Troubles with Outlook.com Calendar

I'm having various issues with the Calendar in Outlook.com. I've been migrated across to the new servers (I think like most people) and I'm getting the following errors on multiple PCsmultiple browsers.

I can't help thinking that they might be Microsoft bugs - if sodoes anyone know how to get their attention to fix them?

Are there any Outlook.com experts out there who can advise?

1. The weather is cold in PoltárSlovakia
   Minus 1 degrees Celsius and "Light snow" today apparently.
   
   But the thing isI don't live thereor anywhere near.
   I've looked in multiple MS accounts (I think 4 so far) and they all default to "PoltárSlovakia" as the location. It's a minor bugbut why this location? Do other people get the same? Is it just those of us in the UK?
   
   To check thisfrom within the Calendar in Outlook.com. select the 'cog' symbolthen Optionsthen select Weather
   
   
   
   
   
   
2. You can't print that.
   
   Another annoyance - I tried to use Ctrl-P to print the above screen (to a PDF but I think an actual printer would be the same). But it comes up as nothing to print. Same in Edge and Firefox.
   
   
3. You can't import .ICS files any more
   
   This one is particularly annoyingbut iCalendar files (.ics extension) which imported fine into the old Outlook.comnow fail in the new version. The issue seems to be with the handling of updates to events - I should be able to update an event in a revised ICS file to a new timeand reimport itand it should 'move' the events. But this is broken. It worked fine before Outlook.com moved to the new serverand I think still works with the same ICS files in Google Calendar.
   
   It's even broken when you use Outlook.com itself to create the .ICS in the first place - not being able to import its own files is particularly impressive.
   
   To test thisI:
   
   1. Went into Add Calendar to create a Secondary Calendar (I called mine TestUSPacific as I was playing with time zones)
   2. Added an event to my new test calendar (make sure that 'Save to Calendar' is set to the new calendar and not the default 'Calendar')
   3. Used the 'Publish Calendar' option to create a link to a .ICS file
   4. Download that .ICS file to the desktop or somewhere else on the computer
   5. Use the 'Add Calendar' then 'From File' option to import the ICS file back in.
   6. The import crashes with the message
      'The events couldn't be imported. Please try again later.
      Error message: Content conversion failed.'
   
   
   
   
   
4. You can't delete calendars
   
   Well you canbut it only works once.
   Don't make the mistake I madeof recreating the Calendar again with the same namebecause then you'll be stuck with it.
   
   I created my test secondary calendaras in part 3and then deleted it. So farso good.
   But then during further testing I created another test calendar with the same nameand tried to delete it again... and it won't do it.
   
   
   
   

Have I really just found multiple bugs (not just one) on a live service which millions use and have been using for a while now?
I shouldn't be able to do that.

Hi Kari,

Thanks for looking at that for me,

Kari said:

When I had done thata few minutes later Edge showed me this:

Since that my outlook.com calendar has used the correct location.

It's no big dealbut Edge hasn't offered me that option. I'd changed it manually anywaybut it seems a strange default.

Kari said:

Tested just nowhad no issues in printing that or any other outlook.com and its calendar pages using native Print to PDF.

I tried it again just nowand Print to PDF said there was nothing to print from Edge.
However when I tried a second timeit seemed to work. I also had an empty PDF created from Firefox but again this worked second time. Again it's not a big deal.

Kari said:

Publishing a calendar on Office.com is no longer supported. I guess this also applies publishing an outlook.com calendar.

Ah but I'm not trying to Publish a CalendarI want to import an ICS file. This is the one which is particularly a problem for me.

The only reason the phrase Publish Calendar appears in my post is that is now the name of the option where exporting an ICS now resideswhich seems a reliable way to replicate the issue.

Kari said:

Alternativerecommended method is to save calendars and import saved calendars as told in this article: Share an Outlook for Windows calendar on Outlook.com - Outlook

And this (the Import Saved Calendars) is precisely the functionality which is not working any morefor me at leastalthough it did work on the same ICS file in the previous version of Outlook.com

What I really want to do it is import an ICS file I've made myselfbut ICS files are tricky to make so it's a good test to see if Outlook.com's own ICS files work - and as Outlook's own files fail to importI'm still pretty sure it's an Outlook bug.
(Actually the ICS files will importbut only the first time - if you then amend the events and import a later versionit fails.)

Kari said:

YesI have noticed the same. You can delete a calendar once but if a new calendar is added using the same name as a previously deleted calendarit can no longer be deleted.

To add to issues you listedI have not managed to get Windows 10 Calendar app and calendar at outlook.com to sync. Initial sync works; when a new Windows user with Microsoft account opens Calendar app first time and sets it upall entries from outlook.com will be syncedbut at least in my case nothing will be synced thereafter. Windows Calendar will not show entries added in outlook.com and vice versa.

I'd noticed something similar too. In my case I went into the Windows 10 Mail appwhich has a manual sync option (I've not found one in Calendar)and using the Mail sync optio seemed to sync the Calendar too. Does that work for you? Even if it doesit's hardly satisfactory if you have to keep syncing manually.

In seeking support for my issuesI tried contacting MS support via a Chat session.
They did have a workaround for the Calendar deletion issue when an earlier Calendar with that name has been deleted - if you rename the problem Calendar firstyou can then delete it.

As for my main issue of the .ICS importthey didn't have a solution and the best option the person on the Chat session had was to report it on the UserVoice websitewhich I didn't know existed.
https://outlook.uservoice.com/forums...-import-of-ics

Hopefully if it gets some votesthey might look into it...

DavidY said:

As for my main issue of the .ICS importthey didn't have a solution and the best option the person on the Chat session had was to report it on the UserVoice websitewhich I didn't know existed.
https://outlook.uservoice.com/forums...-import-of-ics

Hopefully if it gets some votesthey might look into it...

... but instead they completely failed to comprehend my post and just posted a link to some generic page of info - none of which helps me in getting them to fix the bug. And then closed my post.

Does anyone know how to contact the Microsoft people who can actually investigate and fix bugs?

Kari said:

DavidY said:

4. You can't delete calendars

YesI have noticed the same. You can delete a calendar once but if a new calendar is added using the same name as a previously deleted calendarit can no longer be deleted.

I now understand this one.

If I attach Outlook 2016 desktop to my MS Accountthen I can see all my deleted secondary Calendars under 'Deleted Items'

Presumably it can't hold 2 Calendars at once in Deleted Items with the same name.

I think I could delete them in O2016but this is no help to anyone without access to O2016. I'm not sure if they will eventually be deleted from Deleted Items without intervention.

Kari said:

A bit funny how they sent you to general Get Help page and closed the case.

Thanks for voting on it. :)

Yes I did wonder whether the general Get Help page appears automatically if there's no response from a person. That's not very helpful though.