Today's Deep-Dive: Open Web Calendar

Hey everyone, welcome back to the deep dive.

We're all about getting to the bottom of things here, making sure you really

understand a topic without getting bogged down and all the techie stuff.

Exactly.

We cut through the noise and give you the info you need clear and simple.

So today we're going to dive into something that's super practical,

especially if you have a website.

We're talking about embedding a calendar, but not just any calendar.

We're talking about one that's completely customizable and puts you in control.

And before we get started, a huge shout out to safe server for

supporting this deep dive.

They're all about digital sovereignty and they actually provide hosting for

this kind of software we're going to talk about.

Yeah.

So if you're interested in taking control of your data and supporting companies

that are fighting the good fight, check out safe server at https.www.safeserver.de.

Okay.

So let's get to the heart of it.

I think a lot of us have run into this problem, right?

You want to put a calendar on your website, right?

You know, so people can see your schedule, your events, whatever it is you want to

share.

But the thing is, it's never as easy as it should be.

Like you either have to pay a ton of money for some fancy service.

Yeah.

Or you end up having to use a calendar that looks super generic and boring.

Or even worse, you end up giving your data to some big company

that you don't really trust.

Oh, I hate that.

It's like, why should I have to compromise my privacy just to have a

decent looking calendar of my site?

It's a real dilemma.

And that's where this tool we're diving into today comes in.

It's called open web calendar and it's designed to solve all those problems.

Okay.

So open web calendar for folks who are hearing about this for the first

time, break it down for us.

What is it?

Okay.

So imagine you have this digital file, right?

And it has all your calendar events on it.

The dates, the times, the descriptions, everything.

This file is usually called an ICS file.

You've probably seen these before.

Yeah.

They're pretty standard.

Most calendar apps can export them.

Exactly.

So open web calendar acts like a picture frame for that ICS file specifically

designed to be embedded right on your website.

It takes the information from the ICS file and displays it beautifully as a

calendar that your website visitors can see.

So it's not like a separate calendar app or anything like that.

Nope.

It's purely focused on display.

It takes your existing calendar data and makes it look great on your website.

And I see here that it's open source.

What does that mean for someone who's just starting out?

Open source is great.

It means that the underlying code of the software is freely available for anyone

to use, modify, and share.

Basically it's like a recipe that everyone can access and tweak to their liking.

So it's not locked away in some companies vault.

Anyone can look at it and even contribute to making it better.

Exactly.

And for those who are curious, you can actually find the code for open web

calendar on a platform called GitHub.

The link is NicoKunzman open web calendar.

Okay.

So open source, it's free to use, what else makes open web calendar so special?

Why should our listeners care about this?

Let's go back to that frustration we talked about before.

You've got your calendar data you want on your website, but you don't want the

hassle, the cost or the privacy concerns.

Open web calendar takes care of all that.

It's designed to be simple, flexible, and most importantly, it puts you in control.

Okay.

I'm starting to see why this is so cool, but you mentioned something earlier about

problems with using your browser to look at ICS files.

Can you expand on that?

Sure.

Sometimes if you try to open an ICS file directly in your web browser, it

might not display correctly, especially if it's coming from certain platforms

like own cloud or next cloud, it can be a real pain.

Oh yeah.

I've run into that before.

Well, open web calendar bypasses that problem.

It reads the ICS link directly.

So you don't have to worry about those browser quirks.

So it just works.

That's awesome.

But I think the biggest win here, especially for beginners who might be

worried about their data is the control they get, right?

Absolutely.

That's one of the most important things about open web calendar.

When you use it, you're in charge of your calendar data.

It stays on your server or wherever you choose to host it.

You're not sending it off to Google or some other big company just to

have a calendar on your site.

So it's like taking back your digital privacy, at least when

it comes to your calendar.

Exactly.

You get to decide who has access to your data and that's a big deal.

Okay.

