Sync Google Calendar, Outlook, Mobiles

A calendar lets you keep track of many things. It gives you reminders about events such as scheduled meetings and appointments, announcements or even special occasions such as birthdays and anniversaries. We are familiar with applications such as Outlook, which have this PIM functionality. Since almost everything happens online these days, Google has its own calendar service known as Google Calendar. The advantage, in this case, is that you can access it from anywhere without getting confined to using it on a single PC, because all you need is an Internet connection.

Install Google Calendar Sync
Now, the problem with Google Calendar is that you can access it only as long as you are online. But just for this situation, there is an application that allows you to synchronize Google Calendar with Outlook. The application in question is known as Google Calendar Sync and can be downloaded fromhttp://dl.google.com/googlecalendarsync/GoogleCalendarSync_Installer.exe. Once you download it, install it and launch it.

Enter your email address and password and select the Sync Option you prefer (we suggest 2-way). Also, enter the frequency of synching. Once done, Google Calendar Sync will automatically start synchronizing the two calendars.

We shall state one more method which may interest you, especially if you are using Outlook 2003. In this method, we shall use a utility called RemoteCalendars. RemoteCalendars is one such freeware utility, which can be downloaded from http://remotecalendars.sourceforge.net. Read on to find out the procedure involved in synchronizing Google Calendar with Outlook 2003/2007 using RemoteCalendars.

Install RemoteCalendars
Installing RemoteCalendars maybe a little tedious than it is to normally install any application, but we will attempt to explain how this is to be done in easy steps. Close Outlook if it is open. Install Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0 if you have not already installed. You can get it from here. Extract the contents of the RemoteCalendarsSetup-6.3ALL.zip file to a folder. Inside the folder, where you extracted files, you will find a Prerequisites folder from which you must first unpack O2003PIA.EXE and install O2003PIA.MSI. Next, install the file vstor.exe, which is also in the Prerequisites folder. Lastly, install RemoteCalendarsSetup.msi from the main RemoteCalendar folder.

Configure RemoteCalendars
The next time you launch Outlook after this installation, the Remote Calendar Options window will open automatically. Now, you can set the timezone to yours, so that all items stay in sync. Optionally, you can also check the Automatic Update box for this purpose. Now, click on the Subscribe a RemoteCalendar button to add your Google Calendar to Outlook.

Next, you need to copy the iCal URL for your calendar's Private Address on the Calendar Settings page.

Paste the copied iCal URL in the Remote Calendar's URL box, add the calendar name and check the box next to it's my Google Calendar and I want to sync both ways.

You can also add categories to be synchronized by clicking on the Add Categories to this calendar button.

Input the username and password for your Google Calendar when prompted.

Items added to your Google Calendar will now automatically appear in your Outlook calendar and sync with your phone based on your sync preferences.

Sync Google Calendar with Smartphone
Now, you can even carry your Google Calendar in your pocket. GCalSync is an open source application that allows you to do a two-way synchronization between Google Calendar and your mobile phone's built-in calendar. You can, therefore, download calendar events to your phone as well as upload them to Google Calendar using this application.

Download and Install GCalSync
To download this Java application, go to www.gcalsync.com or better still, if you want to directly install it to your mobile phone, you can go to the WAP site wap.gcalsync.com and download and install it directly to your phone. You will find two versions of this application for Smartphones - signed and unsigned, and one for the Blackberry. You should preferably choose to install the signed version for your phone, because this will not nag you for Internet access.

Configure GCalSync
After installing GCalSync on your mobile, start it. From amongst the different options you see, click Test to see whether your mobile and GCalSync are compatible. This tests the compatibility of your mobile calendar and also whether you have an adequate data connection (which is required for GCalSync to sync with Google Calendar online).

In the Options menu, you can set your user name (without @gmail.com) and your password and the calendar address (this is not necessary to be filled if you have filled your user name and password).You can also specify the period over which the calendar needs to be synchronized in Sync period (in number of past and future days). Lastly, you can specify your time zone as well as control if you want a one-way or two-way syncing of the calendar along with the direction of synching in the Upload/Download options.

Synchronize with Google Calendar
Select the Sync option to synchronize. For a complete resynchronization, you must select Full resync.

The end result of all the above procedure will be that your Google, Outlook and Smartphone calendars will be synchronized and easily accessible no matter where you are.