Update: Google Calendar is live.
I am now in possession of screenshots from Google’s long delayed new Ajax calendar application, which will be called “CL2″ (the CL2 login screen is here). It was only a matter of time before someone broke down and leaked these – as far as I know these screen shots are the first on the public web. Previous ones were almost certainly photoshopped fakes. These are real.
Om Malik also recently posted with some additional details and has been trying to track down more information. Now we have it.
Here is the default view of Google’s new CL2 Calendar:
There have been leaks before today, however. Rumor has it that one of the beta testers provided credentials to Yahoo…although Yahoo notified Google (after a thorough review of the product I suppose).
The closed beta is ongoing with about 200 participants – people involved are not allowed to invite outsiders to see the calendar and are under strict rules not to share any details with outsiders. Based on feedback I am getting, CL2 is a long way away from launch.
About CL2
CL2 makes it easy — even effortless — to keep track of all the events in your life and compare them to what your friends and family have going on in theirs. We’ve designed a calendar that works for you — helping you add events from email, friends, and other public calendars — so you don’t have to spend all your time maintaining your schedule. CL2 even helps you discover new events you might be interested in. We think it’s a great tool for managing your daily schedule, keeping track of what everyone in your family is doing, organizing events for a club or team, or creating public events that you can promote to the world.
CL2 is closely, very closely, integrated with Gmail. It includes now-standard web 2.0 features – Ajax, subscription feeds for integration with iCal and other desktop calendars, event creation, search, sharing, notifications (including SMS) and more.
It’s also clear from the event creation functionality that Google is is going to attempt to aggregate events like eventful and zvents do now. If they combine their event creation feature with a web crawl and parsing of event data (exactly what zvents does), they will be able to create a very large events database. From the CL2 Trusted Tester Guidelines:
Creating Events
You can create events on your calendar in a number of ways.
Click ‘Create Event.‘ This brings you to the create event page, where you can enter information about your event.
Click on Quick Add (or type the letter Q). Quick Add gives you a text box where you can type all the information about your event in normal English, and we’ll fill out the form for you. We’re pretty excited about this feature, so please let us know how it works for you.
Drag-to-create. If you’re looking at the day where you want to create an event on your calendar, just click and drag your mouse from the desired start time to the end time. Once you’ve selected your time range, you can just choose a title for your new event.
Event Pages
Whenever you create an event, we create a web page which you’ll see when you click on the “more details” link on any event. This web page is only visible to you, unless you’ve invited other people to your event or made the event public, in which case you can use the page to share information about the event with people who are attending or the public at large. Note: you don’t have to be a CL2 user to be able to see event pages, so you can use these pages to share information with anyone involved with the event, regardless of what online tools (if any) they use. (Ever wish your favorite local band would learn how to use HTML and publish their calendar? Once we get your feedback and open CL2 to the world you can help them do just that.)
I am not going to publish the full guidelines because there is information included around becoming a tester that I feel is inappropriate for public disclosure.
Overall, CL2 is a very impressive product. The tight integration with Gmail will make that an even more compelling product. Other online calendar applications are going to have a very hard time competing.
Additional Screen Shots:
This sounds fantastic. I’ve recently signed up with 30boxes, but it hasn’t really won me over.
If this is as good as it sounds and has Gmail integration, it looks like a real winner.
very slick. kinda sorta like http://www.30boxes.com/
Google Calendar
first step to… crm ..hmm not…
on gmail i suggested them to add the calendar funcion to the mail…
one more good idea..
TechCrunch has some exclusive screenshots of Google Calendar . I really hope that I won’t be disappointed and that “CL2″ will be available soon (…April 1st???). Currently I am still using 30Boxes but I am missing the tight Gmail integration the Google will offer.
How does one pronounce CL2?
I am not too sure but it seems pretty similar to 30boxes for eg adding new events, normal view. Guess, just have to wait for a long time before they launch.
will it only work with less than half the enterprise market (sync with Outlook) or work with almost all the enterprise market calendars and include sync options for Lotus Notes?
Poor old 30boxes, how long will they last now?
Great article!
hmm…this brings http://planzo.com/ in danger. hope the guys will develope a unique tool to make planzo better as cl2
looks great. Just what I needed, but when does it come out?
