matnewman.com

A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Mat Newman  October 6 2014 15:33:21
Last week a fairly significant date passed without much fanfare: The Withdrawal From Support (WFS) for some of the best desktop software ever created in Lotus 1-2-3, Lotus Organizer and the Lotus Smartsuite office package.

This - of course - followed on from the announcement that these iconic products would be withdrawn from marketing effective the 11th of June, 2013.  WFM is the term used to signify that a product will no longer be available for purchase by customers.  WFS means that a product will no longer receive any updates, nor will customers be able to request assistance for these products. The announcement's were made HERE.

Many would already have been aware that - in reality - none of these products had received any significant updates for over a decade, so the announcement made last year was merely a formal indication that their time really was up, and customers using these products should move on.

In the intervening years, IBM had forked it's own version of OpenOffice to create Lotus Symphony, before making a significant donation back to the Apache Foundation of the code behind it.  The Side-bar in OpenOffice 4.* is the most visible indicator of IBM's contributions included from the Symphony code-base.

Although the retired software products will still work (and will continue to do so as long as the operating systems for which they were designed are still available) it was with a wistful grin that I remembered back to when I first started using PC's, when almost everyone of my vintage at one time was familiar with the "/" (slash) menus from 1-2-3, the spreadsheet that really proved the power of the PC in the workplace and began the PC revolution.

Then there was Organizer, the PC based Planner and Contact manager that defined what Personal Information Mangement (PIM) was all about.  Over 20 years ago Organizer introduced most of the functionality required for effective personal and group co-ordination, along with tight integration into one's contact list it was possible to do anything, from planning a call, to making a call, and then recording it back into the event. Even features like "calendar overlays" and group calendars had their roots back in Organizer, a personal favourite feature of mine was the "Include" option, that enabled one to see the "tabs" from any colleague within your own Organizer folio.

Figure 1: Lotus Organizer

Interestingly, while opening any of these applications it's clear that anyone familiar with modern desktop software will see that actual functionality available today isn't that far advanced from what we had all those years ago with these leading applications from the Lotus Development Corporation software portfolio.

Farewell, old friends, I thank you for your many years of service.

Comments

1Craig Wiseman  10/07/2014 0:03:09  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Wouldn't it be cool if Notes could export data in a spreadsheet format that WASN'T 1-2-3?

2Smithc447  10/07/2014 0:48:01  
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3Stephan Wissel  10/07/2014 3:26:41  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Lotus Organizer was a huge step backward in capabilities compared to Lotus Agenda. I never understood why the center of my attention had to be the picture of a ring binder.

In Lotus Agenda you could type in "Lunch with Mat tomorrow" and it would order beers for you (not quite, but associate the right person, date and time).

Now Watson does that for us

4Craig Wiseman  10/07/2014 3:52:17  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

... but Watson requires moderately more hardware. ;-)

5Gregg Eldred  10/08/2014 2:51:18  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

@1 nails it. If you are deprecating the ONLY spreadsheet format for export out of Notes, why have you not updated Notes/Domino export to a more . . . modern/available . . . spreadsheet format?

I don't understand.

So, now your customers have NO available spreadsheet format. Perfect.

6Stuart McRae  10/08/2014 3:42:05  
Where’s the flaming trash can?

I can't believe you wrote a piece about Organizer without mentioning the flaming trash can. Must be a first in all those years!

7Mat Newman

10/08/2014 14:48:55  A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

@1, Craig & @5, Gregg: Agree. It's been raised to product managament.

@3, Stephan: Another great Lotus product that didn't make it to Windows (you can download it here: http://www2.support.lotus.com/ftp/pub/desktop/Agenda/dos/2.0/misc/ )

@6, Stuart: LOL, yes mate, the flaming trash-can, another first! ;-)

Mat Newman IBM Champion

8James Michael Calderone  10/24/2014 0:58:40  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Hi Mat, just found your site, been enjoying it quite a bit. I was just commenting to someone (might have been myself) about Organizer... In fact, I was trying to remember the name of it!! Regarding Agenda.... there was in fact a ported version of Agenda for windows that never got released.. Agenda scared the hell out of me but would love to see if it's held up. I think it was Jim Manzi who killed this product for windows when IBM made its dubious misstep for putting it's eggs in the OS2 basket... Maybe the right technology decision, but certain one that didn't take into account business practices (In case any MS people out there... I still remember what you did to the postscript drivers when printing from 123)

Great work Mat!

9marren  11/20/2014 10:32:08  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Hi Mat.

Over the last week I have been looking for a replacement for Lotus Organizer and now I found this article. All these years version 3 served me well. But this version does not work on Windows 7.

Do you happen to know of an equivalent software?

I even called IBM but was told there is nothing in their programs.

I would appreciate any pointers you could give me.

Thanks in advance.

Marren

10jmgingerbeer  02/20/2015 23:41:41  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Hi Marren,

I was also a long term Lotus Organizer user, and got hit when Windows 7 made it incompatible. You could try Essential PIM. There is even a cut-down free version. www.essentialpim.com

The epim GUI is not as pretty as Organizer but that's life. Even some Microsoft applications got the chop.

11Roger Ellman  03/09/2015 21:34:19  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Agree with the EPIM suggestion. I have been using EPIMpro (paid version) for well over a year and I am happy with it because it has an IOS app which it synchs with.

However only the Calendar, ToDo and Contacts synchs leaving the Notes section out in the cold....a shame.

I still have Lotus Organizer installed and backed up for now...I'm always hoping someone will buy it from IBM (I made a first attempt to do so...then decided time was better spent....) and bring it up to cloud/multi-device/synching specification.!!

But the only product I've found that could possibly replace the elegance, completeness and usability of Lotus Organizer is EPIM. An yes. try the free version then you can and probably will, upgrade.

12D A Schmetterling  03/12/2015 0:07:54  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I am glad I found this forum! I might try EPIM.

I am running Organizer 4.2 (!) on Vista and I know it runs on WIn 8.1, though am not sure how well. I have only looked at the file in Win 8.1.

The main thing is to "run as administrator" - maybe the people having trouble have not tried this option.

My file is now 29 MB, apparently much bigger than the developers ever intended/anticipated (I rang a helpdesk many years ago and this came up; they were surprised I was having no issues).

I could probably live without notes sync, as I find MS OneNote pretty good (and I have a WinPhone)

One very important thing not mentioned so far is the searchabilty.

Neither desktop product from Microsoft (Windows Live Mail, Outlook) can be searched.

Maybe EPIM is searchable; shall find out soon...

13D A Schmetterling  03/12/2015 0:12:18  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

PS. To clarify: I meant that the CALENDAR cannot be searched. VERY useful.

Plus, as all users (should) know, with Organizer you can search the entire file for a string if desired, or just a section.

On the other had you cannot use the asterisk in the usual search sense.

14Gerry Wagoner  04/08/2015 2:13:17  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

With a user base that was 40 million and a large number of people who still use and love Lotus Organizer, I would expect that some enterprising individual would buy the program and refresh it. It would most definitely sell !

Also--yes--kudos to the flaming trashcan. The program rocks.

15John Warr  05/22/2015 20:39:54  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I still have the box my original Threadz Organizer came in :-) Organizer 6.1 runs perfectly well under Windows 7. Just run the installer in XP compatibility mode. Frankly I have not found anything to match it. I just wish it had been ported to Linux as it doesn't play nicely with Wine as far as I can see.

16D A Schmetterling  05/30/2015 4:46:26  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Further to my comment of 12 Mar 15 I finally migrated out of Vista to Win 8.1.

Not only does my L Organizer (4.2!) run in Win 8.1, I don't even need to Run As Administrator (unlike in Vista and, I think in Win 7).

Let's hope it stays that way in Win 10...

17Michael  08/02/2015 0:12:14  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Just installed Lotus 6.0 on Win 10 with full success. So thankful! Have notes I made in early 1990's that I still use.

18Don Orlando  08/14/2015 8:44:23  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Michael:

Did you install Lotus ORGANIZER 6.0 on Windows 10? Where there any problems at all?

19John-W  08/23/2015 1:28:03  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I've been using Organizer, Approach and 123 for ~15 years on W98 and currently XP.

I have a CD of Release 9.8.2.

But I haven't yet been able to install these successfully on Windows 10. Could someone advise on the exact installation procedure? eg. installing in XP Compatibility Mode?

20Bruce Bowman  08/23/2015 4:17:04  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I am still using Lotus Organizer 6.1 on Windows 7 Pro x-64. Aside from few screen refresh issues, the program works as well as it did back in 1990 when I started using a previous version. I do not have to "run as administrator", and hope that it still runs on Win10 - I have found no good replacement for this great program

21John-W  08/26/2015 23:35:32  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Further to my post 19, I've put Windows 10 on one side and I am testing installation on Windows 8.1.

My Smartsuite Release 9.3.2 CD has:

123 - V9.8.208.1200

Approach - V9.8.209.600

Organizer - V5.0.2.0

123 and Approach seem to install and run OK in XP Compatibility Mode. But Organizer does not - it won't open a .or5 file.

I understand the latest Organizer was V6.1.0?

Is this the only version to run OK with W8.1 and W10?

If so, where can I get a genuine copy? And does this need a .or6 file standard?

