LDS Tool Calendar Not showing Other Ward Activities

I have verified this both on Android and iPhone. Basically, in LDS Tools (subscribed to all calendars) I can see only events that members of my ward added or events that a stake calling added. I cannot see events that someone in another ward added. However, in lds.org calendar everything is there.

Any ideas?

Related posts which don't have the answer:
https://tech.lds.org/forum/viewtopic.ph ... 6&p=127563#
https://tech.lds.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=7514&p=60507#

Any help would be much appreciated.

Thanks!

The calendar on lds.org support "location" calendars - a list of events taking place at a given location regardless of what ward/stake/calendar that event may be placed on. That's typically how you'd see events of another ward.

But as far as I know, LDS Tools doesn't support that. It can only show you calendars you are actually subscribed to. (Meaning your ward and stake-level calendars. Nothing from other wards.)

As a test, sync LDS Tools (so you know it's current) and then compare it to lds.org with all the locations unchecked. Are there still events missing from LDS Tools?

jiggawax wrote:Basically, in LDS Tools (subscribed to all calendars) I can see only events that members of my ward added or events that a stake calling added. I cannot see events that someone in another ward added. However, in lds.org calendar everything is there.

To be clear, I think you say you CAN see all your ward events, just not those events in other wards?
You only can see events in LDS Tools for those calendars you are subscribed to, and are viewing. The difference on LDS.org calendar is that you can also select "buildings" to see which events are scheduling the buildings as well, for help in scheduling other events so they don't conflict.

I'm seeing the same issues. It's been hard to quickly view building availability when planning. We end up having to write a bunch of dates down, and going to a computer to see availability with the other ward.

denkers31 wrote:We end up having to write a bunch of dates down, and going to a computer to see availability with the other ward.

The lds.org calendar doesn't pull up on your phone/tablet? I can do it on a phone. Not a lot of fun with that small screen, but it's do-able.

It pulls the building schedule for our ward only on LDS tools. So if we were to see if the building was available Saturday, on lds tools it might show up as being open. Once you go to the calendar through the website, you will be able to see the other ward has scheduled the building.

I understand that. My question was can't you use your browser to see the calendar on lds.org without having to find another computer? Yes, it defeats the idea behind LDS Tools, but I'd think event planning is less common then checking to see what your next event is.

Keep in mind that LDS Tools doesn't allow you to enter/edit anything, so you'd have to use a browser to create the event anyway.

denkers31 wrote:It pulls the building schedule for our ward only on LDS tools. So if we were to see if the building was available Saturday, on lds tools it might show up as being open. Once you go to the calendar through the website, you will be able to see the other ward has scheduled the building.

I may be wrong, and I know it's almost "splitting hairs," but what you see is not the "building schedule" for your ward on LDS Tools, but a subset of the calendar events for your ward. You may not even be seeing all of those. Many of your ward events use the building, so you they show for you, but this IS NOT a building schedule. As you say, "it might show up as being open" when it is not.

To see what you are calling a "building schedule," you must browse to LDS.org calendar, and select your building, to see ALL events that are scheduling that building, from any ward. (Even by doing this on LDS.org calendar, you are not actually seeing other wards calendars, only events that schedule the building you have selected.)

Solution? At this time, don't use LDS Tools to plan your future events, just like you won't use LDS Tools to enter those events. Instead, use you mobile devices to plan your events by browsing to LDS.org calendar, and selecting your building (I like "month" view) to see open times.

I remember years ago when the calendar on lds.org was implemented to replace the one on LUWS. Our new Stake Primary President kept complaining about how hard it was to use the calendar. It turns out she was using her cell phone. I told her to find a real computer if she wanted to do real work.

Let me see if I can summarize the issue and solutions here:

Problem: LDS Tools != lds.org calendar
Solution: Do not use LDS Tools calendar for any sort of reliable data.

BTW- I have all buildings and all calendar events checked in LDS Tools. That is not the issue. We are talking about events in the same building but from different wards.

jiggawax wrote:Solution: Do not use LDS Tools calendar for any sort of reliable data.

I would amend that slightly to say: Do not rely on the LDS Tools calendar to show all events at a location.

The calendar in LDS Tools is quite reliable in showing you events on your subscribed calendars, so I think your initial statement was overly critical. If you try to use the LDS Tools calendar for scheduling purposes, you will certainly be frustrated, since it will not show all events (it can't show restrictions or events on private calendars, other wards' calendars, or your ward/stake calendars that you are not subscribed to). If you use it for what it was designed for (seeing events on your subscribed calendars), then it works quite reliably.

jiggawax wrote:Let me see if I can summarize the issue and solutions here:

Problem: LDS Tools != lds.org calendar
Solution: Do not use LDS Tools calendar for any sort of reliable data.

