Just an update here: I just learnt that Google Calendar is now compatible with Webdav and Ical.

For me, a calendar application for the 2010 decade must offer at least two features:

1. Display online
2. Mobile phone sync

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't see the possibility of developing that in Pmail for the moment. Not unless the development of core features more directly related to email is sacrificed. And then, there is also the risk of losing Pmail's lightweight.

In the meanwhile, there so many time-related features that would be easy to implement, like:

• Send later, chose date
• Send to myself, as a reminder

Only those two would be a significant improvement.Some competition does that.

Then, if there is possibility to do more, we can imagine for instance a calendar view of messages to be sent. That would be the beginning of a calendar, only the intention would reversed: you don't create an event with a subsidiary email, you create an email which may if you wish contain an event.

Calendar, please.

Definitely on the list - but you've all been hearing that for quite a long time.

If I've learned nothing else from the past few years, I have at least learned that making predictions on when the calendar code might actually see the light of day is futile, so I won't fall into that trap here. What I will tell you is that some of the code is written, the outline is quite thoroughly planned, and the priority is very, very high. The internal object interface I've been ponderously working my way through recently (see my development blogs for more on this) is the final crucial component in the calendar puzzle, and that is now working.

I know how frustrating it must be to wait and wait for a promised feature - I feel it more keenly than you can imagine. All I can tell you is that I'm sorry for making you all wait so long, but that it WILL happen. Once we get a bit closer to full speed development, I will be starting a thread in one of the forums here and inviting comments, suggestions and thoughts, just in case there are things I've missed.

Cheers!

-- David --

Since you're reworking the address book, I want to state that Pegasus needs to be able to synch with a cell-phone/PDA preferrably with MS-Activesynch. As a frequent road rat, Calendar and address book is what makes life possible, and having the exact same data on both computers, on-line web services, and the mail-software is a must for 2008 and forward. The next thing I use heavily is Notes on the PDA, and lastly email messaging over IMAP. So in the following order:

1. Address book, the same in Pegasus as in a PDA
2. Calendar, as above
3. Notes
4. E-Mail

Hi !

Well, sure a calendar is something useful, but the idea of Pegasus Mail was only to deal with email and do it the best possible way (which is the case). Now, I am a bit afraid that this calendar integration will open the road to make Pegasus Mail like other programs by combining in it more and more features that are not closely related to emails managing. In this respect, calendar has little to do with emails, and I think the energy and time dedicated to code these not-so-close-to-emails-features would be better use in improving Pegasus Mail on the emails managing department. That said, a friend of mine recommended me the following calendar : http://www.essentialpim.com/ . He uses the free version, which is sufficient for one person, but lots of features in the paid version are really nice. So maybe you can go and have a look, and even try the free version for a little bit of time, and take this program as an inspiration (especially the fetaures in the not-free version).

Bye !

Ginhead. 

[quote user="Peter Strömblad"]

Since you're reworking the address book, I want to state that Pegasus needs to be able to synch with a cell-phone/PDA preferrably with MS-Activesynch. As a frequent road rat, Calendar and address book is what makes life possible, and having the exact same data on both computers, on-line web services, and the mail-software is a must for 2008 and forward. The next thing I use heavily is Notes on the PDA, and lastly email messaging over IMAP. So in the following order:

1. Address book, the same in Pegasus as in a PDA
2. Calendar, as above
3. Notes
4. E-Mail

[quote user="Ginhead"]

Hi !

Well, sure a calendar is something useful, but the idea of Pegasus Mail was only to deal with email and do it the best possible way (which is the case). Now, I am a bit afraid that this calendar integration will open the road to make Pegasus Mail like other programs by combining in it more and more features that are not closely related to emails managing. In this respect, calendar has little to do with emails, and I think the energy and time dedicated to code these not-so-close-to-emails-features would be better use in improving Pegasus Mail on the emails managing department. That said, a friend of mine recommended me the following calendar : http://www.essentialpim.com/ . He uses the free version, which is sufficient for one person, but lots of features in the paid version are really nice. So maybe you can go and have a look, and even try the free version for a little bit of time, and take this program as an inspiration (especially the fetaures in the not-free version).

Bye !

Ginhead. 

Hi !

