Custom Forms - What's Possible?

[Rick Brandt]

Our management is thinking about using Outlook to have contact data
that is shared and synchronized with our sales personnel in the field using
custom forms.

What they have in mind would require custom forms that can deal with a
master/detail type of relationship like you would have in an app tied to a
relational database. Can Outlook custom forms even do this? I have not
found any examples sounding remotely like this sort of thing.

TIA

 

[Sue Mosher [MVP-Outlook]]

Outlook itself is not a relational database and, thus, would require a lot of development work to adapt to this scenario. You might want to take a look at Business Contact Manager or dozens of other CRM applications that have Outlook connections; see http://www.slipstick.com/addins/contact_management.asp

Also, custom forms are a development dead-end; the better approach would be to use the form regions introduced in Outlook 2007.

 

[Rick Brandt]

Outlook itself is not a relational database and, thus, would require
a lot of development work to adapt to this scenario. You might want
to take a look at Business Contact Manager or dozens of other CRM
applications that have Outlook connections; see
http://www.slipstick.com/addins/contact_management.asp

Thanks; we are already looking at BCM. Since those CRMs use a database for
the additional data, can they still do all of the automatic synchronization
with external users that can be done with simple Outlook contacts or would
those users need to have access to the database (as well as have a local
database)?

The example that was given was that my boss can see (and use) his Outlook
contacts on his Blackberry and if he makes a change there it is
automatically pushed into his contact data on his corporate PC. Would that
same level of synchronization be possible with BCM?

Also, custom forms are a development dead-end; the better approach
would be to use the form regions introduced in Outlook 2007.

Will do. Thanks again.

 

[Sue Mosher [MVP-Outlook]]

Users would need access to the database. BCM includes some sync capability. You'll have to poke around to see if it meets your needs. There is a separate microsoft.public.outlook.bcm newsgroup.

 

[Rick Brandt]

Users would need access to the database. BCM includes some sync
capability. You'll have to poke around to see if it meets your needs.
There is a separate microsoft.public.outlook.bcm newsgroup.

Hmm, not on my news server. I'll check Google.

 

[Brian Tillman]

Hmm, not on my news server. I'll check Google.

Then use Microsoft's server:
news://msnews.microsoft.com/microsoft.public.outlook.bcm