Open source 'Outlook' alternatives?

**Tortoise** · 05-30-2003, 07:58 AM

What would folks recommend for replacing at least some of the functionality of Outlook on a corporate network? Changing the servers (exchange) is not an option right now, but could individual workstations go over to linux/mystery application X while others continued to use Win2k and Outlook?
Mail, shared calender, Palm syncing and contacts are the most important.
Any ideas?

**eadz** · 05-30-2003, 10:49 AM

the Evolution mail client has a (commercial) plugin to work with exchange .

the German government is paying for the development of an open groupware solution ( an altertative to outlook+exchange) based on Kmail, but that includes the server and won't work with exchange as the server (afaik).

Don't expect much open source software to work with the exchange server.

**aay** · 05-30-2003, 03:31 PM

As I understand it, Evolution manages email with an Exchange server by using the webmail function. You have to have webmail turned on on the Exchange server, but if do that you might as well just use a browser. It's MS' fault of course.

**Tortoise** · 06-09-2003, 05:31 AM

thanks - I also just saw crossover office, which might be a good bet, since my org already has the office licence.

**pau1knopp** · 06-09-2003, 10:14 PM

I used Crossover Office and it will most likely have all the functionality there for Outlook (and MSOffice, Quicken, Media Player, and a host of other Windows apps). I LOVED this product, but don't really need or use it (for about a year now) but I'm sure its just gotten better. Oh yeah, tech support was pretty darn good too.... The only thing I couldn't get it todo was to sync my Palm with Outlook, but hey!

You know that you could also configure Mozilla as an IMAP email client. That way you get email and folders, but no contacts, todos, calendar, notes, etc... I do that if I need quick and dirty outlook access, or just use the webbrowser.

**Tortoise** · 06-10-2003, 05:38 PM

That might be the solution - one problem is that I work for a non-profit, and we actually get all of our MS stuff free under a grant from them. I am trying a project to convert a smal number of workstations to OS, but I don't want to end up in the situation where switching to Linux costs more than MS (which costs us nothing right now). Bizarre, I know.