Add To Calendar Updates

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Keywords: Add to Calendar, AddEvent, Outlook, Account Level, Event Level, Forms, Calendar

Document ID: https://platform-support.certain.com/hc/en-us/articles/1500000567541-Add-To-Calendar-Updates#split1

Upcoming Changes to Add to Calendar

In our upcoming 7.1.7 patch release, we will replace our existing implementation with an integration to the AddEvent service.

AddEvent is a third‑party calendar service.

The AddEvent service is used by many other web applications.

Review the following if you have live events that leverage this feature.

The presentation of the 'Add to Calendar' links is changing and may require modification.

The add to calendar functionality will continue to work if no changes are made.

However, the display of the link on the confirmation page and particularly in emails will change.

Customers who have a Virtual Test Environment (VTE) will be able to preview and test the functionality in that environment prior to the release being posted to production.

Before describing the changes, general information on AddEvent and its configuration in the Certain platform will be shared.

Add to Calendar Configuration - Account Level

In the upcoming 7.1.7 release, a new account level configuration option will be introduced.

Administrators can access it under Account Settings > Management > Add to Calendar > Add to Calendar Display Settings.

In this section, account administrators can select the 3rd party calendar options that will display in events within that account.

By default, the only calendar that will be enabled is the desktop version of Outlook (which was the previously supported calendar).

Administrators can also update the label displayed next to each calendar's icon for each calendar and enable additional calendars by selecting the 'Display?' option and saving.

Add to Calendar Configuration - Event Level

Configuration of the 'Add to Calendar' link label and default icon will continue to be driven by the label defined in each of the respective areas displayed below for agenda items, sessions, and the events within forms.

Note that the default calendar icon can be overridden with a custom icon which can also be uploaded in these areas.

Lastly, the appointment subject, body, reminder time, etc. will continue to be configured in these areas as well.

Agenda Items

To display the Add to Calendar link on the confirmation page for agenda items, include the 'Add to Calendar' field as a 'Field to Display'. This option is under Forms > Agenda > Agenda Display Options > Personal Agenda Settings.

Upon display of the confirmation page, the 'Add to Calendar' link will display in the "Personal Agenda" section.

The only change in behavior for registrants is that instead of clicking on a link to open a .ics calendar file, a button will display.

Upon mousing over the button, JavaScript will trigger the display menu of the calendar options configured for the account.

The registrant will then select the desired calendar which will be launched, adding the calendar appointment assuming they are logged in to that service. If not, they will be prompted to login.

This is the old 'Add to Calendar' link.

This is the new 'Add to Calendar' button.

This is the new 'Add to Calendar' behavior when mousing over the button.

Sessions

To display the Add to Calendar link on the confirmation page for sessions, there are two configuration options available under Forms > Sessions > Session Display Options > My Sessions: Verify & Confirm.

Option #1 Include the 'Add to Calendar' field as a 'Field to Display'. This will include the 'Add to Calendar' button as a column in the tabular view summary of the sessions the registrant has registered for.

Option #2 If the 'Replace Table Layout with Session Template' is selected, the selected template will be leveraged in place of the table layout. The session template can be configured to include the 'Add to Calendar' DDF under Forms > Sessions > Session Templates. Upon landing on the confirmation page, the session template will render for each session the registrant has registered for, displaying the 'Add to Calendar' button.

For both configuration options, the only change in behavior for registrants is that instead of clicking on a link to open a .ics calendar file, a button will display. Upon mousing over the button, JavaScript will trigger the display menu of the calendar options configured for the account. The registrant will then select the desired calendar which will be launched, adding the calendar appointment assuming they are logged in. If not, they will be prompted to login. This is the old 'Add to Calendar' link displayed using the table view. This is the new 'Add to Calendar' button using the table view. This is the new 'Add to Calendar' behavior when mousing over the button.

Events

To display the Add to Calendar link on the confirmation page for events, you must select the Show link to add to calendar option under Forms > Confirm > Settings.

Under the "Show link to add to calendar" there are areas that can be edited for the Add to Calendar configuration:

The only change in behavior for registrants is that instead of clicking on a link to open a .ics calendar file, a button will display and upon mousing over the button, JavaScript will trigger the display menu of the calendar options configured for the account. The registrant will then select the desired calendar which will be launched, adding the calendar appointment assuming they are logged in. If not, they will be prompted to login. See the screenshot above to preview what the menu of calendar options will look like.

For all appointments added using the new AddEvent service, once the appointment has been saved to the registrant's calendar, the confirmation page hosted by AddEvent will be displayed in another tab referencing the appropriate calendar.

Attendee Facing Forms

Agenda Items

Sessions

Events

Agenda Items

To display the Add to Calendar link on the confirmation page for agenda items, include the 'Add to Calendar' field as a 'Field to Display'. The field is configured under Forms > Agenda > Agenda Display Options > Personal Agenda Settings. The confirmation page displays the link in the Personal Agenda section. The new behavior shows a button instead of a link. The registrant selects the calendar to add the appointment.

Sessions

To display the Add to Calendar link on the confirmation page for sessions, use one of two configuration options under Forms > Sessions > Session Display Options > My Sessions: Verify & Confirm. The options are described above. The new behavior shows a button instead of a link. The registrant selects the calendar to add the appointment.

Events

To display the Add to Calendar link on the confirmation page for events, select Show link to add to calendar under Forms > Confirm > Settings. The configuration areas are:

The new behavior shows a button instead of a link. The registrant will select the calendar to add the appointment.

For all appointments added using the AddEvent service, a confirmation page hosted by AddEvent will be shown in another tab after the appointment is saved.

Email

The AddEvent implementation in emails differs from forms. It uses the Direct URL Method to dynamically create a URL with appointment details. When included in an email as a DDF, or in the Personal Agenda section for agenda items or the My Sessions section for sessions (either using the table view or the session template layout), the Add to Calendar link will display as shown in the images.

Event Add to Calendar DDF This is what the old Add to Calendar DDF looked like in email. This is what the new Add to Calendar DDF looked like in email. If additional calendars are enabled, these are how they will look.

Show which calendars appear in the email example as examples.

Custom Implementations If you previously worked with the Professional Services team to implement localization including Add to Calendar, some updates may be required to that setup. If that is the case, please contact us.

Session Catalog Previously, Session Catalog provided a link to Download Calendar to registrants viewing the My Schedule page. The download included a single .ics file with an appointment for each registered session. While that link will continue to be available temporarily, the new Add to Calendar option using AddEvent will display in the Catalog for Registered sessions after clicking into each session.

The option to enable or disable the Add to Calendar option as well as to configure the body of the appointment that is added to registrants' calendars can be configured by editing the Design Elements of the Catalog and clicking on the icon. This will open the Edit Buttons & Icons drawer where you can navigate to the Add to Calendar tab.

That should cover it!

Questions? Comments? Feedback? Please email help@certain.com.

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