Library Calendar Project

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Sharyl Greer
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Library Calendar Project Basic Information Project goals include: 1. Create a master calendar for the library which will be the basis for all calendars produced by the library.

1 Library Calendar Project Basic Information Project goals include: 1. Create a master calendar for the library which will be the basis for all calendars produced by the library. Print and web page formats will be produced from the information posted to the master calendar. 2. Information can be posted to the calendar by authorized library staff from any staff computer or (with some security related limitations) off site from a telnet session. 3. Various calendar "views" can be created so that the display of some information can be limited to specific views. For example, a single event might have some information posted to patrons and other information posted for staff to see. The project is being developed using ical. ical is a popular X based calendar/scheduler application which can help you keep track of single events and recurring events (daily, weekly, monthly, or yearly), and sets off alarms to warn you of appointments. ical is available free so this project does not include any cost for software. All of the information you should need for using the calendar should be in these pages. If you want to know more about ical, select Help >User Guide from the right side of the ical menu bar. Viewing A Calendar The easiest way to view the calendar information is to use one of these web pages: Patron view bin/ical2html?user=public This view is available from library pages such as the System News page. It shows entries to the branch calendar (hours & holidays) and entries to the patron calendar (events, etc) Staff view with public events bin/ical2html?user=joint This view shows the patron calendar information plus the information which is on the staff calendar. It is available from the staff manual pages. Staff view long term This shows the staff information (van reservations, vacations, etc) for 360 days. bin/ical2html?user=staff&days=360 This view is available from the staff manual pages. Any event that is assigned to the staff calendar will appear here. The calendar view that our patrons see includes anything we add to the branch calendar (such as open hours) and anything we add to the patron calendar (such as activities). This is the view that is linked on the Library's main page and various other web pages.

Managing The Calendars Login to odin & load ical Applications >System Tools >Terminal is one way to get there.

org Press ENTER Respond to the password prompt At the $ prompt, type: ical if you want to use the terminal for something else, you can add

By default, ical gives you a personal calendar which it calls 'Main'.

2 Managing The Calendars Login to odin & load ical Applications >System Tools >Terminal is one way to get there. (Illustration 1) Go to Illustration 2 At the $ prompt, type: ssh odin.library.beau.org Press ENTER Respond to the password prompt At the $ prompt, type: ical if you want to use the terminal for something else, you can add an ampersand, type: ical & Press Illustration 1Bring up a terminal The ical calendar will 'pop' up. By default, ical gives you a personal calendar which it calls 'Main'. We use the include calendar feature to create a system wide calendar that we can share. Anything that you put on your 'Main' calendar will not be shared with others. Continue with these instructions to set up the calendar so that you can see and edit the shared calendars. Illustration 3 ical calendar ENTER Illustration 2Login & load ical

Use the Include Calendar feature to add the shared calendars. These instructions will set up the calendars so that you can add, modify or delete calendar events.

3 Use the Include Calendar feature to add the shared calendars. These instructions will set up the calendars so that you can add, modify or delete calendar events. Once you have done this for your user, you should be able to change the calendar from any of the staff computers. You should not need to go through the steps to include the calendars again unless something happens that causes them to drop off. Select File, then select Include Calendar Illustration 4 begin by selecting calendars to be included There are actually 4 calendars. Each event that you add will be added to only one of the calendars (you select which one). This is what controls the various "views" so that patron events show on the patron calendar, etc. The 4 calendars are: 1. Main Calendar This is your personal calendar. It does not show to other staff members or to the public. If you add something without changing the item properties (see below), it will be added to the main calendar. 2. Branch This calendar includes branch hours and closings. It is usually only changed when there is a holiday or some other event which changes open hours at a library branch. 3. Patron This calendar includes the events and announcements that patrons should see. Story programs and other special events should always have a brief announcement on the patron calendar. 4. Staff This calendar includes annual leave, van reservations, and announcements that should be available to staff.

Illustration 5 Selecting calendars The shared calendars on odin are located in the /shared directory. 1. Above you selected File and then selected Include Calendar 2.

