Here are some quick steps to get you started.

Note that small window sizes do not work well. If the Scheduler does not appear to be behaving, or items are not visible, it may be a sizing issue, which can be overcome by increasing the window size or by zooming out.

For Users:

To view a beamline calendar

·         Click on the Calendar tab and select Resource Calendar

·         Click on the calendar icon for the cycle you wish to view (on the right)

·         Check the resource (beamline) you wish to view or edit.

To view and print the ALS Master Schedule

·         Click on the Calendar tab

·         Select Master Calendar

·         Click on the calendar icon to view

·         Select print to create a PDF file

·         Select export to create an ics file which can be imported into Google calendar, etc.

For Staff:

To configure scheduling and visibility options

·Click on the Resources tab and select Configuration. Allows scheduling by shifts or by the hour

Editing a calendar

Only beamline schedulers will be able to edit, and then only the beamlines they ‘own’ - contact user office to assign scheduler privileges.

Editing mode is not possible when more than one beamline or endstation is selected.

1.      Decide which view to use:

·         Month view is the default

·         Cycle view is a familiar view and good for scheduling by shifts

·         Week and day views are better for scheduling by the hour

2.      Master Calendar events can be grayed out by clicking the ON/OFF button

3.      Select whether to view:

·         List of beamlines (Resources)

·         List of proposals (Experiments) available to schedule

·         List of other event types / placeholders (Pre-defined events – note see user office if an additional pre-defined event is needed)

4.      How to schedule a proposal:

·         Click on a proposal to select a color

·         Drag and drop a proposal or predefined event to the square you want the event to start.

·         Move it to a different box if needed

·         Extend it by clicking on the two lines at the bottom of the event and stretching the event to the desired end time. (You can also click on the event and select the edit (pencil) button to edit event details.

·         Experiment list details will be updated to reflect the # shifts scheduled.

·         Drag and drop predefined events to schedule them. Maintenance and commissioning and BL not Staffed will be used to calculate BL usage. BLS time, DD time and RA time are placeholders and should eventually be replaced by RAPIDD proposals. These placeholders do not count as beamtime used for DOE reporting and do not generate pending ESAFs.

5.      Beamline / beamtime scheduling:

·         Beamline – this is where beamtime is scheduled. The schedule is used to report beamline usage to DOE

·         Only proposals and pre-defined events may be scheduled on the beamline calendar

·         All-day events may be used to communicate additional information. To add these, click on the all-day box below the date

·         Can only schedule during user ops - cannot schedule during Master Calendar events – except for 2-bunch (see user office if regularly scheduling Special Ops)

6.      Endstation scheduling:

·         Endstation calendar will auto-populate when proposals are scheduled on the beamline

·         The appropriate proposal endstation may be changed by clicking on an event and editing

·         Endstation calendars do not contain Master Calendar events – events can be scheduled whenever you want.

Calendar status and publishing calendars

To aid with development and appropriate viewing levels the status of a beamline (resource) calendar goes through 3 stages: Private > Draft > Published:

Private: in this status the calendar is editable by the assigned scheduler(s). It can only be viewed by beamline schedulers and ALS admin staff. This status is intended for preparing an initial or partially completed calendar. The status can be updated to draft by clicking on the edit icon 

Draft: in this status the calendar is editable by the assigned scheduler(s). In addition to ALS staff, it can also be viewed by the proposal PI and Exp Leader. This status is intended for you to invite users to confirm their time before the calendar is formally published. Once a proposal is scheduled an email can be sent – check the > to see that option.  Once the calendar is more or less complete, update to published by clicking on the cloud icon  .  Publishing a calendar will generate a customizable email to all users with scheduled beamtime.

Published: in this status the calendar is not editable and can be viewed by anyone. To edit the calendar you will need to click on the pencil icon which creates a copy with cloned status.

Cloned: this calendar is a clone of a published calendar. It is created by clicking on the edit icon after the calendar has been published.  The cloned version can be edited, and when the edits are republished (using the button at the bottom of the calendar view) the cloned version becomes the new published version.

If you attempt to edit a published calendar and there is no edit button, check to see if a clone is already open.

Additional resources

Staff may create a new resource – that is for your own use (e.g., for a piece of equipment). Click on the orange Resource + button, to create a new resource owned by your beamline. 

Auto logout

This happens if your session is inactive for > 12 hours. A warning message appears, but quickly disappears. If the editing does not appear to be working, look in top RH corner to see if you need to login again.