Describes how to create a file which Microsoft Outlook can use as an Import file to create an Outlook Calendar. The file contains a record for each order and does not use the Cyrious calendar. The Outlook calendar items can then be manipulated and even linked to a Google Calendar for more global usage.

We needed to create Schedule Calendars which our outside Installers could access to stage and plan installations to reduce travel time and be better prepared. At the same time Sales Personnel needed a way to access the planned installations to respond to customer inquiries. Internal personnel from supporting centers needed a way to access the planned installations to be sure any components of the installation for which they are responsible are ready in time.

The requirement was to replace a paper system where the Production Manager would write out planned installations on a large sheet and anyone needing the information went to her office to view the sheet or had to call or email her, making the data available in real time as her situation changed and removing the burden of talking to and emailing everyone who needed the information. Of course, significant changes meant that the sheet had to be discarded and a new one writen out.

We found that Microsoft's Outlook Calendar is a remarkable tool in that events can be quickly and easily moved around just by clicking and dragging to different dates. There is a built in email function which can be used to send “Requests” to others to confirm the meeting, but this could just as easily be an installation. Finally, we found that we gained much better access in and out of the company by using Cyrious' excellent implementation of an internal Browser combined with Google's link to Outlook calendars. So the final requirement was to create an easy access to Google Calendar.

Not too many ways to go wrong. You can't hurt Cyrious data. You can easily delete unwanted calendars or items from the Outlook calendar.

1. The first step in creating an Outlook Calendar is to have the full Microsoft Outlook program available on the machine where you will be creating the calendar. We have not tried but are fairly sure this will not be possible with Outlook Express.
2. Determine the information you want to appear in your Calendar. There are numerous items which can be imported from an external data source into an Outlook calendar. We chose to use 4:
   1. The Subject for which we include the Order Number and the Customer;
   2. The Date for which we use the Order Due Date;
   3. The Location which is the actual address. A side benefit is that in Google calendar clicking on this field brings up a map and in most cases a picture of the actula bulding or location;
   4. The Description for which we include the Total Value of the Job, the Salesman's name, the contact's name and email.

1. To use the attached report or a report generated for you by Cyrious, you will need to store it in a folder, prefereably Cyrious Reports, and preferably on the same drive which is running your Cyrious program.
2. Load the report into your Cyious report menu by clicking on Setup/Reporting Setup. This report will need to be in the folder titled Reports on Main Menu. Click on that folder and, if you want this is a subdirectory select that as well. Then Click on the ADD button at the top. Select New Crustal Report. This will bring up a screen where you can Name your new report. We named ours “Install Outlook Schedule”. Next go to the bottom of the screen. Browse to the file location where the report is located and select it. Save your work and you will now find that report in your Main Reports menu.
3. Select the report This report provides a Begin Date and End Date option which we explain below. These will be the earliest and the latest dates when the orders you are selecting were “modified” . For your first report where you may want all orders requiring installation, set your Begin Date to the earliest date where you expect to find orders. The End date should be the present. You may then Preview it to see what your Outlook calendar will be importing. You then Save the report. The default is to save it to your desktop.
4. Next go to your Outlook and open your calendar. Outlook provides the option to have many calendars. If you want it to sync with Google, you must use the default or main calendar. If you use Outlook for its calendar function for other purposes like business meetings, you will want to copy that and rename it so it is not contaminated with your Installation schedule information. (We did not take this step and lost the records of about 2 month's appointments with some embarrassing missed commitments.)
5. Setup The Import Map File In Outlook.
   • Go to Outlook's File Menu and select Import/Export Wizard.
   • Your first selection will be Import From Another Program or File and it will probably be highlighted. Select that.
   • Next will be a choice where you will see “Select from Comma Separated Values (MIcrosoft). Select that.
   • The Wizard will then ask you for the name of your Calendar. Be sure to select the correct one.
   • Next it will ask for the name of the file to be imported. Navigate to your desktop and select the Outlook Installation Report which Cyrious saved there.
   • Next the Wizard which show you a window that will have a filename with a checkbox. Click on that and you will get a “mapping” menu.
   • What Outlook is asking for in this menu is what portions of your import file go to which fields in Outlook. You map the data by dragging the field on the left to the appropriate label on the right.
6. ​​​​​​​Your first field should be dragged to the Subject line
7. Your second field should be dragged to the Start Date line.
8. For the 3rd field scroll down to the Description label.
9. Finally, your 4th category is the Location label.

• When your mapping is complete, click on finish and Outlook will begin importing you records. You should then see you calendar populated with all the Orders you have just imported.

1. To sync to Google you need to have a Google email account. There your select the Calendar tab and follow the directions to create a calendar. If you seach around you will find a program to download which will provide the synchronization with your Outlook schedule. Download that to the computer hosting your Outlook program and follow the instructions for installation and setup. You will not that you have the option for one way or two way synchonization. We selected one way so that the Google calendar can be viewed by anyone with whom we have shared it but any alterations to it will not update the Outlook calendar. Click on the Synchronize button and you will see a small activity icon working. When that is complete you can view the Calendar from any brrowser anywhere.
2. Link your Google calendar directly into Cyrious by Editing the Links instrument on your dashboard. Select URL and in the URL field enter www.google.com/calendar.render. When you click on that from your dashboard, it will open the Browser and ask you for the login name and password of your Google account where the calendar is. Cyrious will remember this even if you close and restart it; so you don't have to reenter your login information very often.
3. You should now have a working interface whereby the Google calendar will portray the Outlook calendar. The sync tool provides you an option for how often you want to update the calendar. Mindful of internal bandwidth, we set this to hourly.
4. To make this capability practical we developed a protocal where the calendar is updated daily at close of business with the latest Cyrious Orders or any Order updates such as a change in due date entered by the Salesman during that day. This is accomplished by setting the Last Modified Begin Date at the precise time that last report was generated. This avoids importing Order information which is already in the calendar, thereby creatng duplicates which Outlook would not detect even though we set the “Do not import duplicates” criteria if the Order has been moved to another due date.
5. Finally, recognizing that there will be duplicates, we purchased an inexpensive 3rd party plug-in for Outlook called Duplicate Killer which the scheduler runs after the import just to be sure nothing has slipped by. This appears on the Outlook toolbar and is very easy to use.

Contributor: Steve Gillispie, Acorn Sign Graphics

Date: 07/31/2009

Version: Control 4.3