The Ultimate Guide To Google Calendar

Google Calendar is one of my favorite tools. In this Ultimate Guide to Google Calendar we'll teach you everything you need to a master your online Calendar. CategoriesBusinessTipsProductivityCalendarTimeManagementMeetingsScheduleStartupFreelancerMarketingSalesContactSalesSigninGetStartedTheUltimateGuideToGoogleCalendarHomeTheUltimateGuideToGoogleCalendarCalendarManagementTableofContentsIntroduction:GoogleCalendarIsMoreThanADiary1.GettingStarted2.CreatingMultipleCalendars3.EditingYourCalendar4.ViewingYourCalendar5.ExtendGoogleCalendarWithSomeExtraSoftwareConclusionIntroduction:GoogleCalendarIsMoreThanADiaryThereusedtobeatimewhenarrangingaschedulemeantpullingoutadiaryandflickingthroughthepages.Itmeantlookingpastthescribblesandtheunreadablehandwritingtofindasparespace.Itmeantseeingtheappointmentsyoumissedbecause…well,youforgottolookatyourdiaryintime.Anditmeantlookingforanhourthatalsosuitedthescheduleofeveryoneelseattendingtheevent.Itwasalwayssuchapain.However,thisguidetousingGoogleCalendarin2022andbeyondwillshowyouhowtomakethemostofthisdigitalcalendar.Thegrowthofdigitalcalendarshadmadeitallsomucheasier.Younolongerneedtokeepadiarywithyouatalltimes.Aslongasyouhaveyoursmartphonewithyou,you’llhaveaccesstoyourcalendar.Thecalendarwillsendnotificationssoyoucanbeconfidentthatnothingiseverforgottenandnoappointmentismissed.And,youcanevenshareyourcalendarwithotherssothatyoucanseewhatacolleaguehaslinedupandcanfindasparetimetomeet.It’sawholenewwaytoorganizetime,andit’sbeenaremarkablechange.It’salsobeenasuddenandunnaturalchange.ChangestoGoogleCalendarInOctober2017thatlackofclaritybecameclear.Googleupgradeditscalendarforthefirsttimesince2011.Itrolledoutatoolthat’scleanerandneaterthatclearsawaysomeunnecessaryfeatures(andafewthatpeopleenjoyed.Theresultisanimmenselypowerfultimemanagementtoolthatwedon’treallyknowhowtouse.Wecontentourselveswithaddinganeventandwe’resurprised,sometimesunpleasantly,whenourGooglecalendarautomaticallyaddsaneventtakenfromaprivateemail.Butweonlyuseafractionofitsfunctionsandweignoremanyofthewaysinwhichourcalendarcanimproveourlives.TheUltimateGuideToGoogleCalendarInthisguidetoGoogleCalendar,we’regoingtotakeyouthroughallofGoogleCalendar’samazingfunctions.We’llstartwiththesimplestuff.Then,ourguidetoGoogleCalendarwillgoallthewaythroughitsadvancedsettingsandlookatacoupleofwaystoextendthepowersofGoogle’sfreetimemanagementplatform.1.Day1:GettingStartedThegoodnewsisthatyoudon’tneedtodoanythingtogetstartedwithGoogleCalendar.AslongasyoualreadyhaveaGoogleaccount,andabout1.2billionpeopledo,youdon’tneedtodoanythingmorethanopencalendar.google.comorbringupyourapp.Ifyou’vesignedintoyourGoogleaccountyou’llalreadybeloggedin.Ifyoudon’tyethaveaGoogleaccount,whenyouopenthatpage,you’llbeinvitedtoregister.It’sfreeanddoesn’ttakemorethanacoupleofseconds.IfyoursmartphoneusesAndroid,thenyoushouldfindthatGoogle’scalendarappisalreadyinstalled.Ifit’snotonthehomepage,youmightfinditburiedinyourappdrawer.It’stheonethatlookslikethis:Onceyou’veopenedCalendarinyourbrowseroronyourmobiledevice,youdon’tneedtodoanythingelse.Itwillalreadybesetupandreadyforuse.BoththewebsiteandthemobileapphaveasettingsiconthatletsyouplaywiththewaythatGoogleCalendarlooksandworks—andyoumightalsoneedtobringyouroldcalendarintoyournewone.ImportingYourCalendarFewpeoplestarttheircalendarswithablankslate.Ifyou’vebeenusingadifferentcalendarapplication,suchasOutlookorAppleCalendar,you’llneedtoimportyourdatatoGoogleCalendar.Thatshouldn’tbehard!First,openyourcalendaronyourcomputer.Thatwillmakeiteasiertosaveyourdataandmoveitaround,andinanycase,importingtoGoogleCalendarcanonlybedoneonacomputer,notonamobiledevice.Inyoursourcecalendar,lookinthemenusforanExportfunction.Calendardatacantakeanumberofdifferentformats.CSVisthemostcompatiblewithGoogleCalendarbutifyou’reexportingfromanAppleCalendar,choosevCard.Makesurethatyouknowwhereyousavedthedata!InGoogleCalendaronyourcomputer,clickthesettingsiconatthetopright.UnderImport&export,chooseImport.OtherCalendarImportingOptionsThatmethodshouldbestraightforwardenough,anditshouldn’tpresentyouwithanyproblems.ButifmovingfromanAppleCalendartoGoogleCalendardoesn’tgoassmoothlyasyou’dlike,thereisasecondmethod.First,you’llneedtochangethedefaultcalendaronyouriOSdevicetoyourGoogleaccount.OnyouriPhoneoriPad,openSettings>Calendar,andunderDefaultCalendar,chooseyourGoogleaccount.ClickiCloud>Accounts,andslidethebuttonsothatit’sintheOnposition.Thenextbitiswhereitstartstogetfun.LogintoiCloudandclicktheCalendaricon.Choosethecalendaryouwishtoexportandclickthebroadcasticonontheright.You’llseeawindowmarkedCalendarSharing.ChecktheboxmarkedPublicCalendar.ApplewillgenerateahashedURL.CopytheURLintoyourbrowserbutchangethe“webcal://”atthestartoftheaddressto“http://”beforepressingEnter.You’llbepromptedtosaveyourcalendardataasan.ICSfile.Onceyou’vesavedthefile,don’tforgettouncheckthePublicCalendarbox.InGoogleCalendar,openSettings>Import&export>Importandimportthefile.CalendarWebsiteSettingsOnceyou’vesetupyourGoogleCalendar,youcanstartplayingwiththesettings.ThesettingsiconforGoogle’sCalendarwebsiteisatthetoprightofthescreen.Clickthecogandyou’llproduceadrop-downmenu,withtheSettingsatthetopofthelist.ChooseSettingsandontheleftofthescreen,you’llseealistofallofthesettingsthatyoucanchangeinyourcalendar.LanguageAndRegionSomeofthosesettingsarestraightforward.GooglewillsettheLanguageandregionbasedontheinformationitcollectsautomaticallyfromyourInternetconnectionbutyoucanchangethemifyouwanttousealanguageandregionthat’sdifferentfromyourcurrentlocation.TimeZoneThesameistrueofyourTimezonebutthisisalittlemorecomplex.Createanevent,andGooglewillautomaticallyuseyourlocaltime.Invitesomeoneelsetojointhatevent,andthey’llseeitintheirlocaltimetoo.SoifyouwerewritinginyourcalendarinNewYorkthatyouhadtoplaceaphonecalltosomeoneinCalifornia,youmightseethetimeofthecallas11am,butyourcolleaguewouldseeitas8am.Asyoutravel,thetimesusedbyyourcalendaradjusttothelocaltimezone.Thatchangeshouldhappenautomatically.GooglewilladjustitstimezonebasedonyourIPaddressoryourtelephonedata.Butifitdoesn’thappen—ifyou’reusingaVPN,forexample,ornotconnectedtotheInternet—youcanalsodisplaydifferenttimezonesettingsinyourcalendarwhereveryouhappentobe,andyoucanchangeyourcalendar’stimezonesettingsmanually.Toshowmorethanonetimezonesettingonthecalendar,openSettings,chooseTimeZoneandcheckDisplaysecondarytimezone.You’llthenbeabletoselectasecondtimezonefromadrop-downmenu,andyou’llevenbeabletoapplyalabeltothosetimezonestodifferentiatethem.