Calendar Event Manager

Calendar Event Manager

Create macOS Calendar events with tiered sound alarms and paired Reminders so events are never missed across Mac and iOS.

Self-Evolving Skill: This skill improves through use. If instructions are wrong, parameters drifted, or a workaround was needed — fix this file immediately, don't defer. Only update for real, reproducible issues.

CRITICAL RULES (Hard-Learned Truths 2026-02-12)

These rules are NON-NEGOTIABLE. Violating any of them defeats the purpose of this skill.

1. Calendar + Reminders ALWAYS Together

Every event MUST create BOTH:

• Calendar event with multiple sound alarm entries (custom sound per tier)
• Reminders (3 minimum) as a separate notification channel

Never create one without the other.

2. Use sound alarm, NOT display alarm

-- CORRECT: audible alert with custom sound
make new sound alarm at end of sound alarms with properties {trigger interval:-60, sound name:"Glass"}

-- WRONG: silent visual banner only
make new display alarm at end of display alarms with properties {trigger interval:-60}

Each alarm supports its own sound name property. Use DIFFERENT sounds for different tiers so the user knows which alert level it is by sound alone.

3. ONLY Long Sounds (>= 1.4 seconds)

Short sounds get missed and ignored. NEVER use sounds under 1.4 seconds.

APPROVED sounds only:

BANNED sounds: Hero, Basso, Bottle, Purr, Frog, Morse, Tink (all < 1.4s)

4. Multiple Early Reminders Are Mandatory

Minimum alarm tiers for any event:

5. macOS Notification Settings Prerequisite

Calendar notifications must be enabled in System Settings:

• System Settings > Notifications > Calendar > Allow Notifications = ON
• Alert style = Banners or Alerts
• Play sound = ON

Open with: open "x-apple.systempreferences:com.apple.Notifications-Settings.extension"

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TodoWrite Task Templates

Template A: Create Event from Invitation

1. Extract event details (title, date, time, location, notes, RSVP)
2. Create Calendar event with 6-tier sound alarms (Blow, Sosumi, Pop, Glass, Ping, Funk)
3. Create 3 Reminders (TOMORROW, TODAY morning, due-time)
4. Verify event and reminders created
5. Report full schedule to user

Template B: Create Event from User Description

1. Ask user for: event name, date/time, duration, location
2. Create Calendar event with 6-tier sound alarms
3. Create 3 Reminders
4. Verify event and reminders created
5. Report full schedule to user

Template C: Test Notification Setup

1. Create test Calendar event 3 min in future with sound alarms (1 min, 2 min tiers)
2. Create test Reminder 2 min in future
3. Wait for user confirmation of notifications
4. Clean up test event and reminders

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AppleScript Date Construction (CRITICAL)

NEVER use `date "STRING"` in AppleScript. String-based date parsing is locale-dependent and silently produces wrong results:

ALWAYS use programmatic date construction:

-- Build date safely: day-first-then-month prevents rollover
set d to current date
set day of d to 1           -- safe floor FIRST (prevents month rollover)
set month of d to April
set year of d to 2026
set day of d to 1           -- now set actual target day
set hours of d to 18        -- 24h format, no AM/PM ambiguity
set minutes of d to 0
set seconds of d to 0

Calendar Discovery (run first)

tell application "Calendar"
    set output to ""
    repeat with c in calendars
        set output to output & name of c & " (writable:" & writable of c & ")" & linefeed
    end repeat
    output
end tell

Use the first writable:true calendar. Never assume "Home" or "Calendar" exists.

Full Event Creation (Copy-Paste Ready)

tell application "Calendar"
    -- Build start date programmatically
    set startDate to current date
    set day of startDate to 1
    set month of startDate to MONTH_CONSTANT
    set year of startDate to YEAR_INT
    set day of startDate to DAY_INT
    set hours of startDate to HOUR_24
    set minutes of startDate to 0
    set seconds of startDate to 0

    -- Build end date (1 hour later)
    set endDate to startDate + 1 * hours

    tell calendar "WRITABLE_CALENDAR_NAME"
        set newEvent to make new event with properties {summary:"EVENT_NAME", start date:startDate, end date:endDate, location:"LOCATION", description:"NOTES"}
        tell newEvent
            make new sound alarm at end of sound alarms with properties {trigger interval:-1440, sound name:"Blow"}
            make new sound alarm at end of sound alarms with properties {trigger interval:-180, sound name:"Pop"}
            make new sound alarm at end of sound alarms with properties {trigger interval:-60, sound name:"Glass"}
            make new sound alarm at end of sound alarms with properties {trigger interval:-30, sound name:"Ping"}
            make new sound alarm at end of sound alarms with properties {trigger interval:0, sound name:"Funk"}
        end tell
    end tell
    reload calendars
end tell

