What can I use in place of Lotus Organiser?

Q

As a recent convert to your magazine, I am finding it most useful and informative, so I’m hoping you can help with my problem. I’ve used Lotus Organiser for a number of years to store names, addresses, dates, etc. However, it recently stopped working in Windows 10. Could you suggest a replacement? David Woodward

A

PIMS (personal information managers) such as Lotus Organiser used to be commonplace, but with most people shifting to online organisers (such as those offered with Google accounts) their popularity has waned and your options are now limited. Those that are available are mostly aimed at business users and come with hefty price tags (such as Pimero, which starts at £54 – www.snipca. com/35314).

One option is to simply use the Microsoft tools that come with Windows 10, specifically the People and Calendar apps (you’ll find these by searching for them in the Start menu). However, although the two link up neatly (and also work with the Windows Mail app), you might not like the way they operate as separate programs and their design is very different to what you’ll be used to with Lotus Organiser.

Our recommendation would be to use the excellent Thunderbird ( www.thunderbird.net). It’s primarily an email program, but there’s nothing stopping you from using it purely to manage your contacts, addresses and important dates. Within the main window, you can quickly switch to the Address Book (press Ctrl+shift+b), and Calendar (Ctrl+shift+c or click the button in the toolbar – see screenshot above).

Bear in mind that Thunderbird will ask you to add an email account every time it loads, but pressing Escape quickly dismisses this. However, it’s a great email program, so you might want to consider using it to check your email too (see our Cover Feature on page 50 to find out how to do this, and more).

Do you need our advice on what software to use? Just email us at letters@computeractive.co.uk