Solved Replace Windows Vista Calender with a suitable Windows 7 program

[iko22]

Is there a program available for Windows 7 that can read and modify iCalendar Files? Microsoft depreciated Vista's Calendar program when the company rolled out the Windows 7 operating system.

I really find the Vista calendar program very useful and I want something similar to that for the Windows 7 OS. I particularly liked the Aero Glass look and feel, scheduling features, and ability to run program at startup without requiring an Internet connection.

Currently I am using the Office 2013 Lesson Plan template to define a month. The difficulty with that is I can't schedule it to run at start up and automatically update and notify recurring tasks after the user session starts; plus the Word document retains clutter and superfluous menu ribbons
that are not that necessary in maintaining an up to date calendar file.

 

[Ranger4]

Yes the Vista calendar was nice, but there is no equivalent for Windows 7, unless you look for a 3rd party one. The only alternative is the calendar in Outlook, which is part of Office 2013 that you seem to have.

 

[iko22]

Yes, hello Ranger4, what third party programs would you recommend? If they would support import or open of iCalendar files then that would be excellent, and better still if they had Aero Glass UI themes.

The programs I looked at seemed to implement XP theme or are more like hour schedulers than month planners. I don't know how many programs there are out there. I wondered if anyone else knew any better from their own experience?

Also considered Outlook before starting this thread. Outlook is another program that Microsoft have started depreciating, and now is only available on some editions of Office.

Regardless, I don't particularly like Outlook for some reason; its email dependent and it has too much 'attitude' me thinks. Although Outlook is pitched as a web-based calendar program, I don't personally find it a replacement for either Word Templates or Windows Calendar.

So, I'm still looking for a suitable Windows 7 compatible program, featuring Aero Glass theme, monthly planning and independent of the Internet.

 

[SIW2]

Have you tried the Vista calendar in 7? It seems to work. I just reached over to my vista partition and clicked wincal.exe.

 

[SIW2]

Vista calendar Works in win7. It is quite easy.

 

[iko22]

Hello SIW2,

Windows 7 took out the Calendar program after I upgraded from Vista, and I've not been able to try Windows Calender in 7.

I once encountered various people discussing replacing windows calender in 7 on some forum site or other. Only, when I clicked on their link provided to download the wincal program, I discovered that this link had been broken on the corresponding Microsoft site.


Thats a neat idea, I'll have a go at your suggestion. Currently, my Vista system drive does not run as a virtual machine or in a dual boot configuration. However, I considered there would be no harm in re-wiring this HD drive into a spare SATA slot and retain the Windows 7 boot order, and retrieve the wincal program that way.

When starting the computer, Windows 7 requested to run CHKDSK on the HDD. ... well, CHKDSK is taking an absolute age in completing ... never seen it take so long before.

I'll report back when CHKDSK has completed and I am able to copy the wincal program across.

 

[SIW2]

There are a few reg entries as well. No need to install Vista.

View attachment x64wincal.zip

View attachment x86wincal.zip

 

[Jody Thornton]

That's what I thought was odd. I clean installed Windows 8 x64 Pro, and I have the Calendar program, just like as in Vista.

 

[SIW2]

He is using win7, not win8.

 

[Jody Thornton]

He is using win7, not win8.

No I understood that. What I mean to say is, if I have it in Windows 8, he'd surely have it in Windows 7, no?

 

[SIW2]

It's not in 7.

 

[iko22]

There are a few reg entries as well. No need to install Vista.

View attachment 398523

View attachment 398524

OK I give up with searching Vista , I'll implement your reg entries as my Windows 7 wont have those.


What file permissions do I need to assign to the wincal.exe and wincal.exe.mui files, once they'd been transfered across, would you know?

 

[SIW2]

I only used what is in those zip files.

Then wincal should be under control panel>Default programs.

 

[iko22]

Open File - Security Warning : Without Digital Signature

That is fantastic!!! Thats more than I could have hoped for. The original Vista program now launches from my Windows 7.

There is a slight snag, or perhaps I'm still missing something. Problem seems to be I get an "Open File - Security Warning. The publisher could not be verified. Are you sure you want to run this program?" dialog box, every time wincal is launched.

What would be needed to register in order that the publisher be verified?

 

[SIW2]

Rt click>ProPerties>check unblock>Apply>OK

 

[iko22]

Yes the files from each directories had needed unblocking from another computer.

Having unblocked each file, I still receive the Signature verification error. What could be the matter? I re-did (re-merged) the registry entries too.

 

[SIW2]

I don't have that issue.

 

[iko22]

Ah, wait a moment: I restarted the computer, and noticed at the beginning of the user session that wincal starts up automatically.

After wincal starts automatically at the beginning of the user session then the publisher digital signage dialogue is not present.

However, should wincal be run manually from the Start Menu, then that is when the computer prompts the user with the warning.

---------
Edit: The computer re-blocks wincal.exe when exiting the Properties window too. If I unblock wincal.exe, click accept, then click OK to exit, then immediately return to wincal.exe Properties, I find the system has blocked the program again, even before the user has had chance at running program again.

 

[SIW2]

Works fine here.

Use the settings in my screenshot in my previous post

Did you also adjust the properties on wincal .exe in programfiles (x86)

 

[iko22]

What file permissions do I need to assign ?

I think I mean the file attributes.

Works fine here.

Use the settings in my screenshot in my previous post

Did you also adjust the properties on wincal .exe in programfiles (x86)

Doesn't work when I run program from start menu. OK when program auto starts as a scheduled task.

Perhaps I did things in wrong order? I'll rollback system to point before reg enteries were merged. Then I'll try unblovking files in download folder before they are finally copied to the program folders. Then I'll merge the reg enteries AFTER the files exist in the program folders.

I'll use your settings shown in the screenshot.