Anyone else have problems saving United .vcs files to Outlook
 

Whenever I try to save a United reservation in a .vcs file to Outlook, it wants to open another calendar and not save it to my regular one. I may I have a configuration issue but can't seem to sort it out. I don't know when the issue started, after 3/3 or when I upgraded to a new Outlook version, but this is a newer issue ( last year )

Anyone else had issues with trying to save United reservations to their calendar?

Thanks in advance

DEN

Same issue here - it started after Windows 7 (Outlook 2010) was installed at work. Before then it worked okay. It worked even better last year, when the whole trip was blocked out - now only the flights are blocked.

I have the same issue using Windows 7. Didn't exist a while ago.

Same issue here too, I find that I have to go into the newly created calendar and drag it across to my regular calendar and then delete the newly added calendar. It really is a pain and not worth the hassle for me. I just make my own appointment and copy and past the information incase I ever need it.

I went ahead and sent an email to United about this, we'll see if anything gets done to fix it if it's on their end. I did receive this response:

Dear DEN:

Thank you for contacting Customer Care and for being a loyal member of
MileagePlus since 1988.

We appreciate when our elite customers take the time to share comments
and suggestions. Feedback like yours presents opportunities to improve
or enhance our products and services.

I will be happy to forward your concerns with regards to the calendar
issue to our website administrators for their internal review and
necessary corrective actions.

We appreciate your business and look forward to welcoming you on board a
future United Airlines flight.

Kind regards,

(Nice Person at United)
Corporate Customer Care
Case ID XXXXXXX

The VCS file can not dictate which calendar it gets imported to (at least I don't believe it can), the file will be imported into your default calendar.

Check this page to make sure you have your calendar default set the way you expect it to be

http://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/o...1-9201ccbdce59

substitute Windows life for your default calendar

If it continues to be a problem try manually importing instead of double clicking, this way in Outlook 2010 you have a bit more control over where the file is going to go, given the choice of opening the file as a new calendar or importing into the current default (file, import export, vcs, locate the file, open as new or import)

On earlier versions, the account settings menu is under the tools menu.

Thanks for the tips.....

I actually had gone to that same Microsoft page when I was trying to sort this all out. My settings seems to be correct but a new calendar is always created only when importing vcf files from United, others (Avis, Thrifty, Hilton etc) always work properly.

I have tried manually importing along with saving then importing with the same results.

I'll go back and read up more to see if I can determine if it is my own configuration causing me grief.

DEN

any fix? same issue here
 

have reproduced this issue here also, one of my staff was having the issue and I was able to reproduce on my PC also, anything further from United suggesting a fix?

Welcome to FT!, cdnwetzel
that's the way it works -- it opens a separate calendar. What I do is since both calendars display side by side, is move/drag the entries from the new calendar to my main calendar. And then delete the new calendar.
Extra step but now compatible for those with multiple calendars.

Here's how you do this in Outlook 2010:

1. Download the vcs file from the United website and save it on disk somewhere.
2. In Outlook, choose File -> Open -> Import
3. Choose "Import an iCalendar (.ics) or vCalendar (.vcs) file"
4. Click "Next"
The file-open dialog appears
5. Select "vCalendar (.vcs)" format from the dropdown list
6. Select your vcs file
7. Click "OK"
8. Click "Import"
all done!

what a pain compared to how it used to be!

Or, just click on your calendar and type it in!

huh?? That is overly complex

I just
1) click on the "export to calendar" on the itin.
2) When the pop-up appears "Do you want to open or save .....", select Open"
3) Outlook appears with side by side calendars and drag/drop the UA calendar entries to your calendar.
4) Delete the UA calendar (in Outlook).

while my steps are still more complex than PMUA, it is easier than typing 2 or more flight segments

They work great with Google Calendar

I have the same issue with Outlook. My workaround is using the iPhone app add to calendar function instead of doing it on the PC and then the automatic iPhone to outlook synch takes care of it b

Use tripit.com

if you want to use Outlook, tripit is no easier -- in fact harder path to Outlook. If not an Outlook user, tripit might be an alternative, although it generates extra email.

Not a fan of tripit... It's not quite as slick as it needs to be.

Every time you make a change and the change hits your email, it sees it as a new flight..... Creating conflicts within tripit.

With Outlook 2013, it was doing the same thing... it put the appointment in a new calendar and I could not figure out how to "move" it to the correct calendar (but I did not try too hard to find out how)

I got it to go to my default calendar by "downloading" the cvs first and THEN opening it from my computer. Once I did it that way the appointment was in the correct calendar.

drag/drop to the right day, it snaps to the right times

I haven't found a good solution besides the work arounds others have noted. No additional response from United, which doesn't supprise me....they have bigger problems than this. It's just annoying.

DEN

Anyone else have problems saving United .vcs files to Outlook
 

You'll clearly don't understand the intranet! The only winning move is not to play

thanks for the reply
 

thanks for the update, I have suggested the drag/move option and iPhone app options to my user, since both seem to be less steps than the longer File, Open, Import/Export, etc. that MS suggests

for what it's worth, maybe if more people find these posts and send e-mail too, it might eventually prompt a fix? wishful thinking at least...

The drag and drop did not work for me.

Do you have the two calendars side by side and clicked on the desired segment and dragged to your regular calendar? (You don't drag and drop the cvs file itself -- it needs to be opened in Outlook.)

No help from United web support
 

I called them and they said all was fine from there side! I was able to do a drag and drop with parallel calendars but it is a hassle. It used to work directly.

Thank you United for almost fixing the export to Outlook function. For one leg flights only, it now only creates a meeting within your calendar whereas it used to create an entirely new calendar. It still creates an entirely new calendar for flights with more than one leg.