I'd change that to: Do not use LDS Tools to check for building availability.

jiggawax wrote:BTW- I have all buildings and all calendar events checked in LDS Tools.

The part in bold confuses me. As far as I know, LDS Tools doesn't show building calendars. Perhaps there is a regular calendar named after the building that's causing confusion?

Apologies folks. Didn't mean to come off critical.

Solution: LDS Tools is strictly used to display events that only you may be affected by. No crashing the 34th Ward Christmas party!!! And should not be used as a scheduling tool.

russellhltn wrote:The part in bold confuses me. As far as I know, LDS Tools doesn't show building calendars. Perhaps there is a regular calendar named after the building that's causing confusion?

You are correct. I was just addressing the original response to my post about showing the buildings. I just wanted it clear that I had every option in LDS Tools turned on.

Do you think it will ever come to the day when we can schedule events in LDS Tools? Sitting in the bishops office without a PC and trying to plan ward events could be an issue. But like it was said: "Just log into the calendar through the browser on your device!" (paraphrasing) Also, teaching the non-technical folks about how to do this can be a headache.

All this being said: I think where the church is now and where we are going with technology is amazing. Keep up the great work!

drepouille wrote:I remember years ago when the calendar on lds.org was implemented to replace the one on LUWS. Our new Stake Primary President kept complaining about how hard it was to use the calendar. It turns out she was using her cell phone. I told her to find a real computer if she wanted to do real work.

I hear you, but I hope you were smiling when you said this. Some of our cell phone users no longer have "real" computers and would be perfectly happy to skip meetings that will not push to their phones, because they live off of them.

We are living in an interesting era when we have to find out what kind of technical equipment a member has before we are able to consider them for a calling, if we expect them to be able to fill the calling.

jiggawax wrote:Let me see if I can summarize the issue and solutions here:
Problem: LDS Tools != lds.org calendar

Problem: Sometimes you ONLY need a spoon, and sometimes you REALLY need a shovel.
Solution: Choose the right tool for the task... LDS Tools to view your day or week or month, LDS.org calendar to plan and schedule your events.

kisaac wrote:Problem: Sometimes you ONLY need a spoon, and sometimes you REALLY need a shovel. Solution: Choose the right tool for the task... LDS Tools to view your day or week or month, LDS.org calendar to plan and schedule your events.

Until I posted on this forum I was under the impression that they were equal. I didn't realize they were meant for different purposes. I wonder how many out there who use the tools understand that they serve different purposes. From now on I will use the tools and sell others on the tools appropriately. I am the stake technologist and I get questions all the time about these things.

I really appreciate the answers. Thank you!!

The stake executive secretary just told me that he was not showing all of the calendars in LDS.org because.... I did not understand the reason. But he would make visible the ward I needed to see. He did so and now I can see that ward listed in "Locations." I do not see any activity for that ward, presumably because they are not using the lds.org calendar function. I can see the scheduling of my own ward and three of the other wards in the stake that are using the calendar function.

The point is that I found an individual at the stake level who could turn on a ward as a Location.

abdunbar wrote:The stake executive secretary just told me that he was not showing all of the calendars in LDS.org because.... I did not understand the reason. But he would make visible the ward I needed to see. He did so and now I can see that ward listed in "Locations." I do not see any activity for that ward, presumably because they are not using the lds.org calendar function. I can see the scheduling of my own ward and three of the other wards in the stake that are using the calendar function.

The point is that I found an individual at the stake level who could turn on a ward as a Location.

I think you have a very different situation. It sounds like the buildings were disabled from being scheduled. By default, buildings frequently have the name of the ward, but it is a location calendar - not a ward one. And since they were disabled from scheduling, no one was able to schedule events for them. That's why it's blank.

But please note that building/location calendars are different from ward calendars. For one, you can't subscribe to a location calendar, so it will never appear in the LDS Tools app. Just on lds.org.

How do we request from the Developers of the LDS tools App - to make the enhancement for Calendars that will allow us to select Locations. Currently we only only view our Ward and Stake Events. For wards who share a building - it is nice to see what events they have planned so we can quickly see if we want to plan and event if the building is being used. I understand we can do this via LDS.ORG - but would be nice to see it on the LDS Tools App as well. Who do we contact to make this request?

Use the Contact Us option in the More section of the app to send Feedback.