Version 1.2 of the Viira Outlook Suite is now available for download. It is chock-full of new capabilities and enhancements and we are very excited to be bringing it to you!

First, we have brought in all the new features from the recently-released Viira 3 over to the Viira Outlook Suite BlackBerry client. On your BlackBerry you will now see the enhanced, touch-screen enabled user interface from Viira 3 as well as reminders, search and even the option to hide completed tasks. In short, everything that Viira 3 can do the Viira Outlook Suite BlackBerry client can now do as well - including the ability to create SMS tasks and file them in your GTD system.

Here is the full list of what is new in version 1.2:

• Reminders. Both the BlackBerry client and the Outlook plugin let you set a reminder for any task, including email tasks and SMS tasks.
• Search. Quickly find any task from the Tasks View of the BlackBerry client with the new fast iterative search.
• Faster sync. The BlackBerry client and the Outlook plugin now actively listen for any changes to your tasks, projects and contexts. Changes that are pushed wirelessly now get picked up in near real-time and get displayed faster than before.
• Enhanced UI. You will find the BlackBerry client sporting an even more responsive and intuitive UI, just like Viira 3 does.
• Enhanced Outlook plugin stability. The underlying Outlook environment can sometimes provide unpleasant surprises. Our development team has put our partnership with Microsoft and leaders in the MS ecosystem to work in order to provide a smoother and responsive experience for everyone.
• SMS tasks. With the Viira Outlook Suite you can now create a task based on an SMS message directly from your BlackBerry Inbox. The SMS tasks can be filed in your GTD system and get synced with Outlook.

Version 1.2 comes as a free upgrade to all buyers of the full version of the Viira Outlook Suite. Installing version 1.2 will also extend the free trial and give you a chance to try out the new features for those who haven’t upgraded to the full version yet.

You can download the latest version from the Viira Outlook Suite download page.

All BlackBerry devices come equipped with software and tools that make syncing with Outlook via USB a cinch. If your BlackBerry is not powered by the BlackBerry Enterprise Server (BES) and you are like many BlackBerry owners out there who use a regular, non-corporate BIS plan, instead of synchronizing wirelessly the Viira Outlook Suite can also sync via USB as well. This post provides step-by-step instructions on how to do this.

Warning! Pay careful attention at step #5 and step #6 as clicking the wrong option there can negatively impact the Viira Outlook Suite’s syncing capabilities.

First, you will need to have the BlackBerry Desktop Software installed on the same computer on which you have Outlook running. The BlackBerry desktop software enables a lot of key BlackBerry-unique capabilities like backup, restore and software updates and is available for both Windows and Mac.

The screenshots below show how to set up synchronization between the Viira Outlook Suite Outlook plugin and BlackBerry client by using BlackBerry Desktop Software 5.0. Using BlackBerry Desktop Software 6.0 provides pretty much the same steps and all the screenshots except for the first two look the same.

Step 0: Connect Your BlackBerry To Your PC With A USB Cable

Step 1: Select Synchronize

Step 2: Configure Synchronization - Start

Step 3: Configure Synchronization - Setup Two-Way Sync

Step 4: Configure Synchronization - Setup Two-Way Sync Part II

Step 5: Configure Synchronization - Setup Two-Way Sync Part III

Step 6: Configure Synchronization - Select Transfer All Items

After this, click finish and your synchronization should be properly set up. You are now ready to start using the Viira Outlook Suite!

We are very excited to be announcing the release of Viira 3.0! The latest version contains a lot of productivity enhancements that many of you have requested and we are very happy to be bringing all these new capabilities right at your fingertips.

