First check the calendar to make sure someone else has not already make a calendar item on the event.
Creating a calendar event is easy but first you need to gather some basic information. Some of this information may not be available.
Does the event have:
- Contact person’s name
- Contact person’s contact information (phone, email)
- An address or Latitude and Longitude
- Date
- Start time
- End time
- Cost
- URL (web browser link)
Once you have the basic information, go to your Dashboard.
Find the Events label on the left margin and select “Add New.” Note that you may do the same thing by putting your cursor on the “+ New” label in the black bar at the top and releasing on Event.
Let’s use the 2013 European Rider’s Rally as an Example.
Here is the information that is available from the host website found by a Google search:
- URL of the site: http://www.bmwmcon.org/rally.php
- Dates: May 17-19
- Email: rally@bmwmcon.org
- GPS: N36 47.226, W85 22.139
- Cost: $40 pre-register
Here is how we can use this information in an Event on our website.
First, always start the Event title with the year. Many events occur annually and we need to uniquely name events. Starting with the year will make reoccurring Events unique. Make a link to the source website if possible. (See Making a Link.)
Check the box for the appropriate Event Category in the right margin.
Check the “All-day event” box if appropriate. Otherwise enter start times and end times.
Clicking the cursor in the date box brings up a calendar, which allows you to pick the day from the calendar. The date format is dd/mm/yyyy.
Scroll on down and enter the information you have. You definitely want to show a Google Map. You can enter an address or if you check “Input Coordinates” you may enter Latitude and Longitude.
The source website gave “GPS: N36 47.226, W85 22.139,” which is in degrees and minutes format. Google Maps likes decimal format. It was a simple matter to convert from one format to another. The decimal equivalents are: 36.7871, -85.36898.
This is how the Event looks when published. There are links to easily add the event to your own calendar.
If you think it is important to let other club members know about the new event. Create a new post and make a link to the Event URL that shows in your browser when viewing the Event. Members are automatically notified by email when a new Post is made.
