Exchange Messaging Outlook
Volume 6, Number 13

Greetings! Welcome to Vol. 6, No. 13, of Exchange Messaging Outlook, a biweekly newsletter about Microsoft Exchange and Microsoft Outlook.

• Team Folders Return
• What's Ahead for Exchange
• New Non-Exchange Sharing Tools

• New utilities
• Updated utilities
• Other new resources

Team Folders Return

The Team Folders Kit is once again available for download from http://www.microsoft.com/technet/prodtechnol/office/downloads/utils/teamkit.asp after being pulled from the Microsoft site in August because of a possible security problem. [EDITOR'S NOTE: Less than a week after we noted the kit's availability, Microsoft pulled it again.] However, the restored download contains the old version of the Outlook 2000 View Control (OVC), version 9.0.0.3203. A newer OVC for Outlook 2000, version 10.0.0.3124, is available at http://office.microsoft.com/downloads/2000/outlctlx.aspx.

The inclusion of the old version is not as worrisome as it might sound, because there was no real security vulnerability in the Outlook 2000 version of the OVC. However, because a malicious web page operator could have made changes to the display to make the user think they'd lost data, Microsoft updated the control to restrict the ability to script it in web pages that are not hosted as Outlook folder home pages.

The Outlook 2002 version did, however, have a major security hole. Downloading the latest public Outlook 2002 patch from http://office.microsoft.com/downloads/2002/olk1004.aspx takes care of that.

If Team Folders is new to you, it's a tool for building a very nice team collaboration interface in Exchange Server public folders, using Outlook's ability to display a web page for any particular folder. Unfortunately, it apparently never caught on within Microsoft or elsewhere. Microsoft itself has largely moved on to collaboration web sites built with SharePoint Team Services (a new feature in Office XP).

Still, I think Team Folders is a great tool for leveraging your investment in Exchange Server, especially if you take the time to read through the self-documenting code for the HTML pages it creates. I've posted some pointers at http://www.slipstick.com/dev/teamfolders.htm.

What's Ahead for Exchange

Our last EMO talked briefly about what was ahead for Outlook. If you're wondering where Exchange is headed, check out John Fontana's article for Network World Fusion on how a data store shared with SQL Server will transform Exchange and may cause some firms to skip Exchange 2000 and concentrate for now just on getting Active Directory up and running:

Exchange's transformation to .Net coming in 2003
http://www.nwfusion.com/news/2001/1002netexchange.html

Fontana also interviewed Paul Flessner, Microsoft's senior vice president for .Net Enterprise Servers, and Kevin McCuistion, group product manager of Exchange server marketing, getting some interesting answers on the licensing implications of Exchange hosting .Net web services:

Exchange Changes
http://www.nwfusion.com/news/2001/1022apps.html

New Non-Exchange Sharing Tools

The New and Updated Utilities sections in this issue of EMO include several noteworthy tools for sharing Outlook data without Exchange Server. This has been a topic of growing interest since Outlook 2002 arrived without the Net Folders feature, which performed mail-based sharing -- not always reliably -- in Outlook 98 and 2000. Two products are in their initial release, while a third is a major update to a product that first came out summer 2000.

SQLView XP (http://www.oaklodge.com/sqlview/) allows you to use SQL Server 7.0, SQL Server 2000, or MSDE, the "lite" version of SQL 2000 that comes with Office XP, as the repository for Outlook contacts, appointments, tasks and notes. It works with either Outlook 2002 or Outlook 2000 in Corporate/Workgroup mode, operating as a MAPI data provider. Because the data is in a database that can be shared, all users can work from the same data.

Epicenter (http://www.connectedsw.com/Epicenter.html) automatically distributes address book updates to POP3 and IMAP4 users. The source address book can be Exchange, Lotus Notes, Eudora, LDAP, Netscape, Outlook Express, or Pine, as well as Outlook. The recipient has to load the update into Outlook, but this still makes it relatively easy for everyone to have the same data, especially if the users aren't normally connected to the same LAN.

WebPublisher for Outlook (http://www.outlookcentral.com/wpo/default.htm) has undergone a massive overhaul in Version 2 to allow you to publish any Outlook folder, even Exchange public folders, to the Web. The destination can be an intranet web server, the Internet, or a server where Outlook Central offers space for a small annual fee. If you publish data to Outlook Central's server, you can also edit it on the Web and have those changes posted back to Outlook. Synchronization takes place automatically or on demand, but it does trigger the Outlook Email Security Update's address book prompt. You may want to consider using the Express ClickYes tool from http://www.contextmagic.com/express-clickyes/ to bypass the prompt, if automatic updating is essential. Bonus features include SMS notifications of upcoming appointments and support for a shared calendar in the Pro version.

