Help with time zones

1,782 views
Skip to first unread message

Wayne Bird

unread,
Mar 25, 2024, 4:32:53 AM3/25/24
to CalenGoo-Android-Support
I have a Samsung S10e and on CalenGoo 1.0.183 (1642). I'm trying to understand time zones functions in CalenGoo. I've read the tutorial but it's focused on Apple products, not Android. I believe I understand the concept of time zone usage as noted in that tutorial, but am having a hard time implementing that in the CalenGoo settings for my phone.

I'm only using Google calendars and when I enter the Google calendar settings my calendars are set to use device time zone. However, all my Google calendars in CalenGoo are set for a specific time zone. I don't know how I set them to a specific time zone. Can someone explain how I can remove these calendar specific time zones in CalenGoo? 

Also note that my time zone setting under Display and Use, General is set to default.

I sure would appreciate someones help here who understands the various CalenGoo settings that relates to time zones.

Thanks,
Wayne

CalenGoo Support

unread,
Mar 25, 2024, 4:38:44 AM3/25/24
to CalenGoo-Android-Support
Hi Wayne,

you can find the documentation for the Android version here:


I'm only using Google calendars and when I enter the Google calendar settings my calendars are set to use device time zone. However, all my Google calendars in CalenGoo are set for a specific time zone. I don't know how I set them to a specific time zone. Can someone explain how I can remove these calendar specific time zones in CalenGoo? 

Each calendar in Google Calendar has a time zone. This time zone cannot be changed (you can see here that it is "read-only": https://developers.google.com/calendar/api/v3/reference/calendarList#resource ). However, I think it is not used for anything anyway. Because recurring events have their own time zone and single events just use the time zone that you are using to view your calendar (e.g. your phone's time zone).

Also note that my time zone setting under Display and Use, General is set to default.

That means it will use your phone's time zone.
 
I sure would appreciate someones help here who understands the various CalenGoo settings that relates to time zones.

Which question to do you have? If you want to edit the time zone of single events you can turn "Settings > Display and Use > Edit view > Show time zone of event" on. Then you can change the time zone in the edit view.

Please don't hesitate to contact me again if you have further questions! 🙂

Kind regards

Dominique

Wayne Bird

unread,
Mar 25, 2024, 6:45:25 AM3/25/24
to CalenGoo-Android-Support
Thank you Dominique for your reply. According to CalenGoo settings these are the time zones for my calendars:
Screenshot_20240325-051619.jpg
If I'm understanding you correctly these time zones cannot be changed, is that what you're saying? I didn't understand the page that you linked for showing it's read-only. 

Second question, when I create a new event the time zone defaults to America/Denver. I'm assuming that's because the calendar's time zone is set to America/Denver. When creating a new event, how can I get the time zone to default to my phone's time zone?

Thank you,
Wayne 

CalenGoo Support

unread,
Mar 25, 2024, 6:53:55 AM3/25/24
to CalenGoo-Android-Support
Hi Wayne,

yes, these calendar time zones cannot be changed.

Where did you see that it defaults to America/Denver when creating a new event? It should default to "America/Chicago" because that's the time zone you have configured in CalenGoo. And single events don't have a time zone anyway. 🤔

Kind regards

Dominique

CalenGoo Support

unread,
Mar 25, 2024, 8:17:46 AM3/25/24
to CalenGoo-Android-Support
Hi Wayne,

I have received two emails from you but I prefer to answer here so that others can find that information in the future, too.

According to the screenshot that you have sent I think you have turned "Settings > Display and Use > Detail view > Show time in additional time zone" on and selected the time zone "America/Denver" in the line below. That's why your event times are also displayed for that time zone.

You have asked if single events have a time zone. No, they don't have a time zone. They don't need one because individual time zones are only necessary for recurring events, where the configured time zone causes changes of the start and end times of the events according to the daylight savings time of the selected time zones. Single events don't have a recurrence rule. They can just specify their own start and end time. So they specify them in UTC and the client (i.e. Google Calendar or CalenGoo) automatically converts that into the user's time zone when displaying the event.

Wayne Bird

unread,
Mar 26, 2024, 6:48:31 AM3/26/24
to CalenGoo-Android-Support
Thank you for letting me know about the emails. It's a lot easier responding using my email client than it is using Groups since I have to be in desktop mode to reapnd here .

I do not have this option set as you suggested as shown below.
Screenshot_20240326-052214.jpg
I just moved to a different time zone and need this resolved.

