Back to School: Take the Family Calendar Online

At the end of a mom/son book club meeting recently, my friend pulled out her calendar to help us decide the next day to meet. It was a desk-sized, month-by-month calendar, the kind I remember using at work many moons ago. At first, my transition to using an online calendar was conflicted; I put some things online, and still wrote down others on a paper calendar. Last year, I made the full leap online to keep track of the many pieces of our lives. And with five family members, there are a plenty of moving parts to track.

So with the start of a new school year, life's annual refresh button, here are my suggestions for the best online calendars to help families get organized. Web-based calendar options work well for families because members can access them from various locations and computers.

Yahoo! Calendar - I use it, and not because I write for Yahoo! Tech. I started using Yahoo! Calendar awhile ago and like how easy it is to use. A quick add feature allows you to add appointments quickly if you don't need to add a lot of details. And you can share the calendar with family members, who can make changes to it. All they need is a Yahoo! ID and your calendar URL.

Google Calendar - Gets lots of props for its simple interface and easy-to-use tools. Google Calendar has the features we're become accustomed to in online calendars—month, week, day views, as well as the ability to share it with others. A nice added feature is the ability to merge several calendars into one by importing public calendars or private calendars whose owners give you the okay. Different colors can highlight different calendars, a great way to delineate individual kids' activities.

AirSet - A good friend of mine brought AirSet to my attention. Another free web-based calendar, it allows different family members to add their events and appointments. You can create several groups—work, family, soccer, etc.—and merge the calendars, which appear in different colors. A nice feature: AirSet calendars sync with Outlook and Palm.

30 Boxes - If you're looking for extra simple, 30 Boxes is it. What sets it apart is the ability to tie calendar events in with social networking. It automatically pulls in info from Flickr, Upcoming.org, or any RSS feed.

Cozi Central - The web-based and downloadable calendar system offers different color tabs for each family member and also makes it easy for anyone to enter information. It also has a built-in family messaging system and shopping and to-do lists that family members can add to or change. It syncs with Microsoft Outlook.

MediaBee - This calendar system has many of the same features as the ones above, plus lots more. So if you're not looking for simple, check it out. If offers access to extra info, including weather, text messaging, recipes, coupons, TV schedules, news, traffic, podcasts, and RSS feeds.

Those are my top picks. But this space is all about helping each other out, so please post which online calendars are working best for your family.