Please bring back GotoSLX !

[#1]

See here for reasoning: http://community.saleslogix.com/t5/Customer-Experience/xbar-and-slxotlxx-dll-user-experiences-one-mo... It's very much a missed feature. Whilst xbar has the functionality it requires (a) installing and (b) for customers to want to use it. When GotoSLX was available it was part of slmn.dll (not slxotlXX.dll) so was always installed. Would be great if the feature could be restored. Thanks!

[#2]

Spot On - Mike!

Background info for those who are not aware (not you Mike ;-):

  GoToSLX has been available (in Outlook) since 2001 (12 years before the initial release of 8.1) as part of the basic "Outlook Integration" features (Record to History, Address book, etc). It was never part of the Intellisync/Outlok integration (Contact/Activity sync). It also had nothing to do with the "Advanced Outlook Integration" (which only worked if one had Exchange Server since it looked at "free/busy" of ALL Exchange Users - not just Saleslogix users).

  When the new "Outlook Sync" was created to replace the Intellisync based integration (with the release of Saleslogix version 8.1) , SLX saw an opportunity to pull all the components together (original Outlook Integration and Intellisync based integrationin) into one dll. Unfortunately, a significant highly used feature was left out:

     GoToSLX

The way it worked:

  If an email was open or selected, GoToSLX enabled a user (in outlook) to click on GoToSLX and it would go to that contact (in SLX) if it found a "match". When the (NEW) web client was developed/released (SLX version 7.2.0 - Aug 10, 2007) GoToSLX was not modified to support it. It remained a tool only for the Windows/LAN client app.

Fast forward:

  With the release of SLX version 8.1 there was a change - Intellisync technology was no longer available (vendor dropped it). (NOTE: and it has been been plagued with issues since day zero) - the SLX team decided to "home grow" a replacement and bring in the featutes of the (original) Outlook Integration. This was good - BUT one feature was (for one reason or another) was left out - GoToSLX.

Many may have not noticed this initially, but as people started upgrading (to 8.1) the idea it (GoToSLX) was missing started to show up.

Current:

  Now Xbar has such a feature - but it (currently) ONLY supports the web client - and for a lot of business reasons/cases - a significant number of the customer installed base still (and will continure) to run for a long time using the WIndows/LAN client. In some cases it is just too expensive and significantly technically challenging to re-do all those "custom mini-verticals" in web/dotNET technology. So teh current Xbar release doe not restore this "lost" capability.

SLX has an update to Xbar on the roadmap that will add-in a "go to slx" like feature that will work with the WIndows/LAN client. However, not everyone wants (or can run) Xbar for one reason or another.

What is neeed:

  We need the GoToSLX feature restored to the (new) Outlook Sync to support the Windows/LAN client AND (I suggest) also expanded so it will work with the Web Client app. Since Outlook Sync has a single point interface (in Outlook) for user configuration, I also suggest it should enable the user to choose as to how it "matches" a contact lookup (this is independent of having a Windows or Web client) to enable matching any email field or by Lastname (or FullName) and allow for wild cards (ex: begins with/contains/end with). 

Besides the Windows/Web client apps - If a user is running "mobility" in a browser on the 'desktop", there shoudl be an option to enable GoToSLX also work with it.

".. nuff said ... for now ;-) .."

[#3]

A great, and pertinent, summary, RJ. 

[#4]

Thanks Jerry!

[#5]

I can't beleive this hasn't been raised before now! Great suggestion.

Also a good read RJ, it does help shed some light on the history of Outlook integration in SalesLogix.

[#6]

@Sam - I believe the reason is fairly clear and simple (why it has not been aised before) -

 A - The vast majority of Saleslogix (end users) typically (only) communicate with their "local SLX Admin"

 B - the 1-9-90 Internet rule prevails (see wikipedia for backup data):

          1 % of all users of a site create new content

          99% lurk..

              9% of the lurkers (ocasionally) contribute (but not NEW content)

              The remaining 90%  are pure lurkers and never contribute.. just read

This rule (1-9-90) applies to issues/missing features/bugs in products as wel:

EX: If the (end user) person who sees the "problem" passes that info to one of the 99% - then the odds are 99 to 1 that it is never reported - it's only the 1% who actually raise attention to the problem w/the vendor ;-)

[#7]

To Add - there is another "missing feature" that was working 100% fine w/the Intellisync implementation:

      Creating a meeting in Outlook and having it synch to SLX

Specifically:

    If you are a GoToMeeing user and create a new meeting.. and then "invite" people (who happen to be in SLX - or not) , in the past the Intellisync sync would create a meeting/appointment IN SLX w/no Account/Contact (that was ok) which you could edit..

   NOW: Nothing synchs.. Outlook SYnc FAILS to create a new appointment/meeting in SLX..

Yet another capability that was lost in the new Outlook Sync

[#8]

Craig posted:

      http://community.saleslogix.com/t5/Saleslogix-Developer-Discussions/SLX-8-1-Exclude-internet-domains...

about yet another missing key feature that happened when Outlook Integration and Intellisync were replaced with Outlook Sync.

This brings the count to three - how many more missing items have we not found yet? 

[#9]

RJ,

We are not able to reproduce your results regarding "Creating a meeting in Outlook and having it synch to SLX." Calendar events should sync as per the Understanding Calendar Integration topic in web help.

A member of our technical support staff will contact you.

Thank you.

~Kevin