Apple releases new MobileMe Calendar beta

Apple has released a beta preview of the MobileMe Calendar web application that offers an updated design and several new features. The new design follows similarly to that of the Calendar application on the Apple iPad, which allows users to see more of their calendar in a single screen and, according to Apple, will load data faster than before, especially when used through Safari 5, Firefox 3.6 (likely the Firefox 4 beta) and even Internet Explorer 8.

The new web application also has a few new features. From the MobileMe Calendar beta, you will be able to share entire calendars, publish them and invite other people to an event and allow them to RSVP. The new web app will allow you to track your invites and their responses, even if they themselves don’t use MobileMe.

The MobileMe Calendar web app beta is compatible with the usual built-in calendar applications, such as iCal on the Mac, although Apple have said that official support for Microsoft Outlook is on its way.

If you’re a MobileMe subscriber, you can sign up to the beta by accessing your current calendar and selecting “Request an invitation” from the left-hand column. The requests are processed in the order that Apple recieve them, but you should be signed up within the week to give it a go yourself.

Product [MobileMe]