Frequently Asked Questions FAQ
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- Trouble Creating a Profile?
Try clearing your cache and cookies in your browser. This is accomplished differently on each browser. Internet Explorer follow this path: Tools >> Internet Options >> button:Delete Cookies and button:Delete files. For Firefox: Tools >> Clear Private Data (select cache, cookies, saved form and search history) >> button:Clear Private Data Now. Refresh WiserEarth and begin your process again. If you have more trouble, email info@wiserearth.org and a site administrator will respond within 24 hours. - What is WiserEarth?
WiserEarth is the first open source network for global social change. Content is created by the users. - What does WISER in WiserEarth stand for?
WISER stands for World Index of Social and Environmental Responsibility. - Is registration required?
No. Anyone can browse or use the site. - Who can contribute to WiserEarth?
Anyone. If you want to add content and edit, all you need to do is first create a personal profile so that you are known to the community. Then, when exploring the site, look for our "Edit" link on the top right corner or "Edit this page" when viewing a Wikipage. Simply click on that and you can begin editing or adding information right away. Remember to hit "Save"!
- What does WiserEarth do?
The site creates the first global database and platform for civil society organizations working on the environment, social justice, and indigenous issues. - How do I use WiserEarth?
WiserEarth allows you to find organizations anywhere in the world that address the issues you are interested in; it allows you to find people in the same way, whether they are near or far. You can create community portals, events, resources, and postings for jobs and needed resources. There are dozens more uses depending on whether you are a student, funder, NGO, writer, researcher, activist, citizen, and so on. Read more about how to get involved on the site. - Is WiserEarth like Wikipedia?
Yes, and no. WiserEarth is like a wiki in that the user is invited to both create the content, and to change or add to the structure. Unlike Wikipedia, WiserEarth has both structured and unstructured data, which provides more advanced and relevant search capabilities. - WiserEarth is open source. What does this mean?
The software and information generated by WISER is created under open source license as governed by the Open Source Initiative (OSI), which makes the code and the application freely available for the good of the community. This includes certain agreements, which allow modification and further redistribution of the code and software without payment, but restrict users from selling it. The theory of open source is simple: when data is subject to modification and change by many people, it rapidly evolves and improves. This is the same principle that informs all of WISER. - Does the information belong to the site or to the users?
The original content of WiserEarth is free to everyone, per the conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commerical ShareAlike License 3.0 and can be re-used or re-purposed for non-commercial purposes, provided users attribute WiserEarth. Guidelines for proper citation and attribution can be found here. Note that WiserEarth requests that for all information cited, a link back to WiserEarth be created. - How is WiserEarth funded?
The site does not make money. Everything is free-- including job postings, events, calendars, and all other features. The site is currently supported by foundation grants. We expect the site to be supported by both foundations and its users. WiserEarth will not require extensive funding once built. Content is user-generated, requiring few staff after public launch. The majority of the expenses will be electricity, ensuring security, maintenance, and server costs, but these expenses will be small compared to the number of users. - Will my small NGO be overshadowed by larger NGOs in WiserEarth?
No. WiserEarth is designed such that all organizations have equal visibility, access to information, and networking capabilities. Every organization in WiserEarth has its own organization page, can access any data on the site, and can share its resources, events, and ideas freely.
<a title="Areanyorganizationsexcludedfromthedatabase" name="Areanyorganizationsexcludedfromthedatabase"> - Are any organizations excluded from the database?
Yes, any organization that uses force, violence, or coercion to promote its views. For more detail see the content standards. - Where does the information on WiserEarth come from?
The information we gathered is culled from publicly available data on hubs and networks that exist on the Internet, as well as primary keyword research using search engines. Data for these 107,000+ organizations have been gathered by staff, interns, volunteers, and WiserEarth members from around the world, or submitted to the site directly from the organizations themselves.
Anyone can edit an Area of Focus portal to feature certain organizations or other resources. In other words, it's featured if you want to feature it. The home page is a little different in that only administrators can edit this page. Featured items on the home page have been randomly selected by an administrator.
- How do I create a personal profile?
Click "Create Your Profile" on left hand sidebar and fill out the required information. You can now freely edit or add information throughout the site. Read more about how to set up your personal profile. - How do I edit my personal profile?
Once you are logged in, you can click yourname's profile in the upper right corner of the screen. Your main profile will appear, giving you the option to edit either the "user info", "areas of focus", "network", or "about" section. After editing, click "save" and you're done! Read more about editing your personal profile. - What can I include in the "About" section of my Personal Profile?
Anything you'd like! You can share your background, your network, your hobbies, your passions, your skills, and your needs. You can add your personal flair with the following features...
1 2 3 4 5 6 - 1. Insert video
- 2. Insert picture (internal or external)
- 3. Insert link (internal or external)
- 4. Insert list (bulleted or numbered)
- 5. Insert table
- 6. view html code
- How do I insert external links in my profile?
While you are editing the "About" section of your profile (or any editing page), highlight the text where you would like the link to appear. Choose the "Insert/edit external link" icon. Type in the url of the desired link and click "Insert". To link to an external email address, type "mail: name@email.com" into the url field. The link will appear as blue, underlined text in the edit box. - How do I insert internal links in my profile? While you are editing the "About" section on your profile or any editing page, place your cursor where you would like the link to appear. Choose the "Insert Internal Link" icon. Search for an Organization, Person, Resource, etc. Make a selection and press insert link. Once you have done this, your link will appear as blue text in the edit box.
- How do I report an error if I encounter one while editing?