22FredM  08/31/2015 10:26:25  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I let Windows 10 do its install on my ASUS G73SW on top of Win 7. Organizer 6 runs fine but I am having a problem getting it to automatically open the data file (.OR6) that is located in my Livedrive cloud account. It opens an empty workbook and does not request my Organizer password. To run it properly I am forced to open a copy of the file that is sitting on my local hard drive. Anyone had a chance to shoot this bug or develop an automatic workaround?? This software is irreplaceable - I have used it for many years.

23Henk Smits  09/02/2015 18:10:49  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I'm an ancient user of lotus organisor (version 6)

My diary is in this system, containing about 25 years of memory.

After installing windows 10, I had to re install the application, and this does not work..

Does any body know what other application can read or6 files in order to get the main information (among which passwords) from these files??

Henk

24w  09/12/2015 13:57:26  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Henk,

I ran across this which suggests the file can be converted over to Outlook to recover the data.

{ Link }

25Laurence Lewis  09/14/2015 0:02:53  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Lotus 123 was my second spreadsheet - my first being AsEasyAs a shareware(remember those) version - it was far superior. Unfortunately, like a lot of people I was subcontracting to a vandal who only used Microsoft Office and so I had to leave Lotsuite. AmiPro was great and Approach was far more intuitive than Access ever could be. I tried to go back, but Lotus had slipped so far behind. RIP Lotus Smart Suite.

By the way; does anybody know a spreadsheet which has a "skip add" function, i.e. one which sums every second or third, etc column in a line. Useful for budget/actuals etc.?

26Manny Rosenbaum  09/17/2015 1:28:20  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I would like to add my own fondness for the flaming trashcan. RIP, I have an old PC running Windows XP, with Lotus Organizer 2.1 (I think). It was the mainstay of my appointments management. In fact, I may just keep my old machine just for that purpose, until there is something just as useful and flexible for my new Windows 10 laptop.

27w  09/22/2015 13:57:50  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Positive results with Lotus Smartsuite and Windows 10 (Lotus 9.8.2). Seems to work fairly well, with the exception of the initial autorun installation. Manually run the installation and be patient as it makes it's way through the install.

Tested:

Organizer

Lotus 123

Lotus Approach

Word Pro

Lotus Freelance

28Eero Loone  09/23/2015 18:08:02  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Organizer 5 (SmartSuite 99.8.6) runs on Windows 8.1 if configured to run NOT as an administrator and NOT in compatibility mode. Somefine-tuning editing capabiities of WordPro are still superior to MS Word.

29Sheppy Shepherd  09/24/2015 21:22:19  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Well I haven't said goodby to Lotus Organiser. It's the best diary and organiser I have ever used, and the newer ones just don't match up. I'm now up to Windows 10 and it still works. However there is one problem I have had for a while. In the Planner I can now no longer change the key, and as about half are now no longer used it's a bit frustrating. Has anybody out there got any idea how I can get around the problem

Hoping somebody can help,

Sheppy

30Elaine  10/02/2015 10:25:00  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Please please IBM bring back Lotus Organizer!!! I tentatively downloaded Window worrying my beloved Organizer wouldn't work but it does. The only improvement needed is a mobile app.

I too have tried other organisers but nothing come anywhere close.

We should start a campaign!

31Norm E  10/10/2015 19:53:43  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

What an interesting read.

I acquired a boxed version of The Organizer Ver.3.0c containing three installation discs and one (what seems to be) original floppy disc.

Also included are the User's Guide and the Installation Guide. I found them most interesting and I have been pondering whether one could in fact install same on Win 8.1 before I upgrade to Win 10.1.

Having read the above comments, it looks like I might just throw caution to the wind and LIVE!

However, as a 23yr old layman self taught most of the time and having recently acknowledged the OBE, "what you say Ladies & Gentlemen?

Norm E

32Adam Harris  10/16/2015 7:48:28  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Just doing a search for Lotus Organizer and I came across this page ... most time I do searches the most recent entry is from about seven years ago ... clearly Win 10 has reignited the debate for many.

I've always used Org 5, using it on Win 8.1 now without problems, and could never ditch it as, like many others, I have probably 15-20 years of stuff stored away in it ... and would dearly love someone to reanimate the app - the similarity to Filo *ahem* Fax is what always did it for me.

Tried other apps, and yes, EPim is great, but the leatherbound diary/organizer feel just will not go away. And all the different sections ... these are personal to everyone ... it's still a dream app.

I guess what I always missed, as it was a program from before the internet, is that there are no user groups or forums for tips, tricks and advice. Unless you guys can advise otherwise ...

33Coby Shortland  10/16/2015 10:44:44  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Dear matnewman:

Like many others in the same predicament, who have numerous files with content of their whole life's data stuck in a (now apparently defunct) LotusSmart Suite setting, I am looking for an equally suitable program that will accept and store the information in its present form, without any further complications.

Even though I have a LEGAL (paid for) disc of Lotus Smart Suite 9.8.1, this problem did not come to my attention until I recently instigated a change-over to Windows 10!

Please, please, let me know how -and to what - program I can transfer all of the existing info in my "Lotus" files so that I can continue to add to them, without having to re-type all!

Tears in my eyes are forcing a quick closure.....,

Thanks for "listening", signed by a very sad:

Coby

34Chris Coughlan  10/26/2015 4:30:01  
Lotus Wordpro

Never mind 1-2-3 and Organizer, I still love WordPro. I designed work using its watermark function years ago and to my knowledge, nothing I have come across since can handle the scalable gifs I used anywhere near as well. Everything else makes an unmitigated blobby mess when enlarged in a watermark. I still use WordPro every day and will continue to do so even if it is through sheer bloody mindedness. I'm not a technical person, I'm a creative and if something continues to support my design, I will return the compliment. The sad thing is, WordPro has real problems with 64 bit. I have only just found this out after it was installed in Windows 7 64 bit and started losing some of its functionality and became cranky.

35Chris Coughlan  10/26/2015 4:33:22  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Never mind 1-2-3 and Organizer, I still love WordPro. I designed work using its watermark function years ago and to my knowledge, nothing I have come across since can handle the scalable gifs I used anywhere near as well. Everything else makes an unmitigated blobby mess when enlarged in a watermark. I still use WordPro every day and will continue to do so even if it is through sheer bloody mindedness. I'm not a technical person, I'm a creative and if something continues to support my design, I will return the compliment. The sad thing is, WordPro has real problems with 64 bit. I have only just found this out after it was installed in Windows 7 64 bit and started losing some of its functionality and became cranky.

36Rupert Scrivener  10/26/2015 23:53:24  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Lotus Smartsuite has been my faithful friend from 1992/Win 3.1 ... I now only keep Wordpro and 1-2-3 for viewing historic files (forced to the MSOffice dark side by market forces), but Lotus Organizer is effectively 'My Life in a file'. The thought of having to manually export all that data makes me sick with anxiety.

Fortunately, Organizer is running successfully on Win 10, so at the moment my head is firmly buried in the sand. Nothing I have seen to replace it even comes close. So I wish to add my voice to those pleading for a re release of this fabulous and forgotten (by the masses) piece of software!

37Nancy Anderson  11/02/2015 20:48:49  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I also use Lotus Organiser and Wordpro on my laptop with Windows 7. At least 20 years of history on file and I have not ever found anything that matches it for functionality. I would love to be able to use it on my Windows smartphone because portability of diary function is my downfall. I need to manually sync the smartphone diary with Lotus...

38thomas  11/04/2015 14:59:12  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

how do i add LTSCSN13.DLL AND LTASWN23.DLL My auto setup prog says i need it to run organizer in 10 it worked on 7

39Daniel Gerroll  11/11/2015 23:14:34  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I too have over 20 years of data on Lotus Organizer [6]. Is there no way to run it on an apple computer? Im thinking of buying a pc tablet so that I have somethng to run it on [Parallels on my apple is agonisingly slow]. I just hope it runs on Windows 10

40Daniel Gerroll  11/11/2015 23:14:39  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I too have over 20 years of data on Lotus Organizer [6]. Is there no way to run it on an apple computer? Im thinking of buying a pc tablet so that I have somethng to run it on [Parallels on my apple is agonisingly slow]. I just hope it runs on Windows 10

41David-L  11/29/2015 9:10:05  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Nice to see there are at least a few of us diehards out there. I wrote a database application in Approach about 15 years ago that is still working and is the mainstay of a not for profit body I support. The task of updating it is just too large. I use database joins in a way I haven't been able to figure out in Access, and the macro creator in Approach was without peer & still is today....

So now I cant get it to install in Win 10. I've read the helpful comments above carefully and many other links and tried various tips and 'compatibility' settings. I just can get past the first 'initialisation failure' message.

Please anybody... keep updating this thread with helpful messages of hope....

42Attila Czuczi  12/08/2015 1:58:38  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Dear All!

Please help me. I use Lotus organizer 2.11 for 20 years now. I tried to upgrade my 59MB file to Organizer 6.0.

When I try to open and upgrade my old file in 6.0, a receive this message:

The file is damaged. Do you want Organizer to try to recover from the errors and continoue upgrading the file? After yes, I receive this message: File upgrade unsuccessful. :-(

What Should I do, because the file is ok, it works perfectly in Organizer 2.11!

Thank you for your help!

Attila

43Glenn Paul  12/09/2015 13:23:40  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Do you have any idea how large the user base might be for Lotus Approach? Or whether there is a cloud-service that could upload and share an Approach database? If the user base is large enough and there is no good cloud tool, I will consider creating one.