Verification (always run after creation)

tell application "Calendar"
    tell calendar "WRITABLE_CALENDAR_NAME"
        set matches to (every event whose summary is "EVENT_NAME" and start date > (current date))
        repeat with e in matches
            log (summary of e) & " | " & (start date of e) & " → " & (end date of e)
        end repeat
    end tell
end tell

Paired Reminders Creation

tell application "Reminders"
    set defaultList to default list

    -- Build date programmatically (same pattern as Calendar)
    set eventDate to current date
    set day of eventDate to 1
    set month of eventDate to MONTH_CONSTANT
    set year of eventDate to YEAR_INT
    set day of eventDate to DAY_INT
    set hours of eventDate to HOUR_24
    set minutes of eventDate to 0
    set seconds of eventDate to 0

    -- Due-time reminder
    make new reminder in defaultList with properties {name:"EVENT_NAME", due date:eventDate, body:"LOCATION\nNOTES"}
    -- Day-before
    make new reminder in defaultList with properties {name:"TOMORROW: EVENT_NAME", due date:(eventDate - 1 * days), body:"Event tomorrow! LOCATION"}
    -- Morning-of at 9 AM
    set morningDate to eventDate
    set hours of morningDate to 9
    set minutes of morningDate to 0
    make new reminder in defaultList with properties {name:"TODAY: EVENT_NAME", due date:morningDate, body:"Today! LOCATION"}
end tell

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Post-Change Checklist

After modifying this skill:

1. [ ] Sound reference table matches sound-reference.md 2. [ ] All 6 alarm tiers documented with correct sounds 3. [ ] BANNED sounds list is complete 4. [ ] Hook file (hooks/calendar-reminder-sync.ts) aligned with skill rules 5. [ ] AppleScript examples use sound alarm not display alarm

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References

• Sound Reference - Full sound duration data and approved/rejected lists
• Apple Calendar Scripting Guide

Post-Execution Reflection

After this skill completes, check before closing:

1. Did the command succeed? — If not, fix the instruction or error table that caused the failure. 2. Did parameters or output change? — If the underlying tool's interface drifted, update Usage examples and Parameters table to match. 3. Was a workaround needed? — If you had to improvise (different flags, extra steps), update this SKILL.md so the next invocation doesn't need the same workaround.

Only update if the issue is real and reproducible — not speculative.

Evolution Log

Convention: Reverse chronological order (newest on top, oldest at bottom). Prepend new entries.

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2026-02-26: Initial Evolution Log

Status: Skill is in use and maintained. Track improvements here.

Purpose

This evolution log tracks updates to the skill. Each entry should note:

• What changed (content, structure, tooling)
• Why it changed (bug fix, feature request, best practice)
• Files affected

How to Use

1. When updating SKILL.md or references, add an entry here with the date 2. Keep entries reverse-chronological (newest first) 3. Link to ADRs or GitHub issues when relevant 4. Reference specific line changes when helpful

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macOS System Sounds Reference

Sound Duration Rankings (Measured 2026-02-12)

Only sounds >= 1.4 seconds are acceptable. Short sounds get ignored/missed.

APPROVED Sounds (Long - >= 1.4s)

REJECTED Sounds (Too Short - < 1.4s)

Default Sound Assignment by Reminder Tier

Hard-Learned Truths (2026-02-12)

1. Use `sound alarm`, NOT `display alarm` for audible alerts

• make new sound alarm at end of sound alarms with properties {trigger interval:-5, sound name:"Sosumi"}
• display alarm only shows a visual banner, no guaranteed sound

2. Each alarm can have its own sound - use sound name property 3. macOS notification settings must be enabled for Calendar to show banners

• System Settings > Notifications > Calendar > Allow Notifications + Banners/Alerts + Play Sound

4. Reminders app does NOT support per-reminder custom sounds via AppleScript

• Reminders use the system notification sound globally
• Calendar sound alarm is the ONLY way to get per-event custom sounds

5. Always create BOTH Calendar event AND Reminders for maximum coverage

• Calendar = custom sounds per alarm tier
• Reminders = separate notification channel, syncs to iPhone/iPad

6. Never use short sounds - they get missed/ignored in real life

AppleScript Syntax Reference

Sound Alarm (per-event custom sound)

tell testEvent
    make new sound alarm at end of sound alarms with properties {trigger interval:-60, sound name:"Glass"}
    make new sound alarm at end of sound alarms with properties {trigger interval:-30, sound name:"Funk"}
end tell

Display Alarm (visual banner only)

make new display alarm at end of display alarms with properties {trigger interval:-60}

Source

• Apple Calendar Scripting Guide