1. iStudiez Pro
Sophisticated student's planner for your Mac, iPhone, iPad
Maitha Juma
COL 270 -340
2. • Introduction
• Why so many students worldwide use iStudiez Pro !
• how to install it
• how to use it
o Planner view
o Today view
o Calendar view
o Assignments view
o Info page
o Grades
o Cloud Sync
o Copy and Paste
• list of other resources that can help you learn more
• survey to check your understanding
• bibliography
3. The purpose of the presentation is to introduce iStudiez Pro; it is an
application that can be installed in Mac, iPhon or iPad.
This application can help the student to plan and manage his courses and
classes details, locations, instructors’ info, holidays and grades. It is
important for the students to know because it helps them stay on track with
schedules and assignments. Also, This app is very flexible and can be used
for Elementary all the way up through college. To illustrate, iStudiez Pro
keeps the student very busy day and every changing in schedule straight.
4.
5. How to install it
• Click the app you want to install and select "Install" and "Download" to install the
app on ...
Type in "Assignments" and click on "iStudiez Pro" or "iStudiez Lite
• Also, you can try the lite version by install it from the bellow hyper link:
http://itunes.apple.com/app/istudiez-lite/id322439186?mt=8
7. Planner view is your main tool to add and manage your schedule.
Planner hosts Semesters, Holidays and Instructors major sections.
8. 1. Semesters section
Use Semesters section to add/edit your semesters (terms) > courses > classes and exams (finals)
and all related details such as class types, dates & times, locations, periodicity etc.
9. 2. Holidays section
Holidays button in the main Planner view leads you to the section where all
holidays/vacations/days off you input will be listed. You can mark either one day or a range of
days as your days off.
Once you mark any day as a holiday/day off it will appear in Calendar view with the 'HOLIDAY'
notice and no classes will be shown at this day.
10. 3. Instructors section
Instructors button in the main Planner view leads you to the section where you can store all
the information related to your instructors (names, titles, affiliations, e-mails, web pages, phone
numbers and office hours). You can also see the courses given by this particular Instructor.
Once you've added your instructors, they will appear as a list in the main view
of Instructors section. Now you can attach your instructors to the classes they give (Planner >
Your Semester > Your Course > Your Class > Instructor).
11. Today view automatically shows you the summary of today's classes and
assignments for these classes due once they are input in the Planner.
Details shown for classes include class type, location, time left before the end of the
current class and the start of the next one, instructor assigned, number of tasks pending
and what's next on schedule. To edit any class and assignments details from Today view tap this class
once. You will be taken to Details view where you can Edit Details of your class or Cancel This
Class if there's a need.
Add Assignment option is also available in Details view for your convenience. See more on how to add/edit your
assignments in the Assignments chapter.
12. Calendar lets you track your schedule from month and week perspectives.
Here you can easily monitor the number of classes, exams and assignments you have
per day.
Tapping Calendar tab automatically leads you to your today's schedule shown in month view mode.
Classes are marked as black dots by default. The number of dots represents how many classes you
have that particular day. If you're using color coding for your courses, you can switch to colored dots
mode (Today view > Info button > Calendar > Colored dots ON).
13. Rotating your device horizontally when in Calendar view shows you the Week view. Week
view is available to track classes only, no assignments are shown here. You can also switch on the
week numbers for your convenience (Today view > Info > Calendar > Week Number)
Touching any date on the calendar grid will let you see the expanded list of classes and exams with all
related details below. Just tap any class or exam to see more details, edit or cancel it.
Exams appear as red flags on the calendar. You can also switch exams icons off (Today view > Info
button > Calendar > Exams Icons)
To view your assignments in Calendar tap Assignments button on top of Calendar view.
Assignments appear as paper clips on the calendar. You can also switch assignments icons off
(Today view > Info > Calendar > Assignments Icons)
14. Assignments view lets you add, edit and remove assignments, as well as sort them
into Current and Completed and according to the Due Date, Course and Priority.