44Marco  12/13/2015 3:23:45  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I'm so relieved to find so many others who love SmartSuite as much as I do. I can manage Excel instead of 1-2-3, and can do simple documents in Word but, like so many I have WordPro documents going back 20 years that I want to keep. Also, it knocks spots off Word for flexibility and ease of use. My main concern, though, is Organizer. There simple isn't anything remotely like it or even a fraction as good. WordPro, 1-2-3 and Organizer 5.0 all run well in Windows 7 32-bit. Please, please will somebody resurrect these wonderful programs.

45Dafernee  12/20/2015 3:39:39  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

You have made me a very happy person! I have been searching for a replaement to Lotus and have failed. I have ignored Win 10 as I thought it wouldn't transfer. Will now have a go!

46Ronald Jones Jr  01/08/2016 2:20:02  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

After using Lotus Approach for over 15 years I have found the best replacement to be FileMakerPro. For export of large number of records I found the best way to export all records from each table as test with comma delimited and with a file extension of .csv

There are also ways to handle data that is in related tables.

47Ronald Jones Jr  01/08/2016 2:20:05  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

After using Lotus Approach for over 15 years I have found the best replacement to be FileMakerPro. For export of large number of records I found the best way to export all records from each table as test with comma delimited and with a file extension of .csv

There are also ways to handle data that is in related tables.

48Rob Lowell  01/08/2016 9:11:10  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

We have an executive in our company who is transitioning to a new computer. She will not use anything but Lotus organizer, but the CD we have seems to be lost. Does anyone have any idea how to migrate an installation from one PC to another without the installation disc? Or does IBM offer a download for the software anywhere?

Thank you for any help!

Rob

49daf  01/14/2016 21:44:36  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Hi Rob

I am in the same boat. Can anyone please help. I have just got my new laptop with Window 10. I upgraded to Organizer 6.1 just before the support ended but I do not have a CD. Cannot work out how to reinstall. Please can someone give us a clue?

50David  01/24/2016 8:29:46  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Can't understand why someone doesn't reinvent this. There is nothing on the market that comes anywhere near as good !

51Mike Bull  02/06/2016 10:49:33  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Here's my plan. I found that when I ungraded to Windows 10 from Windows 7 or 8, with Organizer already installed, it worked as before. When I recently purchased a new computer, with Windows 10 already installed and then try to load my Smart Suite, I couldn't get it to load; something about not enough disk space. So, I'm going to reload a version of Windows 7 that I own on that new computer. I will then load Organizer. Then, when offered the free Windows 10 upgrade, I'll upgrade back to 10 and I should be okay.

I will also be looking for some get-around solution, which will allow me to load organizer in spite of the incompetence of Windows 10. Why Microsoft thinks its okay to unilaterally make our software obsolete is beyond me. They are too big. To driven by their own agenda.

Also surely IBM could give this as a project to some intern, or allow some 3rd party to give us a solution. They just don't seem to give a care. Come you, you can do better.

52Peter Nicolay, Cape Town, South Africa  02/11/2016 0:48:41  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I have used Lotus Organizer for over 20 years. Every time I gave it up to move over to MS Outlook I had to move back again! This has been going on now for over 20 years!

I have found the Link function to be very useful for personal information management. I am hanging on grimly to Windows 7 just so that I can use Organizer.

I have been using Organizer for research for linking up notes when dealing with a patchwork of items.

The only other software I have found which works with links is Semantica produced by Semantic Research, Inc ({ Link } This is a superb program which is geared towards the Artificial Intelligence direction.

53Travis  02/23/2016 23:55:47  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I, like many other would like to know where I can get an organizer disk. I downloaded SmartSuite but it has an older version of organizer than what I hade and cannot open the file.

Any Ideas?

Thanks

Travis...

54John-W  04/03/2016 3:10:56  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Further to my posts 19 and 21, I have now successfully installed Lotus SmartSuite onto a clean installation of Windows 10 Pro 32-bit.

SmartSuite 9.8.2 Millenium Edition CD having the following versions:

123 V9.8.208.1200

Approach V9.8.209.600

Organizer V5.0.2.0

I found the following minor issues which I can live with, given that I can continue to use the above SmartSuite applications!

1. As others have reported, Autorun does not work – I had to manually run setup.exe.

2. I run all the above as Administrator which got round strange file protection/’file in use’ issues with existing data files. (I don’t know enough about Windows 10 Pro file and folder permissions to solve this!)

3. Help does not work. This is due to (current) lack of support for WinHlp in Windows 10. This also prevents Help files from other old Windows applications from running. See:

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/917607

(Note. Non-Microsoft workarounds to provide WinHlp support for Windows 10 are available).

4. The Microsoft IntelliPoint mouse scrolling wheel does not work in SmartSuite. SmartSuite applications require driver support for Universal Scrolling which is not provided in the latest Windows 10 IntelliPoint driver. See:

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/821487

For many years I have used SmartSuite with Windows XP with IntelliPoint driver V4.1. Subsequent driver versions do not support Universal Scrolling.

Does anyone have the scroll wheel working using SmartSuite with any other type of mouse + Windows 10 compatible driver?

55D A Schmetterling  05/08/2016 1:12:40  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Mat, is there any way we can get automatic notification of new messages in this forum?

Here is an update of my own travails with the demise of Organizer. My OS is Win 8.1 64 bit.

In the SmartSuite I never used WordPro, and managed to migrate out of Lotus 1-2-3 for new spreadsheets many years ago and not so long ago I converted my more complex 'daily drivers' to Excel, but Organizer is peerless, unfortunately. I am in the same boat as so many here, with decades of data in the calendar/diary...

I retain the 1-2-3 programme to be able to work with old sheets, just in case. For viewing only, some viewers can handle it, e.g. the very handy Quick View Plus. If Lotus 1-2-3 is not available I understand that LibreOffice will open .wk4 and .123 files.

EPIM turned out to be a disappointment as there is no support for Windows Phone 8.1 and no plans for it; I have one and like it a lot.

Since using my Organizer v4.1 in Win 8.1 I have noticed some (non-critical) signs of failure, possibly because I am now on 64 bit (for the first time), namely in the calendar function, so my head-in-the-sand attitude has softened (note to 36 Ruper Scrivener, 26 Oct 15), although I am not in a panic because of the various reports of functioning ok in Win 10.

To 25 Laurence Lewis, 14 Sep 14, regarding a "skip add" function. I am not familiar with this function but I am wondering if =SUBTOTAL in Excel will suit you. It can certainly add up selectively.

Somebody led me to it after years of my trying to replace 1-2-3's @SUBTOTAL / @GRANDTOTAL functionality.

Contact me at dori2343 -at- yahoo -spot- com if you wish to discuss it further.

I now use =SUBTOTAL quite a lot.

Finally, to 33 Coby Shortland, 16 Oct 15, the big question about a programme to which to migrate. EssentialPIM (EPIM) seemed the most likely but turned out to be unsuitable for me, so my conclusion is that there is no easy answer (otherwise everyone would have reported it).

It seems to me that MS Outlook is part of the best solution of the not very good ones. I was pleased to discover that the Outlook calendar *can* be searched; confusingly the online Outlook.com calendar (or the desktop Windows Live Mail calendar) *cannot*.

NB: There are signs that MS may be dropping support for Windows Live Mail anyway, so I would not start any new projects relying on it, other than email and contacts, which sync fine with Outlook.com.

So far I have successfully transferred my Anniversary calendar into a separate Outlook Calendar (repositary for recurring events like birthdays and wedding anniversaries).

Notepad can easily be copied and pasted into, say, MS OneNote, a very useful programme. It can also be exported as a text file and, I suppose, from there be copied and pasted anywhere you like.

I have not addressed the To Do list as I have more or less given up on using it. There is something related in Outlook.

The big problems are Addresses and the main Calendar. I have looked at Addresses in some detail but on Calendar I can already say that Outlook has a feature that allows calendar overlays, similar to the way Organizer Anniversaries and Planner items can be pulled into the main Calendar.

I expect that most of the people here are aware of this.

Addresses: Export into a csv file does not work well and needs an enormous amount of editing, so writing from scratch probabaly would not take much longer...

The best bet is to export to a database format and then import into Access, the create an Access 2003 file. Even Outlook 2010 won't import Access after 2003...

You could stay in Access but I don't think you get much sync capability with mobile devices.

I have not done the migration yet as my head is still partly in the sand (see above).

I have not fully investigated the main calendar yet, but I think it will need to go via Access as well.

Maybe somebody has a better solution, after all...?...

56Adrian Newton  05/10/2016 1:03:51  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Just to say - my ancient copy of Lotus Organizer (97 edition) has installed fine under Windows 7. As noted above, I had to install it manually. But all working wonderfully. Many thanks to the comments above, which inspired me to persevere with the installation process, when I had just about given up hope! - Adrian

57Roland Hughes  05/27/2016 0:50:57  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Lotus SmartSuite was and still is the best office software ever created. It was cross platform, running on both OS/2 and Windows. WordPro was and still is the best word processor out there. I originally wrote this book: { Link } using WordPro. I ended up porting it to Word Perfect because I didn't want to spend hundreds on a PDF printer driver (yes, you used to have to purchase them) and Word Perfect had the ability to export to PDF.

