Livnly is now called Kalendars, and here is why

The calendar I've been building as Livnly has a new name. It's now called Kalendars by Kuberdon, or Kalendars for short, and the assistant you talk to in it, Ask Livnly, is now Ask Kuberdon. If you already use it, you'll see the new name with the next update.

Why Kalendars

Livnly was the name of the project for a long time, but I never meant it to be the final one. It was the name we used inside while the app took shape.

Kalendars is easier to spell and easier to say, and it should feel familiar the first time you hear it, because you already know what a calendar is.

There's a bigger idea in the name too. Kalendars is plural on purpose: the app is about more than your own calendar. It's about yours and your friends', and making the two meet, so planning a dinner doesn't take an evening of messages. And it does that while your calendar stays yours. Kalendars reads the calendars already on your iPhone and doesn't upload them, which I wrote about in detail here.

Why "by Kuberdon"

Kuberdon is the company I run, and Kalendars is the first of its apps. The plan is to build more of them, each one taking care of some of the small things in a busy life, and I want them to feel like one family that comes from the same place.

That's why your account is now a Kuberdon account. It's the same account with the same sign-in, and it's the one you'll use for whatever we build next. The emails about it now say "One account for every Kuberdon app", which is the idea in one line.

The assistant got the company's name for the same reason. If you've seen the Now tab on a quiet day, you've met The Kuberdon, the small companion that keeps you company in your free time. Ask Kuberdon fits with it in a way Ask Livnly never quite did.

Why now

A more public beta is coming in the coming weeks or months. Before more people find the app, it felt like the right time to put the real name out and start building the brand around it, instead of asking everyone to learn a name I was always going to change.

What changes, and what doesn't

The name on your Home Screen changes, and the icon gets a new look: the K, or The Kuberdon, in nine colours.

On the web, the app's home moves from kuberdon.eu/livnly to kuberdon.eu/kalendars. That's where the application form, support, the privacy policy and the what's new page live now.

You don't have to reinstall anything. It's the same app on your phone, updated, and it keeps your account and everything in it. Your calendars were always the ones already on your iPhone, so they stay right where they are.

Old links keep working. Any kuberdon.eu/livnly link takes you to the same page under /kalendars, and the plan links you've already sent to friends still open for them.

What's next

Most of what I'm working on now is about planning with the people in your life. That means finding a date that works for a whole group, booking time one on one, and making Ask Kuberdon nicer to talk to. When those land, the app will tell you what's new.

After that comes the more public beta. I can't promise you a date for the App Store, because the review isn't in my hands, but I hope we're there in the coming weeks.

If the new name doesn't sit right with you, I'd like to hear it. You can reach me through the contact page, and I read every message myself.