Press [ + ] button in the upper right corner of Assignments view to start adding
assignments. When adding an assignment you can attach it to the Course it is related to, set Due
Date and Priority as well as Add Partner.
Once added your assignments sit in Current section where you can sort them by Due
Date, Course and Priority.
15. When you've completed an assignment, tap the circle to the left of the assignment once. Doing so will
automatically move this assignments to Completed section where it will be stored until you decide
to manually delete it.
16. When in Today view tap the gear button to access Info page where you can
modify the app settings, request technical support and manage your iStudiez
Pro data.
17. 1. iStudiez Pro Settings
Settings are divided into several sections:
1. Today section helps you set up your preference for the Today Icon. You can choose Today Icon
to reflect either current day of the week or current month along with the date.
Also, you can change default phrases to be shown in Today view when you don't have classes.
2. Calendar section includes options to manage Calendar view appearance such as turn on/off
colored dots, assignments and exams icons as well as week number in Week View.
18. 1. iStudiez Pro Settings cont..
3. Planner section makes it easier for you to set up your classes schedule. You can choose 1
minute step if your classes start at weird times, say, 12:37 pm. Or, you can choose 5 minutes step
if you have usual schedule and don't want to bother scrolling through the time wheel with 1
minute intervals.
4. You can set your preferences for App Icon Badge so that it shows you how many assignments
you have overdue or per period from one day to one month.
19. 1. iStudiez Pro Settings cont..
This badge settings will also reflect on Assignments tab.
5. Grades section. Here you can customize your grading scale and set up your preferences with
regards to everything related to grading in the app.
6. To get notified of your classes and exams turn on Classes and Exams Notifications. This
will let you immediately set up your general preferred alarm time for all classes/exams on your
schedule. Assignments Notifications can also be turned on/off here, but you set the alarm
time for each assignment individually every time when you create one. Default notification time
for assignments is 12pm.
20. 2. Data Managing
Here you can create your iStudiez Pro data backup which will store all your schedule and
assignments. Tapping Send Data Backup button will send an e-mail with all your iStudiez Pro
data saved as a link in the email. Tapping this link from your Mail app on your device will launch
iStudiez Pro and restore your data.
21. 3. Technical Support and Tell a Friend
You are welcome to inform us of any malfunction in a Bug Report. You can also Open Web
Page of iStudiez Pro to stay updated of all news from the development team. Tell a friend your
opinion of iStudiez Pro features and functions ;)
22. Grades option helps you keep track of your homework progress, courses
grades and overall GPA.
To access Grades settings go to Today > Info page > Settings > Grades.
23. 1. Grading Scale
Having turned Grades option on, you are offered expanded settings menu to choose and
customize your Grading Scale. Options for Grading Scale include scales based
on Percents, Letters or Points.
Default grading scale is set to percents but you are highly recommended BEFORE inputting any
assignment scores to choose scale that is most suitable for you. Only one type of grading scale can
be used at a time but in case of Letters grading scale you may tune it later for any course in
the Planner.
24. 1. Grading Scale cont..
Percents. If you choose Percents grading scale, your GPA will be calculated based on and
reflected as percents.
Letters. This grading scale allows converting percents into letters based on the customizable
matching scale. Once you set up Letters as your grading scale you are offered to choose one of four
default grading scales which you can further customize according to the grading scale used in your
school, college or university.
Points. With Points grading option you can set up points range according to your education
system.
25. 2. Customizing Letter Scale in Settings
Simply choose the preset most suitable for you, tap the button and on the next screen
tap Edit button to customize both letters and percents. When you customized your grading scale
it is saved as Custom scale.
26. 3. Smart keypad and Weights for assignments
Now, once you are finished with customizing the grading scale you are going to use, you need to
enter weights for assignments in case your education system uses weights to calculate your grade.