Thank you,
Wayne

Wayne Bird

unread,
Mar 26, 2024, 7:29:32 AM3/26/24
to CalenGoo-Android-Support
I still don't understand how a single timed event doesn't need a time zone, but that's ok, I'll take your word on that. Given the fact that a single timed event doesn't need one, why does CalenGoo have the option to set a time zone when creating a new single timed event, as shown below:
Screenshot_20240326_062447.jpg

Wayne Bird

unread,
Mar 26, 2024, 7:29:32 AM3/26/24
to CalenGoo-Android-Support
I just set this option and this is what the detail view looks like now:
Screenshot_20240326-054252.jpg
I hope this helps you figure this out. 

Wayne Bird

unread,
Mar 28, 2024, 9:28:11 AM3/28/24
to CalenGoo-Android-Support
@Dominique, I know you've been busy with the whole Google fiasco. I'm glad that's resolved. Any chance to be able to continue helping me with my time zone issues? I posted a couple of questions in the last two posts. 

CalenGoo Support

unread,
Mar 28, 2024, 10:00:59 AM3/28/24
to CalenGoo-Android-Support
Hi Wayne,

I have asked ChatGPT to create a simple explanation why single events don't need a time zone. The explanation is correct and maybe better than mine:

Imagine you're planning events and using Google Calendar or something similar. You've got two types of events: ones that happen just once (single events) and ones that repeat over time (recurring events). The way these events deal with time zones can seem a bit confusing at first, but there's a good reason behind it.

Single Events
  • Saved in UTC: When you create a single event, it gets saved in a universal time format called Coordinated Universal Time (UTC). Think of UTC as a "base" time that doesn't change with seasons or location.
  • Displayed in User's Time Zone: Even though the event is saved in UTC, when you look at your calendar, you see the event time in your local time zone. This is super handy because no matter where you are in the world, your calendar automatically adjusts the event times to match your current location's time. So, if you move from one place to another, your event still shows up at the correct local time.
Recurring Events
  • Need a Time Zone: Recurring events are a bit more complicated. They're set to happen repeatedly, like a weekly meeting or an annual birthday reminder. Because these events are based on a specific schedule that might interact with daylight saving time (DST) changes, they need to be tied to a specific time zone.
  • Why Time Zones Matter Here: Let's say you have a weekly meeting at 10 AM. If you're in a place that observes DST, the actual UTC time of your meeting will change when the clocks are adjusted. If recurring events were only saved in UTC without considering time zones, your meetings could start appearing at the wrong local time during part of the year. By attaching a time zone to these events, your calendar can correctly adjust for DST changes, ensuring your 10 AM meeting always appears at 10 AM local time, no matter what.

In summary, single events are kept simple and universal using UTC, then adjusted to your local time zone when you view them, making it easy for you to see them at the correct time no matter where you are. Recurring events, however, are tied to time zones to ensure they consistently align with local times and account for changes like daylight saving, keeping your schedule in sync with the world around you.


> why does CalenGoo have the option to set a time zone when creating a new single timed event, as shown below:

Because you might have events that are in a different time zone like a flight that starts in one and ends in a different time zone. You could compute the correct times yourself but by selecting a time zone CalenGoo can compute it for you. The times are nevertheless saved in UTC after the event has been saved. But you are right, single events can also have a time zone but only for informational purposes. It is not necessary to specify the start and end time of the event.

Wayne Bird

unread,
Mar 28, 2024, 1:03:39 PM3/28/24
to CalenGoo-Android-Support
Thank you Dominique for this explanation, sorry for being such a pain. 

Ok, my original question still stands, What setting do I change in CalenGoo so the Denver time zone is not the default? I just moved from Mountain Time to Central Time. That default never affected me since that was my local time zone.

This is what happens when I create a new event:
1. Create window
Screenshot_20240328-113626.jpg
Tz in the time zone field. I didn't touch this field.
2. This is what the created event in agenda view looks like. Everything is good and as expected.
3. This is the detail view
Screenshot_20240328-115354.jpg
Here's the Mountain time zone that I'm trying to eliminate now that I'm living in a Central time zone. That is the question, how do I eliminate this?
3. This is in the edit view and now the time zone field is showing D which I'm assuming means Default or Denver. Either way it's what needs to change because the time shown in edit view is not my local time.
Screenshot_20240328-120212.jpg
Please help, thank you.
Wayne 

Scott Miller

unread,
Mar 28, 2024, 1:55:36 PM3/28/24
to CalenGoo-Android-Support
Hmm, meant to reply here, but apparently I sent this directly to Wayne. Replying here now to keep the thread intact. Sorry for barging in here, but maybe I see the problem.

Dominique -- I think the problem here might be because there is no way to get directly to the CalenGoo General Settings within the app. At least I can't find it. Am I missing something?