If you run Ubuntu 16.04 64-bit you can install Wine from the package manager, take the default XP configuration, and SmartSuite 98 will install just fine. I haven't done much with it. Dialog's do pop up about no printer configuration but, I most likely need to define a printer in Wine.

I've used many word processors and office suites during my 30+ years in IT. I miss Smart Suite more than any other piece of software. That organizer was PHENOM. The sliding drawer file cabinet was pretty cool too.

58Bill Dick  06/03/2016 2:56:02  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

For some strange and unknown reason, all of a sudden I can no longer run Lotus Organizer. When I try, I get the message "Can't load "LTBUBN12.Dll"" I have made to changes and can't imagine why I now get this message every time I try to run Organizer. Does anyone have any helpful thoughts that I can try?

59Brian  06/06/2016 1:24:12  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I bought Lotus SmartSuite years ago, after using (imho the finest word processor) AmiPro and it installed easily under Windoze 7 Ultimate 64bit. No problems whatsoever. Organizer and 123 are used every day.

60Brian  06/06/2016 1:25:44  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Meant to include Lotus WordPro - excellent too.

61Jim MacBrayne  06/07/2016 1:53:14  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I too use Lotus Organizer 6.1 constantly, and was gutted to find I couldn't install it on Windows 10. I persisted in trying, however, and eventually succeeded. I logged on as Administrator, disabled all my antivirus software and ran the installation program as administrator under Windows XP compatibility.

62john h woodman  06/09/2016 22:33:44  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

lotus symphony 1992

looking for help installing on windows 10

63John-Paul Dimmers  06/23/2016 14:52:51  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I have working in TV post industry forever. Started using organizer in 1992 (came free in Toshiba notebook) Have used it for 24 years.

I have found win 7+ issues in 64 bit windows installs. Running applications in XP mode enforces 32 bit mode.

I have recently fixed all my windows suite issues. For work I bought a 2012 ish Apple note book. This had all the flashy graphics adapters for running Avid software. Then I installed Parallels and a retired Windows XP licence. Installed Lotus suite V5..... Hey it's 2001 again, every thing works the way it used to.

64Tom  07/04/2016 9:45:53  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I have used Lotus Organizer since my very first computer in 1993. OMG, that is 23 years. I will never give it up. It is the best organizer ever created. It feels like a real book. I hate Outlook and I don't understand why they cannot keep going with this wonderful product. They could have at lkeast made something so that if you absolutely had to you could inport into your iPhone or whatever.

65Kilmolin  07/05/2016 12:55:52  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Running Lotus Organizer 6.1 on Windows 7 SP1 64 bit (and 7, XP etc before that) with only very minor problems:

1. It does not default to the startup directory (start in).

Once set after starting, the new default directory is maintained for that session

2. On file import into calendar, it does not list files matching the multiple search criteria vcalendar/icalendar (*.VCS,*.ICS,*.LCS) though it does list files matching Text (*.TXT,*.CSV)

Neither of these issues arose on XP.

HELP works if you copy winhlp32.exe into Windows.

My file is now 43Mb with several user-defined Planner, ToDo and Notepad sections, and response is still very good.

I synchronize Organizer with my mobile periodically, not automatically; it will be difficult to maintain this as Organizer synchronization is not supported now.

Overall Organizer is simply the best software I have ever worked with over a long career in IT. How can you beat Notepad (and user-created additional Notepads) for documenting solutions?

Its hard to understand why this software has not been taken over and developed.

It should still be possible to download Organizer 6.1 from some websites.

Of course I have to use Outlook on work sites. I never liked the interface very much but the new layouts for calendar, tasks etc really does not appeal to me at all.

66Kilmolin  07/05/2016 13:06:59  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I should add that help works in general; I cannot get Bubble Help to work.

67Mark Salem  07/13/2016 16:08:49  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Looking for someone who wants to sell a OEM Lotus Organizer 6.0 or 6.1 install disc.

68Mark Salem  07/28/2016 8:29:57  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I am looking for a Lotus CD with 6.0 or 6.1 Organizer on it.

69Drew  08/31/2016 9:25:47  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I bought a new computer that still has Windows 7 so I could continue to run Lotus Organizer (ran just fine on my last Windows 7 PC). But I can't find my CD now!!!!

Does anyone have a late verison of Lotus Organizer on CD they can lend me or sell?

Has anyone found a new program that looks and runs like Organizer, runs on later/future versions of Windows and imports your old Organizer files?

Thanks

Drew

70Mark Caballero  09/25/2016 11:02:12  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I had Lotus Organizer on my Windows 7 system and it worked fine. Then I upgraded to 10 and it still worked fine. But, then my hard drive crashed and I had to have the data extracted. Now I can't load Lotus from the CD because there are "digitally unsigned drivers". What does that mean and can I get "signed drivers" somewhere"?

Solve that one for me Drew and I'll loan you my Lotus Organizer 6.1 CD.

71John Chidgey  09/27/2016 5:15:50  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Well... Organizer 6.0 ran perfectly well on Windows 10 in compatability mode until the dreaded Anniversary Update descended yesterday and now it won't load at all. It says that "LTBUBN12.DLL" is missing... Any ideas?

72Tony Callender  10/15/2016 1:12:45  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Hi

I have been running Organizer 5.04 under Windows 10 for well over a year without any problems.

However, after a recent Windows update, I now get an error message when I close Organizer (only after adding new information to it). This doesn't prevent Organizer from running, as before, but it is a bit of a nuisance.

The essence of the message is,"...there may be a problem with your organizer file....a temporary file has been created at C: Users/.. which may help to resolve...."

Has anyone any ideas as to the cause and how to stop the message?

Thank you

Tony

73Tom  10/20/2016 0:49:18  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Recently found a CD from 1999 with Lotus Organizer 1997 edition. In my case it works great on mu Windows 10 laptop.

Installed it as "Administrator". No problems !

74Rod  11/13/2016 11:01:02  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

This might help the "LTBUBN12.DLL is missing" message. A problem like this seems vaguely familiar along the way where I needed to manually recopy some dll files to corrected directory/subdirectory(-ies):

In addition, you can also try copying the missing dll to these folder(s):

- Windows

- Windows\System32

- Program Files (x86)\Lotus Smart Suite\organize (or the folder for organizer if it isn't installed as part of Lotus Smart Suite)

- On my PC (Windows 7 Professional (x64) Service Pack 1), the dll file was found in this folder: C:\Program Files (x86)\Lotus Smart Suite\compnent

{ Link }

I am running Organize 5.04 and Approach 9.8.0208.1300 on a Win7 Pro 64.

I am also interested in a copy of Organizer 6.1 or 6.0. I can't imagine either is really covered (or enforced) under any copyright these days.

75APS  12/03/2016 3:45:16  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I am still running the same version of Lotus 5 that i have had since Win 3.1.... yes there was life before, it worked on 97,97, Xp, Win 7, 8 and now 10.

Up until win 8, I simply copied the driectory.... (ops old terms), folder, and it worked. From win 8 onwards I did the same and then run the set up file manually dron the folder, that sorted my problems.

I did find that version 5 worked better than the later versions.

It is as good today as ever, simple to use, for me what I like is that it is not linking in with everything else, unlike Win 10, which within a few days told me,

"Hi, we have kept you in touch with your contats whilst shut down" Not now it does not. erghhhh

76mexmike  12/05/2016 10:49:45  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I run Organizer as admin in Windows 10 no problem

77mexmike  12/05/2016 10:49:55  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I run Organizer as admin in Windows 10 no problem

78alan  12/06/2016 10:06:19  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

No farewell going on here!

Organizer 6.1 running on Windows 10 Pro Anniversary as well as it ever has (OK almost) since I made my first entry into Organizer on Dec 15, 1992. Yeah, I am a die hard Organizer user. It has had its own dedicated monitor on my desk ever since I got my first multi-monitor card. I use it everyday M-F 8-5. It's been running my day for 24 years.

Can't imagine a day in the office without the flaming trash can!

79SaliesBuzz  12/15/2016 23:32:10  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Thanks for the heads up from 74Rod on the "LTBUBN12.DLL is missing" message. I have had Organizer 6.1 running though all versions of Windows up to and including Win 10 Anniversary.

I had this error when I was trying to re-install Organizer 6.1 and I can confirm that the tip from 74Rod works.

I think the problem is that it is unsigned (or Win 10 Anniversary thinks it is), and it gets blocked from installing in the correct place.

Another tip:

Copy an old Winhlp32.exe into the Windows folder to restore the full help for old programs like Organizer. You will have to change the owner of the 10Kb Winhlp32.exe from trusted installer to administrators, otherwise you cannot delete or rename the original file. Also, any further upgrades or running the System File Checker will put back the 10Kb Winhlp32.exe, so keep a copy outside of the Windows folder so you can put it back afterwards.

The file you need is a Winhlp32.exe that should be 260kB in size.

80Bowportes  12/22/2016 1:14:31  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

No problems with my Lenovo Thinkpad running 64bit Windows 10. I installed by running setup.exe as Administrator from the CD.

