Calendar

Development notes:

Some options for calendars.

1. Calendarix
2. CXCalendar
3. BosDates ï this is the one I recommend. The calendar picture on the homepage is from this program.
4. aspWebCalendar
5. 3DeeArts Calendar
6. Expensive options

Unless otherwise noted, all programs offer these features:

• multiple views: weekly, monthly or daily (you may select any view as the starting view)
• export events (to import to Outlook, Palm, etc.)
• optional email reminders for events
• multi-day events
• search
• customizable header and footer (to conform with the BlueFlame site theme)
• one-time licensing fee

1. Calendarix $50 (nonprofit pricing): Demo here

   advantages:

   • inexpensive
   • offers standard features
   • nice minicalendar (hover over a date and see a list of the day's events)

   disadvantages:

   • people cannot register for the calendar themselves. That means that they would not be able to receive email updates about events unless the administrator adds them manually.
   • awkward navigation between Week and Day views
   • can't attach files to events
   • no way to export events to Outlook or Palm

    

2. CXCalendar by CaliberX $69 : Demo here

To login as the Admin, use cx_admin as the username and cx_change_me as the password. Please do not change anything in the Global Options Email tab.

advantages:

• good category management: calendars may be filtered by category; categories may receive individual font coloring
• list view in addition to standard views
• I've had good experience with their support staff.
• List view includes all details (event description, website, etc.). This makes it easy to print.
• can be hosted at ReadyHosting or FrontLook

disadvantages:

• slow
• weblinks sometimes aren't clickable
• no way to suppress the Tasks and Journals listings (this creates clutter in the calendar. All those little flag icons signify Events)
• no integrated backup/restore function
• email reminders are awkward to manage

2. BosDev Dates $100 : Demo here

advantages:

• calendar subscriptions: users may subscribe to the master calendar or individual sub-calendars (categories). Users will receive email when events are added or updated. You could have sub-calendars for Seminars, BlueFlame events, Grant Deadlines...
• user-friendly event submission form
• easy to upload images and other small files
• two-week view in addition to the standard views
• easy manual backup & restore
• if you wish, you can allow visitors to add events without logging in. Those events don't appear on the main calendar until approved by the administrator.
• several export formats (iCal, vCal, txt, csv)
• can display a small calendar of upcoming events on the Blue Flame site's homepage. Unlike most embeddable calendars, the BosDates calendar displays a list of the next 10 events in addition to the month view. (the list can show any number of events you specify)
• email notifications are very easy to manage.
• The developer responds to questions very rapidly and helpfully.
• Uses the same user database as the forum, so people would only have to register with the Blue Flame site once. Other calendars will require separate registration if people want to receive email notifications about upcoming events.

disadvantages:

• the event submission form is like an old DOS word processor: all of the style code is visible (for example, [b]this would be in boldface[/b] )
• all of the views show the same details (event title, time, etc.). You can select which fields show up in all views, but there is no way to print a weekly calendar containing complete event information. To print full details, you'd have to print each day individually.

other notes:

• requires a MySQL database (or can store tables in the forum's database)

3. aspWebCalendar $95 : Demo here

advantages:

• nice views, especially the events list view, which shows all events for the next three months.
• uses Microsoft Access as a backend, making it easy to archive, backup and edit offline if desired. (you'd have to download the database, work on it, then upload it again)
• easy to upload small files to attach to events
• could be hosted with ReadyHosting or Frontlook.
• offers a mini-calendar that could be embedded into the BlueFlame homepage, similar to the BosDates minicalendar. Sample:

disadvantages:

• No search function at present. It's slated to come in the next version.
• No email reminders.
• User management is awkward.
• Microsoft Access is not good for large web databases.

4. 3DeeArts Calendar $75 : Demo here

advantages

• has a "forgot password" function
• powerful search function: you can narrow searches by date, category, location, etc.
• has a mini-calendar that could be embedded in the blue flame homepage
• event icons
• email reminders
• intuitive interface

disadvantages

• can't upload attachments (images or other files) -- slated to come in the next version
• no export function (can't export to Outlook, Palm, etc.)

5. Expensive options (or, what are the cheaper options missing?)

BrownBear iCal (demo) and Calcium (demo) calendars $100+

• the simplest calendar is $100, but it doesn't offer email notifications. That feature alone raises the price by hundreds of dollars.
• calendars may have categories, but you can't subscribe to individual categories (e.g., Grant Deadlines, Blue Flame events, etc.). To offer category subscription, you'd have to use a different calendar for each category, raising the price by hundreds of dollars.
• offers Outlook and Palm syncing (easier and more sophisticated than export/import) at an additional fee. For 25 people, the cost would be $600.
• can import data from Outlook or from .txt, .csv
• lists existing events when you add a new event
• has all of BosDates' features, plus: conflict scheduling management, informative "Condensed" view (shows all information for the week, instead of just event title & time)
• doesn't look very modern

ConnectDaily (demo) $100-$695 -- offers discount pricing for education/non-profit

• offers Outlook and Palm synchronization at an additional fee. Total cost, including calendar: $695
• no free upgrades. To pre-purchase upgrades for the upcoming year costs 33% of original cost.
• includes resource management (for lab equipment, audio-visual equipment, room scheduling...)
• extensive instructions included throughout
• to get category management, you'd have to upgrade to the Pro calendar ($495)

HardySystem Dates $75-125 per month

• runs on their host, not yours (they take care of maintaining everything)
• used by other universities, e.g., College of William and Mary
• offers fewer features than BosDates, e.g., no week view.

iaCalendar Pro $149 per year

• runs on their host, not yours (they take care of maintaining everything)
• to get a weekly view, you have to choose the Pro service or better.
• offers fewer features than BosDates, e.g., email notification, administrator approval of publicly submitted events...

Groveware Technologies, $1250-$1500 + 18%/yr for upgrades & support

• used by other universities (e.g. U. North Carolina)
• features similar to BosDates, plus resource management (equipment/room scheduling)

Postman, $1500

• nice interface
• each user could have his own calendar
• users can merge private and public calendars

GreatHill Calendars for the Web, $125

• offers resource management (equipment/room scheduling)
• no email subscriptions

WebCalendar Pro, $239

• upcoming 2005 version has similar features to BosDates, plus some elegant views
• you run it on your desktop and then publish on the server

SmartCal, $ ? (demo)

• very elegant calendar. Visually appealing, very easy to use, offers good features.
• phone numbers are disconnected ?!

MeetingMaker WebEvent Publish $1200/10 calendars/users

• similar features to BosDates

HyperOffice $380 per month for 100 users

• Complete online office solution. Much more ambitious than other programs listed here. Share documents with other BlueFlame users, set public/private events, synchronize with Outlook, etc.

WebCalendar, Free

• free (open source) program with nice features.
• No support, not easy to install. You'd have to have a programmer available.