California is an open source piece of software specifically designed for the GNOME desktop environment, providing users with a dedicated calendar application, where they can add, edit and view the most important events in their lives.

First of all, we should mention that the application has been developed by the same team of developers who delivered the wonderful Geary email client, as well as the powerful Valencia IDE plugin for GNOME's Gedit text editor.

Key features include support for viewing and editing online calendars, support for multiple calendars, support for Google Calendar via the GNOME Online Accounts component of the GNOME desktop environment, as well as support for third-party calendars in the well known .ICS format.

The application sports a clean, straightforward and modern graphical user interface that requires no additional setup, follows the GNOME HIG (Human Interface Design) specifications, and offers built-in support for desktop notification of events.

As expected, once installed, the application will be automatically integrated into the GNOME Panel's clock/calendar widget, allowing users to easily and quickly open the calendar by clicking on the "Open Calendar" entry.

If you've set up a Google account on your GNOME desktop the GNOME Online, California will automatically add all of your events to the default calendar. It uses the Evolution Data Server backend for managing your calendars.

Even if it installs on other open source desktop environments, the application will not be integrated with the respective DE or WM. However, you can still use it with .ICS files to view your upcoming events.

Even if its name takes us to a land of freedom, a land of sun, sand and surf, California is the first mature calendar application for the controversial GNOME desktop environment. The first stable version will be introduced along with the GNOME 3.14 release!