While we were testing the shipping versions of Stalker's CGPro and SuSe's Openexchange Server, Stalker was at work on CGPro 4.1. We tested beta version 4.1b8 in our Real-World Labs® at Syracuse University as well as a beta "webskin," called EudoraLook, from one of CGPro's third-party developers, David Bakkers from Group Colleges in Sydney, Australia. The big news for this release is browser-based access to groupware features previously available only through the MAPI connector.
Release 4.1 extends the functionality of calendaring, contacts, tasks, notes and group scheduling to CGPro users who want to access these features using a browser rather than using Outlook. In addition, Outlook users who occasionally use a browser to access their CGPro server have access to the same contacts for addressing mail on the Web as they do in Outlook. They also can add appointments and set up group meetings from a browser session. Because all the data is stored on the server when the user goes back to Outlook, everything he or she did during the browser session is reflected in Outlook.
The standard CGPro Web interface is a little rough around the edges--usable but utilitarian. Out of curiosity we tested EudoraLook 3.0b2 as an optional skin for the Web interface, and found it usable and visually pleasing, if a bit busy. To test this beta version of CGPro, we loaded our accounts with a year's worth of contact and calendar items by dragging them from production Outlook clients' local calendar and contact folders and dropping them in their respective server-based folders using the MAPI connector.
Once the data was available we checked the transfer for accuracy using the EudoraLook interface and found everything copasetic. Instead of a single "Create New" button for new messages, CGPro 4.1 lets you devise and edit new events, tasks and notes. We created personal recurring events, scheduled group meetings and accepted requests for group meetings, all from the safety and comfort of a Web browser.
CGPro lets you import and export vCard and vCalendar data through the Web interface. We examined the server files that contained the calendar and contact information and were pleased to see that the data is stored in standard formats: vCard for contact information and vCalendar for calendar information. We used Outlook's import utility to load exports from CGPro's calendar and contact folders without a hitch.
What's missing? Stalker has yet to implement a good method to create and schedule conference rooms, video projectors and other resources. The company includes a new rule action in 4.1b8--called Accept Request--that seems intended to facilitate automatic resource scheduling, but Stalker needs to expand on this feature. Also, though CGPro lets you share a calendar with a co-worker, it doesn't support delegation properly: An event can be added to the calendar, but the user's free/busy information won't be updated.
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