Doesn't outlook suck itself? :)

I think anything that makes managing your time and contacts easier is a good thing. Sounds like a good solution for Outlook, this a freeware solution or for sale?

Talk to google, they have already done a great job of doing this with their calendar and integrating it into g-mail

I think the parsing idea adds something to your idea. And some people are becoming leary about sharing too much with Google. I had to do something like this recently and I just thought there has to be a better way. Give it a go, good luck.

Why not do it the other way around? First mark the calender then you select the date and it will insert Call Madonna at 818-887-2912 tomorrow at 3pm.

I don't like (and use) Outlook.
I think it would be better to just make a seperate tool which will do the job.
In this case you'll also be informed about things you shouldn't forget when you don't open Outlook, but you can still make an extra plug-in for Outlook which adds the contacts to this program.

"I don't like (and use) Outlook."
http://www.mozilla.c...m/en-US/thunderbird/

What mattbman said!

It doesn't strike me as interesting because Google does a good job of parsing and I haven't used Outlook in years. Maybe you could make money off it, but then Microsoft might just encompass that feature in the next release of their software.

As I commented in another Outlook-related idea... does Outlook allow extensions/add-ons/plugins in the same way that Thunderbird does? If so, persuading people to adopt a plugin for software they already base their life around might be easier than persuading them to change completely.

PhilipH, Outlook (and all other Office apps) does have a nice interface for adding plugins. You can add your own elements on panes, toolbars, etc. and have full access to the underlying data objects.

Try: http://www.plaxo.com/

Thanks for that micco - I haven't been using Outlook for a while, and even when I was I never thought about plugins.

In that case I'm quite convinced that an Outlook plugin is the way to go. It's much easier to adopt as you do away with the hassle of moving your contacts and diary items between systems, so more people will be willing to try it.

at least we can all agree that the state of the art could be done in a more desirable fashion.

Hey Kevlar,

I believe that something similar is necessary. With the emerging multitude of ways and platforms for personal organization a connection is necessary. I think a software tool to use OCR, parsing and I/O abilities to:

1. Read from any source (calendar, document, v-card, scanned handwritten scribble on a napkin/business card/picture ,sound recording)
2. Re-examine data relationships (based on date,time/GPS location/names/venues)
3. Prepare exportable database for syncing with any other calendar tool

I'd be concerned about Microsoft embrace-extend-extinguish method of software "development" / stifling competition....

I think one way to go with this idea that would be very simple is an Adobe Air application.

I'm not trying to be a jump on the bandwagon kind of guy with AIR but it seems it would fit this idea well.

Of course that won't be built into Outlook but maybe someone can find a way to export the data in to it.

build and we will buy ( hopefully)...