Apps, Faculty/Staff, Make Tech Easier, Students

One calendar to rule them all: Syncing Schoology Calendar and Google Calendar and iPad Calendar

Yes, you CAN share your Schoology Calendar with Google Calendar……AND with the built-in Calendar on the iPad…… AND you can share your Google Calendar or iPad Calendar with your Schoology Calendar. Essentially you need to get the iCal link from one and add it to the other. Details are below.

Which route to choose? Decide which calendar you would like to spend the most time in, and link the others to it.

WHY do this? You will have ONE place to check for calendar items, instead of two or three. It really is handy to have your Schoology due dates pop up in your iPad calendar.

How to put your Schoology Calendar into your Google Calendar:

  • In Schoology, first go to Account Settings [top right, click on your account icon, select Account Settings]
  • In the Account Settings tab, scroll down to the “SHARE YOUR SCHOOLOGY CALENDAR” section. Click the ENABLE button.
  • Copy the iCal link from the resulting dialogue box to the clipboard.
  • In another tab, surf to calendar.google.com. Make sure you are logged into the correct Google account. [You can also use the Google Calendar App
  • On the left side, click the plus sign next to “Other Calendars”, then select “FROM URL”
    • Paste that iCal link into the box, and click the “ADD CALENDAR” button. Do NOT “make the calendar publicly accessible”.
    • You should now be able to see all of your Schoology events in Google Calendar. [ The Google Calendar app is available in the MDS App Portal].

    How to put your Schoology Calendar into your iPad Calendar:

    • On your iPad, open up Schoology [LMS.mountdesales.net]
    • In Schoology, go to Account Settings [top right, click on your account icon, select Account Settings]
    • In the Account Settings tab, scroll down to the “SHARE YOUR SCHOOLOGY CALENDAR” section. Click the ENABLE button.
    • Copy the iCal link from the resulting dialogue box to the clipboard.
    • Open up the iPad Calendar. In the bottom right, click “ADD CALENDAR”, then “ADD SUBSCRIPTION CALENDAR”
    • Paste the iCal link you copied earlier, then click the ADD button.
    • Nor your Schoology dates will appear on your iPad automatically.

    How to put your iPad or Google calendar events into your Schoology calendar

    If you live in Schoology, it might be handier to put your Google Calendar or iPad Calendar events onto your Schoology Calendar.

    • Get the iCal link from your iPad Calendar or your Google Calendar
      • iPad Calendar:
        In the iCloud section in the list of calendars, pick which calendar you would like to access.
        Click the I button.
        Make the calendar Shareable.
        Click the SHARE LINK button, and COPY.
    • Google Calendar:
      Click the name of the Calendar you’d like to share [bottom left corner].
      Click the 3-dot menu, and select “Settings and Sharing”
    • In the Access Permissions for Events section:
      Click the “Get Shareable Link” button.
      Copy the link to the clipboard.

    Now that you have the link from the original calendar, import it into Schoology:

    • In Schoology, click the calendar icon at the top to access your Schoology Calendar.
    • At the bottom click the link IMPORT.
      In the dialogue box, click the URL tab, and paste the Link into the box.
      Click the IMPORT button.

    Now events from your other calendar should appear in Schoology.

    iPads, Student

    Stretch out your iPad Battery

    Here are 8 tips for stretching out your iPad battery life.

    1. Use Dark Mode
    2. Check Battery usage per app
    3. Turn on Low Power Mode
    4. Disable Background refresh
    5. Use 80% charging
    6. Set a quicker auto-lock
    7. Turn off Auto Brightness
    8. Power off more often

    USE DARK MODE

    This can have a slight effect on battery life due to being less bright.

    CHECK BATTERY USAGE PER APP

    Settings –> Battery, the click the “Battery usage by app” tab. Look at the stats and change how you use the device to stretch out your battery life.

    TURN ON LOW POWER MODE

    Settings –> Battery –> Low Power Mode. This turns off a lot of background activity, slows down screen refresh rate, and dims the display somewhat.

    DISABLE BACKGROUND REFRESH

    This is a feature that allows apps to refresh data in the background, even if you did not start them up. [Mail would be an example.] You can select WHICH apps can background refresh by going to Settings –> General –> Background Refresh.

    You can turn it off globally with the slider at the top, but that would make using your iPad really inconvenient at school.

    SET A QUICKER AUTO-LOCK

    That way the device will lock and the screen turn off sooner when you are not using it. There is a balance to be had here, though – it is really annoying to have the screen lock when all you were doing was thinking about the next sentence to type in that paper.

    TURN OFF AUTO-BRIGHTNESS

    Settings –> Accessibility –> Display & Text Size. The iPad will automatically match the display brightness based on the ambient light – convenient for sure, but it can cause drain on the battery.

    POWER OFF MORE OFTEN

    If the device if OFF, then it is not draining the battery. It is a good idea to power it down about once a week anyway.

    Original article is at https://www.macworld.com/article/2424975/ipad-battery-tips-dark-mode-charging-airplane-mode.htm

    iPads, Students

    iPad Setup: If incomplete during Orientation

    WHY ALL THESE STEPS?

    • Drive sign-in –> Your digital documents will be stashed here.
    • Apple Mail –> Get used to checking your email regularly.
    • Notability –> Notability will automaticall backup any of your Notes and Docs to Drive, so they will be available from pretty much any internet-enabled device. The Format setting of PDF+Recording means you will be able to view/printout your docs.
    • Google Photos –> When you open up Google Photos, your pix and vids will automatically be backed up to Google Drive.

      Backups are good. Ask any teacher.
    • Apple ID –> Mandatory as of this year. See Mr. Rule for details.

    Here is how to complete your iPad setup, in case things went awry during Orientation:

    Join your home wifi network.
    Settings app –> WiFi.

    Sign in to Google Drive.
    Use your MDS email address and password.

    Click on the Apple Mail icon.
    Choose the GOOGLE option, and sign in
    [it might not ask you to].
    Make all the sliders green, then Save.

    Start up Notability.

    After the “ad” screens, click on the gear icon, bottom left corner.

    Click ICLOUD BACKUP –> Turn it OFF.

    Click on AUTOBACKUP, then select GOOGLE DRIVE.

    Click FORMAT, and select PDF+RECORDING.

    Find GOOGLE PHOTOS [not “Photos”].

    If it asks you to backup as “you” –> YES.
    YOUR decision on Original Quality vs Space Saver.

    If it does NOT ask you to backup:

    • Find Settings [probably icon on the top right]
    • Click “Backup and Sync”
    • Make sure the slider is ON [ it should be slid to the right.]

    Sign into your AppleID [Settings –> Top left column]

    If the AppleID info you were given at Orientation is not working, OR you have no idea what your password / AppleID email is –> send Mr. Rule an email asking for a reset AppleID password..

    You will receive an email from Apple with your new temporary password. Remember that what it calls “Current Password” is your TEMPORARY password.

    Notes, Tips, Hints, & Answers