Here is what’s new in Viira 3.0:

• In-Basket: Designed specifically for the collection phase of Getting Things Done, Viira’s In-Basket provides a convenient place to quickly enter a number of tasks, ideas and reminders. All tasks, native tasks, email and SMS tasks that have not been assigned a project, context or day will appear in the In-Basket.
• Search. Quickly find the task that you were looking from Viira’s Tasks View with Viira’s fast search.
• Reminders. Many of you have asked for the ability to add a reminder to a particular task, and we are happy to bring this feature to you! Although David Allen warns against relying too heavily on reminders in your GTD system, if used properly they can be a powerful ogranizational tool.
• BlackBerry Tasks integration: Viira loads all tasks from your BlackBerry’s native Tasks application in the In-Basket from where you can further assign then to a project, context or day.
• Hide Completed. Hide all completed tasks and focus on what remains to get done. Hide completed is available from all of Viira’s views and all your completed tasks will appear once again when you select “Show Completed”.
• Quick new project/context creation: Have you ever started entering a task only to realise that the project or context you want to classify it under has not been created yet? With Viira 3 you can quickly create a new project or context right from the new task editor without having to switch views!
• And more! Viira 3.0 contains a number of other smaller enhancements, too numerous to list here.

So grab the free trial and see for yourself what Viira 3.0 can do! You can download the Viira 3.0 free trial from the Viira download page or by pointing your BlackBerry’s browser to our mobile site www.kartamobile.com/bb.

For all of you using Viira 2, Viira 3 was designed to run alongside Viira 2 so that you can check out the free trial before committing to the new version. Viira 3 will also import your Viira 2 data. Buyers of Viira 2 are also eligible to upgrade for a special upgrade price of only $19.99.

Viira 3 is compatible with all modern BlackBerry devices all the way back to OS 4.6.

We receive a fair amount of questions on how Viira and the Viira Outlook Suite compare with each other, especially in terms of set up and installation. In this article I will try to address some of the most common questions on the differences between the two.

Separate Download Required

The first (and most important) difference is that Viira and the Viira Outlook Suite require a separate download: in order to sync with Outlook you need to download and install the Viira Outlook Suite BlackBerry client. The BlackBerry client is a separate software application from Viira and can be downloaded from the Viira Outlook Suite download page or by pointing your BlackBerry to the Viira Outlook Suite mobile site www.kartamobile.com/bb/outlook.

The important thing to keep in mind is that downloading Viira (currently in version 2.2) will NOT provide sync with the Outlook plugin whereas downloading the VIira Outlook Suite BlackBerry client will.

Near-Identical Feature Sets

The feature sets of both Viira and the Viira Outlook Suite BlackBerry client are at present practically identical to the point where it is not easy to tell them apart. What you can do with one you can do with the other and vice versa.

We will continue to keep it this way and as we introduce new productivity-enhancing features and GTD techniques you will see them appear in both product lines. On occasion we may introduce a feature first in one before making it available in the next update to the other.

Side-By-Side On the Same BlackBerry

Viira and the Viira Outlook Suite have been designed to work without a problem when both are installed on the same BlackBerry. You don’t need to uninstall Viira in order to install the Viira Outlook Suite BlackBerry client and vice versa. We designed it this way in order to make it easier for you to decide which one of our two products works best for you and the way you apply Getting Things Done in your day-to-day life.

If you install both on your BlackBerry you will see each appear with a differently colored launch icon with Viira’s icon displaying the text “Viira 2″ while the BlackBerry client showing “Viira Outlook Suite”.

Viira 2 Data Import from the Viira Outlook Suite

The Viira Outlook Suite provides the ability to do a one-time import of all your GTD data from Viira. If at any point you decide to upgrade to the Viira Outlook Suite you can have your Viira 2 data seemlessly transitioned over to the Viira Outlook Suite. Viira 2 data import requires activation of the full version.

As always, if you have any other questions don’t hesitate to ask it in the comments section of this post or email our technical support at support _at_ kartamobile dot com.

In this week’s update we have added 24 hour time formatting to Viira capabilities. Appointments, both when edited and when displayed in Viira’s Day View will display in 24hr time format for all of you using Viira in countries that traditionally use 24 hour time format (or all of you who have set your device to 24hr mode). For example instead of appearing as “2:00pm-3:00pm” your appointments will now show as “14:00-15:00″.

The 24hr time formatting kicks in automatically when Viira detects that your device is set to display times in 24hr format. Otherwise the familiar 12 hour time format is used as before.

As always, this update is a free upgrade to all buyers of the full version and can be downloaded OTA by pointing you BlackBerry to our BlackBerry site www.kartamobile.com/bb.

