Revised Aug 5
Warm greetings from Costa Rica! (revised)
This is a forum intended to allow "post TOS Conference" discussion on any TOS issue (International or USA).
This particular forum topic (you can start your own topic) is about planning for this new TOS-USA (with international participation) TOS-USA community website.
In addition to this TOS discussion forum, I will soon set up a TOS mailing list (e-group style), which I think will be easier and more convenient for some people than a forum. Essentially, any email sent to the TOS mailing list address will be send to all members of the mailing list. When the TOS mailing list is ready, I'll send out an announcement to TOS convention participants with an invitation to join. I won't "sign up" anybody.
This is a "community" website. For my first post to this forum, I'll explain (below) the difference between a "community" website and a "static" website.
If any TOS member is interested in helping out with website administration, or has any ideas to share regarding the planning and development of this website, please post your comment here (or contact me by email if you prefer, using this website's contact form.)
--
Lloyd Standish
TOS-USA website administrator
This, the new "community" website for TOS-USA, is soon to be inaugurated.
For those who may not have fully understood what a "community" website is and how it differs from a traditional static website, here is a brief summary:
- A traditional static website contains material that is composed or compiled by a webmaster or group of web authors. It does not allow participation by the public and the material is often updated very infrequently. Due to the relative lack of new content and lack of notification to users when there is new content, static websites usually do not receive many repeat visitors.
- On the other hand, a community website allows and encourages participation by website users. In a community website, the task of providing new content (articles, comments, blog entries, etc.) is not primarily in the hands of a webmaster, but rather primarily in the hands of all the website users. Users can comment on almost all the articles in a community website, as well as contribute their own articles. Users can also receive emailed notices when certain articles of interest (called a "thread") have been commented on. The community website engine I have chosen for TOS even allows collective authoring of online books.
In sum, a community website is a 2-way communication and networking tool. A traditional static website, on the other hand, is a one-way source of relatively unchanging information.
Running
WEBSITE INAUGURATION NOTES
If there are any suggestions criticism on the site, now is a good time to mention them. In particular, I have tried to make the site friendly to non-TS/TOS visitors who share the basic principles of the TOS. I think this could lead to acquiring new TOS members.
I put a lot of thought into the organization of the website, striving from the beginning to conserve the basic structure of the TOS departments. However, there are also sections of content that do not readily fit into the departments. I gave them separate menu entries. (Look in the "Content" menu box to left of this post.)
"Active TOS Projects" is for service projects that TOS originates. Of course, "Disaster Relief" is a also a service project, but I preferred to create a separate category for that.
Please note that you can include photos in your posts, and even in your comments! I am including one to demonstrate this.
To put a photo in your post, follow these steps:
1. position the cursor where you want the photo. If you want to put it far left or far right with the text flowing around it, position the cursor at the beginning of your post.
2. Click on the "Insert/Edit Image" Icon on the editor menu (just about the text entry area - it looks like a little mountain. Hover the mouse for description of each icon.)
3. A dialog box will appear. To upload a photo, choose the "Upload" tab, browse for your file on your computer, and click "Send to the server." To select an already-uploaded file, click "browse server."
4. Finally, position your image. In the "Image properties" dialog box, choose the positioning in the "Align" pulldown menu. "Left" is far left with text wrapping around. "Right" is far right with text wrapping around. In this post, the photo above is positioned "Right."
Thanks!
Thanks Lloyd!
This is a convenient way of getting in touch with others and being aware of what is happening in various parts of the TOS world.
Vic Hao Chin, Jr., Philippines
website
Well, this is all Greek to me. I don't know if this is even where or what to do to let you know I am on board. I learn something new everyday (thank goodness), and getting to be more computer user friendly will be my challenge. Thanks for the explanation about the community website. I need all the help I can get on this. Peace, Paula
Changing your site-registered email address
You did the right thing, Paula. I think you will find this website very easy to use.
In an email to me, you asked about changing your email address associated with this website. This is the address to which, for example, notifications of your "subscriptions" are sent.
Whenever you post a comment on an article on this website, or to another comment, you become automatically "subscribed" to that issue (called a "thread"), so that you will receive emailed notifications when someone else posts further comments. You can turn off the "auto-subscribe" feature on the page called "My Account."