Ah, ok, I understand now in which way this calendar feature can be useful. Concerning the bloat risk, I am rather confident that Pegasus Mail will not get bloated for it seems to me that David is not really bloated-software friendly. Now about Essential PIM, I think one should give it a try for it seems to have really nice capabilities, but when I say "Should give it a try", that means with the objective of coding a calendar to integrate into Pegasus Mail, so the objective is to test Essential PIM and retain only its best features and then take them as an inspiration for the Pegasus Mail Calendar. Also, on a professional basis, one of the reasons Outlook is the first choices of companies is because of these calendar functions, and our friends from the Mozilla Foundation are trying to eat market shares by developing "Lightning". I think we should also aim in the same direction, and maybe, who knows, one day 95% of the companies will use Pegasus Mail with annually donations to ensure development. Also, if the Python scripting module could be integrated, that would give us the most powerful email client out there, and I am sure that many companies and non-professional users will definitely adopt it for a very very long time :-).

Cheers !

Ginhead. 

A calendar would be nice, of course, but I am very concerned that the introduction of such a gigantic new feature would suck resources away from the core functionality of e-mail and a solid addressbook.

I have always felt that Calendar functionality was peripheral to email communication and a contacts database.  Sure, some people in large corporations might "accept meetings" via e-mail, and an integrated calendar would be useful in this case.  But I seriously question how many Pegasus users need this functionality.

There are a lot of really nice stand-alone calendars available as stand-alone apps (Essential PIM as someone else mentioned, for example).  Is it really necessary to re-invent the wheel?

In any case...If calendar functionality is "very, very high" priority as David responded , then I hope that address book is "very, very, very, very high" priority!!

I don't see the absolute necessity of a calendar either. Mine is online, like many people now I believe. I believe i18n spellchecking is way more of a priority.

I would very much prefer work on the address book. Especially sync with my Nokia cell phone, so I don't have to write on the tiny phone keyboard, and I can import everything in a single file. Bluetooth and so on...
 

I just want to confirm that PIM functions (mainly calendar and contacts) and possible synchronisations with mobile devices would be the highest on my personal wish list.

A great deal of business life organises itself with email being a centre piece of communication strongly linked to addresses and calenders. It becomes increasingly important also in my day to day work, and honestly I assume for many other professional users as well. If this can be solved I believe that there would be greater chance to get Pegasus Mail also into larger firms which might be looking for alternatives to the costly mainstream applications. As someone already has suggested elsewhere, this could hopefully also lead to some additional development funding support from that side.

The missing of a good PIM function(/application) which would cooperate with Pegasus Mail becomes an increasing obstacle for me as I need to organise especially my calender and contacts and even synchronise them with my PDA (e.g. Palm Treo750w Windows Mobile) etc. As a very unsatisfying compromise I am currently using the Outlook PIM functions (calendar and contacts) and PM for my emails.

David has already indicated his in principle positive stand towards a PIM inclusion, if I understood his message correctly. Maybe its time to draw out a possible roadmap on the PIM development/incorporation and put figures to it and then see whether the community is willing to support it with some additional seed funding?

Cheers

Thomas

I can see the for and the against, I personally wouldn't use it in my email app, but I mainly calendar features in the database system I built to deal with. My suggestion would be a switch... turn on or off and it only loads when needed. and when it unloads it ensure it frees the memory

I would use it [;)]

I'm no big fan of Outlook, but the calendar functionality with invitations etc. is a good feature.

To have a switch where you can turn it on or off, is in my opinion not necessary, but should be

no problem to implement.

Personnally I wouldn't use a calendar that is not online for my colleagues to see, comment, etc

I would perhaps use a calendar in Pegasus if it was synchronized by Webdav or something, but then it would be a lot of work compared to directly accessing the calendar online with present time dsl connections.

I know, David, I get a little wordy at times but cannot let this get by without a comment from ole Windy.

#1. Pegasus Mail is very light weight and undoubtably the most powerful, more features than any of the others, and can even be used by this DUMMY after a few years of learning.  Would not want anythingy to be added that would change or disrupt any of the presently featured operations, except maybe some improvements which I cannot find any.

 #2. Why put a calendar in Pegasus Mail when that should be made a add-on for those that would like to have it and those that do not will just not download that feature.  If it adds some extra bloat then those of us that do not want it do not HAVE to download and install.

