iCalendar: auto-magic schedule updates


Teams in leagues using LeagueRunner* or that publish schedules to Google Calendar can get their game schedules updated automatically in HappyTC.

How do I do it?

  1. On your league’s website, find & copy your team’s “iCalendar schedule link”. (It’s a link to a computer-ese version of your team’s schedule, often indicated by the “” symbol.)

    Tips for:
    >TUC and OCUA users
    >ITSportsNet users (certain leagues)
    >Google Calendar users

  2. Back in HappyTC:
    A.) Click “iCalendar”, then “Import (sync)”
    B.) Paste in the iCalendar link for your team
    C.) Click OK.

That’s it!

What does it do?

HappyTC will pull in your team’s schedule from the iCalendar link, and compare it with what’s already in HappyTC.

It will sync-up HappyTC with LeagueRunner:

  • It will add any missing games (or new games as they’re added by your league).
  • It will update any games with time/location/opponent information.
  • It will mark as “de-scheduled” any games no longer in your league’s schedule. (To be safe, it will NOT actually delete them… you can do that if you want.)

HappyTC will do a sync-up when you first add your team’s iCalendar link, and then re-sync once a day (so that any games added to the schedule will appear in HappyTC automatically).

You can also do a re-sync yourself, any time you choose: click “iCalendar”, then click “Synchronize”.

Does it tell me when the schedule is updated?

Yes, the team captain and assistant captains will be emailed a “sync report” when any relevant changes are made to the iCalendar schedule. Depending on the settings you choose (see below), it will automatically invite/remind regular players when new games are added or games are changed (e.g. new field location, start time, and/or opponent).

The email will tell you which games were added, updated, or de-scheduled.

The first time you enter your iCalendar link, it also does a synchronization and tells you which games were affected.

What if I’ve already entered the team sched in HappyTC?

No problem. HappyTC will sync up existing games with games on the same day from iCalendar, and keep them in-sync from then on.

Can I UN-sync it?

Yes. To un-sync a particular game, click “edit”, then tick the “Prevent iCalendar sync” checkbox.

To stop all further updates with iCalendar, simply click “iCalendar”, delete the link, and click OK. (You can always go back.)

Will it overwrite game info I have entered?

No. When synchronizing, HappyTC will NOT delete info about games you may have entered. Instead, before updating a game HappyTC copies the original information to the game’s “more info” text area.

Will it invite players to new games?

Yes, if you so choose: tick the “Auto-inform regular players” checkbox as shown above; then players will be emailed about added or updated games. (Otherwise, you’ll need to do that yourself… watch for the sync report emails.)

Subs you need to invite yourself.

TUC & OCUA users

On TUC.org** and OCUA.ca** you can get your “iCalendar” link from LeagueRunner as follows (thanks to exceedingly clever development by Richard Krueger whose brilliant idea it was in the first place):

  1. In LeagueRunner, view your team’s schedule.
  2. Right-click the green iCal button (iCal button) and choose “Copy shortcut” or “Copy link location” (exact wording depends on your browser).
  3. Now, in HappyTC, click “iCalendar”, then “Import (sync)”.
  4. Right-click the iCalendar input box and choose “Paste”… you should see something like:
    http://tuc.org/leaguerunner/team/ical/123456/team.ics
  5. …click OK, and voilà!

ITSportsNet users

If your league uses ITSportsNet** you may be able to get your “iCalendar” link as follows:

  1. View your team’s schedule.
  2. Click the Add schedule to Outlook link (yes, it says Outlook; don’t worry)
  3. Right-click where it says “click here to add schedule to outlook” and choose “Copy shortcut” or “Copy link location” (exact wording depends on your browser).
  4. Now, in HappyTC, click “iCalendar”, then “Import (sync)”.
  5. Right-click the iCalendar input box and choose “Paste”… you should see something like:
    http://www.itsportsnet.com/admin/gameschedule_ical.php?p=123:456:789
  6. …click OK, and voilà!

Google Calendar users

If you or your league uses Google Calendar to keep track of games and other events you can synchronize HappyTC with the calendar as follows:

  1. In Google Calendar, make sure the calendar is “public” (via “Share this calendar”).
  2. On your calendar’s “settings” page, click the green iCal button (iCal button)
  3. The calendar address (link) will be displayed; something like:
    http://www.google.com/calendar/ical/abc123…/public/basic.ics
  4. Right-click the link and choose “Copy shortcut” or “Copy link location” (exact wording depends on your browser).
  5. Now, in HappyTC, click “iCalendar”, then “Import (sync)”.
  6. Right-click the iCalendar input box and choose “Paste”.
  7. …click OK, and voilà!
  8. Note that HappyTC does not support “recurring” events; each event needs its own entry in Google Calendar to be sync’d with HappyTC.

*: Supported by LeagueRunner 2.7 (aka the TUC.org/OCUA.ca flavour).
Ask your league about upgrading their LeagueRunner installation to include the iCalendar feature, or about publishing game schedules on Google Calendar!

**: Note that HappyTC is not endorsed by, or connected with, TUC or TUC.org, OCUA or OCUA.ca, or LeagueRunner or its creators, or ITSportsNet or its creators.
iCalendar is just an industry standard way of exchanging calendar information that TUC and OCUA’s LeagueRunner and other sites happen to provide, and HappyTC happens to be able to read.
As with the rest of HappyTC and most of today’s free websites, by using the iCalendar synchronization feature of HappyTC you accept the risk of data loss and other errors as listed in the HappyTC terms of service.