To set up weights for your assignments go to Planner > Your Semester > Course and tap Grades
tab button in the bottom right corner. Here you can add weights that you will later allocate to your
assignments, and credits for your course.
27. 3. Smart keypad and Weights for assignments cont..
So, you have entered all weights and credits for your course. Now switch from Grades tab
to Assignments tab button and tap any assignment that you have for this course. In the details
view you will see that Weight is Not Assigned. Tap Weight and allocate any weight for your
assignment.
Once you've completed this algorithm for an assignment its weight will be automatically
calculated when you mark this assignment as completed.
Default settings for grades option allow using Smart Keypad to enter earned and total
possible/required points for any assignment (even if there is no weight assigned to it). Smart
keypad appears when you tap the gray circle to the left of your assignment anywhere in the app.
When you input your earned points the assignment is marked as completed and its result is
calculated into your course grade.
28. Cloud Sync option allows you sharing iStudiez Pro data on all your iOS devices
automatically, without using data backup or entering same data several times on your
iPhone/iPod Touch and iPad.
Using Cloud Sync option saves all your data on a Cloud Sync Server of iStudiez Pro. To
put it simple, imagine that you are in school and need to add some homework or
schedule details to iStudiez Pro on your iPhone. Once you entered necessary
information, you sync to the Cloud Sync Server to save your records. Later at home
when you need to have same data reflected in iStudiez Pro on your iPad you simply
tap Sync button and all the new data entered previously on iPhone will be loaded from
Cloud Sync Server to your iPad.
Here we explain how to set up and start using Cloud Sync option.
29. 1. Switch on Cloud Sync option in iStudiez Pro
settings
Cloud Sync option is switched off by default, so you will need to go to Info Page > Settings >
Sync and switch Cloud Sync ON.
30. 2. Create your Cloud Sync Account
When you switched on Cloud Sync option you will need to Sign In. To Sign In you need to
have Cloud Sync Account. Right there in Settings tap Sign In > Create Cloud Sync
Account and then enter your email as a login and password that you would like to use to sync
data to the Cloud Sync Server. After you submit your email and password, a confirmation letter
will be sent to you. Follow the instructions in the email to activate your Cloud Sync Account. After
your account is activated you can Sign In.
31. 3. Login to your Cloud Sync Account
During your first cloud sync session you will be asked which data you would like to use.
Sync From This Device - your data will be loaded TO the Cloud Sync Server.
Sync From Server - you will need to choose this opt if you previously synced any data to Cloud
Sync Server from any other of your devices, and if you wish the data from Cloud Sync Server to be
loaded to this device.
32. 4. General Issues
To sync manually on iPhone/iPod Touch simply shake your device. To sync manually on iPad
tap Sync button in Overview.
Once you set up and confirm your Cloud Sync Account, you can see your last sync session date and
time in iStudiez Pro Sync settings.
If for any reason you doubt whether Cloud Sync is active and working, go to Info Page > Settings
and check the color of Sync icon: green icon means Cloud Sync is working normally.
33. Copy/Paste feature allows copying your Semesters, Courses, Classes, Exams
and Assignments in the app.
34. 1. Copying Courses, Classes and Exams
To copy a course, go to Planner > Semester, choose a course you wish to copy and hold
until Copy menu appears. Tap Copy and then tap the course again to see Copy/Paste menu.
Tap Paste and the course will be pasted along with all its classes and exams. Take similar steps to
copy and paste your classes and exams.
35. 2. Moving Classes
You can move classes from one course to another in All Courses view. Simply go to Planner >
Semester > All Courses, tap Edit button and drag the class from one course to
another. Copy/Paste option works here as well.
36. 3. Copying Assignments
You can copy and paste assignments virtually in every view where you can see them. When copied
and pasted from one course to another, an assignment will be automatically attached to the course
where it is pasted. When copied in Calendar view and pasted to another date, the due date for
this assignment will automatically be re-scheduled for that particular date..
37. 3. Copying Assignments Cont ..
