# Appointment-type, Windows-based, offline, simple calendar software? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 23, 2023, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/appointment-type-windows-based-offline-simple-calendar-software/988990 "2023-08-23T18:06:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Roderick\_Femm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/roderick_femm/32/14875_2.png) [@Roderick\_Femm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roderick_Femm)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2023, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/appointment-type-windows-based-offline-simple-calendar-software/988990/1 "2023-08-23T18:06:20Z")
I guess this sort of question gets asked from time to time. Here is what I hope to find: Windows-based (currently Windows 10). Offline, and without spyware (as far as anyone can tell). Not Google anything. eta: Not Microsoft anything, and not related to my Comcast email. Only for appointments, which should of course include date, time, duration, and location. If there are other features not related to appointments, like to-do lists or anything else, they should either be easy to ignore or else I should be able to turn them off. Maybe I could be able to print out a weekly calendar if I need to. eta: this is for home use. Lastly, and negotiable, easy to use. I’ve been on Windows PCs since the early 90’s, I can probably figure out how to use it. But simple is nice. Unbloated software is also nice. ---
**Author:** ![FinsToTheLeft](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/finstotheleft/32/2930_2.png) [@FinsToTheLeft](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FinsToTheLeft)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2023, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/appointment-type-windows-based-offline-simple-calendar-software/988990/2 "2023-08-23T18:26:18Z")
To clarify, you don’t want to sync to a cell phone? This is just on your computer? ---
**Author:** ![Roderick\_Femm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/roderick_femm/32/14875_2.png) [@Roderick\_Femm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roderick_Femm)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2023, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/appointment-type-windows-based-offline-simple-calendar-software/988990/3 "2023-08-23T18:27:03Z")
Yes, that’s correct. ---
**Author:** ![FinsToTheLeft](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/finstotheleft/32/2930_2.png) [@FinsToTheLeft](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FinsToTheLeft)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2023, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/appointment-type-windows-based-offline-simple-calendar-software/988990/4 "2023-08-23T18:36:05Z")
Hmmm. The built in Calendar and Mail app is migrating to Outlook (although you can still use the old one), but it requires a Microsoft account to use it and will sync to the cloud. You could set up a dummy account that’s not used for anything else. I can’t think of anything that meets your requirements, there is not a lot out there that isn’t at least partially web based. ---
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2023, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/appointment-type-windows-based-offline-simple-calendar-software/988990/5 "2023-08-23T18:43:53Z")
I build my own in FileMaker, so I can customize it to my desired behavior (e.g., Gantt chart view of scheduled items in a given timeframe or monthly calendar view or list view I can sort by appt type). I can give you the empty structure of it to modify to your wishes if you do FileMaker. ---
**Author:** ![Roderick\_Femm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/roderick_femm/32/14875_2.png) [@Roderick\_Femm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roderick_Femm)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2023, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/appointment-type-windows-based-offline-simple-calendar-software/988990/6 "2023-08-23T18:55:38Z")
> [@AHunter3](#): > > I can give you the empty structure of it to modify to your wishes if you do FileMaker. Thank you, I appreciate the offer, but I’m afraid I don’t have FileMaker. ---
**Author:** ![pjd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pjd/32/3009_2.png) [@pjd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pjd)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2023, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/appointment-type-windows-based-offline-simple-calendar-software/988990/7 "2023-08-23T21:07:35Z")
Yes ! I want this too. The simpler the better. ---
**Author:** ![Roderick\_Femm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/roderick_femm/32/14875_2.png) [@Roderick\_Femm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roderick_Femm)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2023, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/appointment-type-windows-based-offline-simple-calendar-software/988990/8 "2023-08-24T15:27:33Z")
A couple of people off-board have made a couple of recommendations, and I wonder if anyone has any experience with either of them. They both have other features which can just be ignored and not used. One of them is called Anytime Organizer, which appears to be a standalone application that can be used offline. It costs $20. The other one is Mozilla Thunderbird, which can also be set to offline mode. This is free (donations welcome). ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2023, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/appointment-type-windows-based-offline-simple-calendar-software/988990/9 "2023-08-24T16:10:24Z")
Thunderbird, although it is an email client, has a calendar. It’s pretty good, and I don’t think you have to set up any email accounts to use it, and I think it will work completely offline (but you have the option to make the calendar sync with something else later if that becomes a requirement) > **[Calendar](https://www.thunderbird.net/en-US/calendar/)** > > Organize your life — it’s about time! ---
**Author:** ![Roderick\_Femm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/roderick_femm/32/14875_2.png) [@Roderick\_Femm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roderick_Femm)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2023, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/appointment-type-windows-based-offline-simple-calendar-software/988990/10 "2023-08-24T21:29:05Z")
Well, I tried Thunderbird, there didn’t seem to be any way to set it up without the email part being activated, so I uninstalled it. I am now on a free trial period with Anytime. So far, it’s not bad. It has other features, but the calendars are the main thing, and I can have formats for printed calendars (daily, weekly, monthly) that are different from the screen version where I enter the information. If I don’t link to other programs, all the information just stays on my computer. If it continues to work well, I don’t have any problem paying for it. ---
**Author:** ![ASanders](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asanders/32/3367_2.png) [@ASanders](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ASanders)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2023, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/appointment-type-windows-based-offline-simple-calendar-software/988990/11 "2023-08-24T21:49:43Z")
I seem to recall having had Anytime back in the distant past. I guess I outgrew it when I needed to sync with several devices and keep personal and work calendars separate. But the mention of it here brought back only pleasant associations so I guess that is a positive review, for what it’s worth. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Roderick\_Femm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/roderick_femm/32/14875_2.png) [@Roderick\_Femm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roderick_Femm)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2023, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/appointment-type-windows-based-offline-simple-calendar-software/988990/12 "2023-08-25T01:13:41Z")
Yes, it seems like a very retro arrangement. They have versions for a single user, and for multiple users who need to coordinate calendars. And you can link it to other programs if you want, I just don’t want to. ---
**Author:** ![CRhode](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crhode/32/10500_2.png) [@CRhode](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CRhode)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2023, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/appointment-type-windows-based-offline-simple-calendar-software/988990/13 "2023-09-20T17:47:11Z")
I may have a solution: **Tonto2**. [Documentation is available.](https://lacusveris.com/Tonto2/Docs/en/) It is a **python** script that is available from: - [tonto2 · PyPI](https://pypi.org/project/tonto2/) I’ve been working on this since January, but have only recently made it available for testing. It is a rewrite of a script that I used daily for 16 years. > What Tonto2 aspires to do is to provide consistent repositories for different kinds of lists. These reside on your PC, which, if it is a desktop machine, is bound to be more secure than a cellphone. … The information you put into lists is stored in comma-separated-values (csv) files on your computer, not in the cloud. ---
**Author:** ![Hari\_Seldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hari_seldon/32/5173_2.png) [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2023, 11:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/appointment-type-windows-based-offline-simple-calendar-software/988990/14 "2023-09-22T23:15:12Z")
This thread reminded me that when I had my teeth cleaned two days ago, I made an appointment for tooth cleaning in April and added it to my calendar (which comes with Outlook which is required for my employer provided email). When I titled the entry tooth cleaning, the generic icon accompanying the entry changed to a tooth!