Looks like another great feature developed by Google, Gmail accounts are gonna be essentials…
iCal? why not xCal?
Bring it on.
This is shaping up into a plan for an Exchange killer, albeit only for smaller companies that are inclined to an outsourced data center model.
Looks awesome, I use http://www.hipcal.com/ for now, but I’m really looking forward to CL2
I can’t wait.
Will it have a todo list management?
I think it’s very important and those web-based calendars are forgetting that calendar appointments and tasks are very related to each other.
I’ve been using 30boxes since beta and will continue until Google calendar arrivew. While it’s exciting to see that it does exist, I am a bit disappointed that someone leaked what they promised not to leak.
With a name like Google, it has to be good!
I didn’t see any ways to import / export to / from Outlook. Is this not built-in yet? To me that’s an absolute must, not because I like Outlook but because I’m dependent upon it for work. I hope they crack that nut!
Who ever use G-MAIL constantly can not, not spot that he slowly becomes inseparable part of our web surfing, up to point of dependence on it.
Apparently GOOGLE is trying to cover some unsuccessful applications lately released to the Market, because from what was written, it seems like a good and useful product which was worth while waiting for.
Great piece, mike!
http://blog.out...-03-08.html#n89
Holy shit, they invented a calendar!!
I use Gmail (love it!) and I would love to have this too! Looks so awesome! It would be cool too if it could be synched with a palm pilot or handheld computer!
Wow! What are Google reserving for us?
I hope that you can integrate RSS feeds in to your calendar like in 30boxes. That is a kickass feature.
CL2 will really have to be amazing to take me away from my 30boxes. I love it.
Techcrunch has a nother great exclusive on the distant (or not) launch of Google Calendar or CL2 as it is currently known
Can’t wait. Will be able to scrap Exchange for good.
Looks wonderful. Thank you for sharing the peek. Can’t wait for it to be unveiled to all of us.
My favorite part – what I was hoping for – is the public view aspect. That is going to be invaluable to nonprofits with little tech savvy. Google is doing a positive service with this additional tool.
good job Tech Crunch! that’s why i keep coming back for more. thanks.
If I can’t import/export Outlook data, it is just a shiny web app., I need to be able to synch with Crackberry/PDA etc., or it is completely useless.
Yawn… a mobile phone or PDA is a much better option. It’s hassle free, and you can take it with you wherever you go.
why not use http://www.Planzo.com
Its available now and its free
The natural language parsing is huge. In a play similar to the Google Maps or UPS package tracking models, Gmail will catch event proposals in emails you receive. So when your buddy says “hey let’s grab drinks Thursday night,” Gmail asks you if you want to add this to your calendar. Huge.
Looks great, can’t wait for this.
Thanks for the screenshots.
This is great! Is it too much to ask if they will be providing an API for it
So is this stolen IP you’re posting?
Good job. Behind the scenes, I’ve heard a lot of Google people talk about getting a product out fast vs. getting it right. Unless it’s a cutting-edge, never seen before tool, getting it right is more important and that appears to be what Google has done with their calendar app.
Great, so when is this being released?
This looks awesome…the first decent app Google have done since gmail(?) It’s the gmail integration that will win over people, and if they can improve on the whole gtalk thing it will be absolutely killer.
I doubt that CL2 will be the app’s final name (my guesses: “Google Calendar” or “GCal”).
Perhaps the employees for whom this is a “20% project” are fans of modern home furnishings. The name/logo seems like a combination of CB2’s and EQ3’s.
What about timezones?
What if I am looking at a friends cal, in SF and I am in Australia? Which timezone do I see, does it ajust?
good they tied it to gmail. the servers can handle the traffic. otherwise, within 2 days of introducing the service, the servers will give up and everyone will see a “high demand, sorry” page.
cant they spend more billions on servers?
Lookin gooood.
I can’t wait till this is available and good to go.
Web20guy, interesting coincidence that you bring up gmail’s reliability: it is DOWN now…
Yahoo fed Google secrets to TechCrunch
http://www.vall...unch-159243.php
wow. a calendar.
http://mosuki.com/ is another online calendar that you can use now, that has many of these features.