Calendar software can include several features. Some examples are:
Appointment calendar An appointment calendar is a list of appointments and the attendees for the appointments. This software may include the capability of detecting scheduling conflicts, notifying the participants of the conflict, and suggesting alternate meeting times. Some appointment software has the ability to automatically suggest shortened events by default or in cases when there are back-to-back meetings in a calendar. For example, instead of a 30 minute meeting at 13:00, a calendar software may suggest that an event is shortened to 25 minutes and either
starts late (for example 5 minutes late at 13:05) or
ends early (for example 13:25). Some software may have the options of combining both start late and end early. Benefits of this includes minimising the risk of needing to wait for participants who otherwise might be late for the meeting startup due to being hung up in wrapping up a previous meeting, as well as alleviating further propagation of this issue to the meetings following after. Such time buffers between meetings also gives attendees a short break between meetings.
Period views Different period views is a feature which allow users to select how their calendar is displayed: one day, a work week, one week, one month, one year, etc.
Exporting calendar Many digital calendars have the option of exporting the calendar to various file formats, including the
iCalendar standard. In this way, the user can, for example, take the calendar with them from one computer to another, or from an old e-mail account to a new one. It also makes it possible to share a calendar with others at a given point in time.
Calendar publishing Some calendar tools allow the user to publish select calendar information on a public link. It may also be possible for other users to subscribe. This can be useful, for example, for a sports team with announcing matches.
Timeblocking Timeblocking is a technique where users can organize their days into segments where they set aside specified periods of time for various tasks. With digital calendars, it is possible to do this interactively and with the option of sharing your availability and reserved time with others.
Availability and capacity checking Availability and capacity checking is an advanced function which can check the availability of all other employee and resource calendars in a group, and which may be useful assigning work decide on projects as part of
resource planning.
Availability sharing Availability sharing enables users to share when they are available. It is often possible to choose how much detail should be visible to others (for example, whether one is only "busy", the title of the event, or title and details). This can facilitate meeting scheduling amongst several individuals.
Collaborative scheduling Collaborative scheduling means that the software suggests meeting times when all participants are free. In some cases, it is also possible for the invitees to suggest times that suit them best, so that the organizer can choose a meeting time that works well for all the participants. In order for the software to be able to propose meeting times for participants across different organisations, the invitees' calendars must be set up to share outside their organisation when they are free.
Group calendar A group calendar is a calendar which displays events for groups in addition to individual calendars. These can often be switched on and off, and can be used as a tool to coordinate time available for meetings.
Several calendars A user can have multiple calendars that can be toggled on and off. This function makes it possible to categorize different events into separate calendars (such as work calendar, sports calendar, children school calendar).
Reminders Calendars themselves can basically be seen as a passive reminder that the user has to check themselves, and can be seen as a form of
reminder software. It is often also possible to set up
active reminders. Various reminder techniques can be used, such as
pop-up notifications,
dialog boxes or auditory
alarms 15 minutes or 1 hour before an event. Events for which reminders are wanted may include
birthdays,
holidays,
anniversaries, or various one-off events. Calendars are often supplied with a number of pre-installed events (such as
national holidays) and allow the user to create their own events.
Context-aware reminder systems can set reminders based on the user's current location. == International and regional settings ==