBack approach to file syncs and backups is that I no longer have to fumble around trying to plug my thumbdrive into the USB ports on my various PCs. It's also one less gizmo to keep from misplacing. Any programs that simplify my life even a little bit are welcome.
Monday: Getting Ubuntu to play nice with Flash and QuickTime.
Since I started synchronizing my e-mail inboxes a few months ago, I rarely even open my Outlook mail client. I much prefer seeing the messages sent to my ISP's POP account and those sent to my Gmail account together in my Gmail inbox. But I still have to open Outlook to view my calendar, which I've been using for years, even though I now put many of my nonwork appointments in Google Calendar, which I can access from my iPhone or any Internet-connected PC.
I thought I found a free program that would let me synchronize the two calendars automatically. Synchronization Technologies' SyncMyCal claims to let you sync multiple Outlook calendars with your Google Calendar. I gave the program a try, but I while it let me transfer the entries on my Google Calendar to my Outlook equivalent, I couldn't get all my Outlook appointments to register on Google Calendar.
I'll keep troubleshooting the problem, though I hope I don't have to upgrade to the $25 SyncMyCal Pro version, which automates the calendar syncs, and lets you work with appointments in time chunks longer than the free version's limit of 7 days. Until then I'll stick with the manual approach to Outlook/Google Calendar integration.
Send your Google Calendar entries to Outlook 2003 and 2007
Start by logging into your Google account and opening your calendar. Click the Manage calendars link at the bottom of the left pane, and then click the name of the calendar to open the Calendar Details dialog box. Scroll to Private Address near the bottom of the window, and click ICAL.
Click ICAL next to Private Address in Google Calendar's Calendar Details dialog to generate the URL you'll use to import the calendar to Outlook.
Unfortunately, Outlook 2003 doesn't support the iCalendar format. I was able to add Google Calendar entries to my Outlook 2003 calendar one at a time by clicking the link in the popup window to download the entry, opening the file in Outlook, and clicking Save and Close. But this approach isn't any faster than adding the entries manually.
At least Outlook 2007 lets you import an iCalendar file directly: Copy the long URL in the Google Calendar's Private Address popup window, open your Outlook calendar, and click File>Import and Export. Choose Import an iCalendar (.ics) or vCalendar file (.vcs), and click Next. Paste the URL you copied from the popup into the File name field at the bottom of the Browse dialog box, and click Open. Click Import, and your Google Calendar entries are added to your Outlook calendar.
Import your Google Calendar as an iCalendar file (.ics) to add its entries to your Outlook 2007 calendar.
Transfer your Outlook calendar to Google Calendar
To move your Outlook schedule to your Google Calendar, Open Outlook 2003 or 2007 and click File>Import and Export>Export to a file>Next. Choose Comma Separated Values (Windows) and click Next again. Navigate to and select your Calendar folder (it should be highlighted by default), and click Next yet again. In Outlook 2003, verify the location of the saved .csv file (change it if you want to place it elsewhere), and click Next once more. In Outlook 2007, select a location for the file, give it a name, and click OK and then Next. Click Finish, set the date range for the calendar entries to be exported, and click OK.
Now open your Google Calendar, click the small down arrow next to Add in the left pane, and choose Import Calendar. Select the Browse button, navigate to and select the .csv file you just created, and click Open. Choose the calendar you want to import it to (it will likely be selected by default), and click Import.
Select the .csv file you exported from Outlook to import it to your Google Calendar.
Tomorrow: What to do when Windows craps out.
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