I use Wordpro every day without incident except for very very rare crashes. With the autosave feature running, even when that happens, I lose no more than 5-10 minutes of work. It's a spectacular word-processor in my opinion. My documents are complex with nested auto-numbering, extensive use of styles, multiple versions/revisions saved within the same file, etc. For most formatting and text manipulation, I find it to be much faster than Word, which is also on my PC, but used only when multiple editors are involved. I distribute files from Wordpro as RTFs or PDFs to others, and they can open those directly within Word (Windows version) for editing if they choose.

I also sometimes use 1-2-3 -- always without any problems at all -- but don't ever use Organizer.

81Adrienne Boswell  01/11/2017 8:25:52  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I am using Lotus Organizer 6.0, on Windows 10 Insider preview build 14986 and Lotus is working just fine. I have it on both my Windows 7 and the 10 computers, and they are sharing the file on the 7 computer, which backs up to Dropbox. However, last night I made the mistake of getting the newest WIndows Insider build, 15002, and Lotus did not work. I was greeted with an insufficient memory message, the file would fail to open, and eventually, the computer would green screen (green is the color for Insiders, Blue for production versions). So, Lotus may finally not work anymore in the Creators Update

82Chris Holmes  02/15/2017 20:23:05  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

What Outlook and other programs fail to achieve, and which organizer does elegantly, is clarity and effective use of space. For example, when using a small laptop it is annoying having to scroll all the time, when a clearer and more compact layout would avoid it. Clarity without loss of function takes real effort, and the same applies to proper use of English. But such clarity wins loyalty like nothing else. Some big name software houses don't understand this, and probably never will, but reading the comments on this site should give them reason to reflect.

83Jack Devereaux  03/04/2017 6:29:22  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I need to rent, buy or steal a copy of version 6. Withdrawal is a B**%$*. Call collect with any help.

84Gerard Tonno  04/02/2017 8:22:23  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

WOW, I am blown away to have found this blog (or whatever you want to call it these days, LOL!

I was a devout AmiPro and Organizer user, and thought I must just be weird for liking it so much that I didn't want to let go.

Fo those of you who are looking for a CD copy I'm going to stop everything I'm doing as soon as I post this and dig out my Organizer discs. IIRC I have multiple versions/copies and even the Smartsuite CD, I believe from 1997. I'll let you know, and I can burn ISOs for anyone who wants them.

I'm just giddy with excitement over the fact that so many of you fee the same way I do about these apps, and its great to hear so many are clinging to them. The world definitely went backwards when AmiPro and Organizer were dropped, IMHO!

Talk soon,

GT

85Gerard Tonno  04/02/2017 9:22:36  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Okay, so far I've found both my Smart Suite 1997 and SmartSuite 9.8.1 CDs,

The SS 1997 disc has Organizer 97 3.1.0.1

The 9.8.1 has Organizer ver 5.0.2.0 dated 08/2002

I know I have a copy of Organizer V6 also, but that was a standalone copy Organizer, I just haven't put my hands on that one yet. I'll run it down soon.

GT

86Gerard Tonno  04/02/2017 11:13:36  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Okay folks, here's the best news of all: I have IBM Lotus Organizer 6.1 It is a 21.3 meg self expanding program installation file. I just installed it on one of my WIN 7 machines with no issues.

Let me know if you are interested via email at: cavallogt@gmail.com

Regards,

GT

87David Palme  04/13/2017 5:55:44  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I have Organizer 6.1 running just fine in Windows 10. Still works just fine.

88Jack Melnick  05/14/2017 3:17:50  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Started with VISICALC, then LOTUS 1-2-3. Now running LOTUS 1-2-3, V 4.10 under Windows XP, Just got a Windows 10, 32 bit computer and would like to install LOTUS 1-2-3 and use my .WK4 files (now on a flash drive).

Am I whistling "Dixie" or will LotusSmartsuite 9.8 really run on Windows 10, 32 bit? None of these feedbacks are specific to this question.

Thanks,

Jack

89Richard Branderhorst  05/15/2017 15:24:45  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Great info, and I thought I was the last Organiser user! However yesterday it played a trick on me, suddenly all my planner data was lost! Even from the last 5 years or so...Emergency!

I immediately thought I was hit by some of those malware stuff that is active worldwide last days...

But after inspection I saw all my data files had the same amount of size: 14.993 Kb. Vaguely I can remember to "compact" the files now and then, somehow this has disappeared from my way of dealing with the program, so It must have drowned itself over the last years in empty Db lines. Compacting does not seem to work at the moment.

On my holiday address right now, have to wait to be home to get to my backup data...

90Loris Casagrande  01/15/2018 0:51:09  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I use Lotus organizer 6.01 in Windows 10 1709 64bit and running in perfect mode. Not use compatibility mode. Only forum installation i use .MSI file and not setup.exe

91Bob Johns  02/01/2018 5:06:54  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I have been using Organizer 5.0 since at least 1999. It's on a Dell Dimension XPS, running XP. I don't want to give it up but computer is going. I love the Calendar that is hooked up to my phone so I can keep track of my calls. I can't find another calendar that I can call from. If any one knows about one, PLEASE let me know. I have a Lotus SmartSuite 96 CD, but no key (do I need a key)? I am looking to update my desktop w/a windows 7 computer, & am going to go over this column to see if I can do it. It sounds like I should stick w/ Windows 7 home, 32 bit if they make it. Any advice or help would be appreciated. Thanks, bob

92Peter Cunningham  04/24/2018 22:43:28  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I have been using Lotus Organiser V5.0.2.0 for nearly 30 years - even on W10 64bit (installed in 'compatibility mode')

I have an original disk for that version if anybody wants it.

I have been trying my hardest to find the latest version which I understand to be V6.1, but people NEVER describe how V6.1 can be found let alone downloaded safely. (ie: no bugs or strings attached.)

If you have or can point me in the right direction where I can get V6.1, then that would be GREAT.

Conversely, if anybody wants what I have on original disk, then I can clone (ISO) and make it available on DROPBOX.

My email is: ass@acenet.com.au

93Peter Cunningham  04/24/2018 22:43:32  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I have been using Lotus Organiser V5.0.2.0 for nearly 30 years - even on W10 64bit (installed in 'compatibility mode')

I have an original disk for that version if anybody wants it.

I have been trying my hardest to find the latest version which I understand to be V6.1, but people NEVER describe how V6.1 can be found let alone downloaded safely. (ie: no bugs or strings attached.)

If you have or can point me in the right direction where I can get V6.1, then that would be GREAT.

Conversely, if anybody wants what I have on original disk, then I can clone (ISO) and make it available on DROPBOX.

My email is: ass@acenet.com.au

94Adrienne Boswell  04/30/2018 2:13:45  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Update to my last post on 01/11/2017, my beautiful darling works just fine on Win 10, latest Insider update. Surprisingly, when the latest update crashed my computer and I had to reinstall Windows, which removes ALL of your programs, the only one of the programs I had to reinstall that had absolutely NO problems was our good girl, Lotus Organizer. I still have her on my Windows 7 box, and use the file on it over a mapped drive, with the backup going to Dropbox.

The other day, I wrote to IBM and told them how unfortunate it was that they never updated Organizer. Can you imagine how great it would be to have Organizer on your Android or iOS device? I would pay for such an app, as I'm sure a lot of us would. Sadly, I have to use a bunch of Google apps to try to partially duplicate Organizer's functionality, but it's different apps, or different tabs, and it's a Pain in the Ass. This is my configuration:

Calendar : Google Calendar - still can't do repeating with the precision of Lotus.

Tasks/To Do : Google Tasks - uh, what can I say?

Calls : Contacts Plus does a good job keeping track of calls but can't talk to the calendar or make notes on calls

Planner : Google Calendar is the closest and still is woefully behind

Notepad : Google Keep sort of talks to it's siblings, but not anywhere nearly as well as Organizer

Web : Yeah, we all have better browsers, and there are plugins now that do amazing stuff, so this one I think was DOA

Anniversary : Google Calendar can import other calendars, but it's nice to see all the holidays and anniversaries in one place.

Maybe some day, some brave soul will make an app to replace our beloved Lotus Organizer. The parts are there, they just need to be put together.

95Peter Hood  05/11/2018 2:55:11  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Thank you for your fond article on the demise of Lotus Smartsuite, which I deprecate, regret and mourn. I have been using Word Pro since it was AmiPro, and Organizer since it was Threadz Organiser. Today I finally came to a decision; I have to find another organiser and slowly edge Lotus Organizer out of the picture, and I can't believe the quiet sorrow that I have experienced; I am so fond of this constant presence on all of the computers I've owned since about 1991, and I have difficulty believing I'll ever come to trust and use other packages so routinely and without thought.

I'm still using 5.01 (on Windows 7 and 10, without difficulty so far), and didn't even know there was an Organizer version 6, which I would dearly love, but it's not for sale anywhere.

If ever a software suite deserved to survive I feel it's the SmartSuite, which I believe was damaged by the ubiquity and cheapness of MS.

It's a pleasant surprise to see that other people have the same feelings.

Well, must go; an Organizer alarm requires attention before tea. BBFN.

96Peter Hood  05/11/2018 4:37:57  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Adrienne, did IBM respond to you? I heard some talk that they might resurrect OS2, which is something I'd love. A pipe dream perhaps.

Your remark about Google's calendar caused me to smile, because I often wish I could have those options when deleting a repeating event, including 'all previous'.

97Lee Dimi  06/16/2018 7:20:01  
Lotus Smartsuite Forum status

Hi, all Lotus 123 users:

I still use Lotus 123 (release 9.82 works fine in windows 10) because it's much handier 3D spreadsheet than Excel, which I also use.