New Utilities

ATTACHMENT REMINDER
http://attachrmnder.asynchrony-projects.com/
Checks the text of outgoing messages for indicators that you may have meant to send an attachment. If it appears that you omitted the attachment, this tool displays an Insert File dialog box so you can locate the missing file.

AVAYA SPEECH ACCESS FOR UNIFIED MESSENGER
http://www.avaya.com/
Access and modify Outlook messages, appointments, tasks and contacts over the telephone. Requires Microsoft Exchange Server and Avaya Unified Messenger for Microsoft Exchange.

BRIGHTMAIL SOLUTION SUITE FOR EXCHANGE 2000
http://www.brightmail.com/
Anti-spam solution based on detailed analysis of email traffic on the Net with updates sent to servers automatically. Moves suspected junk mail to a special folder for end-user review. Integrates at the SMTP transport level.

EAS-WIRELESS
http://www.educomts.com/easWireless/main.htm
Server to send highlights of incoming mail to your wireless device, supporting policy-based email filtering through the Exchange Server connection. A desktop utility allows end users control over what's transmitted.

EPICENTER
http://www.connectedsw.com/Epicenter.html
Provides a way to distribute up-to-date address books from a central server via e-mail or the Web. For Exchange environments, it can help make the GAL available to non-MAPI clients. In non-Exchange environments, it gives you a centrally maintained address book compatible with Outlook and other mail clients.

INNOPORT.COM
https://innoport.com/signup.asp
Web-based personal information manager, with email and optional fax services, too. The Gratis service gives you free calendar and contacts, with Outlook sync.

INTERACTION
http://www.interfacesoftware.com/Website/interaction/ia_integration_overview.asp
Integration with the InterAction CRM solution consists of a MAPI address book provider and an InterAction for Outlook Contacts tool to synchronize between Outlook and InterAction.

ORBIS SMS
http://www.intelliware-systems.com/products/sms.html
Client and server components for transmitting SMS messages from Outlook. The optional client MAPI transport allows Outlook users to address messages to [SMS:phone number]. The server functions as an SMTP gateway between any SMTP messaging system and the Orbis SMS server. An ActiveX component is also available to developers.

PDASYNC
http://www.laplink.com/products/PDAsync/overview.asp
Synchronize Outlook calendar, contacts, mail, and tasks with Palm, Pocket PC, Windows CE, Casio Personal Organizer, and various "smart" phones. Product license covers two computers, so you can install it both at work and at home and use your PDA to keep both machines in sync.

SALES-VISION
http://www.crm-vision.co.uk/maincrm.asp?page=products&text=sales
Sales force automation module for Outlook, combining database, Exchange Server and other data. Provides a unified view of all sales contacts, activities, and customer communications, with forecasting, reporting, and other sales features.

SQLVIEW 2000 FOR MICROSOFT OUTLOOK
http://www.oaklodge.com/sqlview/
Share Outlook contacts, appointments, tasks and notes directly via a Microsoft SQL 7.0 or SQL 2000 database, with custom views and filters.

TERRA CRM
http://www.terralink.ru/en/services/services_crm.html
Client relationship management solution built on Exchange and Outlook. Can be customized to integrate with existing sales systems.

WORLDMERGE
http://www.coloradosoft.com/worldmrg/index.htm
Bulk mail program that sends an individual message to each recipient. Can use Outlook data, as well as many other sources. Can attach up to 20 files, even to HTML-format messages, and use merge fields to build the message subject.

Updated utilities

NELSON EMAIL ORGANIZER
http://www.caelo.com/
Version 2.0 build 73 of this tool for organizing Outlook message automatically adds compatibility with Outlook 2002.

TREND MICRO SCANMAIL FOR MICROSOFT EXCHANGE 2000
http://www.antivirus.com/products/smex2000/
Version 6.0 of this anti-virus utility adds email attachment blocking, inbound and outbound message content and attachment scanning, and a real-time active message filter, so administrators can quickly respond to a virus outbreak without waiting for a new pattern file.

WEBPUBLISHER FOR OUTLOOK
http://www.outlookcentral.com/wpo/default.htm
Version 2.04 generates web pages from any Outlook folder, including Exchange public folders, publishing either to your own site or to the Outlook Central site, where you can even edit your contact and appointment information, as well as provide password-protected access for others. Sends reminders via SMS before appointments. Triggers the address book prompt from the

Outlook Email Security Update; if you want to automatically update the data, consider using Express ClickYes (http://www.contextmagic.com/express-clickyes/) to bypass the prompt.

Pro version supports WAP access and multi-user calendar.

Other new resources

EXCHANGE 2000 INFORMATION STORE POST SP-1 PATCH 4720.66
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/release.asp?ReleaseID=33125
Consolidated collection of Information Store hotfixes issued since Service Pack 1.

MSGDUMP2000
http://www.bpsmicro.com/MsgDump2000.htm
COM add-in sample for Outlook 2000 and 2002 written in C++.

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Updated Apr 07 2008

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