With its 14 years on the market, Calendar Browser is one of the most mature kalmstrom.com Solutions, which means that we have had plenty of time to refine this resource booking tool for Outlook. We plan to keep Calendar Browser alive for many years ahead also, and therefore we are in the process of replacing old technologies with the very latest ones.
Rebuild with .NET and HTML5
In 2013 we replaced all old VB6 coding in Calendar Browser with modern .NET techniques. This was a crucial step, both for further development and for support of the latest Microsoft platforms. After that we could add several new features to our resource booking application, some of them sponsored by organizations who already subscribe to Calendar Browser.
Now it is once again time to update the architecture of Calendar Browser. In the next version we have removed some third party tools that we found to slow. Instead we have used what is often referred to as HTML5.
HTML5 & friends
The term HTML5 actually stands for two things. It is the latest version of the HTML code language, but it is also a short form for "HTML5 & friends" – a set of other technologies that together with the latest HTML version enhance both web sites and applications. The HTML5 friends include CSS3, JavaScript and new APIs, and it is the whole set of new technologies that the kalmstrom.com developers have used in Calendar Browser V9.
Faster Overview loading
Calendar Browser uses several forms, like resource descriptions, search, supply bookings and settings. All these forms load faster in version 9, but if you have booked resources with Calendar Browser before, you will notice the biggest difference in the Overview.
The Calendar Browser Overview shows information about bookings from several different aspects. Some user organizations have the Overview displayed on a wide screen in a reception or similar,so that the staff can easily see what resources have been booked.
Each person who has the Calendar Browser client installed can also see the Overview in Outlook, or even in Outlook Web Access. Outlook users can also book resources directly in the Overview.
The Overview has a new design, just as the Calendar Browser logotype and icon. I hope you like the new style? I think it looks modern and in line with Microsoft graphics, which is what we aim for.
Slideshow
Calendar Browser V9 is now in the last testing phase, and we have begun updating the documentation. We hope to release the new version in a week or two, and in the meantime you are welcome to have a look at the new slideshow below. I will come back with more info once we have released the new version.
By
Peter Kalmstrom
CEO and Systems Designer
kalmstrom.com Business Solutions
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