MobileMe/Outlook 2011/Iphone/Blackberry - best setup advice

[Lou142]

Hi all, I'm hoping someone can help me with a setup issue I have.

I have an iphone, I use ical, and mac address book on my MBP (and on my iMac). I sync my data with mobileme.

I recently started a new position within my agency, and was assigned an account on the exchange server. I was issued a new email, a PC with outlook 2007, and a blackberry. I work in a unit consisting of 2 other co-workers who also use outlook, and we need to share contacts and calendars. I hate the blackberry, don't use it much.

So, now I have my previous setup (iphone, ical, address book), which I need to integrate with a new email, outlook, and a blackberry (I'd like to use my iphone primarily).

I have outlook 2011 on my MBP.

Does anyone have a solution to make all these components "play nice"? Has anyone had a similar setup issue?

Thanks in advance for your help.

 

[marc11]

Forget outlook it is crap. You can't sync it with MM or Goggle and you can't publish its calendar or or subscribe to published ones. Plus Outlook doesn't have a default category so if you aren't careful you end up with tons of calendars for different entries in ical. Crap, garbage typical MS overpriced, under functioned crap.

I did post how to get a Blackberry, exchange, MM, Google and ical all in sync here, look for my post, it is a bit of work, but you can get them to sync perfectly, just not your Outlook 2011 on your Mac.

 

[Lou142]

Thank you for the feedback. I have come across many posts describing the negative aspects of outlook 2011. I like the program because I feel it's better than the 2007 version I have at work - actually, I probably feel this way because everything has a nicer look to it on the mac. I know this isn't the sole reason I should be using outlook in the first place, however, I'm now forced to use it at work and obviously love working on my mac.

I will look for your post. I was under the impression that one was able to use mm (calendars and contacts) with outlook 2011 by using sync services. However, I also read that contacts would not sync if an exchange connection is detected; calendars could be viewed side-by-side, though.

Thing is, I am almost ready to fall back on apple mail - I will feel as if I wasted money by purchasing the version of Office that comes with outlook, though.

Again, thanks for the feedback.

 

[marc11]

I'm just pissed because I purchased Office 2011 specifically for Outlook and the functions within it fall so short of Office for PC's let alone what it replaced in Office 2008.

The sync services are a joke. Yes you can sync contacts works good. But the cal sync is bad. You cannot create a cal in ical, Google or MM and have it show in Outlook. If you create a cal in Outlook it will show in ical but not MM. And in ical it is a separate calendar meaning it must be used for it syn back to Outlook. If you create an entry in MM or on your MM calendar it will not sync Outlook even though that calendar is on your Mac. If you are not careful when creating an entry in your Oulook calendar of if someone sends you an appointment the category assigned by Outlook may be different than on you use, so Outlook creates a new category which makes it a new calendar. Total crap.

And don't get me started on the lack of an archive function, back up functions, jokes for rules, crappy contact management, crappy eternal mail integration and the utter joke of folder management. Or and you can import PST folders (but not read them you must import) and you cannot export to PST for some unknown reason.

Yes Office 2011 is better than 2004 and 2008 but had I known Outlook was going to be this bad I would have saved my money and just picked up Open Office and used Apple Mail.