Until the last few weeks, IBM hosted the Lotus Smartsuite Forum, a great resource for Lotus 123 spreadsheet tips and advice.

But if I now try to go to the forum, I get "page not found". Is the Forum through IBM now dead? And if so, is that info somehow accessible elsewhere?

Thx

98menachem szus  07/18/2018 9:21:04  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

a huge sigh is heard across the universe.

i have org. 6.0 and been using org. since about ver. 3.0

i do not want to repeat all the kudos. they all correct. I have found nothing to match it.

i looked for this kind of blog, because i did not believe that anyone who used the org. would voluntarily abandon it.

let's start to pester IBM or a regular basis and see what gives.

Just sitting here and elating and griping to each other is cozy but ineffective.

long live the ORG.

fondly

99Zahid Shaikh  07/23/2018 3:37:37  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

You can buy Organizer 6.1 at Amazon fro $249.99!

100Luis F. Azurduy  07/28/2018 7:08:00  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Can someone PLEASE help me?

I have installed the Lotus SmartSuite 9.8.2 Update for Approach and Organizer (Windows XP).

In Help/About I have:

Approach: LOT 0207 V9.8.0208.1300

Organizer: LOT 0207 V5.04

How do I verify that I have Version 9.8.2?

Please post your comments if you believe you can help me and THANK YOU in advance.

101Luis F. Azurduy  07/28/2018 8:16:15  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Hello Mat:

I am sorry, but I should have addressed the above Post to your attention.

(It is my first Post (comment)

102Adam Harris  09/07/2018 6:13:32  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Curiously browsing Organizer, as I do from time to time, came across this blog - a perfect eulogy:

*10jmgingerbeer 02/20/2015 23:41:41

A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Hi Marren,

I was also a long term Lotus Organizer user, and got hit when Windows 7 made it incompatible.*

I've been using Organizer 5 for over twenty years, and it's still going strong on my Win 8.1 machine - I never used Win 7 but it's fine in 8.1.

Out of all the software I have ever used in twenty years it is the only one that has never once crashed or caused a problem.

I consider it a Filofax (because that is what it is) and I keep searching to see if anyone has taken up the app, is working to transition to mobile and portable, and looking to keep it alive forever. Despite its age it is the most perfectly designed app ever, and I couldn't imagine life without it.

103Mark  10/23/2018 0:37:48  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

i can get the .exe to run on win7 just fine but for some reason the .or4 will not budge . what amazes me is that with all the intelligent peoples out theres not even one can come up with a solution or patch or some hidden trick of some sort. what a let down

104Deen Hameed  10/27/2018 18:01:57  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I've been running Organizer 6 forever now, from XP > 7 > 8 > W10 with no problems at all...

As a matter of fact, I find almost all other PIMs useless in comparison, even though _everyone_ laughs their collective heads off when I tell them what I use.

These days the calendaring parts of LO are not used; i use the calendar mostly as a diary, but all the other bits, like contacts (multiple sections), categorization, calls management (I use it like a calls / notes manager), tasks, notepad with the ability to store _fragments_ of spreadsheets without actually having to save them somewhere... I honestly don't understand how the good $#!t falls by the wayside while nonsense gets valued at billions of dollars...

The thing I find I simply cannot replace is the ability to _link_ bits of information together, the 'threadz' part of the original organizer...

I found a cloud solution of sorts by simply putting my organizer files in my dropbox folder and as long as I close the program off when I leave my desk / laptop, there isn't even a conflict. You simply open organizer and the file will load up perfectly.

FWIW, my main LO file is now more than 150MB and I don't have any problems with it. I suspected at one time I was perhaps dropping entries, but it was hard to tell.

I (hopefully) work around that problem by using FreeFileSync to 'version' the file on a daily basis to a separate folder. If I think something has gone missing, I might have go digging for it on one of the older versions , and then merge the two files together (in Organizer).

Also, I found my macbook pro nearly worthless until I installed Oracle's VirtualBox running Win7, and that VM runs LO perfectly (again just opens the dropbox based LO file).

The only thing people can complain about using an old dinosaur is that it isn't immediately available on your phone. A fair argument, but LO doesn't remind me to buy milk, it manages all the _important_ things in my day, and for that.

All I have to do is remember to open LO in the morning, go through all my tasks / reminders and hard calendar them into my google calendar. 5 minutes of copy-description and paste.

Same thing in the evening. Go through your day and tick off the things you finished off.

P.S. Do you know how much it is going to suck if it turns out I typed this huge post and I am not able to submit it?? :P

105wolfman3000  10/31/2018 11:58:00  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

...if it ain't broke, don't fix it. :)

106Justin  11/29/2018 16:16:02  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I love Lotus Approach (and smart suite) The approach app was and is still my baby. No other program does relational databases like this program. I tried Access and could not wrap my old brain around it.

These programs still work OK on win 10 on both 32 bit and 64 bit systems but there are two problems .

1st. It (lotus approach) sometimes fails to load but usually will on the 2nd try.

2nd. The scroll wheel has not worked since windows 7. I would LOVE to know how to fix that. Are there any other dinosaurs like me out there that understand this?

107DTK  01/10/2019 19:58:36  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I'm still using lotus wordpro and will for as long as I can.

I have crossover linux and you can install lotus in a windows 98 bucket - wordpro, lotus 1-2-3 and approach work fine (but organizer does not work).

I also have a windows xp installed in virtualbox with a full copy installed as well - although I prefer to use the linux crossover version and it flies.

108Kym Yeoward  01/27/2019 17:44:24  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Orrganiser makes a great PC-based password manager.

109James Fleming  02/11/2019 3:09:22  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

For me, this is more in blast from the past territory. I had to stop using these wonderful programmes long ago due to compatibility issues with my Dell Axim PDA. Nowadays not being able to have appointment synchronisation with my various devices is a killer.

I'm amazed to discover that they still work in Windows 10. I may have a blast with them for nostalgia's sake. The best WP I ever used and nothing ever came close to Organiser.

Like all of you I wish someone would update it. Using it on a touchscreen tablet would be just incredible and it seemed that it was designed with that in mind for the future. For me the ideal would once have been Google buying it and replacing their awful calendar but given their propensity for ruining what was once good and scrapping the truly useful I fear they'd just ruin it.

110Drive  04/01/2019 0:10:56  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Hi I have the following problem: I have a damaged .OR5 file that I can no longer open with Organizer 5.0 what can I do? Organizre 5.0 has been installed on a Windows 10 64bit PC for over 1 year, and only two days ago I had this problem. How can I access the contents of the .OR5 file? Thanks for the help you can give me. Greetings

111Graham England  05/01/2019 2:50:05  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I just stumbled upon this thread and it brought a big smile to my face... I worked for Threadz back in the day, creating automated regression tests for the Organizer functionality and running the Beta program. The staff were SO ahead of their time.

I still use the Organizer, it holds a quarter of a century of my life now... lol.

While it works fine on my Windows 10 machine, I live in fear that eventually a Windows update will render my Organizer a dead duck. I'm contemplating importing everything to Outlook, but I'd lose out on SO much functionality. Since folks here have suggested trying out Essential PIM, I'll give it a look at some point, but I'd feel like such a traitor to my "Organ-sizer" (as we used to call it at Threadz!!).

Amazingly my file is just over 3MB, which I find amazing considering everything it contains.

Just thought I'd share my thoughts for similar fans of such a great product!

112Mike  05/30/2019 7:43:07  
Lotus 123 spreadsheets! ideas please

I'm still using Lotus 123 spreadsheets and can't easily move as several separate spreadsheets interlink and go back 25+ years!!

What I would like to happen is clicking on save, saves the spreadsheet in two places at once so that if I have a hard disc crash I'll still have an uo to date set of spreadsheets on another drive. Surely there must be a way??

113Wayne Halvorsen  06/09/2019 23:32:51  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I have my detailed diary since 1993 in Lotus Organizer 6.0 and had big problems with crashes of my PC on windows 8 & 10. It had always worked perfectly in all previous Windows versions, perhaps due to my large .0R6 files (several in the range of 40- 50 MBs) or, more likely the 16 bit subroutines in Lotus on my 64 bit PC.

I tried everything to no avail & finally just abandoned my PC & bought a Macbook in which I run Windows XP 32 bit in a Parallels Desktop sandbox and it works perfectly.

My only problem is that Apple now wants to change to the new Mac OS Mojave, which will apparently no longer support anything in 32 bit. The new version 4 of Parallels which works in Mojave is full of warnings about the possibility I wont be able to make any 32 bit program work in it and will have to switch to Windows 10.

any ideas ?

114cd  06/14/2019 19:01:52  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

hi Just to say still using IBM Smartsuite every day. The best composite office software bar none in my view.

Looking to switch to Linus.

Any views ideas welcome.

Thanks you.

CD

115Barry  07/08/2019 7:54:44  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Just found the Lotus SmartSuite97 CD which I didn't realise I still had and downloaded Lotus Organizer to Windows10 (64bit) and it works perfectly without any meddling with compatibility.

116Antonio  08/06/2019 0:17:58  
Lotus Organizer 6.1 soldiers on under Windows 10

I continue to use Lotus Organizer 6.1 under Win 10 with no major issues. I run it on three different computers, and the only snag is that on one of them (brand new HP Elitedesk 800 G3) I need to run Organizer with admin privileges, but only if the .or6 file is password protected, go figure.

