We are happy to announce that verison 2.0 of the Viira Outlook Suite is now available for download. In this verison we have introduced big improvements in both the Outlook plugin and the BlackBerry client in order to bring an even more intuitive, effective and deeply-integrated productivity experience for all of you.

Here is what’s new in version 2.0 of the Viira Outlook Suite:

• Contact tasks [Outlook screenshot here]: Create tasks based on your contacts when you need to call, contact or follow-up with anyone. Simply select Create Viira Suite Task from the right-click menu in your Outlook contacts or from the menu in your BlackBerry Contacts application.
• Touch-screen interface. Owners of a BlackBerry Bold 9900 or Torch 98xx series device can perform all frequent actions with a tap on the screen.
• Memo tasks [Outlook plugin screenshot here]: Integrate notes and memos into your GTD system with ease. Just like contact tasks, memo tasks can be created both on your BlackBerry and from Outlook and get synchronized between the two.
• Quick Add: Add New Tasks Quickly. Perfect for the times where you have a number of new tasks or ideas to record, the quick add field enables you to enter them one after the other in quick succession. Just type in the tasks name and press ENTER, then repeat as needed! Available from both the Outlook plugin and BlackBerry client.
• Print. You can now print from any of the views of the Outlook plugin.
• Overdue tasks in Outlook plugin. Just like in the BlackBerry client, the Day View tab of the Outlook plugin displays all overdue tasks in red to make sure no tasks gets inadvertently forgotten.
• Starred projects and contexts. Mark your important or frequently used project or contexts with a star. Starred projects and contexts always appear at the top of the list making it easier to navigate or select them.
• Compact Mode. Fit more of your Viira data on your BlackBerry’s screen. Particularly useful for owners of touch screen models like the BlackBerry 9900 or the BlackBerry Torch series, turning on compact mode lets you see more of your tasks for any project, context or day. You can turn on Compact Mode by going to Settings->General Settings->Compact Mode.
• And more! The new release contains a number of other small updates, too numerous to list here.

Version 2.0 of the Viira Outlook Suite requires BlackBerry OS 5.0 or better and is compatible with all versions of MS Outlook since 2003. You can download the latest version from the Viira Outlook Suite download page.

As always, the Viira Outlook Suite comes with a 14-day free trial and buyers of previous versions as well as Viira 3 can upgrade for a special low price.

Viira Mobile Checkout

We know that being able to do anything that you can from your computer or laptop with your mobile device is very important to many of you. That’s why buyers of both Viira and the Viira Outlook Suite have always been able to purchase the full version directly from their BlackBerry with Paypal.

Over the past week we decided to take advantage of some recent improvements in mobile payment technology in order to enhance the mobile checkout experience.

Here is a screen capture of what the new Paypal mobile checkout page looks like. It provides a detailed description of the item as well as a stylish Paypal login page. Buyers of the Viira Outlook Suite can also use the enhanced mobile checkout.

To buy the full version directly from your BlackBerry just click on “Buy Viira”/”Buy Full Version” from the context menu or point your BlackBerry’s browser to our mobile site www.kartamobile.com/bb.

Once you have purchased the full version, both Viira and the Viira Outlook Suite make it possible to activate it quickly and effortlessly directly from inside the application.  Activation for Viira and the Viira Outlook Suite BlackBerry client is done wirelessly Over-The-Air.

Sometimes though Over-The-Air activation is not feasible, for example when your device is out of range or when you system adminstrator has put in place onerous firewall settings that are beyond your control. Enter the new “My Activations” page on our website.

Buyers of the full version of Viira and the Viira Outlook Suite can now click on the “My Activations” link on the top-right hand corner of the site. You will then be able to activate your full version as well as retrieve your license keys.

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!

Short Answer: None.

The free trials of both Viira and the Viira Outlook Suite contain the exact same features and capabilities that you will find in the corresponding full version. This is by design: we want you to try out the full spectrum of what both Viira and the Viira Outlook Suite can do so that you can see for yourself the level of organization and productivity that our products can help you achieve in your day-to-day lives.

Naturally, the free trial expires after the 14 day free trial period is over whereas the full version doesn’t.

Activating the full version is easy and requires a license key that you will be given upon purchase. You won’t have to uninstall/reinstall or have to worry about transitioning your data in any way as it will all be there right after you activate the full version.

Purchases made directly from our site can take advantage of our OTA activation. With it you can quickly and conveniently activate the full version wirelessly from within Viira or the Viira Outlook Suite.

At the time of this writing there is only one minor exception to the “no differences” rule above. The Viira Outlook Suite BlackBerry client’s ability to import Viira 2 and Viira 3 data is only available in the full version of the suite - and this is largely for technical reasons. Aside from that what you see in the free trial is what you will see in the full version.

Following the release of Viira 3 we added couple of minor updates to the Viira Outlook Suite.

• Viira 3 data import. The Viira Outlook Suite BlackBerry client can now import Viira 3 data for those of you considering migrating from Viira 3 to the Outlook Suite.
• Stability improvements. We have added a few bug fixes/stability enhancements to the Outlook plugin.

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

In this week’s update to the Viira Outlook Suite we have added one enhancements and a couple of bug fixes:

• 24 hr Time Format: for those of you using the Viira Outlook Suite in countries where time is usually displayed in 24 hour time format (e.g. 15:30) the Viira Outlook Suite BlackBerry client now automatically detects if your BlackBerry is set up to use 24 hour time format and displays your appointments’ start and end times accordingly.
• Outlook plugin task date bug fix. In certain European locales the Outlook plugin’s date extraction algorithm failed to correctly interpret the date of a task, resulting in day tasks created in the BlackBerry client appear without a date in the Outlook plugin. This problem is now fixed.
• Improved stability. Unde certain rare circumstances, deleting a task in the Outlook plugin produced an exception. Our development team addressed and fixed the issue.

You can download version 1.1.04 from the Viira Outlook Suite download page. The BlackBerry client can be downloaded OTA by pointing your BlackBerry to our mobile site.

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.

Over the past few weeks since Viira Outlook Suite version 1.1 was released we ended up performing various housekeeping updates and bug fixes that are now collectively being bundled in this software update. There haven’t been major features introduced or affected in 1.1.03 as the scope of this update has largely been minor fixes, stability enhancements and UI touch-ups.

The bulk of the touch-up were in the The Outlook Plugin though the BlackBerry client did receive a minor tune-up as well.

Here are some of the more notable fixes/ehnancements we did in version 1.1.03:

• Fixed a problem where in certain environments an exception was being generated when closing Outlook (Outlook plugin)
• Added the ability to scroll with the mouse wheel in the task notes field (Outlook plugin).
• New projects and contexts are immediately available for selection when creating a task from email (BlackBerry client).
• Ability to insert a newline in the task notes field by pressing ENTER (Outlook plugin)

You can download the latest version 1.1.03 from the Viira Outlook Suite download page.