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| Developer(s) | IBM |
|---|---|
| Stable release | 6.1 / 2003 |
| Operating system | Microsoft Windows |
| Type | Personal information manager |
| License | Proprietary |
| Website | www.ibm.com |
Lotus Organizer is a discontinuedpersonal information manager (PIM). It was initially developed by Threadz, a smallBritish software house, reaching version 3.0. Organizer was subsequently acquired byLotus Development Corporation, for whom the package was aWindows-based replacement forLotus Agenda. For several years it was the unquestioned market leader until it was gradually overtaken byMicrosoft Outlook.
Organizer is notable for using the ″leather-bound personal organizer″ graphical metaphor for itsuser interface. It is often bundled withinLotus SmartSuite.
On 14 May 2013, IBM announced the immediate "withdrawal and discontinuance of support" of Lotus SmartSuite, Lotus Organizer and Lotus 123.[1]
Version 6.1 was the last version. It supportedWindows 2000,Windows XP,Windows Vista,Windows 7,[2] andWindows 10.
Organizer was a part of Lotus SmartSuite, but was also sold as a single application. The latest releases of SmartSuite did not include the current version of Organizer; it was sold separately only.
Versions up to 2 were 16-bit programs. Later versions are 32-bit programs.
| Version | File format | Year | Included in |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | .org | 1992 | |
| 1.1 | .org | 1993? | |
| 2 | .or2 | 1994 | |
| 97 (3.1) | .or3 | 1997 | SmartSuite 97 |
| 97 GS (4.0) | .or4 | 1997 | |
| 4.1 | .or4 | 1998 | SmartSuite Millennium Edition Release 9 |
| 5 | .or5 | 1999 | SmartSuite Millennium Edition Release 9.5–9.8.x |
| 6.0 | .or6 | 1999 | |
| 2.12 | .or2 | 1999 | Y2K Compliant, Free Distro for existing users |
| 6.1 | .or6 | 2003 |
The first OS/2 version was released in 1998. Until then, the Windows 16-bit version had been used. The last version is 1.7 from 2001. Later revisions of SmartSuite did not upgrade Organizer, although some fixes have been made.
Organizer for OS/2 uses the .or4 file format. This means that it cannot exchange data files with the later Windows versions, other than by importing and exporting data.
The features and user interface for Organizer for OS/2 are similar to that of Organizer 97 for Windows. It lacks later improvements, such as importing and exportingvCard andiCalendar files, and synchronisation withPDAs.
Lotus Organizer 97 GS was released for classic Mac OS in 1997 with features similar to the Windows version, including integration with Lotus Notes calendars and address books.[3]
