Facebook is like a giant party where everyone is talking to you at the same time. Everyone is telling you about their kid’s report card or asking if they can catch a ride somewhere. Everyone invites you to some kind of event, whether you would even be interested in it or not. I used to feel obligated to respond to Facebook invites. But I get invited to so many events that I gave up even checking them.
Calendo â€" Find Facebook and Meetup events nearby for the iPhone finds events on Facebook based on what you bookmark and generates new lists of events that you might find interesting. No more weeding through hundreds of invitations to art openings, fundraiser, and 5K runs that you don’t want to go to. With Calendo, you can find something you actually want to do this weekend… [1]
Design
The app is simple and uses a clean, flat design. Select different sections by tapping one of the icons at the bottom of the screen. The dashboard controls pop out so you can easily select sharing options and then go back to the main screen.
Users must log in with Facebook in order to use this app, which makes sense, since it is a Facebook-related app. Once logged in, it will generate a list of organizations that you can follow based on who you already follow on Facebook. Then, you will begin creating an event list.
When the app generates an event for you, you can either bookmark it and share the event, or skip it if you don’t think it is interesting. Every time you bookmark or skip an event, the app will use a recommendation engine to generate a new event that you may be interested in.
You can see what events are taking place today, turn on the notifications feature so that you will be alerted whenever an event is coming up, and view a list of upcoming shows that you have bookmarked.
App Use
Users are shown an upcoming event based on what pages they have liked, what events their friends have noted, and what big local shindigs are taking place. If you like the event you can bookmark it. If it is something you are definitely uninterested in, skip it. Based on whether you saved the event or skipped it, the app will adjust its next event suggestion to you. The more you bookmark or skip events, the more the app will tweak the suggestions for you. It’s like Pandora for Facebook events.
When you bookmark an event, you will also have the option to mark that you will be attending the event on Facebook, invite friends via direct message, add it to your iOS Calendar app, and share the event on Facebook and Twitter. Some options will require that you give Calendo additional permission. For example, if you want to invite friends, you’ll need to give the app permission to access your contacts.
As you fill your Calendo calendar, you’ll be able to check out the list of events you have bookmarked so that you can see what is coming up this weekend, next month, and even today. If you turn on the notifications feature, you’ll be alerted when top events pop up.
When you bookmark an event it will not show up on Facebook that you are joining. That is, you won’t be claiming to be attending an event until you actually check that you are going. This is useful for people like me who want to remember that events are coming up, but don’t want to commit to going. It may not seem like a big deal to some people, but in the local music world, if you tell your friends that you are going to their show, you’d better go. It would just be rude not to.
The Good
This app is great for organizing and prioritizing events. I get invited to concerts, art shows, fundraisers, movie premieres, and all sorts of other events. On any given day, I’ll have two or three options. With Calendo, I can bookmark events that interest me without having to officially commit to going.
I love that you can add events to your iOS Calendar app, too. I use my native calendar to check my schedule. If I don’t see an event on my calendar, I may book a show or agree to a band practice without realizing what I am missing. This allows me to add the event without having to sync my entire Facebook account to my calendar.
The Bad
You can’t delete or remove events once they are bookmarked. If you accidentally bookmarked it instead of skipping it, the event will remain in your feed until it passes.
Additionally, there were a lot of events that I’ve been officially invited to that didn’t show up, but I wanted to add them. For example, I know that there are about a half dozen small events that I know I’ll be attending, but they never showed up as suggestions. I’m not sure how the app generates “taste patterns†for you, but it didn’t find a lot of events that I already plan on going to.
Value
As a free app, this is a great find. It is unique in that it offers a way to weed through the sea of events that appear on Facebook and find things that you are more likely to attend. There are no in-app purchases and no ads. It is truly free. For the amount of time one might spend looking for something to do on a Saturday night, this app is invaluable. It makes it so much easier to find something relevant to your personal interests.
Conclusion
If you use Facebook as a means to discover events that are taking place nearby, you will want this app. Not only does it generate a list of events in your area, it makes changes along the way to personalize your experience. As you bookmark and skip events, the app will tweak its recommendations to create new suggestions that you might be interested in. Calendo â€" Find Facebook and Meetup events nearby is available for free in the App Store today [2] .
Links
- ^ Calendo â€" Find Facebook and Meetup events nearby (click.linksynergy.com)
- ^ is available for free in the App Store today (click.linksynergy.com)
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