We are happy to announce that Viira Outlook Suite 1.1 is now available for download. Version 1.1 contains significant productivity enhancements such as email tasks, enhanced UI on both the Outlook plugin and the BlackBerry client as well as touchscreen support for all of you Torch and Storm owners.

We also added a few convenience and time-saving features like the quick add button that lets you quickly add a task from anywhere in Outlook as well as a quick launch button.

Without further ado, here is what’s new in the Viira Outlook Suite 1.1:

• Organize your email. File your email messages into you GTD system from both Outlook and your BlackBerry. Email tasks created from the Viira Outlook Suite Outlook plugin can be then viewed from the BlackBerry client, and vice versa.
• Fast startup. The startup time of both the Outlook plugin and the BlackBerry client have been dramatically increased to give you an even faster access to your portable GTD system.
• Enhanced UI. The Viira Outlook Suite BlackBerry client now sports the UI from Viira 2.2, enabling an intuitive transition between the main views.
• Touchscreen support. Owners of a BlackBerry Torch or Storm can navigate using the touchscreen on their device.
• Search. Quickly locate the tasks you are looking for from the Viira Outlook Suite Outlook plugin Tasks view.
• Quick launch. Lauch the Viira Outlook Suite Outlook plugin quickly from anywhere in Outlook by clicking on the new launch button on the Outlook toolbar.
• Quick add. Add a new Viira Outlook Suite task from anywhere in Outlook! A new quick add button is now available in your Outlook’s toolbar enabling you to jot down ideas and to-dos quickly and with ease.

The Viira Outlook Suite comes with a free trial. As always, the 1.1 update is a complimentary upgrade to all buyers of the 1.0 version.

We always strive to find new ways to help you stay on top of your schedule, make the most of your BlackBerry and have the most comprehensive, portable GTD system at your fingertips. With that in mind, we are excited to bring another powerful feature to help you get things done - action links.

Action links allow you to easily embed actionable chunks of information, such as phone numbers, email addresses and website links inside any task in Viira. Simply enter the phone number, email or URL in a task and Viira will automatically detect it and highlight it for you. Calling, sending an email or viewing the website link is then just a click away!

Action links are available in Viira 2.2.2, which can be downloaded OTA from our mobile site www.kartamobile.com/bb.

Viira 2.2 has been released and is ready for download. This update is chock-full of productivity enhancements more than any point update in Viira’s history, so make sure to check it out!

You can download Viira 2.2 from your computer, or point your BlackBerry’s browser to our mobile site www.kartamobile.com/bb and download Viira 2.2 OTA.

Here is what is new in Viira 2.2:

• SMS Tasks. Add text messages to your portable GTD system directly from your BlackBerry’s Inbox and don’t let important information sent over SMS ever slip through the cracks. Quickly reply or pull the sender’s contact information with a click of a button!
• Enhanced UI. We have enhanced Viira’s UI to make it even more intuitive and added a navigation tabs for quicker transitions between Viira’s views. Some screenshots here, here and here.
• Fast Startup. Our engineers have drastically improved Viira’s startup time to make Viira available almost instantly after you start it!
• Touchscreen navigation. Owners of a BlackBerry Torch or Storm can now quickly switch between Viira’s views by tapping on Viira’s new navigation tabs.
• View Contact. Quickly view the full contact information of the sender of an email task with a click of a button. (OS 5.0 or later)
• Delegate a task. You requested it, we listened! In addition to being able to delegate an entire project or context, Viira now lets you delegate a single task.
• Quick link to “Today” in Day View. Quickly navigate back to your today’s commitments by selecting “Today” from the context menu in Viira’s Day View.

We have also included several small updates:

• Removed italics for Calendar appointments. Previously, Viira’s Day View displayed all calendar appointments that weren’t included in your GTD system (e.g. by giving them a project or context) in italics. We don’t feel this distinction is adding any value, so now all appointments appear the same.
• Overdue tasks do not appear in the future. Let’s face it, no one likes to be reminded of things they forgot or didn’t get to do in the past. And being reminded of what you didn’t get to complete yesterday when you are looking in the future is somewhat counterproductive. Starting with Viira 2.2, overdue tasks only appear in the Day View for today or days in the past.

