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That did it!! Thanks.

in the meantime i had realized that i couldn't use CP to do what i wanted, so i'm glad you were able to make this change. I want to apply categories to new mail from various subscription services. The subject line is rarely consistent, and the email address is not "simple" as there are a lot of mass distribution services. Some is junk mail, but a lot is from various groups, etc. I'll still play around with CP to see if it can do it, but this really helps. Thanks again.

Yes, I was able to confirm that if the user selects the Categorize Plus option to "Erase categories when receiving items" or the option to "Auto categorize items added to the default Inbox folder", then Categorize Plus over-writes the categories that are assigned when using the Outlook rules to auto assign categories. 

It sort of makes sense to remove these categories when the option is selected to "Erase categories when receiving items", but it dosen't make sense when the option is selected to "Auto categorize items added to the default Inbox folder".  Therefore, I have just now made a change to Categorize Plus that will preserve the categories assigned by the Outlook rules even when the Categorize Plus option is selected to "Auto categorize items added to the default Inbox folder".  Please use the link below to download and try this new version.

New Version:  http://www.veranosoft.com/updates/CategorizePlus.2.0.176.msi

In this new version, the categories assigned by Outlook will not be removed by Categorize Plus even when you select the option to "Auto categorize items added to the default Inbox folder".  However, you will still need to de-select the Categorize Plus option to "Erase categories when receiving items".  This is done by selecting "Categorize" -> "Tools" -> "Options..." and then deselecting "Erase categories when receiving items".

Let me know if this new version solves the problem that you experienced.

I have several rules in my Outlook InBox using the Rules Wizard set up to auto-categorize email as it comes in--no moving of email, just categorizing. It is set up to do this automatically. My rules are below the size limit for rules. Now, they will not work automatically. They work fine manually.

In the meantime, i read some of the posts here and see the CP will do this as well, so I'm going to try the rules there, instead of through the OL Rules Wizard.

[Categorize Plus Menu Items]

Sep,

Can you provide an example of a rule that is not working? 

Perhaps you are referring to the pre-installed Outlook view filters.  For example, the pre-installed Outlook view filter that allow users to view only completed tasks for instance.  If this is the case, then I do know that your pre-installed Outlook view filters do not work with Categorize Plus.  The reason is, when the user applies a filter using CP, then CP over-writes the filter that is currently applied in the current Outlook view.  Unfortunately, programmers have no reliable way to determine the currently applied filter in Outlook, and therefore, the only option is to over-write the current filter when a new filter is applied.

A workaround is to use a Categorize Plus Filter Menu item to perform the filter that you are trying to apply in your Outlook view.  The exact same filter that you are using in your Outlook view can be created using either a Categorize Plus Standard Filter or a Custom Filter menu item.  In fact, when creating Custom Filter menu items, Categorize Plus uses the same Outlook Filter Dialog to allow the user to enter the filter criteria.  This filter can then be applied using Categorize Plus, and Categorize Plus can also be configured to save the filter combo box by view name.  Therefore, whenever you display that view, Categorize Plus will automatically apply the filter combo box.  I have provided links below to the help topics that explain how this works.

On line Help Topics:

- Categorize Plus Menu Items:  http://www.veranosoft.com/reference/scr/html/Menu%20Types.htm
  which explains the different types of menu items

- Standard Filter Menu Items:  http://www.veranosoft.com/reference/scr/html/Standard%20Filters%20Menu.htm
  Which explains the different Standard Filter menu items.

- Entering Outlook Filter Criteria:  http://www.veranosoft.com/reference/scr/html/Custom Filter.htm
  which explains how to enter custom filter criteria for Filter Menu Items

- Save Combo Boxes Options: http://www.veranosoft.com/reference/scr/html/Save Combo Boxes Options.htm
  which explains how to configure Categorize Plus to save filter combo boxes by view name

Let me know if this answers your questions,

Best regards,

Jon Zimmerman
VeranoSoft

I installed Categorize Plus last weekend. Today, i noticed that my outlook rules are not working. If i run them manually, they do work. I have not set any criteria for actions in the categorize plus categories. Any chance there is a conflict?

Hello,

Unfortunately the answer is no, CP is not capable of automatically categorizing items based on custom fields.  Although I like your idea, I am not sure that there would be enough users of this feature to justify the effort to implement.

Sorry.

Can Categorize Plus auto-categorizations be triggered by custom fields? I use an add-on (GTD by NetCentrics) to help me group items by project. This addin creates a custom field, "project" to group items. I'd like to assign a project to multiple categories once, then have all it's associated tasks, emails and journals categoriezed in the same way automatically.
For example, a project "Repair the front porch" logically might be fit into the categories "home" "personal" and "weekend." Can CP be configured to add these three categories to all items (tasks, email) that have the project field set to "Repair the front porch?"
I understand this would be possible if all the items for a project were placed in a common folder..the auto-categorize function allows for this. I'd prefer not to create many folders, though, because it makes it more difficult to find items.

Hello Frank,

Unfortunately, after evaluating Outlook 2010 Beta, I am sorry to inform you that Microsoft has made changes to Outlook 2010 that prevent me from enabling many of the features available in Categorize Plus.  Most importantly, it is no longer possible to create the Category Editor in Outlook 2010 due to changes that Microsoft has made to the window hierarchy.  Unfortunately, as a result of this, I have decided to not support a version of Categorize Plus in Outlook 2010.  This was a very hard decision for me as I very much wanted to support this version of Outlook. 

However, despite this fact, some of the functionality of CP still works in 2010 including the Categorize Button inside Outlook items and the "right-click" Categorize Plus menu.  With this limited feature set, many users still use Categorize Plus in Outlook 2010.

Sorry for any inconvenience caused.

Jon Zimmerman
VeranoSoft

Will this software work with Outlook 2010?  IF not, is there a new release planned?

I loved CP from the first day I installed it. If you are a GTD freak like me, you need nothing else then vanilla Outlook and Catagorize Plus. It let's me organize my mail in a way I can track everything, everywhere. Within seconds I can create reports: tasks due today, all mail for a specific project, all "wating-for" mails, etc. One of the best things (if you'll ask me) is that GP automatically copies the catagories on reply's and received mails so they are instantly organized. Without CP this was a frustrating and time consuming activity which was almost impossible to do accurate and consistant.

Yes there are certain improvements to make. One of them would be the possibility to keep the filterbox(es) (or searches) inactive on the top of the screen. When a filter is active you can change the filter but not turn off or disable. You have to remove the filters/search, which also removes the filter box. I love to have 4 filters active: filter on DUE dates, filter on Action Catagories, filter on Location Catagories (home, office, car, phone, etc) and one filter on urgency. If this would be possible (like filters in Excel) this application would be even better.

In closing: I have been working in the software business for some time (too long? ) and we all know how important good support is. For a product like this with a value of 29,95 dollar (pro version) I didn't expected a reply on my question, but boy what was I fooled. Within hours I received specific reply with good instructions and even better: proactive and personal advice how to improve my CP experience. I’ve never experienced support like this, not even for solutions with a price tag 1.000 times higher. Oowww I forgot to mention something really important: I received this amazing support during my 30 days trial!!!

So yes, as of today, I’m a paying customer of CP. And a proud one.

If you have any questions how I use CP, do not hesitate to shoot me an email.

Frank