Timebridge has released a web-based, public scheduling manager into beta that may cut down on the amount of "back and forth" it takes to schedule a meeting through Outlook. If you have ever scheduled a meeting through Outlook, you know that it may take several emails and cancellations to get a time that works for all attending parties. With Timbridge, you are allowed to pick up to 5 possible meeting times that attendees can pick from. And you're not restricted to Outlook, as Timebridge also interfaces with Google calendars.

In a recent review on www.webware.com, Rafe Needleman complained that Timebridge does not allow you to schedule more than one meeting in a tentative meeting spot, but this is actually my favorite thing about Timebrige. Just today I double booked myself in Outlook, which led to me having to explain to my boss why I could not attend his meeting. I love the fact that you cannot double book yourself.

Registration is very easy and Timebridge provides a simple-as-pie tutorial that is very short. It's also web based, so if you need to look something up without being logged into your network, it's totally possible.

My only problem with the service is that there are a few too many steps. You must sign in to Timebridge and propose times, then you have to go back into your email to see if parties have accepted and grab your icon to sync up with Outlook.

But another positive about Timebridge: it's free!!

I love free.