Microsoft
Microsoft Invite
Today, Microsoft unveiled Invite, a new iPhone app available today that's supposed to make it easier to schedule meetings.
The way it works is pretty simple: You choose the people you want to invite, and suggest a few times to meet.
They send back the times that work for you. Then, you pick a time that works for everybody, and get it scheduled on their calendars.
Basically, Microsoft says in a blog entry that it's made to simplify the process of going back-and-forth, trying to figure out a time that works for everybody.
This is something that's especially a challenge in a business setting, when you're trying to catch up with someone outside your organization and whose calendar you can't see, Microsoft says.
It's "best" if you're using Invite with Microsoft Office 365, its subscription-based version of the productivity suite, the company says. But it should work with any other e-mail/calendar combo, including Gmail and plain old Outlook.
And if you don't have an iPhone, don't fear: Microsoft says Android and Windows Phone versions are in the works.
Invite is just the latest in a string of apps out of the Microsoft Garage research division, including the funky work-sharing tool GigJam, that doesn't necessarily replace email, but augments it with tools for getting very specific bits of work done.
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