As always, Viira 2.2 comes as free upgrade to all buyers of Viira 2.0 and Viira 2.1. Viira 2.2 also offers a free trial so give it a try and see for yourself how Viira can help you get things done in your day-to-day life!

Download the Viira 2.2 Free Trial

Viira 2.2 is supported on all modern BlackBerries all the way back to OS 4.6. Older versions of Viira that support OS 4.5 and earlier devices will be available for download through our mobile site, though any future feature additions will not be ported back.

A month and half after the release of version 1.0 of the Viira Outlook Suite, we are very glad to hear that many of you are using its unique capabilities to  stay on top of your commitments and get things done. As this is the first step in what will be a long journey of bringing you the most powerful Getting Things Done-based personal organization system for Outlook and BlackBerry, we wanted to share with you what we are working on and give you a glimpse of what will be coming out next.

• Outlook 2010 support. With teams and organization around the world slowly but surely migrating to the latest version of MS Office, Outlook 2010 integration is at the very top of our to-do list. Outlook 2010 support will be available in the Viira Outlook Suite 1.1, and all buyers of version 1.0 will receive it as a complimentary upgrade.
• Email integration. Incorporating your email in your Getting Things Done organization system is a must-have for many of you who receive dozens, sometimes hundreds of emails a day. We are actively working on email integration and will be rolling it out in the Viira Outlook Suite 1.1.
• Faster startup. Speed of access to your GTD-based organizational system is a critical aspect that we never loose sight of. We constantly strive to make things faster and more efficient and will be rolling out performance enhancements starting with the upcoming Viira Outlook Suite version 1.1. Our internal benchmarks show our enhanced designs having drastic improvements for both the Outlook Suite plugin and the BlackBerry client - so stay tuned!
• The Viira Outlook Suite plugin - accessible from anywhere. We know that many of you power users of Outlook regularly switch between the multiple view in Outlook - Tasks, Email, Contacts, etc. We are actively working on integrating the Viira Outlook Suite plugin with different areas inside MS Outlook in order to provide you with quick, one-click access to you trusted GTD system and all your Viira Outlook Suite data.

We are all very excited for the upcoming 1.1 release, so stay tuned! If you haven`t already done so, you can sign up for updates and be among the first ones to know when the 1.1 is available for download. As we always do with any of our software products, the 1.1 release comes as a complimentary upgrade to all buyers of version 1.0.

he Viira Outlook Suite version 1.0 has been released. We are very proud to be the first to bring you an integrated BlacKBerry-Outlook GTD solution, and hope that it will help you stay on top of your commitments and get things done in your day-to-day lives.

Download The Viira Outlook Suite

Here are the new features that the 1.0 release introduces over the beta version 0.9.8:

• Inbox. All unassigned tasks (i.e. tasks without a project, context or date) appear in your Inbox. A must-have capability for the collection phase of GTD®!
• Outlook Tasks Integration: Your Outlook tasks appear in your Viira Outlook Suite Inbox, ready to be assigned to a project, context or day. Switch from using Outlook for GTD with ease!
• BlackBerry Tasks Integration. Your native BlackBerry tasks appear in the Inbox of your Viira Outlook Suite BlackBerry client.
• Viira 2 Data Import. Buyers of Viira 2 can easily transition their BlackBerry GTD system to the Viira Outlook Suite. Just go to Settings->Import Viira 2 Data (activation required).

The Viira Outlook Suite comes with a 14-day free trial. As with Viira, buyers of the full version of the Viira Outlook Suite will receive point upgrades for free. For example, buyers of the Viira Outlook Suite 1.0 will receive the 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, etc. as free upgrades.

For more information on how to install, set up and make the most out of the Viira Outlook Suite Outlook plugin and BlackBerry client that comes with it, please visit the Viira Outlook Suite page.

Beta Members, Buyers Of Viira 2 Receive Almost 50% off!

To show our appreciation to everyone who took part in our beta program and helped us ensure that the Viira Outlook Suite works and works well in a wide range of environments, we are extending a one-time offer of $30 off the regular price!

As promised before, buyers of Viira 2 interested in migrating to an integrated BlackBerry-0utlook GTD system get the full purchase price of Viira 2 as a purchase credit towards the Viira Outlook Suite (updated amount will appear in the Paypal checkout page).