The calendar server will be upgraded on Sunday, November 10, with calendar service unavailable from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. on that date. The upgrade will add such features as faster client transactions, reduced network traffic, faster synchronization to PDAs and a faster Web server.

New clients for Macintosh and Windows systems are now available on the Lab software download page. New clients for Linux, Solaris, Windows PDA and Personal Digital Assistants like the Palm Pilot and Windows Pocket PC will be available after the Nov. 10 calendar server upgrade. The calendar Web pages have been completely rewritten to document all changes and show all functions of the new client.

Mac clients will get a minor upgrade since the entirely new 5.2.x client was rewritten for OSX. The new 5.2.3 calendar client offers bug fixes and changes to allow it to run on OS 10.2, also known as Jaguar. There will not be a Palm synchronization client for OSX operating systems until the second quarter of 2003. The current OS 9.x Palm synchronization client is available at http://www.lbl.gov/download.

Windows clients will see a substantial improvement in usability and customizations. Among the many new features are:

• User-customized color schemes
  
• Ability to switch between windows while creating a new entry
  
• Ability to open group views from the new meeting window or agenda window
  
• Color printing

See the calendar Web site for additional information.

Linux/Solaris clients will finally be upgraded to a client equivalent to the current 5.x PC and Mac clients in look, feel and functionality after the server upgrade. All future clients will be on par with the Mac and PC clients and released on the same schedule beginning with the next release in the second quarter of 2003.

Steltor, the maker of the Lab's scheduling software, was acquired by Oracle Corporation on June 21, 2002. No major changes are expected with the existing software package, as Oracle is expected to continue to upgrade the calendar system, offering new features and functionality and allow it to be run as a standalone product.