For more information
Contact Jim Lacy at (608) 262-6850 if you have any comments or suggestions, or would like to know more about how you can integrate the calendar into your own Web site.
For more than 30 years, the SCO has maintained a calendar to keep mapping and GIS professionals informed of events happening around the state and region. We recently overhauled the look and functionality of our online calendar, and more importantly, ramped up our efforts to include a wider range of events.
Most visible is the change from a simple list format, to a fully-interactive graphical calendar. Our calendar now operates more like common calendaring programs you already use, such as Microsoft Outlook.
On the technology side, we use the free Google Calendaring system. In addition to simplifying some of the management on our end, it also opens up new options for our calendar users.
For example, the graphic calendar can be embedded in any HTML page, allowing anyone with their own Web site to re-publish the calendar to their users. I can, for example, very easily embed a small version of the calendar in the body of this article:
Now available as RSS feed
In addition to the basic graphic interface for viewing/printing, the calendar is also available as an RSS feed. By pointing your feed reader at our RSS address (http://feeds.feedburner.com/WI_geoevents), you will receive an automatic notification each time we add an event to the calendar.
Content updated
In the past, our calendar was primarily focused on state and national conferences. We now also include training opportunities, meetings in surrounding states, and meetings of coordination groups such as the State Agency Geographic Information Coordination team. In addition, we are more regularly checking the online calendars for over two dozen other organizations, and extracting out information most relevant for mapping/GIS professionals.
Have an event you want listed? Please send us the details.