17 April 2007
DST and Time Zones
US users now have the option of automatically updating for Daylight Saving Time. We finally found an easy way to do the update, so you can pick your regular timezone and we'll handle the Springing forward and Falling back.
We also reorganized our list of timezones and put the most common at the top, so you can be in Beijing Standard Time instead of just GMT +8.
Finally, there was an error with the way our system was handling some dates. When tutors added their availability, not everything was getting converted correctly. We've fixed this, but any slots added before April 17th are probably set up incorrectly. Sorry for the confusion!
We also reorganized our list of timezones and put the most common at the top, so you can be in Beijing Standard Time instead of just GMT +8.
Finally, there was an error with the way our system was handling some dates. When tutors added their availability, not everything was getting converted correctly. We've fixed this, but any slots added before April 17th are probably set up incorrectly. Sorry for the confusion!
Labels: Bug Fix, New Feature, New Look
10 February 2007
Development Blog
Welcome to the Confucius Institute at Michigan State University Online Tutoring System Development Blog. Check here for regular updates on the status of the CIMSU OTS.
We encourage tutors and students alike to subscribe to our blog feed, to keep up on the latest changes.
Remember, CIMSU OTS is currently a beta product, and that means changes can be frequent and drastic.
Previous Changes
Calendars - Our oldest users may already have noticed some changes on the site. We recently revamped the look and feel of our calendar system to make it more uniform across the site and to streamline updating. The new system will also allow us to make it possible for people to view their schedules by week, workweek, or month.
Timezones - We've made several changes dealing with timezones. Previously, everything had to be handled in the server's timezone (US Eastern, GMT -5 in winter and GMT -4 during the summer.) Now everything can be done in the user's local time. That means if you set your timezone in your profile, tutors can deal with their schedule in their own timezone, and students can see your schedule in theirs. (Pretty important when you consider most of our tutors are in China and most of our students in the US!)
Tutorial video - We've created a tutorial for new tutors. It's even in Chinese, since most of our "documentation" was in English. Thanks to Tianyi for doing this.
That's all for now. Keep coming back for more updates!
-James
We encourage tutors and students alike to subscribe to our blog feed, to keep up on the latest changes.
Remember, CIMSU OTS is currently a beta product, and that means changes can be frequent and drastic.
Previous Changes
Calendars - Our oldest users may already have noticed some changes on the site. We recently revamped the look and feel of our calendar system to make it more uniform across the site and to streamline updating. The new system will also allow us to make it possible for people to view their schedules by week, workweek, or month.
Timezones - We've made several changes dealing with timezones. Previously, everything had to be handled in the server's timezone (US Eastern, GMT -5 in winter and GMT -4 during the summer.) Now everything can be done in the user's local time. That means if you set your timezone in your profile, tutors can deal with their schedule in their own timezone, and students can see your schedule in theirs. (Pretty important when you consider most of our tutors are in China and most of our students in the US!)
Tutorial video - We've created a tutorial for new tutors. It's even in Chinese, since most of our "documentation" was in English. Thanks to Tianyi for doing this.
That's all for now. Keep coming back for more updates!
-James
Labels: New Interface, New Look
