iCal 1.5.1 and iSync 1.2.1 Released -- Apple updated its calendar and synchronization utilities last week, improving performance and adding support for more devices. iCal 1.5.1 tweaks the calendar's interface slightly, turning the Info window into a sliding drawer and adding the capability to set custom category colors. The new version also adds notes and alarms to To Do items, supports events in multiple time zones, and can publish or subscribe to calendars served behind firewalls. The update is a 6.2 MB download, and requires Mac OS X 10.2.3 or higher.

<http://www.apple.com/ical/>

iSync 1.2.1 adds calendar synchronization for Sony Ericsson P800, Nokia 3650 and Nokia 7650 phones, plus the capability to transfer pictures associated with Address Book records that appear when calls come in from those contacts. Additional synchronization support has been added for Sony Ericsson T616 and Z600 phones. If you're a .Mac subscriber and use iSync to synchronize your Safari bookmarks, iSync can synchronize them for viewing and editing at bookmarks.mac.com. iSync 1.2.1 is a free 5.5 MB download and requires Mac OS X 10.2.3 or higher, and iCal 1.5.1 for synchronizing calendars. Palm handheld device users must install the iSync 1.2 Palm Conduit, an 892K download (an obscure direct download link is provided at the bottom of the iSync download page). [JLC]

<http://www.apple.com/isync/>
<http://www.apple.com/isync/download/>
<http://bookmarks.mac.com/>