In Assignments view there is an option to batch copy/paste assignments. Tap Action bottom to
select several assignments at a time, then copy, paste or delete them. Depending on the section
where you paste assignments (Due Date, Course or Priority sections) they will inherit respective
settings (e.g. when pasted to a certain due date field, an assignment will inherit that particular
due date attribute).
38. 4. Copying Semesters
Copying semesters will automatically copy all of its courses, classes and exams, but NOT
assignments. When copying, initial dates will remain unchanged. To copy a semester, go
to Planner, tap a semester you wish to copy and hold until Copy menu appears. Tap Copy to
copy a semester and then tap and hold Semester cell until Paste menu appears. Tap Paste to
paste the semester.
39. Other resources that can help you learn more
iStudiez twitter account
iStudiez facebook account
iStudiez blog
brief summary about iStudiez
Note:Classes and exams will only show up in Today and in Calendar views when they are input within your semester time frames.
Note:The shift of schedule after holidays works for every x and every x working days now, but we are working to deliver a solution for A & B weeks as well.
Hint:If your instructors are already listed in your Contacts app, you can easily import their info by tapping Copy from Contacts button when you're editing your instructor's info.
Note:Once cancelled, the class cannot be restored from Today view. If you need to restore the class you cancelled, go to Planner, find this class (it will still appear in Planner even when cancelled locally from Today or Calendar views) and re-save it.Hint:Today icon shows you current date and either month or day of the week (to set your preferred format go to Today > Info button > Settings > Today Icon).
Hint:You can add your classes, events or assignments right from Calendar by tapping [ + ] button when you're in respective tab.
Note:Once cancelled, the class cannot be restored from Today view. If you need to restore the class you cancelled, go to Planner, find this class (it will still appear in Planner even when cancelled locally from Today or Calendar views) and re-save it.Hint:Today icon shows you current date and either month or day of the week (to set your preferred format go to Today > Info button > Settings > Today Icon).
Hint: You can quickly change priority of any of your current assignments. Just double tap the circle to the left of the assignment title and the balloon will appear offering you to choose low or normal or high level of priority.
Hint: You can add/edit assignments in either of the following ways:via Assignments view.As described above.via Today view. Tap any course to access edit mode. You can both add and edit assignments here.via Calendar view. Under Schedule mode tap any course to add an assignment for this course.Or switch to Assignments mode and add assignment by tapping [ + ] button.
Hint:iStudiez Pro using Local Notifications which means you don't need to be connected to the Internet to be alerted of your schedule events.
Hint:You can also grade your exams. This option is turned OFF by default in iStudiez Pro settings
Note:It is crucial to customize your grading scale BEFORE you add any results (earned points) to your assignments.
Hint:If some of your courses use a scale that differs from other courses, you can always modify grading scale for such particular course later in thePlanner.
Note:Here you can also manually input your final grade for the course once your semester ends.
Note:Here you can also manually input your final grade for the course once your semester ends.
Hint:Once you create your Cloud Sync account your data will be pushed FROM server every 5 minutes of inactivity when iStudiez Pro is running. When you edit some data it will be pushed TO the Cloud Sync Server automatically.To sync manually just shake your iPhone or tap Sync button on your iPad.
Note: IF YOU NEVER RECEIVED CONFIRMATION LETTER double check your spam folder, wait a little bit longer, try again with the same email or try with another email address.
Note: If you choose Sync From Server please be patient as first sync session might take up to 15 minutes, it depends on the volume of data to be synced.
Hint:You can as well paste course or class to empty semester or course, respectively. To paste, tap and hold the placeholder in Semesters or Courses view, until the Paste menu appears.
Hint: If you wish to paste assignment(s) without any changes of attributes, then tap Action button in the top left corner of Assignments view and tap Paste button.
Note: When you copy a semester, it will be copied without any assignments. Initial dates of semester, its courses, classes and exams will remain unchanged.
