Build a study group scheduler

To build a study group scheduler, the focus should be on ease of use, flexibility, and the ability to manage multiple study sessions across different times and members. I’ll guide you through the key features and steps to build one using a simple approach. You can expand on it later with more complex functionality or by integrating it into an app.

1. Features

• Group Creation: Allow users to create study groups by specifying the group name, subject, and description.

• Member Management: Add or remove members from the group.

• Scheduling Sessions: Set up study sessions, with date, time, duration, and topic.

• Recurring Sessions: Option to make sessions recurring on specific days.

• Notifications & Reminders: Notify members of upcoming sessions.

• Availability: Allow members to input their availability so the scheduler can pick optimal times.

• Time Zone Support: Support different time zones to accommodate users in different locations.

2. Frontend Design (UI)

• Group Overview: List of all study groups with details like name, subject, and next scheduled session.

• Study Session Calendar: A calendar view showing scheduled study sessions, with the ability to filter by group or subject.

• Create/Edit Session Forms: Forms to input details like session name, date, time, and members.

• Availability Grid: A grid where members can mark their availability for different time slots.

3. Backend Design (Database)

You can use a database like MySQL or MongoDB to store the data. Here’s a basic structure:

• Study Group Table:

  • group_id (Primary Key)

  • group_name

  • subject

  • description

  • created_by (User ID)

• User Table:

  • user_id (Primary Key)

  • name

  • email

  • time_zone

• Membership Table (Many-to-Many Relationship between users and groups):

  • membership_id (Primary Key)

  • group_id

  • user_id

  • role (Admin, Member)

• Study Session Table:

  • session_id (Primary Key)

  • group_id

  • session_name

  • topic

  • start_time

  • end_time

  • created_by (User ID)

• Availability Table (for storing user availability):

  • availability_id (Primary Key)

  • user_id

  • day_of_week (Monday, Tuesday, etc.)

  • available_from

  • available_to

4. Logic for Scheduling

The key algorithm for scheduling would focus on the availability of group members and avoid scheduling conflicts.

• Step 1: Collect availability from all group members for a week.

• Step 2: Look for overlapping free time slots between members.

• Step 3: Display these options to the group admin or members for final selection.

• Step 4: Once a time is selected, update the database with the scheduled session.

• Step 5: Notify all members about the scheduled session via email, SMS, or app notifications.

5. Example Code Snippets (for simplicity, here’s a Python pseudocode implementation):

python
CopyEdit
from datetime import datetime, timedelta

# Sample user availability data (Day of Week, Start Time, End Time)
users_availability = {
    "user1": {
        "Monday": [("09:00", "11:00"), ("14:00", "16:00")],
        "Wednesday": [("10:00", "12:00")]
    },
    "user2": {
        "Monday": [("09:00", "10:00"), ("13:00", "15:00")],
        "Wednesday": [("12:00", "14:00")]
    }
}

# Function to find overlapping availability
def find_available_time_slot(users_availability, day):
    # Initialize time slots for overlap checking
    common_times = []
    for user, availability in users_availability.items():
        if day in availability:
            for time_range in availability[day]:
                common_times.append(time_range)

    # Check for overlap (basic version, doesn't handle all cases)
    common_times.sort()  # Sorting by start time
    final_times = []
    
    for i in range(len(common_times) - 1):
        start1, end1 = common_times[i]
        start2, end2 = common_times[i + 1]
        if end1 >= start2:  # Overlap found
            final_times.append((max(start1, start2), min(end1, end2)))

    return final_times

# Example of finding common time for Monday
available_times = find_available_time_slot(users_availability, "Monday")
print(f"Available slots on Monday: {available_times}")

6. Tech Stack

• Frontend: HTML, CSS, JavaScript (with React or Vue for more dynamic behavior)

• Backend: Node.js (Express) or Python (Flask/Django)

• Database: MySQL, PostgreSQL, or MongoDB

• Notifications: Use email APIs (like SendGrid) or push notifications with Firebase.

7. Optional Enhancements

• Calendar Integration: Sync sessions with Google Calendar or Outlook for automatic reminders.

• Meeting Links: Generate Zoom or Google Meet links automatically.

• Session Ratings: Allow members to rate study sessions to improve future scheduling.

Would you like to dive deeper into a specific section (like the UI design, back-end logic, or another area)?