So we've talked about what open web calendar is, why it's cool and

the whole privacy aspect, but let's get into the nitty gritty.

What can you actually do with it?

How customizable is it?

Customization is a huge part of what makes open web calendar so powerful.

You have a ton of control over how your calendar looks and behaves.

First off, you can choose the time zone that's displayed.

Oh, that's super helpful if you have visitors from different parts of the world.

Exactly.

And you're not limited to just one calendar.

You can actually connect multiple ICS links if you have different calendars

you want to show, like if you have a personal calendar and a work calendar.

Precisely.

And when it comes to the display, you have a few options.

You can choose between a monthly view, which gives you a nice overview

of the whole month or a weekly view, which shows more detail for a shorter period.

So you can tailor it to your specific needs.

Absolutely. And it gets even better.

You can control exactly what information from your events is displayed.

Do you want to show just the name and time?

Or do you want to include a link to a website or show how long an event lasts?

It's all up to you.

Wow. So you can really make it your own.

What about the visual aspects?

Can you customize the look and feel? Oh, absolutely.

You can style the calendar to match your website perfectly.

You can choose the icon, the colors, the fonts, everything.

It's like having a custom made calendar designed just for your site.

That's so cool.

So it sounds like open web calendar has a lot to offer.

But for someone listening who's thinking, OK, I want to try this.

What's the first step?

Is it hard to get started? Not at all.

The open web calendar website is super user friendly.

They have a try it out now button and see example section

where you can play around with the calendar and see how it works

without having to install anything.

So you can get a feel for it before you commit. Exactly.

And if you want to dig deeper, there's comprehensive

documentation on the GitHub page we mentioned earlier.

That's where you'll find all the technical details and instructions.

Now, when it comes to actually putting the calendar on your website,

you have a few options.

The simplest one, especially for beginners, is the hosted version.

Hosted version. What's that?

It's basically like renting space where the software is already set up for you.

You don't have to worry about any technical stuff.

So it's like a plug and play solution.

Pretty much. Right.

But for those who are more tech savvy and want more control,

there's also self hosting.

This means you install and run the software on your own web server.

The documentation on GitHub has all the instructions for different methods.

So there's something for everyone, whether you're a beginner or a seasoned pro.

Exactly. And here's another cool thing about Open Web Calendar.

It's got a vibrant community behind it.

If you look at the GitHub page,

you'll see that over 40 developers have contributed to making it better.

It's a real team effort.

That's a good sign.

It means the project is actively being developed and supported.

Absolutely.

And to top it off, the project received funding in 2024 from the NGI ZeroCore Fund,

which is backed by the European Commission.

This kind of support helps ensure that Open Web Calendar continues to thrive.

So for those who are still wrapping their heads around this,

what's the bottom line?

What's the biggest benefit of using Open Web Calendar?

It's simple.

You get a beautiful, customizable calendar on your website.

You keep control of your data and you don't have to rely on some big corporation.

It's about freedom and flexibility.

It sounds like a no-brainer for anyone who wants to display their events online

without the hassle or the privacy worries.

Couldn't agree more.

If you're even remotely interested, I highly recommend checking out

the Try It Out Now link on the Open Web Calendar website.

You won't regret it.

You know, thinking about all this, it really makes you realize

how important it is to have control over your online presence.

Even something as simple as a calendar

can be a step towards greater digital independence.

I completely agree. It's about taking back your data

and choosing tools that empower you.

Well said.

Thank you so much for taking this deep dive with us

into the world of Open Web Calendar.

It's been incredibly enlightening.

My pleasure.

Always happy to share this kind of information.

And of course, a final thank you to SafeServer for their generous support

of the deep dive and their commitment to digital sovereignty.

If you want to learn more about their services

and how they support projects like Open Web Calendar,

Thanks for listening, everyone, and we'll catch you on the next deep dive.

Thanks for listening, everyone, and we'll catch you on the next deep dive.