Google Calendar: Sync Outlook or Your Phone, Add Features

Rick Broida, PC World Jul 13, 2010

Most of my calendar data lives in Outlook. Not by choice, mind you, but because that's just where it has accumulated over the years.

I'd rather use Google Calendar, which is more versatile and less, well, Outlooky. Just one problem: how do I move my data from the latter to the former? And, just as important, how can I keep the two entities in sync?

Surprisingly few people know that Google offers a solution: the aptly named Google Calendar Sync. This free utility runs under Windows and automatically keeps Google Calendar and your Outlook calendar in sync.

That means you can enter an appointment in one spot and it'll auto-magically appear in the other--and vice versa. But you also have the option of sticking with a one-way sync, like copying all your Outlook appointments to GCal but not copying GCal appointments to Outlook.

Google Calendar Sync is compatible with Windows XP and Vista (though in my experience it works fine with Windows 7 as well). It requires Outlook 2003 or 2007--I'm not sure if it's compatible with Outlook 2010.

Setup is a snap:

1. Download and run the utility.

2. Enter your Google account info.

3. Choose your sync option (one way or two way).

4. Specify how often the utility should sync your calendars (the default is every two hours).

That's it! The first sync takes a couple minutes; after that, it's virtually instantaneous. Now you can use both calendars however you see fit, all the while keeping both in sync. Sync Google Calendar With Your Smartphone.

One of the things I love about Google Calendar is that it requires no desktop component. Sure, you can sync it with Outlook, but not everyone needs or wants a program like that just to manage appointments.

Indeed, more and more people prefer to keep their calendars on their mobile phones, just as they do their address books.

If you do use Outlook, you've probably already configured it to sync with your phone. If not, or if, like me, you're trying to migrate away from that unwieldy beast, look no further than Google Sync --a free service that syncs mobile phones with Google Calendar.

And not just Google Calendar, but also Google Contacts and Gmail. The service works with BlackBerry, iPhone, and Nokia S60 devices. (Why not Android? Because Google's mobile OS already syncs with the various Google services, natch. As for the Palm Pre and Pixi, they can sync with Google right out of the box.)

Google provides all the instructions you need for configuring and using Google Sync, so I won't rehash them here. My goal is simply to explain why it's a good idea.

If you're already a Google Calendar user, it should be pretty obvious: Sync brings a copy of your schedule to your phone--and keeps both versions up to date. Handy!

If you're not a Google Calendar user, Sync effectively gives you an online backup of your schedule--something that could prove invaluable if your phone gets broken, lost, stolen, etc.

Plus, there's much to be said for having a calendar that's accessible from any Web-enabled device (desktop, netbook, iPad, etc.). Same goes for your contacts. Add a 'Next Meeting' Box to Google Calendar

Now that you know how to sync smartphones and Outlook with Google Calendar, let's talk about some other ways to make it more useful.

Like many of Google's apps and services, Calendar offers a "labs" section where you can find various tweaks and enhancements that are still in the testing stages. One of my favorites is Next Meeting, which adds a box that displays--you guessed it--your next scheduled appointment. It's a tiny change, but a very practical one.

To enable Next Meeting, sign into Google Calendar, then select the little green beaker that appears in the upper-right corner of the page. That'll take you to the Labs page. Scroll down almost all the way to the bottom, find Next Meeting, select Enable, and then select the Save button at the bottom.

That's all there is to it! Now, when you look at your calendar, you'll see the new box in the lower right corner. It shows the next scheduled entry in your calendar and a countdown timer.

How To Increase Your Internet Speed By 20%

Posted by Jason, PC Tips Box May 14, 2009

If you use Windows XP Professional then it is possible to squeeze an extra 20% out of your internet connection. By default Windows XP Pro holds back 20% of your Internet speed for various services like windows update and spyware checks.

If you want to tap into this locked speed then make the following changes:

1. Go to Start-> Run-> and type gpedit.msc

2. Expand the Administrative Templates branch

3. Expand the Network tab

4. Highlight QoS Packet Scheduler

5. Select Limit Reservable Bandwidth and check the enabled box

6. Then Change the Bandwidth limit % to 0 %

Once you have done this select apply and restart your PC. After rebooting you should see a noticeable improvement in your net speed.

Amazon Offers Cloud Supercomputing Service
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Adobe Reader, IE top vulnerability list
The most exploited vulnerabilities tend to be Adobe Reader and Internet Explorer, but a rising target for exploits is Java, according to a report to be released on Wednesday by M86 Security LabsGo here to read the entire guide on cnet.com.

R.I.P. Windows XP SP2
End of an era,' says one researcher; security pros mark retirement of Microsoft's most significant service pack Go here to read the entire guide on Computerworld.com.

Mobile Facebook users hit 150 million
Facebook has about 150 million mobile users, up from just 100 million in April, and is counting on cell phones as the key platform for the future, according to the social-networking giant’s head of mobile products, Eric Tseng. Go here to read the entire guide on Macworld.com.

How to Speed-up Your Mac [Performance Guide]

Rahul Dowlath, BLOGOTE July 15, 2010

* Clean out the “Downloads” folder:
This is a surprising one; sometimes, you never realize how big the Downloads folder on your Mac can really get. Mine is almost 2GB (!). This is valuable hard-disk space that could be utilized in better ways. I recommend you delete any unnecessary files in this folder (if possible, clean-out the entire folder). Move any files you want to keep for future use (such as installation packages) to an external hard drive.

* Clean out the “Start-up” Processes:
Some applications launch immediately when you start-up your Mac. However, you may not need to use any of them, so why not remove them from the Startup que? Do this by navigating to: Apple Menu -> System Preferences -> Accounts -> Login Items. In there, simply select the name of a startup item, and select the “minus” sign at the bottom of the list box.

* Get rid of languages you don’t need:
By default, OS X installs a bunch of languages to make the OS more universally accessible. But you may not need most of those files; simply remove them by using a nifty utility called Monolongual.

* Restart your Mac:
If you tend to keep your Mac on for a long time (a good few days at most), it’s time to give the poor thing a rest — they do have feelings too, you know! Restart the machine, and you may experience a jump in performance.

* Repair your system: Utilities like Onyx (link to application site) can perform “repairs” to the system, fixing little portions of the OS that may have gotten damaged with the day-to-day stresses of digital life.

* Clean the Hard Drive: Move-off those unnecessary files like movies, music, and photos, to an external hard drive. Personally, I have my DVD collection which is optimized for iPod viewing sitting on my external drive, saving over 20-30GB of space. Saving disk space gives your Mac a “fresh” feel too, and it makes Spotlight searches that much quicker.

Finally, it’s highly recommended that if you own any of the latest Macs (from 2008 onwards, like the uni-body Mac Books), you upgrade to Snow Leopard. While OS X 10.6 doesn’t include many visual features, it’s refinements under-the-hood make your Mac feel brand new. Do you have any tips of your own that you use to speed-up your Mac? Drop a line in the comments below!

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