Microsoft Outlook as Event Scheduler

I've found the Nware's scheduler quite capable and straightforward, especially if you are familiar with cron. No ControlMatrix required. I once built a front end to the scheduler that allowed the user to create scheduled events that could be 'targeted' to recall any previously stored presets. Perhaps this is similar to what you are trying to do, if so all the user needs to use is Kiosk.

While I agree that the NWare Scheduler + Schedule Generator is good, and useful, and fully understand its capabilities, I am looking at some ideas beyond what is typical, more towards a merged AV/IT integrated solution.  A. Has this been done before? (Don't want to reinvent the wheel), B. Is it plausible, and C. How could it be executed.     

My idea stems from the fact that most of our resort clients use outlook to schedule events, say, for example the Event Coordinators add a Calendar Event that a live concert will be held in restaurant x at 7pm.  They could add the "Sound System" as an attendee, which would send an e-mail to the sound system administrator. 

My program would simply allow the sound system administrator to select that outlook event and use a custom form to turn off the zones in restaurant x.  Now if we zoom out and look at the complexities of typical resort and the quantities of events that occur on a macro scale Outlook seems to make more sense then the NWare Scheduler.

Also think of the fact that an outlook appointment has a start and an end so rather than creating multiple one shot triggers you could restore all your controls when the event ends, or even have multiple scenes running at specific times within the bounds of an event.

I think this is a very interesting idea JRG. I am not aware of any instances that this has been done, but I do not see any reason it could not be done.

I also do not see any reason that this could not be made to work. Rather than even using any of the scheduler stuff in NWare, I imagine that the Outlook Exchange server could be set up to initiate a telnet session with the NION system and pass the appropriate commands via RATC and then logout and terminate the telnet session as events are required to happen.  (I guess it could probably stay logged in if you wanted to...)

The real benefit to this sort of integration is that in these organizations everyone already knows how to use Outlook and it is already installed in everyones computers.

This is an interesting solution to the control situation in these environments.

JRG,

Is there a good reason you're hooked on using Outlook.  It seems like you're driving around the block to get the mail (pun intended).  In other words, if you're already having to write something in VB, why not just write the scheduler itself?  Outlook is a very large install package to do a simple task.