#3. David has done so much work to give us this FEATURE RICH program that is usable, even by ME, would not like making him change it to such an extreme that some of us would need to change.  I VOTE for the calendar, but; as an add-on feature for those that want it.

#4. THE END of my input on this topic.

Thank you for reading my message,

When I suggested to have a PIM function (mainly calendar and contacts etc.) included, I thought of having this functionality useable from within or with PM which in my view does not necessarily mean to be hard-coded into Pegasus Mail. An extension or plugin which could be installed or not would just be as fine as long as both applications would work nicely with each other (e.g. drag and drop messages into calendar to create entry, meeting etc.). In a very early message to the PM team - 29 April 2004 - I already mentioned an calendar and suggested to maybe link up with other existing PIM applications such as Mozilla Calendar. This was just an example and I do not even know whether this particular example would actually make any sense (programming wise). Of course there would be many other issues involved as well, such as licence, etc.

But I fully agree with NTxLS - I love the functionality and flexibility PM provides and which in that form is not found elsewhere!

Cheers

Thomas

tmstein,

Excuse me, I am not accustomed to people agreeing with me so completely.  Thank you for your input and going along with this DUMMY.  I have not a use for a calendar as I have enough problems keeping up with day to day operations in my own home, do not travel, retired and would just as soon remain here at home and work with my CPU.  Actually that stands for 'Central Processing Unit' which is the Intel, AMD Athlon, et ceteras, chip part of a computer.  My training is Electronics, about 60 years experience.

[quote user="NTxLS"]

 #2. Why put a calendar in Pegasus Mail when that should be made a add-on for those that would like to have it and those that do not will just not download that feature.  If it adds some extra bloat then those of us that do not want it do not HAVE to download and install.

#3. David has done so much work to give us this FEATURE RICH program that is usable, even by ME, would not like making him change it to such an extreme that some of us would need to change.  I VOTE for the calendar, but; as an add-on feature for those that want it.

[/quote]

I TOTALLY agree with this notion.  I am happy with my standalone calendar app.

I also think there is a confusion as to the scope and autonomy of the feature needed.

Imho all functions embedded hard into Pmail must remain slave to mail receiving, reading and sending. For instance, Pmail presently provides me with a text editor, but for sending mail, not to save files, not to produce documents.

In the same way, an address-book is valid only if the person registered is a sender, or a "sendee". Adding an identity card without a mail address would be heresy, imho. And the identity card should always contain a "Send mail to this person" button. And even a "Check this person's last messages" button.

Hence if there need be calendar functions embedded, they must be like "When do I send this email"... a window showing which message will be sent when, the possibility to drag and drop message to another day, a right-click to Create new message to be sent that day...

That would be a sort of revolution compared to present Google or Yahoo calendars: send email is no longer an option of event, but event is one of the possible contents of email. If there is an event in that calendar, it can be named in the message-to-be-sent's subject, and described in the message-to-be-sent's body.

For example, instead of first organizing an event and then chosing to warn people by mail the day before, I would first create a mail to be sent the day before, and then inside that mail write that there will be an event.

Also, such a "Calendar of messages" window could be used to send myself messages, as reminders. Like right-click on a precise day, and select "Send myself a reminder". Like "Dentist in two hours". I can even specify to play an mp3 tune when receiving a special one.

With Address Book and Mail Calendar combined, it could be "Send me a message reminding me of this person's birthday". Or "Send me me a message reminding me that I must absolutely phone this person when he is back from holidays next month".

Extremely flexible.

An interesting idea, but I'm not sure that using the underlying email system for internal notices is a great way to go.  For one, it could open up the possibility of someone sending you spam that has been crafted to look like a notice and would then popup when your notice box is opened...

I'm very much in agreement that the calendar should be treated as a separately installable module.  However, I think the integration should be made as seemless as possible.

Currently, when I receive a meeting invite or other calendar event (usually .ics format) Pegasus cannot even read the attachement.  I have to open it in a text editor and read out the code myself, or save it and use an external program like Sunbird.  It would go a long way to improving things if Pegasus could just read standard calendar formats internally and show them as inline HTML at the end of the message, with the senders address clickable in case you want to reply.