Integration with Outlook

One of the strongest areas of integration for the Communicator client is with Outlook. When the Communicator client is installed, it adds hooks into the Outlook view that integrate into contact information. For example, when an e-mail is received in Outlook, you can immediately see Presence information for any Lync Server users that are listed in any of the To, CC, or From fields. This immediately tells the recipient whether these people are available. By placing the mouse over a name with Presence information, you receive information about the users and are presented an interface that contains many of the Communicator buttons, as shown in Figure 22.9.

Figure 22.9 Viewing Extended Options

Visible in the initial pop-up is the display name of the user, the current status, calendar information, and the status message. The available options include the following:

• Send mail

• Send an instant message

• Call contact

• Start a video call

• Schedule a meeting

• Open Outlook contact

• Add contact to instant messenger contact list

Focusing on the options that are specific to the Communicator client integration, clicking Send an instant message spawns the typical IM window from within Communicator. Sending an IM results in the contact getting a pop-up that the other person is requesting an IM conversation. This pop-up can be either responded to or ignored. This process is effectively identical to finding the contact in the Communicator client and launching an IM conversation, but with the added convenience of having done it directly from Outlook. In this manner, you get additional choices in terms of how you will interact with another user. Rather than being forced to reply to an e-mail through e-mail, you can choose to communicate through instant messages.

Clicking Call contact results in the contact getting a pop-up that the other person is requesting an audio call. Accepting the call connects the two users through an audio conference that is hosted by Lync Server. This is a useful option to avoid a lengthy e-mail reply or if a conversation is of a sensitive nature and shouldn’t be stored in e-mail.

Clicking Start a video call results in the contact getting a pop-up that the other person is requesting a video connection. Assuming the user has a camera, she is able to join a video call with the other person. As with any video call, the person who receives the call needs to start the video if she has a camera and wants the other person to see her. Similarly, video calls include audio so that the two are able to easily communicate with each other.

Clicking Add contact to instant messenger contact list adds contacts that don’t yet exist in the Communicator contact list. Using this interface effectively invokes the normal interface for adding contacts, but it prepopulates the e-mail address of the contact you want to add. Just click Next and Finish to add the user. Optionally, you can type a message to personalize the invitation.

The Communicator client also accesses your calendar if you are hosted on Exchange. From this connection, it is able to see calendar availability and can automatically change your status based on the calendar. For example, if you are in a meeting, your status automatically changes to Busy (In a meeting).