Adding an event schedule to the Agenda module
You can add your event's agenda to the Agenda module in two ways. Either individually through the admin panel (you can learn more about adding an agenda in the Agenda of your event article) or by importing all sessions using a bulk file. This article describes how to properly create a file with data of all sessions and import it to your event.
How to save the data for import?
Data for import should be saved in a file with csv format extension. Excel, Numbers (an app for iOS users) and Google Document Spreadsheets allow you to export to this extension.
Before saving the data, make sure that the file will be saved in the Unicode UTF-8 encoding system. In case the file will be in a different encoding system and an error pops up when importing it in the panel, do the file conversion in a free online tool.
Importing data into the agenda
Wanting to import your event's schedule into the admin panel, go to the Agenda module in the Create tab and click the cloud icon with the up arrow in the upper right corner:
Then, via the Template XLSX or Template CSV button, download the ready-made template in the extension of your choice:
NOTE!
If you download the template in xlsx format, remember to convert it to csv format before uploading.
You can also prepare a csv format extension file by yourself, which will contain the following columns: uuid, title, description, day, start_date, end_date, place, path, tags, speakers_uuuid, streaming_link, agenda_session_children_uuid. For a correct import, all of the above columns should be there, in the order given. A spelling error in the name of a column, or the skipping of one of them, will result in incorrect import of data, or its absence. If you do not want to fill in all the information, leave the column in the file, but do not fill it in. Optional columns are description, tags, speakers_uuis, streaming_link and agenda_session_children_uuid:
Entering data for agenda import
uuid – this is the universal session identifier. This field is best completed with an ordinal number from 1 to infinity - this identifier can not be identical for different sessions in the agenda.
day – in this column, enter the date on which the session will be held, in YYYY-MM-DD format. The entered date must contain dashes between the year, month, and day.
start_date – determines the addition of the session start time in the agenda. The session start time must be entered in the format YYYY-MM-DD 00:00:00.
end_date – is responsible for adding the end time of the session in the agenda. The end time of the session should be given in the format YYYY-MM-DD 00:00:00.
NOTE!
There should be a space between the date and the start and end time of the session, exactly as in the examples above. The hours should be given based on a 24-hour clock.
NOTE!
If the session crosses midnight, the day column should contain the date to which the session should be assigned. On the other hand, in the start_date and end_date columns, you should add the actual start and end dates and times of the session.
Example: A music festival takes place on the night of 22.09.2023 to 23.09.2023, with concerts taking place at times such as: 11pm - 2am and from 2am - 3.30am at night. To extend the day in the agenda, you need to enter the date in the day field in both cases in the format 2023-09-22, with the actual start and end dates of the session in the start_date and end_date fields. Accordingly, in the first case: start_date: 2023-09-22 11:00:00 and end_date 2023-09-23 02:00:00, in the second case: start_date 2023-09-23 02:00:00 and end_date 2023-09-23 03:30:00.
place - this is the column that corresponds to the Place Tag, specifying the location of the event taking place within the building, such as Auditorium, Main Stage, Hall 2.
path - is responsible for adding Path Tags to the agenda. They specify the type of session, such as workshop, training or coffee break.
tags - this is the element that defines the group of users for which the session is intended in the agenda. Leaving a cell blank with only the category name visible will automatically add the system tag All Users and make the session visible to all users. To make the session visible only to a selected group, enter the tag assigned to this user group in the column, e.g. Logged in users, VIP, Group A or Speaker.
NOTE!
Place, Path and Tags imported in the file to the agenda, are automatically created in the panel and visible in the Tag Database section as Agenda Places, Agenda Path and User Groups, accordingly. You can learn more about tags in the article Tag Database - Application content management.
speakers_uuid – this is the speaker ID number in the Application. You can use this column only if the speakers were entered into the Application at that time via import. The values entered in this column should be the same as the values assigned to the speakers during their import. For more information on importing speakers, see the article Import data to Speakers module.
PRO TIP
If you want to add more than one tag, you need to enter them after a comma in the cell of the imported file, without using spaces, e.g. VIP,All,Group A,Group B.
streaming_link – in this column you can add a link to a live stream of your event, a link to an online webinar or meeting on Zoom or another platform. Links should start with "https://". Skipping these characters will result in users not being transferred to the landing page.
agenda_session_children_uuid – in this column, enter the uuid number of the session to which a particular session will be nested. If more than one session is nested, list all session numbers after the comma.
If you already have a csv format file ready for import, click Select File and upload the previously prepared document. Then click Import and all sessions will be uploaded to the system:
Adding language layers during import
Translation of the agenda into other languages is possible if language layers have been added to the Application, in the Basic Info section.
To import another language layer in the Agenda module, prepare a new csv file with translated data from the title and description columns. The rest of the columns must remain unchanged. The sessions in both files should have the same order. UUID numbers are assigned to sessions, so a session translated into another language should have the same UUID number.
To add another language layer, first select a language from the drop-down list, and then follow the same steps as for the first layer:
NOTE!
Importing translated content requires that the primary language layer also comes from the import.
Edit the file for agenda import
In a situation where, after importing the agenda for your event, you need to make some changes or add new sessions, you can edit the file you added earlier and import it again. All changes, made to the sessions already published, will be updated. You can also add new sessions with all the information, giving them successive uuid numbers. After making edits to your file, import it again in the admin panel.
NOTE!
Remember to keep the uuid numbers of all sessions the same. This will ensure that the previously entered data will update correctly.
Have a successful event with Meeting Application!