117Luc  10/14/2019 2:28:45  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I have been using Lotus Smartsuite for more than 20 years now.

I just upgraded to windows 8.1 64 bits and everything works perfect as usual even Organizer 6.1.

I recently got hold of version 9.8.6 (last one).

Installation was somewhat tedious but I got it to run : I put the files on a usb key and gave it letter F: , after that everything went fine.

I use Organizer, Approach and 123 almost everyday.

As far as I am concerned nothing touches Organizer and Approach for ease of use for a small business.

Keep up the good work

118Dale Kaup  11/11/2019 14:13:05  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

There is a very useful site for Lotus Approach which is easily found by Googling "John Brown Lotus Approach"

119James Leslie  12/27/2019 23:11:35  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Hello Fellow Contributors

Just to echo all comments endorsing Smartsuite - Approach WordPro 123 and Organiser as the hands down best software suite that remains streets ahead of anything compatible.

Approach - with its sequential numbering sequence for data records - to the ability to join 11 databases together - to being able to embed fully functional spread sheets and word documents into each data record and many other features - is unsurpassable.

Organiser is in a league of its own to this date.

Wish IBM would relook at this resource and bring it back to life.

Am no looking to move over to Linux to see if this will hold this program together for future use.

120James Leslie  12/27/2019 23:11:43  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Hello Fellow Contributors

Just to echo all comments endorsing Smartsuite - Approach WordPro 123 and Organiser as the hands down best software suite that remains streets ahead of anything compatible.

Approach - with its sequential numbering sequence for data records - to the ability to join 11 databases together - to being able to embed fully functional spread sheets and word documents into each data record and many other features - is unsurpassable.

Organiser is in a league of its own to this date.

Wish IBM would relook at this resource and bring it back to life.

Am no looking to move over to Linux to see if this will hold this program together for future use.

121James Leslie  12/28/2019 1:18:50  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Hello Fellow Contributors

Just to echo all comments endorsing Smartsuite - Approach WordPro 123 and Organiser as the hands down best software suite that remains streets ahead of anything compatible.

Approach - with its sequential numbering sequence for data records - to the ability to join 11 databases together - to being able to embed fully functional spread sheets and word documents into each data record and many other features - is unsurpassable.

Organiser is in a league of its own to this date.

Wish IBM would relook at this resource and bring it back to life.

Am no looking to move over to Linux to see if this will hold this program together for future use.

122Noel  01/08/2020 7:36:03  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I also continue to use Lotus Organizer 6.1, and on my Windows 10 laptop. No problems (except a very rare crash, which simply means I shut the program and immediately start it up again, a matter of a moment).

Here is my question. Is there a program that I can use to take the data on Lotus Organizer 6.1 and sync it with my Android smartphone so I can read my calendar on my phone? Alternatively, is there a program that I can export the Lotus Organizer data to and then from that program, get it onto my smartphone (a two-step process)?

Thanks

123Andrew Graham  01/15/2020 4:27:39  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Hi Noel and James Leslie.

Have had a major disaster and cannot find my organizer 6 /6.1 disc.

Could you please sens me a copy?

grahama(at)Yahoo(dot)com

Thanks in advance!

124John Fortuin  01/30/2020 7:52:15  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

How or where can I download this application. I lost my program but still have my database...please help.

125Phillip Williams  03/18/2020 13:32:13  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I have been running Lotus Organizer since 1995 and am now on Version 6.1 running on Windows 10 pro 64 bit. My file size is up to 45MB. No major problems except an occasional crash and sometimes a few To Do items drop out or move to the wrong date when I am copying them to another date. I fondly remember the days when Organizer had a reasonably good interface with the Palm Pilot. I have tried synching with Google calendar but as other have mentioned this is not great.

126Theo Movsky  04/19/2020 20:17:32  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I'm running Organizer 5 on windows 10, so far no problem.

127David Peat  06/19/2020 20:45:12  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Still running my 1995 Lotus smart suite on Win 10 ( took me ages to find out how to install it). I have now forgoten how I did it!.

My Org5 file is now 1.2gb and loads in seconds.Takes a bit longer to backup to a usb stick.

Hope Win10 future updates will not cause any problems,

128Larry  06/26/2020 16:47:26  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I first bought Samna AmiPro for Windows 3.11. It was an amazing program even back in the late 1980s. Then when Win95 came out I just couldn't understand why anyone would use anything else. Full WYSIWYG brilliant.

Now in 2020 I'm still using it for all my DTP needs, Wordpro 9.8.04. And I'm still asking myself why anyone would use anything else.

Today I'm upgrading to Win10/64 (from 32bit), no problems with the Wordpro install.

Now if I can just get Jasc Paintshop Pro 7 to install and run I'll be a happy camper.

129christopher  06/26/2020 18:24:45  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

i have original disk for Or6 and Smartsuite millenium edition , 9.8,and win95 /NT4.0. May be able to assist

130John  08/01/2020 22:03:41  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Hi, Does anyone know how to read .cca format files that were created by the email system?

131 R.MELWANI  08/31/2020 20:33:48  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Can anyone recommend a safe website from where to download the last version of lotus organizer or does anyone have it available to pass on to me. I misplaced my own software application. Thanks

132 R.MELWANI  08/31/2020 20:33:59  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Can anyone recommend a safe website from where to download the last version of lotus organizer or does anyone have it available to pass on to me. I misplaced my own software application. Thanks

133JIM  10/10/2020 15:20:08  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

https://archive.org/details/LotusSmartSuite99

has the latest version in all supported languages. Just downladed and installed on Win 8.1. Everthing runs fine. Good Luck.

134Pete  11/24/2020 7:56:11  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Installed Organizer 6 and 123 Millennium on W10 computer 64bit- fresh install. Zero issues. Anyone have any ideas where i can get any more SmartMaster 123 Templates other than the ones that come with it? Much cleaner and FASTER interface. Nothing better.

135Pete  11/24/2020 7:56:16  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Installed Organizer 6 and 123 Millennium on W10 computer 64bit- fresh install. Zero issues. Anyone have any ideas where i can get any more SmartMaster 123 Templates other than the ones that come with it? Much cleaner and FASTER interface. Nothing better.

136Philip Owen  03/17/2021 7:37:03  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Lotus Approach was and remains in a class of its own three levels above any other database management software. 123 was and is excellent too. Wordpro was best for short documents. For longer documents I preferred MS Word. I didn't the presentation package much. MS Powerpoint is the one MS product that I would use voluntarily.

137Ruud  04/15/2021 3:23:48  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Does anyone have an idea why approach 9.8. ctd's when creating a report ?

W10x64

138rudy  05/29/2021 1:14:05  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

For any of you who successfully installed Lotus Organizer 6.0 or 6.1 on Windows 10 . . .

Did you have any problems with Organizer messing up your Windows 10 fonts?

I have seen one report of Lotus Smart Suite 99 installing old versions of fonts in place of newer versions of those same fonts that already are in Windows 10. The repair process is not fun . . .

Thanks!

139David  06/11/2021 0:01:35  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Hi all, I'm desperate for a Windows copy of Organizer 6.1 if anyone can point me at one, I can't get my older version to work on Win10 at all. I found one site which said it was Windows but it was actually for the Mac :(

Any help greatly appreciated

140David  06/11/2021 0:01:50  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Hi all, I'm desperate for a Windows copy of Organizer 6.1 if anyone can point me at one, I can't get my older version to work on Win10 at all. I found one site which said it was Windows but it was actually for the Mac :(

Any help greatly appreciated

141Mike  06/17/2021 5:07:17  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I just got my file locked and although the program runs it is giving me a blank-empty organizer. I have about 1.5MB of history, addresses, annual calendars, and anniversary information in the locked file. Anyone have any idea how I can get it back. when I try to open the file i get a pop-up that it can't be saved so I should try HELP.

142Eric Hurt  07/03/2021 20:29:08  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

John W, if you are still reading there is an easy way to do it.

I found this tip on another site, and facepalmed after reading it and following the directions.

Do not autorun the program. Navigate to the root of your CD and run the installer. Be sure to customise it so that it does not install to another mass drive. Mine installed onto a 4 Tb USB drive that I had, unless I customised the installation.

Otherwise IME it works without a hitch, though I did create an entry in the task scheduler with elevated privileges to make certain there would be no problems: everything appears to work fine!

I do not have to use an old machine, I am running it on Windows 10, and no grumbling when I run 123. It is like being in heaven, using this superior product, and being able to access my library of documents, spreadsheets, databases and Organiser files.

19John-W 08/23/2015 1:28:03

A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I've been using Organizer, Approach and 123 for ~15 years on W98 and currently XP.

I have a CD of Release 9.8.2.

But I haven't yet been able to install these successfully on Windows 10. Could someone advise on the exact installation procedure? eg. installing in XP Compatibility Mode?

143Eric Hurt  07/03/2021 20:31:09  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Does anyone know of a reliable source of Smart Masters? I want one that is suitable for preparing a legal document, with deep left side margins, and the like.