Wayne -- In CalenGoo, open Settings, then scroll down to the bottom and look for Time zones. Tap on Time zones then look for the section titled "Configured in CalenGoo under "General"" and tap on the time zone that is displayed in that section. Once you are in the General section, scroll down until you see the Time zone section. The first item in that section allows you to select Default or an actual time zone. I suspect this is where you have set the Denver (Mountain) time zone. Perhaps if you set it to default, it will use the phone's current time zone setting. That is how my phone is set and it is working correctly, as far as I know.

Scott M.

Wayne Bird

unread,
Mar 28, 2024, 4:57:46 PM3/28/24
to CalenGoo-Android-Support
Thank you Scott for barging in, I can use all the help I can get. That setting is set to Default as shown here:
Screenshot_20240328-155000.jpg
By the way this setting is accessed through Display and Use and then General.

I thought it had to do the time zones of my actual Google calendars as shown here:
Screenshot_20240328_155400.jpg

But Dominique said that's not the problem. I don't even know how those time zones got set unless they automatically got set when I created those calendars while living in Colorado 🤔

Anyways, I'm still trying to figure this out. 

Wayne Bird

unread,
Mar 28, 2024, 7:24:13 PM3/28/24
to CalenGoo-Android-Support
For the record, J Lindsay Whitton emailed me and told me how to change the time zone on each of my Google calendars.  This has to be done on a PC.  Once I did this the America/Denver is no longer appearing in the detail view of the event.  Problem solved.

J Lindsay Whitton

unread,
Mar 29, 2024, 3:58:55 AM3/29/24
to sjmill...@gmail.com, calengoo-and...@googlegroups.com
Scott, regarding the first paragraph:   Settings / Display and Use / General.......

3/28/2024 10:55 AM Scott Miller (sjmill...@gmail.com)

--
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "CalenGoo-Android-Support" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to calengoo-android-s...@googlegroups.com.
To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/calengoo-android-support/6079e257-7f35-46a6-9fd2-f22ac3def855n%40googlegroups.com.

Scott Miller

unread,
Mar 29, 2024, 3:58:55 AM3/29/24
to CalenGoo-Android-Support
I also have that box checked, the one that says "Current time line displays local time (ignores time zone)"

Scott


--
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "CalenGoo-Android-Support" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to calengoo-android-s...@googlegroups.com.

J Lindsay Whitton

unread,
Mar 29, 2024, 3:58:56 AM3/29/24
to Wayne Bird, CalenGoo-Android-Support
You can try changing the time zones of each of your Google calendars. Sign into Google calendar on your PC, and on the left hand side of the screen you should see your calendars listed. Hover over one of them and you see the three dot hamburger menu on the right. Click there, and then click settings and sharing; and near the top of the page that opens you will see "set my primary time zone" . Click that, and you're able to change the time zone to whatever you prefer. Mine are all set to my zone, Pacific. 

--

Wayne Bird

unread,
Mar 29, 2024, 3:59:02 AM3/29/24
to J Lindsay Whitton, CalenGoo-Android-Support
Thank you J Lindsay Whitton, that fixed it👍

On March 28, 2024 5:50:00 PM Wayne Bird <wrbi...@gmail.com> wrote:

Thanks, I'll give that a try. I'm still unpacking and do everything on my phone rather than my laptop. But I think I have access to it now. I'll give it a try and report back. 

Wayne Bird

unread,
Mar 29, 2024, 3:59:02 AM3/29/24
to J Lindsay Whitton, CalenGoo-Android-Support
Thanks, I'll give that a try. I'm still unpacking and do everything on my phone rather than my laptop. But I think I have access to it now. I'll give it a try and report back. 

On March 28, 2024 5:35:22 PM J Lindsay Whitton <jlwh...@gmail.com> wrote:

J Lindsay Whitton

unread,
Mar 29, 2024, 3:59:02 AM3/29/24
to wrbi...@gmail.com, calengoo-and...@googlegroups.com
Good to hear. Enjoy your new home. Lindsay.

3/28/2024 4:10 PM Wayne Bird (wrbi...@gmail.com)
Thank you J Lindsay Whitton, that fixed it👍

Message has been deleted
Message has been deleted

Wayne Bird

unread,
Mar 31, 2024, 8:05:48 AM3/31/24
to CalenGoo-Android-Support
Hello Dominique,

I've posted to this conversation twice and somehow it's been deleted twice, so I'm just emailing you with my question.

Everything is working as expected now that I've updated the time zones on my Google calendars as shown here:

I only use my wrbi...@gmail.com (Google calendars) in CalenGoo, however, I'd like to update my Android calendars as well. Where is CalenGoo getting this Android time zone information from and how to I update these?

Thanks,
Wayne

--
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "CalenGoo-Android-Support" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to calengoo-android-s...@googlegroups.com.
Reply all
Reply to author
Forward
0 new messages