(Inpractice,you’reunlikelytoneedthoselabels;theplacenameshouldbesufficient.)Thisisalsowhereyoucanunchecktheoptiontoupdateyourprimarytimezonetomatchyourcurrentlocation,keepingthetimesonyourcalendartoonezoneregardlessofyourlocation.Andifyou’reusingmultiplecalendars,afeaturewe’lldiscusslater,youcansometimescreatedifferenttimezonesforeachcalendar.ClickthecalendarintheSettings,thenselectCalendarSettingandchangethetimezone.Noteverycalendarallowsthatchangebutitcanbeausefulwaytokeeptrackofsomeoneelse’seventsinadifferenttimezone.WorldClockOnacomputer,youcanalsoaddaWorldClocktoyourcalendar.Whatitactuallymeansisthatyoucanaddthetimeinvariouspartsoftheworldtothesideofyourcalendar.ChoosetheWorldClockoptioninGeneral>Settings,checkShowworldclockandaddthelocationsyouwanttochoose.Theyappearontheleftofthescreenbelowthemonthview.Thisisn’tsomethingyou’regoingtoseeonyoursmartphonebutwhenyou’repullingupyourGoogleCalendaronyourwiderscreen,beingabletoseethetimeindifferentpartsoftheworldcanbeanicetouch.EventSettingsEventSettingsaremorecomplex—butthey’realsoimportant.ThispartoftheSettingsincludesanumberoffeaturesthatareoftenignoredbutwhichsignificantlyaffectthewaythatyourcalendarwilloperate.Thefirstsettingisthedefaultdurationofeventsthatyouaddtothecalendar.Thiscanbeagreatsourceoffrustration.AlthoughGoogleletsyousetspecifictimesforeacheventyoucreate,whenyouaddanevent,itwillstartwithasetperiodoftime.Youcanchoosebetween15,30,60,90and120minutes.Usetherightsettingandyou’llmakecreatingeventsquickandsimple.Getitwrong,andyou’llbeforeveradjustingyoureventswhenyoucreatethem.Thetimesettingduringeventcreation,especiallyonasmartphonecanbealittlefiddly.Thinkaboutthesortsofeventsthatyou’remostlikelytobecreated.Willtheybehalf-hourphonecalls?One-hourmeetings?Ortwo-hoursessions?Pickyourmostcommondurationandyou’llalreadyhavesavedyourselfsometime.MeetingsBeneaththedefaultdurationsettingsistheoptiontocreateSpeedyMeetings.Checktheboxand30-minutemeetingswillautomaticallybescheduledtolast25minuteswhilelongermeetingswillbecutbytenminutes.Theaim,saysGoogle,istoimproveefficiencybutabetteruseiswhenyou’reschedulingback-to-backmeetings.Ifyouhavetorunfromonemeetingtoanother,it’sworthusingthattimetogiveyourselfthechancetoreachthemeetingroom,grababreathoffreshairortakeabathroombreak.TheDefaultGuestPermissionsisn’tthemostuser-friendlypieceofdesignbutitsetsthefunctionsthatotherpeopleinvitedtoaneventcanuseonthatcalendarevent.Thereareonlythreeoptions:guestscanmodifyanevent,changingthetime,locationortheduration,forexample;theycaninviteotherstotakepartintheevent;andtheycanseeaguestlistofalltheotherpeopleattendingtheevent.It’sworthrememberingthatyoucanchangethosesettings.Ifyouwantsomeonetobeabletochangethetimeofthemeetingiftheyneedto,oryoudon’twanteveryonetoseewhoelsewillbethere,thosesettingswillgiveyoumorecontrolovertheentryinyourcalendar.InvitationsThenextsettingissounclearthatGooglehadtoaddanexplanatorynote.TheAutomaticallyAddInvitationssettingdetermineswhetheryouseeinvitationsautomaticallyinyourcalendarorwhetheryou’llonlyseethemafteryou’veacceptedthem.Youhavethreeoptions.First,addallinvitationstoyourcalendar.Second,putallinvitationstoyourcalendarbutonlyreceivenotificationsabouttheeventsyouhaven’tdeclined.Or,third,chooseonlytoseeeventsthatyou’veacceptedonyourcalendar.Nooneofthoseoptionsismoreefficientthantheotherbutifyourcalendarisalreadycrowdedandyou’relookingtopruneeventsfromyourdates,thenonlyautomaticallyinsertingeventsyou’veacceptedisagoodplacetobegin.NotificationsThekindofNotificationsyouchoosetoreceivewhenyou’resittingatyourdeskisimportanttoo.Youcanturnnotificationsoffcompletely,restrictthemtobrowsernotifications,oryoucangothewholehogandchooseinterruptiveAlerts.Thoseinterruptivealertsareprettyinterruptive.Ifyou’reinthemiddleofworking,theloudbongstheysend—anddon’tforgetthatthey’llberepeatedonyourmobiledevicestoo—willcertainlywakeyouup.Ifyoufindthemtoodisruptive,thisistheplacetocometotonedownthepain.Finally,inthissection,youcanchoosetoautomaticallyaddvideocallstoevents.Unlessyou’regoingtobeusingGoogleHangoutsforeveryeventyoucreate,you’llwanttomakesurethatboxisunchecked.Itwon’tdoyouanyharmbutseeinganopportunitytomakeaHangoutcallineveryeventdescriptionjustclogsuptheentry.ViewOptionsTheViewOptionsdeterminetheappearanceofyourGoogleCalendar.Again,thesesettingsarehiddenawaydownintheSettingsmenubuttheyhaveadirecteffectontheappearanceofyourcalendarbothonyourmobiledeviceandonyourcomputer.Someofthemarealsomoreusefulthanothers.Youprobablydon’twantthecalendartoshowdeclinedevents,orshowweeknumbers,afeaturethatplacesanumbernexttoeachweekintheyear.Butchoosingtoreducethebrightnessofpasteventswillhelptokeepthecalendarlookingclean.BeingabletoviewcalendarssidebysideinDayViewislikelytobeveryusefulifyou’reusingormanagingmultiplecalendarsusedbyanumberofdifferentpeople.Administrativeassistantsatbigcompanieswillwanttomakesurethattheyhavethatoption.Thelastthreeoptionsallowyoutochangethedaytostarttheweek.NotallcountriesbegintheworkingweekonMondayandyoumightwanttobeabletolookatacalendarthatputsSaturdayfirstandforemost.YoucanchoosetostarttheweekonSaturday,SundayorMonday.Youcanalsochangethenumberofdaysvisibleineachviewandadddifferentcalendarsfromaroundtheworld,suchasChinesecalendars,aHebrewcalendaroraPersiancalendar.ThosedatesappearinadditiontotheJuliancalendar.EventsFromGmailThenextsettingisparticularlyimportant.GooglehastheabilitytoscanincomingemailsandaddanyeventsfromGmailitfindstoyourcalendarautomatically.Itcanbeveryuseful.Itmeansthatwhenyouorderaticketonlineorreceiveanemailedinvitationtodinnerwhenyoucheckyourcalendar,you’llfindthoseeventsalreadyentered—oftenwithaneatdesign.Butifyou’renotawarethatGoogleisreadingyouremailinthisway,itcanbesurprising.Thesettingsallowyoutoturnthefeatureoff.KeyboardShortcutsFinally,youcanenablekeyboardshortcuts,afeaturewe’llcometolaterinthisguide.ThosearethesettingsthatareavailablewhenyouuseyourGoogleCalendaronline.Butwhatmakesthecalendarsousefulisthatalloftheseentriesremainwithyouwhenyouleaveyourdeskandpickupyourmobilephoneoryourtabletcomputer.Yourlaptoporyourmonitormightbeeasiertoreadandusebutthecalendaronyourphoneisalwayswithyou.Thesettingsonyourmobiledevicevaryonlyslightlyfromthoseonyourcomputer—butaremuchlessclear.GoogleCalendarAppSettingsAtthetopofthelistisalinktoGeneralsettingsmayofwhicharethesameasthoseonthewebsitebutafewofwhichareuniquetotheapp.GeneralSettingsThefirstgeneralsettingsarestraightforward.Youcanchangethedayonwhichyoustarttheweek,choosetousethedevice’stimezone(ausefulfeaturewhenyou’retraveling)andyoucanenteratimezonemanually.Youcanalsochoosetoshowweeknumbersanddeclinedevents,andchangethedefaulteventdurationfromsixtyminutestooneoffiveotheroptionsfromfifteenminutestotwohours.Thenextsettingsaremoreinteresting.Notificationsletyouturnoffnotificationsonthedeviceorchoosefromalonglistofdifferenttonesthatwillbeepatyoutoremindyouoftheevent,andtogglethevibratesettings.It’sworthbearinginmindthatwhileallcalendarswillhavethesamenotificationtone(youcan’tcreatedifferentsoundsinthesamewaythatyoucancreatedifferentringtones)youcanchangethenotificationsettingsforeachcalendar.InSettingschooseacalendarandchooseoneofthesettingsunderDefaultnotificationsandDefaultnotificationsforall-dayevents.QuickResponsesThelastsettinginthissectionisthemostusefulandprobablythemostoverlooked.Quickresponsesletyouchooseoneoffourautomatedmessagestosendtoguestsofaneventifyou’rerunninglateorcan’tmakeit.Clickononeoftheresponsesandyou’llbeabletoeditthetext.Tousetheresponse,taporclickanevent,selecttheguestsandchoosetheresponse.Youcanchangethetextthentoo.Returntothemainsettingsmenuandyou’llfindmoresettingstoplaywith,fewofwhichareentirelyself-explanatory.EventsFromGmailEventsfromGmailisclearenough.Touchthatmenuheadingandyou’llbeofferedaswitchthatletsyoutoggletheabilitytoautomaticallyinsertdetailsfromeventsintothecalendarjustlikeonthewebsite.EventsThenextoption,Events,determineshoweventsappearonyourmobilecalendar.Youchangethecoloroftheblockoftimetheeventtakesuponthecalendar,andyoucanchangethedefaultnotifications,adjustingtheamountoftimebeforetheeventwhenyourphonegivesyouaping.Youcanalsoaddasecondnotification,andyoucandeterminethesettingsforthenotificationsofeventsthattakeallday.ThenextsettingconcernsthecolorofReminders.TheseareentriesthatcanonlybemadeonGoogle’scalendarapp;whileyoucanseeremindersonyourdesktop,andyoucanchangetheircolors,crossthemoutwhenyoucompletethemanddeletethem,youcan’tcreateareminderonyourcomputer.Youcanonlycreateanevent.We’llexplainhowtocreateareminderlater,butthey’reentriesplacedinthecalendarthatarerenewedautomaticallyeverydayuntilyoumarkthemasdone.Theyappearinthecalendarwithaniconintheformofapieceofstringtiedtoafinger,andthey’remeanttobeatleastmildlyirritating.PhoneThesettingmarkedPhonecouldn’tbelessclearandGoogleprovidesnohelpinfiguringoutwhatit’sfor.Onmanymobilephones,it’salsoentirelyirrelevant.Theseareentriesthathavebeensyncedautomaticallywiththedevice’sowncalendarapp.Soifyou’vestartedusingthecalendarthatcamewithyourSamsungorHuaweidevicethenswitchedtoGoogleCalendar,you’llfindthoseentriesalreadyinplaceandyoucanchangetheirnotificationsettingsandthecolorinwhichthey’rehighlighted.MoreFinally,underaheadingimaginativelytitled“More,”youcanalterthesettingsofthedatafromanyothercalendarsyoumightbeusing.Birthdays,forexample,letyouchoosetoaddanybirthdayslistedinyourcontactsandfromYourCirclesonGoogle+.That’sworthbearinginmind.Ifyou’vesetupcirclesinGoogle+andsomeonehasaddedtheirbirthdayinformation,youcouldwellfindthatyourcalendarincludesthebirthdaysofabunchofpeopleyoubarelyknow.Switchthesettingto“Contacts”andyou’llkeepyourcalendarpersonal.Thosearethesettings.They’renotallstraightforwardandthey’representonboththedesktopandthemobileapp.They’realsoscatteredthroughoutdifferentpartsoftheapp.Clickthethreedotsafterthelistofeachyourcalendarsontheleftsideofyourdesktopscreen,forexample,andyou’llbeofferedapalettetochangethecolorsoftheeventsfromeachcalendaraswellasthesettingsforthatcalendarsuchasthesourceofbirthdaydata.Thegoodnewsisthatonceyourcalendarissetup,youreallyshouldn’tneedtotouchthesettingsagain.Butifyoufindthatyou’reseeingthebirthdaysofpeopleyoudon’tknoworthatthedefaultdurationofameetingisacoupleofhours,diggingaroundinthesettingswillgiveyouabetterlookforyourcalendar.2.CreatingMultipleCalendarsOneofthemostimportantfeaturesofGoogleCalendarisalsothemostconfusinglynamed.AddingacalendartoyourGoogleCalendardoesn’tactuallyaddanewcalendar.Instead,ittakesdatafromadifferentcalendarandplacesitinyours.Unlikeimportingcalendardatathough,thatdataisconstantlyupdated.Youcanseeotherpeople’seventsand,ifyouwant,theycanseeyours.Eachdatasourcecanbemarkedinadifferentcolorsothatyoucanseewhereit’sfrom.Despiteitsclumsytitle,thefeatureisreallyuseful.Itmeansthatyoucanaddinformationfromjustaboutanycalendartoyourowncalendar.Youcanimportthedatesofreligiousholidays,thefixturesofyourfavoritesportsteam,moonphases,NASAlaunchschedulesandahostofotherevents—includingcalendarssharedbyotherteammembers,relatives,andfriends.Theonlylimitisthespaceinyourcalendaritself.HowToAddAFriend’sCalendarAddinganewcalendarcanonlybeperformedonacomputer;thereisnooptionforaddingacalendartotheGoogleCalendarapp.ButtheoptioncanbefoundonthesiteintwoplacesThemostobviousplaceisontheleftofthecalendarwhereanoptionsays,“Addafriend’scalendar.”Clicktheplusiconnexttothatoptionandyou’llfindthatit’snotonlyforaddingafriend’scalendar.Toaddafriend’scalendar,you’llneedtostarttypinginthefieldthatthetext“Addafriend’scalendar”masks.Whenyoudothat,Googleoffersyoualistofyourcontactswithpeoplewhohavemadetheircalendarspublic.Clickononeofthosecontacts,andyou’llbeabletoseetheireventslistedonyourcalendar.Youcanalsotrytoaddpeoplewhosecalendarsaren’tpublic.Typeintheemailaddressofsomeoneinyourcontactlistwhodoesn’thaveapubliccalendar,andGooglewillnotifyyouthatyoudon’thaveaccesstotheircalendar.Itwillalsoallowyoutorequestaccess.Sendyourfriendamessageand,iftheyapprove,you’llhaveaddedtheirscheduletoyourcalendar.CreateANewCalendarBeingabletoseeafriendorpartner’sschedulemightbeuseful.Sharingyourownschedulewithotherswillalsohaveause.Butyou’llprobablywanttohangontoyourprivacyandnotshareeverythingonyourschedule.Yourworkcolleaguesmightwanttoknowthetimeofthestaffmeeting.Theywon’twanttoknowwhereyou’regoingforyouranniversarydinner.Googleletsyoucreatemultiplelevelsforyourcalendar.Clicktheplusiconnextto“Addafriend’scalendar,”andtopofthelistwillbetheoptiontoaddanewcalendar.Clickthatoptionandyou’llbeabletocreateanewscheduleonyourcalendarwithauniquename.You’denterthoseappointmentsinthatcalendarandwhenyousharethatcalendarwithothers,they’donlyseethoseevents,andnotyourdentalappointmentsoryourvacationtrips.AddCalendarsOfInterestWhatGooglecalls“calendarsofinterest”iswherethingsstarttogetreallyinteresting.Youcanaddafriend’sscheduletoyourcalendarandyoucancreatemultipleschedulesofyourowntoplaceinyourcalendar.Butyoucanalsoaddaseriesofothercalendarsthathavealreadybeenprepared.ClicktheoptionthatsaysBrowsecalendarsofinterestandyou’llbetakentotheSettingspageandalistofdifferentcalendars.They’reorganizedinto“holidays,”“sports”and“other”whichisonlythephasesofthemoon.Addthoseschedulestoyourown,andyou’llseethoseholidaysorthosesportsfixturesonyourcalendar.It’sverysimpleandaveryeffectivewaytocreateacalendarthatworksforyou.AddCalendarsByURLTheselectionof“calendarsofinterest”willcoverthemostimportantschedulesthatyou’llwanttoaddtoyourcalendarbutthereareplentyofothersavailableonline.YoucanaddthembypastingintheirURL.ClicktheFromURLoptioneitherfromtheplusiconnexttothecalendarorinthesettings,andyou’llbeofferedafieldinwhichyoucanentertheURLofascheduleavailableontheInternet.ThecalendarsneedtobeiniCalformat.iCalShare,forexample,offersthousandsoffreecalendarscoveringtopicsthatrangefromreligiousholidaystoNASAlaunchschedules.Youcanalsochoosetomakethatcalendarpubliclyaccessible.Ifyou’retakingitfromapublicsource,youwon’tneedto.SharingYourOwnCalendarTheabilitytoshareyourcalendarwithothersisoneofthemostimportantfeaturesofGoogleCalendar.Theprocessisalsoalittlefiddly.Again,itcanonlybeperformedonthecalendar’swebsite.Hoverthecursoroverthecalendaryouwanttoshareandclickthethreedotsthatappearattheendoftheline.Onacalendarthatyou’vecreated,you’llbeofferedtheoptiontoDisplaythisonly,anoptionthatremovesalltheotherschedulesfromyourcalendar.Youcanalsochooseapreparedcolorforthatcalendar(ormixacolorofyourown)—andyoucanmovetotheSettingsandsharingpage.We’vealreadyseenhowcomplexandcomprehensivethosesettingscanbesowecanskipstraighttothetwosettingsthatarerelevanthere.TwoImportantSettingsTherearetwooptionsforaccesspermissions.Thefirstistomakeyourcalendaravailabletothepublic.Thatwillalloweveryonetoseeyourcalendar.ItwilleventurnupinGooglesearchresults.Youshouldthinklongandhardbeforechoosingthatoption.Itmightbeworthdoingifyou’vecreatedacalendarspecificallytosharethedatesofyourpubliceventsbutforindividuals,it’sbestavoidedifyouwanttosafeguardyourprivacy.Ifyoudodecidetomakeyourcalendarpublic,youcanalsogetashareablelinkthatyoucangivetootherssothattheycanfindyourcalendar.Withoutclickingthecheckboxthatmakesyourcalendarpublic,thatURLwillhavenouse.Morehelpfulistheabilitytoshareyourcalendarwithspecificpeople.Entertheiremailaddressandthatpersonwillhaveaccesstothedatainthatcalendar:they’llseetheeventsthatyou’veenteredinyourscheduleontheirowncalendars.ShareYourGoogleCalendarWithAGroupOneoftheleastknownfunctionsofGoogleCalendarisbothoneofitsmostusefulandoneofthefiddliesttouse.WhilecommunicationsplatformslikeWhatsAppallowgroupsofpeopletoexchangemessages,Googledoesallowgroupstoshareacalendar.It’sagreatwayforvoluntaryorganizations,churchgroups,schoolsandworkplacestoshareevents.Thereareacoupleofwaystodoit.Theeasiestistocreateanewcalendarbypressingtheplusiconnextto“Addafriend’scalendar”andchoosingNewcalendar.Inthesettingsforthatcalendar,youcanSharewithspecificpeopleandaddeachgroupmember’semailaddressindividually.Ifyou’reonlyaddingafewpeople,it’sprobablythebestwaytogo.GroupCalendarIssuesButifyou’vecreatedalargegroup,andespeciallyifyouwanttodomorethanjustshareacalendarwiththatgroup,thenit’sworthfirstcreatingaGooglegroup.Youcandothatatgroups.google.com.Thefieldsareprettyself-explanatoryanditwon’ttakeyoumorethanafewminutestocompletethem.Whenyou’redoneandyou’vecreatedthegroup,thatgroupwillhaveitsownemailaddress.Itwilllooksomethinglikethis:[name]@googlegroups.com.Whenyouwanttoshareacalendarthatyou’vecreatedtolistthatgroup’sevents,insteadofenteringtheemailaddressofeachmember,you’llbeabletojustentertheemailaddressofthegroup.Allthemembersofthegroupwillhaveaccesstothatcalendar.Bearinmindthoughthatsharingthegrouptoyourcalendarisn’tenoughforthegroup’smemberstoseethegroup’seventsimmediately.Eachmemberwillreceivefirstanemailwithalinkthattheyneedtoclick.PrioritizingYourCalendarsGoogleanditscalendararesmart,butthey’renotgeniuses.Ifyouhavemultipleeventsonthesameday,GoogleCalendarstrugglestoputthemintheorderyouwanttosee.Theprioritizationitusesstartslogically.Eventsarepresentedinchronologicalorderregardlessofthescheduleonwhichtheyappear.Therefore,ifyourpersonalcalendarsaysthatyouhaveastaffmeetingat10a.m.andyourpersonalcalendarlistsamealwithyourparentsat7p.m.,thenthestaffmeetingwillbelistedfirstinyourcalendarandthedinnerwillbelistedsecond.But,whathappensifyouhavemorethanoneall-dayevent?Googlecan’ttellwhichoneitshouldlistfirstsoitliststheminalphabeticalorder.Ifyourpersonalcalendarstatedthatyouwerespendingthedaywithyourfamilyandyourworkcalendarremindedyouthatyouwereoutoftouchwiththeofficethatday,you’dseewhicheverall-dayeventcomesfirstinthealphabet.Google’sorderforall-dayeventsisalpha-numeric.Ifyouwanttoprioritizethoseall-dayevents,putanumberbeforeeachoftheeventtitles.It’sabitofaclumsyworkaround,butitworks.Itwouldhavebeenhelpfuliftheyhadcalledthosecalendars“schedules”orsomethingsimilartodistinguishthemfromtheactuallistingofdaysandweeksthatyoucanseeonthescreen.But,thecreationofdifferentcalendarswillbepartofyourtimemanagementworkflow.3.EditingYourCalendarNow,you’vecreatedyourcalendar.It’ssetupthewayyouwantit.You’veaddedmultipledifferentschedules.And,you’vesharedsomeofthosescheduleswithfriends,colleagues,orfamily.Nowyougettoplaceentriesintothatcalendar.Therearelotsofdifferentwaystodothat—andmorethanonekindofentry.HowToAddAnEventYoucanaddeventsbothfromthecalendarwebsiteandfromtheapp.Whatyoucandooneachofthoseplatformsthoughisslightlydifferent.Therearetwowaystocreateaneventonthewebsite.Youcanclickontheplusiconatthebottomrightofthepagetoseethefulleventcreationform.Oryoucanclickonadatewhichwillgenerateaminiforminvitingyoutofillintheevent’smostimportantdetails.AddEventMiniFormAtthetopoftheformistheinstructiontoAddtitleandtime.Actually,allyoutypethereisthetitle.Thisiswhatyou’llseeinthecalendar—andrememberthatifyou’recreatingmorethanoneall-dayeventonthesameday,thosetitleswillbearrangedinalphabeticalorder.Next,youcanchoosebetweencreatinganeventorareminder.We’llcomebacktoreminderslaterbutthedefaultsettingistocreateanevent.Youthengettoenteradate.Becauseyouclickedonadaytobringuptheform,thedefaultsettingisthattheeventwilllastalldayandwillonlytakeplaceonthatday.Clickononeofthosedatesthough,andGooglewillofferamonthlyschedulethatallowsyoutoenterdifferentdays.Thatsingle-dayeventcanbecomeaweek-longhappeningsuchasavacationoraconference.OtherOptionsIfit’snottakingplaceallday,you’llalsoneedtoenterastartandendtimebyclickingAddTime.Finally,ifyou’vecreatedmultiplecalendars,youcanchoosethecalendaryouwanttouse.That’simportantandeasytooverlook.Choosethewrongcalendarandanyoneyou’resharingthatcalendarwithwon’tbeabletoseetheevent.ClickSave,andyou’llbedone.Theeventwillbeonthecalendar.Butyoucandomore.PresstheMoreOptionslinknexttotheSavebuttonandyou’llbetakentoaprettydetailedformwithatonofdifferentoptions.Mostofthemareprettyclearbutsomedemandalittlethought.AddEventCompleteFormAfterthetitleandthetimeisanoptiontochangetheTimeZone.Thisisn’tsomethingthatyou’regoingtoneedveryoftenbutitmightbeusefuliftheeventwilltakeplaceinadifferenttimezone.Youcanevenstarttheeventinonetimezoneandenditinanother—usefulifyou’remanuallyenteringthedetailsofaflightorlistingapartyonanocean-goingyacht.Youcanthenmarktheeventaslastingallday,andyoucanmakeitarecurringevent.ClickingDoesnotrepeatlistsanumberofdifferentwaystomarktheeventasrecurringsothatyoudon’thavetomakeanewentryeverytime.Googlewilloffertomaketheeventdaily,weekly,monthly,annually,everyweekdayorweekend,orjustletyoufigureitoutforyourself.Forregulareventssuchasweeklystaffmeetings,it’saveryusefultool.EventDetailsThenextsectionismorecomplicated.Thisiswhereyoucanentertheeventdetails.Youdon’thavetodothisstuff,butitcanbeuseful,especiallyifyou’reinvitingotherpeopletotakepart.StarttoaddalocationandGooglewillcompletetheaddressforyou.That’snotjustaconvenience.ItalsoturnsthelocationintoalinkthataguestcanclicktoseeonGoogleMaps.Themoreaccurateyoumakethatlocationinformation,theeasieritwillbeforgueststofindwherethey’regoing.Ifyou’vechangedthesettingstoremoveconferencingyoucanclickAddconferencingtobringbackGoogleHangouts.Youprobablywon’twantto,butyoucan’tremovethisoptionfromtheform.OtherEventDetailOptionsThenextoptionisthetypeofnotificationyoucanreceive.Thisismorecomplicatedthanitsounds.Youcanchoosetoreceivethenotificationbyemailoryoucanreceiveitasanotificationinyourbrowseroronyourmobiledevice.Youcansethowlongbeforetheeventyoureceivethatnotificationinminutes,hours,daysorweeks,andyoucanaddmorenotificationsjustincaseyou—oryourguests—mightforget.Ifyou’resettingupanimportanteventsuchasawedding,forexample,thoserepeatnotificationssentalongwayoutcanbeuseful.Youcanthenchangethecalendaronwhichtheeventwillbeposted,andyoucanchangethecoloroftheevent.Thatcanbeusefultoo.Ingeneral,eventcolorswillmatchthecoloryou’vesetforthecalendarbutifyouwantaparticulareventtostandout,youcanalsogiveitaspecialcolor.Thenextoptionrelatestoprivacy.TheeventwillhaveDefaultvisibility.Anyoneyou’vesharedyourcalendarwithwillbeabletoseealltheeventdetails.They’llalsobeabletoseethosedetailsifyouchangethevisibilitytopublic.Ifyousettheeventtoprivate,thenevenpeoplewhocanusuallyseeyoureventswon’tbeabletoseethedetailsofthisone.Instead,they’llseethatyou’reeitherbusyoravailabledependingonthesettingyouchoose.Finally,inthissection,youcanalsoincludeadescriptionoftheevent.Formostevents,thetitleislikelytobesufficient.Butaddingsomeextradetailhere—suchasdresscodeormeetingtopic—canbeuseful.Youcanevenaddattachmentsandlinkswhichmakesthedescriptionfeatureparticularlyvaluablewhenarrangingabusinessmeeting.Uploadtheagenda,forexample,andpeoplewillknowwhattoexpect.MoreWaystoCreateEventsAnareaontherightofthescreenletsyouaddguestssothattheycanseeitontheirowncalendars,andallowthemtoengagewiththeeventindifferentways.Youcanletthemchangetheevent,inviteotherpeopletotakepart,andallowthemtoseeeveryoneelsewhohasbeeninvited.Ofthosethree,you’llprobablyonlywanttocheckthelastbox.Thereareacouplemorethingsthatyoucandowhenyou’recreatinganeventonGoogleCalendar.Atthetopofthepage,nexttotheSavebutton,isadrop-downmenucalledMoreactions.Pullthatdown,andyou’llbeofferedalistofactionsthatyoucanperformontheeventyou’vecreated.MoreThingstoKnowAboutEventsMostofthoseoptionsarefairlyclear.YoucanPrintyoureventandDeleteitfromyourcalendar.YoucanDuplicateitsothatyoucanmarkthesameeventatadifferenttimeoronadifferentday.Andyoucancopytheeventtoadifferentschedule,suchasyourworkcalendaroryourpersonalcalendar.ButyoucanalsoPublishtheevent,whichgivesyouaURLthatyoucansharewithpeople,andyoucanChangetheowner,whichinvitesoneofyourcontactstotakeovermanagementoftheevent’sscheduling.Thelastfeatureofeventcreationisthecoolest.BytheEventdetailslinkattopoftheformisasecondlinkthatinvitesyoutoFindATime.Googledoesn’tdothisautomatically.Instead,itletsyoubrowsethroughacalendaronwhichbookedtimeshavealreadybeenmarked.Insteadofaskingeveryonewhentheycanmeet,you’llbeabletoseethedayforyourselfandpickatime.IfyouwantGoogletodothesearchingforyou,you’llneedtoclickthelinkontherightthatsaysSuggestedtimes.Thatwillofferalistoftimeswhenalltheguestsareavailable.HowToAddAnEventFromAnAppAddingadetailedeventfromthewebsitemightwellbethemostconvenientifyouhavealotoftexttocreate.Ifyou’relookingtoaddaneventquickly,thenusingyourmobiledevicemightbemoreconvenient.Clicktheplusiconinthebottomright-handcornerandyou’llbeinvitedtocreateyourevent.Youwon’tonlybeinvitedtocreateaneventthough.You’llalsobeinvitedtocreateagoalandareminder.We’llcomebacktothosebutonanappaneventisthelastitemonthelist—thoughitisalsothefunctionwiththebiggesticonandtheonlyiconinred.TaptheEventiconandyou’llbetakentoaformsimilartotheoneonthewebsite.OnesignificantdifferenceisthatattachmentscanonlybemadefromGoogleDrive.Ifyouhaveadocumentonyourmobilephonethatyouwanttoshare,thenyou’llneedtouploadittoGoogleDrivefirst.Youcanalsoaddaneventbytappingadate—anddeleteonebyslidingtheeventtotheright.HowToAddAnEventFromGmailAlloftheeventfunctionswe’velookedatsofarhavebeenprettystraightforward.Addingevents,whetheryou’reusingawebsiteoranapp,shouldn’ttakemorethanafewminutes.Butthat’sstillmoreminutesthanyoumightwanttospend,andifyou’readdingsomethingmoredetailed,suchasaflightreservation,thenyoumightwantamethodthat’slessfiddlyandlesslikelytoleaveoutsomeimportantdetail.OneofthesettingsinGooglecalendariscalledEventsfromGmail.YoucanchecktheboxmarkedAddautomaticallyoryoucanleaveitunchecked.CheckthatboxandanyeventthatarrivesinyourGmailinboxwillbeaddedautomaticallytoyourGoogleCalendar.Googlewillnotethedateandpulloutanyotherrelevantdetails,includingsomethatyoumightnothavethoughttoaddyourself.BookingaFlightForexample,ifyou’vebookedaflightonline,assoonasyoureceivetheconfirmationemailfromthebookingsite,you’llseeanentryinyourcalendarthattellsyouwhereyou’regoing,theflightnumber,thedateandtime,includingthearrivaltime,theconfirmationnumber,andthenamesofanyoneflyingwithyou—butonlyifthey’vesharedtheircalendar.(Youmightalsoseeasmalliconthatlookslikeasuitcasewiththeword“free”nexttoit.Sadly,thatdoesn’tmeanthatthebaggageisfree.Itmeansthatyou’relistedonyourcalendarasfree).Hotelreservationsmightincludethecheck-inandcheck-outtimes.Iftheairlinechangesthedeparturetimeortherestaurantchangesthereservationtimeandnotifiesyoubyemail,GoogleCalendarwillupdatethosedetails.EventNotificationsNotificationofeventsaddedfromGmailwillbebasedonyourdefaultsettingsinGoogleCalendar,soitisworthkeepinganeyeonthetimeyou’regivingyourself.Youmightendupwithanhour’sremindertogettotheairport!EventsaddedfromGmailarealsosetautomaticallytoprivate.Evenifyou’vesharedyourcalendar,onlyyouwillbeabletoseeinformationthatGooglehastakenfromyouremailaccount.Toallowpeoplewhoshareyourcalendartoseeyourflights,dinnerreservations,andhotelbooks,you’llneedtogointoSettingsandchangethevisibilitynexttoEventsfromGmail.PrivateandPublicOptionsYou’llbeabletokeepthateventprivatesothatonlypeoplewithpermissiontomakechangestoyourcalendarcanseetheevent;everyoneelsewilljustseethatyou’re“busy.”YoucanmaketheeventmatchyourCalendardefaultsothatpeoplewhocanusuallyseetheeventsonyourcalendarwillbeabletoseethenameandtimeofaneventdrawnfromGmailbutonlypeoplewhocanmakechangestoyourcalendarwillbeabletoseetherestoftheeventdetails.And,youcanchoosetomakeanindividualeventpublic.Youwillonlyseethosevisibilityoptionsifyou’resharingyourcalendar.However,itdoesn’talwayswork.Googlewillonlytakedetailsfrombusinessesinvolvedinflights,hotels,restaurantsandticketedeventssuchasconcertsandmovies.Thoseemailsmustalsocomedirectlyfromthewebsiteitself.Googlewon’ttakedetailsfromemailsthathavebeenforwarded,senttoamailinglist,orredirectedfromadifferentemailaccount.HowToAddAnEventFromGoogleAddingeventsautomaticallyfromGmailisverycool,butGooglecandoevenmore.Ifyou’reloggedintoyourGoogleaccount,youcanevenaddaneventtoyourcalendarfromGoogle’ssearchengine.OpenGoogle.com,typethedateandtimeofanappointment,andGooglewillofferyoutheopportunitytoaddittoyourcalendar.Youmighthavetoplaywiththephrasing.“Schedule”worksandsodoes“book.”Andyou’llneedtomentionboththetimeandtheday.ClicktheCreateeventlinkandtheeventwillbeaddedtoyourcalendar.You’llthenbeofferedthechancetoeditit.It’sdifficulttoseewhenyouwouldwanttousethisoption.Tappingonthescreenafewtimesonthecalendarwebsiteorappislikelytobefasterandmoreconvenientthanwritinginthesearchengine.Butit’sstillaneattrick.HowToAddAnEventFromGoogleAssistantMoreusefulistheabilitytoaddaneventtoyourcalendarusingyourvoice.BringupGoogleAssistantonyourmobiledeviceandyoucaninstructittoaddaneventtoyourcalendar.Tellitto“Scheduleadoctor’sappointmentfornextFridayat3pm”forexample,anditwillcreatetheentrythenwaitforyourconfirmationbeforeplacingitonyourcalendar.Ofcourse,youcandothesamethingusingtheAssistantinGoogleHome.FireupGoogle’sspeakerandyou’llbeabletoaddeventstoyourcalendarwithouttouchingascreen.HowToCreateAReminderPresstheplusicononGoogleCalendarappandgetthreeoptions.Theseincludetheoptiontosetagoal,createareminder,andcreateanevent.Neitherofthoseoptionsisofferedwhenyouclickthesameicononthecomputerbutoneofthemisavailable.Youwon’tseeitwhenyouclicktheiconbutifyouclickanemptyspotinyourschedule,themini-formthatGoogleoffersallowsyoutocreatebotheventsandreminders.ClickthatReminderbuttonandyou’llgivenaformthatinvitesyoutoenteratitle,changethestartdate,indicatewhetheryouwanttheremindertorepeat,andwhetheryouwanttheremindertotakeupthewholedayorwhetheryouwantittotriggeranotificationataparticulartime.AReminderandanEventTherearetwodifferencesbetweencreatingareminderandcreatinganevent.First,areminderappearsonyourcalendar.It’salittleiconthathasafingerwithapieceofstringtiedaroundit.Second,ifyoudon’tdeletethereminderormarkitas“done”onyourcalendar,itwillstillappearthenextday.Whileyoucancreateareminderonyourcomputer,it’smuchmoreconvenienttocreateoneonyourmobiledevice.PresstheplusiconandthentheReminderoption.Thisoffersalistofautomatedreminders.Theseremindersincludebookingarestaurantthroughmakingaphonecall,sendinganemail,returninggoodsandcancelingareservation.Eachoffersanautomatedlist.Intheory,youshouldbeabletocreateareminderwithjustafewtapsandwithouteverneedingtotouchthekeyboard.It’sworthrememberingthoughthattheroleofareminderinacalendaristobringbacktomindsomethingyou’veforgotten…andtodoitintime.HowToSetAGoalinGoogleCalendarWe’vesavedsettingagoaltilltheendofthissectionbecauseit’ssoneat.Allthefeatureswe’veseenuntilnowhavebeenprettysimpleandthey’vedemandedworkfromyou.Youneedtoenteryourowneventdetailsandsetyourownreminders.Sure,GooglecantakedetailsfromyourGmail.However,someothercompanystillneedstoputthosedetailsinthemessageoryouneedtodoitwhenyoumakeyourbooking.Youcanonlysetagoalontheapp.Clicktheplusiconinthecornerandchoosethefirstoption.Googlewillthenofferalistofdifferentgoalsthatyoumightwanttoachieveandthatdemandtime.Theyincludeexercise,buildingaskillsuchaslearningalanguage,meetingfriends,settingasidetimeforyourself,andorganizingyourlife.Goal-settingFeaturesChooseoneandGooglewillofferalistofoptions.Youcanenteryourowncustomgoal.Choosetolearnaskill,forexample,andGooglewillaskwhetheryouwanttolearnalanguage,learntocode,practiceaninstrumentormakeart.PickoneofthemandGooglewillofferanotherlist,suchasalistoflanguages,thenaskyouhowoftenyouwanttopractice,forhowlongandwhattimeofday.Googlewon’taskyouwhichtimeyouwanttoconjugateSpanishverbsorpracticetheviolin.Itwillaskyouwhetheryouwanttodoitinthemorning,afternoon,eveningoranytime.Ifsomethingcomesup,andyou’reunabletomakethetimethatGooglehasfound,yourcalendarwillautomaticallylookforadifferenttimeandreschedule.ThatcanhappenifyouenterthesecondeventatthesametimeasthegoalorifyouhittheDeferbuttonwhenyoureceivethenotification.Youcanalsoeditthegoalbytappingtheediticon.Ifyoudecidetocompleteasessionearly,youcanbringituponthecalendarandhittheDiditbutton.Whenyoudeleteasession,youcanchoosebetweendeletingjustthatsinglesessionorallfollowingsessions(andstopscheduling).AI-EnabledIt’saveryneatfeaturebutwhat’sreallycleveraboutitisthatitencouragesyoutouseyourcalendar.Also,thecalendarlearns.Thefeatureusesaformofartificialintelligencetobetterunderstandyourschedule.First,itsearchesyourcalendardatatofindatimethatsuitsyou,removingtheexcusethatyoudon’thavetimetoworkoutorpracticeyourSpanishverbs.Themoreyouuseyourcalendar,thebetterthechancesthatGooglewillofferyouatimethat’sgenuinelyavailable.Asyoupress“Defer”oreditthesessiontomoveittoadifferenttime,Googlewillbetterunderstandyourlifestyleandadjustaccordingly.HowToAddAnEventWithAKeyPressHittheQkeyandGoogleCalendarwillpresenttheeventmini-formallowingyoutoenteraneventforthecurrentday.It’sfastandeasy…aslongasyouwanttoaddaneventonthatday.4.ViewingYourCalendarThemoreyouuseGoogleCalendar,themoreusefulitbecomes.However,userswillonlyopentheircalendarsiftheycanseeataglancetheinformationtheyneed.Googleoffersanumberofwaystochangetheviewofthecalendar.GiveYourCalendarTheLongView…OrTheShortViewOntheGoogleCalendarwebsite,theviewsettingisatthetopofthepage.Themonthlyviewappearslikethis:Clickonthat“today”buttonthoughandallyou’llseeisafloatingcaptionshowingthedate.Next,selectthearrowsandyoucangobackwardorforwardamonthatatime.After,choosethemonthandtheyear.Nothinghappensatall.It’snotthebestusabilitymix.Tochangetheviewofthecalendaronyourcomputer,you’llneedtoopenthedrop-downmenuatthetopright.Thoseoptionsareprettyself-explanatory.TheScheduleshowsonlyalistoftheeventsthatyou’veplacedonyourcalendar.Oneusefultrickhereistheabilitytoseemultiplecalendarsinasingleview.Ifyouhaveaccesstothecalendarsoffriendsorcolleagues,whenyouswitchtoDayviewandbringuptheircalendars,youcanseetheirdayssidebyside.ChangeYourCalendarViewWithYourSidebarThereareacouplemoreneattricksthatyoucandotoimprovetheappearanceofGoogleCalendaronawebsite.OntheleftofthescreenontheGoogleCalendarwebsiteisamini-monthlyview.Clickadateonthatcalendaranddragthecursor,andthemainscreenwillshowjustthosedates.It’saneasywaytoseeadjusttheviewwithoutfiddlingwiththedrop-downmenu.Whathappensnextthoughisalittlelessobvious.Theviewthatyou’vecreatednowbecomesyourdefaultviewforyournextclick.Youcanalsoremovethissidebarentirely.Inthetopleftcornerisaniconwiththreehorizontallines.Clickthatandthewholeleftsidebardisappears.You’lllosethemini-monthlyview,theworldclocks,yourlistofcalendarsandaneasywaytoaddafriend’scalendartoyourown.But,you’llgetafull-screencalendarwithnointerruptions.Onamobiledevice,pressingthaticonhasaverydifferenteffect.It’sthebuttonthatbringsupthelistofviews.ThoseviewsstartwithSchedulethistime,thenrunfromasingledaytothreedays,aweekandamonth.TravelTheYearWithYourKeyboardYoucanalsoviewdifferentpartsoftheyearwithsinglekeypresses.PressingKorPwillmoveyoubackthroughtheyear.KeysJorNwillmoveyouforward.PressingTwilltakeyoubacktothecurrentviewoftheyear.Youcanalsobringupthesearchfunctionbypressing/.WantToViewYourGoogleCalendarOffline?UseTheAppOld-fashionedpaperdiariesworkanywhere.ThatusedtobetrueofGoogleCalendartoo.WhenGoogleredesigneditsCalendarinOctober2017,thatoptionwasmissingfromthenewversion.Mobiledoesgiveyousomeoptions.OpenyourCalendarappwithoutanInternetconnectionandyou’llstillbeabletoflickthroughyoureventsandyourdays.You’llbeabletoaddeventstoyourCalendarandevensetgoals.Assoonasyougoonlineagain,GooglewillupdateyouronlineCalendarsothatyoucanseetheeventsyou’veaddedofflineacrossdifferentplatforms,andGooglewillthencalculatethescheduleforyourgoals.But,thisdoesn’tworkontheGoogleCalendarwebsite.TrytoaddaneventtothewebsitewithoutanInternetconnection,andyou’llbeabletobringuptheeventformandyou’llbeabletoenterthedetails.Youwon’tseetheresultsuntilyou’rebackonline.Usetheappofflineandwaittillyou’rebackonlinetousethewebsite.ChangeYourCalendar’sLookAndFeelFinally,GoogleCalendardoesn’tgiveyoutoomanywaystochangethedesignofthecalendar.Whileyoucanadjustthecolorsforeachevent,youcan’teasilychangethebackgroundimageorinsertpicturesintothetimeslotsthemselves.Infact,Googlegivesyoujusttwooptions.ClicktheSettingsiconatthetoprightofthewebsite.ThisgetsyoutoDensityandcolor.Choosethatoptionandyou’llgetexactlytwooptionsforeach.Modern(withwhitetext)makesthetextthatappearsonthecoloredeventbackgroundwhite.TheClassiccolorsetusesblacktext.Everyotheraspectofthecalendarlooksexactlythesame.MoreFormatFeaturesYoucanalsochoosetomakethedesignResponsiveorCompact.Addmorethanfourorfiveitemstoaday,andwhenyoufillthespaceinthecalendar,Googlewilladdalinktoseemore.Clickthatlinkandyou’llgetapop-upthatshowsalltheeventsscheduledforthatperiod.SomeusershavefoundthattheCompactviewsqueezesmoreitemsintothesamespace.Therefore,youcanseemoreofwhat’shappeningataglance.Inpractice,itmakeslittledifference.AdjustingtheviewofyourGoogleCalendarcanbealittlefiddly.Theoptionsaren’tasobvious.However,thereareplentyofoptionstoseeyourCalendarinexactlythewayyouwant.5.ExtendGoogleCalendarWithSomeExtraSoftwareGoogleCalendarisoddlycomplexforatoolthathasonlyahandfuloffeatures.Butitcouldbeevenmorecomplex.ComparedtoothertimemanagementtoolsGoogleCalendarstilllookssomewhatunderdeveloped,despiteitslatestfacelift.BeforetheOctober2017revamp,thatwouldhavemeantusingsomeofthefeaturesavailableinLabs,Google’stestbed.Sincetheupdate,thosefeaturesarenotaccessible.IhoweverfinditalittleeasiertouseoverYahooCalendarorOffice365Calendar.GoogleCalendar’sProfessionalGSuiteNamesRoomsGoogleoffersfreeproductsandsellsthedatacollectedfromthoseproducts.However,italsosellssomeofitsservicestobusinesses,includingitsCalendar.CompaniesthatsignupforGSuitebyGoogleCloudpayfrom$5to$25peruserpermonth.Inreturn,theygetanextendedversionofmanyofthefreeservices.Additionally,theyreceivegreaterstorage,anad-freeexperience,anddatalosspreventionforGmailandDrive.Plus,theyhaveaccessto“avaultforeDiscoveryandarchiving.”CaseStudyExampleThebigdifferenceinCalendarforGoogle’spayingcustomersistheabilitytocreateroomsanddescriberesources.Forexample,acompanywithofficesinLondon,Paris,andSanFranciscocouldlistavailablemeetingroomsavailableateach.Theycouldassignvideoconferencingfacilities,whiteboards,andotherusefulresourcestoeach.Forlargefirmswithmultiplemeetingrooms,it’saveryusefultool,butitdoestakesomesettingup.Googlesaysthefeaturesetsthefoundationfor“futureintelligentroombooking.”Ithasn’tsaidhowthat’sgoingtowork.However,it’ssomethingtowatchoutfor.JasonSavard’sCheckerPlusforGoogleCalendarGivesQuickAccessAndPrettyBackgroundsJasonSavardmakesChromeextensions.ThisincludesaseriesofCheckerPlustoolsthatmakeminiversionsofGoogleservicesavailablefromabrowserbutton.Itdoesn’tofferahugenumberofadvantages.Youcanenjoyeasieraccesswhenusingacomputer.Therangeofnotificationsislonger.Itincludesavoicenotificationthatreadsoutthetitleoftheevent.Thebestfeatureistheabilitytoplaceabackgroundimageunderyourcalendar.Itonlyworksinsidetheextensionandunlocksonceyou’vemadeacontribution.However,thesefeaturesshowhowmuchmoreGooglecoulddowithitscalendar.ConclusionGooglehasbuiltareputationforbuildingtoolsthatarebothhugelyvaluabletousersandfreetouse.ThemuchanticipatedrevampofthecalendarinOctober2017broughtacleaner,moremodernlook.ItincorporatedsomeofthefeaturesthatusershadexperimentedwithinLabs.However,someoftheusability,especiallyonthewebsite,isunclear.And,thelackofpersonalizationfeelslikeamajorloss.Intheend,GoogleCalendarscomedowntosharing,eventsandtheirdetails,reminders,andgoals.In2022,GoogleCalendarstillfeelslikeaworkinprogress.But,it’salreadybothcomplexandessential.And,thisguidetoGoogleCalendarwillhelpyouleveragethebestfeatures. UpdatedFebruary2022JohnRamptonJohn’sgoalinlifeistomakepeople’slivesmuchmoreproductive.Uppingproductivityallowsustospendmoretimedoingthethingsweenjoymost.JohnwasrecentlyrecognizedbyEntrepreneurMagazineasbeingoneofthetopmarketersintheWorld.Johnisco-founderandCEOofCalendar.Thiswebsiteusescookiestoimproveyourexperience.We'llassumeyou'reokwiththis,butyoucanopt-outifyouwish.AcceptReadMorePrivacy&CookiesPolicyClosePrivacyOverviewThiswebsiteusescookiestoimproveyourexperiencewhileyounavigatethroughthewebsite.Outofthese,thecookiesthatarecategorizedasnecessaryarestoredonyourbrowserastheyareessentialfortheworkingofbasicfunctionalitiesofthewebsite.Wealsousethird-partycookiesthathelpusanalyzeandunderstandhowyouusethiswebsite.Thesecookieswillbestoredinyourbrowseronlywithyourconsent.Youalsohavetheoptiontoopt-outofthesecookies.Butoptingoutofsomeofthesecookiesmayaffectyourbrowsingexperience.NecessaryNecessaryAlwaysEnabledNecessarycookiesareabsolutelyessentialforthewebsitetofunctionproperly.Thiscategoryonlyincludescookiesthatensuresbasicfunctionalitiesandsecurityfeaturesofthewebsite.Thesecookiesdonotstoreanypersonalinformation.Non-necessaryNon-necessaryAnycookiesthatmaynotbeparticularlynecessaryforthewebsitetofunctionandisusedspecificallytocollectuserpersonaldataviaanalytics,ads,otherembeddedcontentsaretermedasnon-necessarycookies.Itismandatorytoprocureuserconsentpriortorunningthesecookiesonyourwebsite.SAVE&ACCEPTPinItonPinterest