4 Illustration 5 Selecting calendars The shared calendars on odin are located in the /shared directory. 1. Above you selected File and then selected Include Calendar 2. In the Ancestors column, click on the / at the top of the entries 3. In the Children column, click on shared 4. Select branch 5. Click "Okay". The window will close when you select "Okay" so you will need to open it again to include another calendar. 6. Repeat these steps to include branch, patron and staff Save your new calendar setup by clicking File and then Save. After you have selected the calendars, you are set up and will not need to do the setup (include) steps again unless you remove one or more of them. To remove a calendar, select File >Remove Include and then select the calendar you want to drop. You can also chose 'Remove Include' to see which calendars you have included. (See Illustration 6)

5 Illustration 6 Use 'Remove Include' to see calendars Adding and Changing The Calendar Adding An Event With A Specific Time To Begin Illustration 7 Time dependent event Using the arrows by month and year, find the month and click on the date. Click on the start time. In the illustration, the event begins at 10:00 am If the event lasts over 1/2 hour, drag the bottom of the box to the time that the event ends Enter text into the box to describe the event. When entering a library program, be sure to include location.

If you want your event to show on any of the shared calendars, you will need to change the properties.

6 Illustration 8 Setting properties New events are automatically assigned to your personal calendar (called Main Calendar). Whenever an event is 'open' on the calendar, the bottom of the ical window will show which calendar it is assigned to. If you want your event to show on any of the shared calendars, you will need to change the properties. Illustration 9 Assign each item to a calendar Select Item > Properties Select the proper calendar. Remember, this determines where the item will appear in the online calendars. Set highlighting (we usually set to 'never') Notice that you could also change the time and alarms from the item properties.

Illustration 10 Items that repeat Items That Repeat Some programs repeat daily, weekly, monthly or annually. These instructions allow you to setup an item you have entered to automatically repeat.

7 Illustration 10 Items that repeat Items That Repeat Some programs repeat daily, weekly, monthly or annually. These instructions allow you to setup an item you have entered to automatically repeat. You can also set a range so that an item can repeat for a specific period of time such as Nov 24 to Nov 27. Select Repeat Chose daily, weekly, monthly or annually. If necessary, use 'Edit Weekly' or 'Edit Monthly' to adjust for some irregularities in the repeat pattern. Use 'Set Range' to set a beginning and/or ending date for the range. 'Last Occurrence' allows you to make the current entry the last time a repeating item will appear. Use this to change repeating entries that are already on the calendar. To change an item that repeats: Select the date that you want to change. Select the item you want to change. Begin to make the change. When the box shown in Illustration 11 comes up, use it to set up your change.

8 Illustration 11 Changing a repeating entry. When you are finished, click anywhere outside the item to close it. Use File > Save to save your changes. Adding An Event With out A Specific Time To Begin Many items are not tied to a beginning and ending time. For example, an announcement that the library will be closed would apply to the entire day rather than to a specific time of day. Those entries should be entered into the lower lefthand side of the calendar as in Illustration 12 (following page). The procedure for making an entry here is otherwise the same as for events which do need to be associated with a time of day. Checking Your Changes Always check the on line calendars to be sure your changes are showing correctly. Reload the browser page to be sure you are seeing the most recent changes. Is the item on the correct calendar (patron or staff)? Is the entry showing on the correct date and time? Is your meaning clear? If this is a program, will the patron have all the necessary information (preregistration, location, etc.) If you are setting up a repeating item, check a few repeats to be sure they are on the correct dates.

Illustration 12 Item applies to the entire day Problems Deleted item still showing on the calendar: Occasionally an item will continue to show on the on line calendar after you have tried to delete

9 Illustration 12 Item applies to the entire day Problems Deleted item still showing on the calendar: Occasionally an item will continue to show on the on line calendar after you have tried to delete it. If this happens, giving the information about date, time and event. We'll get it off for you. New item not showing: Check Properties to be sure you assigned it to the correct calendar. Double check the month, date and year. In ical, select File > Save (even if you've already done that). In the browser, click 'Reload'. If you still have a problem, help@beau.org with the particulars.

Calendar: Scheduling, invitations, and printing

Calendar: Scheduling, invitations, and printing Your Calendar View Sign in to your Bates Google Calendar Account (http://calendar.bates.edu). You'll see your calendar weekly view. To change your calendar