144Steven Wandy  08/23/2021 13:06:19  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I know this will sound strange, but has anyone been successful at getting Lotus Approach to run on a Windows 10 or 11 ARM processor? I have an iMac with the new M1 chip and easily got Windows 10 for ARM to install under Parallels. Lotus Approach installed fine, opens my files fine, but when trying to change the views (to print a letter format) it crashes.

Thanks for any assistance or advice.

Steve

145David  09/24/2021 5:54:26  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Hi

I finally got Lotus Organiser from Smart Suite running on windows 10.

Have used Organiser since 1994 and the Org file is now 1.5Gb !. but it works very fast. Does anyone know if it will reach a file size limit ?.

I think I may start a new file for 2022 and keep the Old one for searches and safety.

146Brandon Thompson  09/28/2021 7:34:45  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I have a customer who is still running Lotus Organizer 6.1 for his appointment book using multiple calendars.

I've been looking for a way to remove the unused time cells when printing his multiple calendar.

His open hours are 8 - 4, and he's only wanting it to print those time frames, which it used to do. But something caused that to change to where now in the print preview and on the 8.5x11 its printing all entries including the blank ones from 12am to 4pm instead of just his open hours.. Does anyone know what's going on here? I've looked at just about every setting i could think of, read all the help sections related, I'm just not seeing anything that changes that particular printing output..

Thanks in advance

Brandon

147Henry Beuster  09/30/2021 0:01:59  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

After a mix up with transfering my software and data to my new PC, did I loose the installation file for lotus Smartsuite 9.8. All my older spreadsheets were done on Lotus 123 and although I can retrieve them in Excel many of the formulas do not work work and none of the macros. Can anybody help with the installation file. They have been remove from all the software sites.

148Loris Casagrande   12/02/2021 9:07:29  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

If you want a copy of smartsuite 9.8.6.1 ( all languages) or Lotus organizer 6.1 (English or German only realised)

Send me email to loris783@hotmail.com

Actualy you can install latest smartsuite or latest organizer in Windows 10 or 11 with stupid tweak

Not XP compatibility mode or other compatibility problem

149Tmax  12/05/2021 7:54:39  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Just to let you know, I am still using my Lotus Organiza today. I first install it on a computer in 1992. Thirty years of service, it has worked on Windows 3.1, and all versions since.

In all it has been installed on 11 computers, and it happily running on my desktop, and laptop, both on Windows 10.

I used a copy for work, and have carried over the files ever since. I can go back and see my appointments for 1995. Having said that, I cannot see any reason for doing so. Unless of course I get asked a question by the boys in blue, as they do in TV programs, " what were you doing on the 1st May 1996". That was a Wednesday, and I drove to Leeds from Cambridge.

Now in retirement, it still does all I need, so a bit of nostalgia.....

150Mike Duffy  03/04/2022 1:35:18  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Matt:

Just installed Lotus Org Ver 5 on my Apple MacMini with the new Apple M1 chip! Used latest version of Parallells which emulates Win 11. Ver 6 would not load, but when I tried another CD with Org5, from SmartSuite, it worked!

Now, how do I save Org 6 files in Org5? Love the

program!!!

Mike

151Mike Duffy  03/04/2022 1:35:29  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Matt:

Just installed Lotus Org Ver 5 on my Apple MacMini with the new Apple M1 chip! Used latest version of Parallells which emulates Win 11. Ver 6 would not load, but when I tried another CD with Org5, from SmartSuite, it worked!

Now, how do I save Org 6 files in Org5? Love the

program!!!

Mike

152Tom Cauley  12/26/2022 3:05:29  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I have been using Lotus/IBM Organizer since my first computer in 1994. I'm using version 6.1 with windows 10 now

153D McGrath  07/19/2023 0:24:45  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

I finally upgraded, in June 2023, to WIndows 10 from 7 (which I preferred) and am still running Lotus Organizer v6.1. MS dropped support for the 32 bit hlp system after WIndows 8.1 but I manged to get the Win32hlp system to work with some Windows scripting I found on the web. Organizer is still a great PIM, though I tend to use Google Contacts rather than Organizer for those details, as its available on Android and IOS as well. I cannot understand why this software was not made available as freeware to be developed further on a voluntary basis.

154Rod P.  12/31/2023 6:19:10  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Hi All--As many have mentioned, I will always Lotus SmartSuite--I miss Organizer the most! I will try and pursue to see if there are ways to buy it and have it re-engineered to our current OS's--smoothly; and backwards compatible. It was the best PIM ever made! Will try and load onto Win10.

155Rod P.  12/31/2023 6:22:52  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

As another note, being a longtime PC user since buying my 1st one in '94, and doing tech repairs for 12 yrs---I recall there's a program for games you can still get, I think. Remember "DOSBOX"?? I remember that program emulated an XP or Win98 format so the OS recognized the box as an earlier version to work in later OS versions..I'll ck that out too.

Will post if I find any successes..

Rod

156Rod P.  12/31/2023 6:31:08  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

Just got this off of the MS Forum site:

:..On my old Windows 7 PC, I right clicked on the Organizer 6.0 icon, and saved the file to a jump drive. I put the jump drive in the Windows 10 PC and copied the saved files to the Organizer 6.0 file I had just installed on the desktop. It all worked, and I can now use my old Lotus Organizer with all my contact history and calendars on my Windows 10..."

This should help Derk and others wanting to retrieve years of important info and data. The key is finding a 6.0 file, or poss. downloading it..

Rod

157Rod P.  12/31/2023 7:11:43  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

ATT: everyone. I just downloaded it from a site--and it works great. If needing help, email me and I'll send you the link.

Rod

firech625@gmail.com

158JENKINS COOPER  01/20/2024 19:36:13  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

MY PERSONAL EXPERIENCE ON LOST CRYPTO RECOVERY!

I read so many stories about bitcoin loss to scams. I will like to start by saying the agencies responsible for bitcoin security has really done nothing to help locate stolen or lost coins. In my situation my MacBook was hacked by someone that had access to my emails, i immediately contacted blockchain and they only wasted my time, after which i worked towards getting help else where, i was referred to consult a bitcoin expert who helped track and retrieved my 3.3 btc, for an agreed fee. I was more than grateful and willing to pay more after the job was done. Thankful i didn't fall victim and would like to recommend ( MORRIS GRAY 830 @ G maiL . COM )

159SaliesBuzz  01/30/2024 22:38:17  
A quiet farewell Lotus 1-2-3, Organizer and Smartsuite

We have used Lotus Organiser for over 30 years. I first came across it in the 80s when it was developed by a UK company called Threadz.

It is very sad That there is no equivalent available today and that IBM decided To pull all support in 2003.

We have had no difficulty in loading Lotus organiser 6.1 on many computers over the years from Windows XP to Windows 11.

The key thing when installing it is to make sure that the installation directory is not one of the Windows protected locations. For example, Program Files or Program Files(x86). Always install it Into a directory that is directly off the root called, for example, C: \ Lotus.

I have had no difficulty Installing it on any computer, and we are currently running it Under Windows 11.

We store the main organiser file on our NAS server so that it can be accessed from any computer on our local area network. The organiser programme includes record locking so that the file can be shared in a network environment. This is what makes it unique and why no current alternatives exist.

We use it to store all important information, for example passwords. We use a password To protect the file So that it cannot be opened unless you know The password.

The last known release of Lotus organiser is 6.1. the file that I downloaded from IBM was called C50WDNA.exe If you can find this somewhere on the Internet this is the file you want.

The other major issue to be aware of is that Lotus organiser 6.1 uses the old windows help format that has been unsupported for many years. If you need access to the organiser help, Which can be very useful if you are learning its functionality, then you will have to replace the Winhlp 32.exe file that is in C:\Windows with a Winhlp32.exe file from an earlier version of windows for example Windows XP. I use a Winhlp 32.xe that is dated the 14th of April 2008. in order to change this file in C:\Windows you will have to take ownership of the file using the windows security settings. I change the ownership from trusted installer to administrators. This will then allow you to copy in the old Winhlp32.exe file that works with Lotus Organizer 6.1. This will also help display help files from other old programs that use the old windows help format. Be aware that if you run the System File Checker (SFC) or DISM repair this will replace your working Winhlp32.exe with the original one that does not work with old programs and you will then have to repeat the copy I described above.

Apart from that I have not encountered any other difficulties in running Lotus organiser 6.1. Over the years I have used it for time recording, booking calendars, contact lists etc. The ability to import and export in most usable formats is very useful. Although these formats are now quite old, they are still supported by most programs. For example csv and ical.

I hope that this may help people who still want to run Lotus organiser under the current versions of Windows.

160Ketry Mercy  02/29/2024 9:23:15  
Couldnt believe i was able to recover my lost crypto

How gracious can God be, Few months ago i was wailing and getting angry at everyone over my retirement funds getting lost to a lady i met online who deceived me she was a trader and got me to invest almost everything i had in my retirement holdings. Not until i met Kayline my highschool friend who introduced me to her brother who worked with a recovery firm. He took my complaints thesame week and we got through it within 22 hours. I got everything i lost recovered and told my husband about it. it was a wonderful feeling and reliving. i will drop the contact of the agency here as i promised them if they recovered my fund incase someone ends up in thesame mess i was in..

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Mat Newman

THE Notes (formerly IBM/Lotus Notes) Guy. Productivity Guru. Evangelist. IBM Champion for IBM Collaboration Solutions, 2011/2012/2013. Former IBMer. HCLite. Views are my own.

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