After you are logged in (which should be automatic after your first visit to the site, if you have cookies enabled), look for the "My Account" menu link in the upper left menu bar area. You can also change your email address or username in the "My Account" area. It is also a good idea to change your password there from the one I assigned.
Patience
Don't give up on this format just yet, Lloyd. It has only been a few days since the conference, and everyone needs to get caught up with their affairs back home.
Once people get settled, fhey will have time to give your site a lookover.
Don't mistake a lack of participation for disapproval.
Jon Knebel, Aurora, IL
Gettin' caught up.
You got that one right Jon! I just got back to Deerfield Beach Tuesday night. I got all kinds of stuff I have to do. I have been away for almost two months, the place is a mess. have a lot of restocking to do, mail has piled up and my air bed leaks and I have to get a new one and there are some new classes happening here.. I have to by some birthday presents and get some presents for grandkids. I have a lot of ketching up and tis heat is unbeleveable..
Hugs, Pat Phipps
Suggestion Accepted
You're right, Jon, it is premature to decide to close down the forum. I will leave it open indefinitely, perhaps changing the name to "TOS Member Discussions." Postings would would then be open only to TOS members. Or should posting on this particular forum be open to the general public? There could be both a "public" and a "TOS member" forums.
I have removed the statement that this forum will soon be closed from my opening post. However, I still plan on offering the mailing list. In the future I will not edit my previous post(s), but rather add updates to them.
I have stopped work for the moment on migrating pages from the current TOS-USA site to this one, since I have to first migrate to another server! I am working on that now. I am staying with the same hosting company, but have had to upgrade my account to a slightly more expensive one due to the memory load imposed by the community website engine.
Did you find the editing box for composing forum comments to be OK?
Lloyd, Costa Rica
I love the look and feel of
I love the look and feel of this. I hope to add info about our Children's Educational Fund initiative soon. This conversation can enhance the connections we made with one another during the conference.
Thank you Lloyd. Betty Bland
TOS website policy regarding contributed material
(Reply originally made directly to Betty by email)
I'm glad you like the website so far!
In am email you mentioned the possible need for approval for your future posting on aid for Tibetan children. I would like to comment here on website moderation, and what should eventually become the TOS website's policy on contributed material.
All posted material has to be approved by a moderator before it is actually seen by the public. Moderators get an email when new material is posted, so they know when there are article(s) or comment(s) pending approval. I don't think this will a big task to handle since there will not be a large volume of new content. When the site (and the organization!) grows to the point of generating quite a bit of new material, there will be new people to help with moderation.
At the present time, Tim Boyd, my dad [Miles Standish], and I agreed to share the moderation tasks: one week for each, in rotation. However, until the site is public (and finished - there is a lot of material yet to migrate from the current site), I will be the sole moderator.
Moderation will not require continual attention. It will only require approval of pending new material once per day. In the beginning, we will be lucky to get new content that often.
The moderation process will not involve unanimous approval by all moderators. That would be very difficult. If any of us ever allows content to be published that someone in the TOS feels should not be on the site, then that person will have to comment on the matter to the moderators. Since the President of the TOS is a moderator, we other moderators would either accept his sole judgement, or the issue could be decided by the Board of Directors. As you know, such a situation is highly unlikely to occur.
I think that any posting that relates in any way to TOS-stated objectives should be allowed to be posted. That includes *any* project or information or news that relates to alleviating suffering and/or increasing human well-being and the well-being of the planet.
Betty, if this is an acceptable policy for contributions, then I think there is no question that your information on Tibetan Orphanages and Children's Educational Projects will be appropriate.
I anyone has further comments on the scope of permitted contributions for the TOS-USA website, please reply or post here.
Tibet Orphanages and Posting
Thanks Lloyd. This is a TOS project that I want the whole Board to review and approve before I post it because this is a component about a major area of service the Board is planning to sponsor. It should be available next week--with extra pictures. BB
Hi Betty, I see now that it
Hi Betty,
I see now that it is not that the material might not be appropriate for the community web, but rather that the project itself is still not concrete.
When the Tibetan project is ready to report, I suggest you choose "create content" and publish it as a "story." That puts it at the top of the articles on the front page. After that we can decide if perhaps it should be made a "page" or a "department" (more permanent).
Note that the category structure of this website is still not finished.
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