1st Option: Choose the Feedback button on the left column of the homepage. There you will see two links, one marked 'Suggestions', and one marked 'Report a Problem' (for technical bugs). If your feedback is not yet represented, click “Start a New Topic” at the bottom of the page.
2nd Option: Choose "Questions About This Page" or "Suggestions About This Page" from the bottom of the right column. Your feedback will appear as a new topic in the Forums for Questions or Suggestions.
- What if I am unable to upload a photo onto my profile page?
If you are unable to upload a photo, you may have exceeded the max amount of photo storage. Please delete an existing photo on your profile before trying again. If you still cannot add a photo, this denotes a bug, and should be reported under Feedback->Report a Problem. - How do I create a personal network on my profile?
There are two ways of linking to other entities on WiserEarth (user profile, organization, event, jobs or resources). To build your network from your profile, click 'Add' (shown below), search/select the desired listing, and then click “Add Connections” at the bottom right of the page. If you're not on your profile page, you can also build your network by clicking "Add to your Network" in the top right column. - How do I change my password?
Once you are logged in, you can click your profile in the upper right corner of the screen. Your profile will appear, giving you the option to "change password". - What if I forgot my password or username?
At the login page, you will see a button marked 'Forgot Your Password?'. This button will open a box that asks for your email. An email will be sent immediately with your username and a new password. - How do I delete my account?
In order to delete an account, you need to contact one of the WiserEarth administrators, which you can do by emailing support@wiserearth.org. One of our administrators will be in touch with you shortly and will be able to de-activate an account within a few minutes. - What if I am unable to log in to my account?
First, make sure your browser cache and cookies are cleared. This is accomplished differently on each browser. For Internet Explorer: Tools>> Internet Options >> button: Delete Cookies and button:Delete files. For Firefox: Tools>> Clear Data (select cache, cookies, saved form and search history) >> button:Clear Private Data Now. Refresh WiserEarth and begin your login again. If you still have problems, email info@wiserearth.org and a site administrator will respond within 24 hours.
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The Network Feature of WiserEarth
- How do I join a group?
You can join an open group at anytime. Simply go to the page of the Group you’d like to join and click “Join Group” under the Membership section on the right side bar.
For groups that are “open to apply”, you can click “Apply for Membership” under the Membership section on the right side bar. You will be asked to write a few words about why you’d like to join, and your message will be sent to the group administrator. You will then have to wait for an admin to invite you to join.
There are some groups on WiserEarth that are invitation only and you cannot request to join these. Only an invitation from a group admin will give you access. For groups that require “Membership referral”, you will be referred to a group administrator to join a group and receive and internal message inviting you to apply.
For groups that require “Membership invitation”, you will be directly invited by a group administrator and receive an internal message inviting you to apply. - How do I find a group?
Groups can be found using the search bar at the top of the page and selecting groups. You can search by keyword, name, area of focus, privacy settings, or membership settings. Alternatively, you can browse through groups by selecting Groups under the Browse section of the left-hand side bar. You can browse through groups by Name or by Recency. - How many groups can I join?
There is no limit to the number of groups you can join. - How do I leave a group?
You can leave a group at any time by clicking “Cancel membership” on the right-hand sidebar. If you are the last group administrator left in your group, you cannot cancel your membership unless you add another admin to the group first. - How do I create a group?
The option to create a group can be found on the left-hand sidebar under the Contribute section. Click Add a Group to begin. - What are the group privacy options?
Private. Semi-Private. Public. - What is a group administrator and what can they do?
Group administrators create and manage a Group, similarly to WiserEarth administrators managing WiserEarth. They can perform a few restricted functions within the Groups feature, in addition to the functions of an editor. An administrator can change members to editors, change editors to administrators, determine Membership Settings, and determine Privacy Settings.
- What is a group member and what can they do?
Group members are registered with a Group and can create and edit entities (discussions, events, wikipages, resources, organizations and jobs) on the Group page.
- How can I send a message to the group members?
You can send a message to group members one-by-one OR by creating a discussion forum. To manually send a message to group members, click the "Members" tab at the top of the Group page, then select a member profile and click "Send me a message" in the right column. To communicate with members via a discussion forum, click "Create a discussion topic" on the Group page. If it is a private group, your post will appear only on the Group page, but if it is a public Group, your post will appear on the Group page and in the main Discussion Forums.
- Can I upload documents to a group?
Yes - as of Feb 25th, 2008, file uploads are now available in a group and also most pages across the website. File size per upload is limited to 50mb, which we set to allow users to post podcasts and video files.
- How can I donate to an organization in the WiserEarth database?
WiserEarth does not facilitate direct donations to organizations. The Donate now page gives a list of organizations facilitating charitable giving to nonprofit organizations in various countries. - Do I need to log in?
No. Without logging in you can still browse the entire site, but you cannot add or edit data. Once you log in, you are an active participant in the WiserEarth community. You can add data, edit data, create wiki pages (except protected pages-- which require editor or administrator status), contact other users through internal messaging, join a Live Chat, and participate in discussion forums. - How do I keep a watch on information or pages I'm especially interested in?
You will want to add certain pages to your Watchlist. Go to the page you want to add and click on the link called "Add to watchlist" located on the right column of the page. To review your watchlist, go to your Profile Page, by clicking the link in the upper right-hand corner, and then clicking Watchlist. If changes have been made, you will receive notification under 'My Profile' in the top right corner.
- What is a WiserEarth editor and how do I become one?
Anyone can become an editor by being an active participant in WiserEarth. To become an editor, you need to have dedicated time towards editing and improving the site. If you find that having more editorial responsibility would benefit your ability to help the community, you may ask your peers in the community for agreement to take on an editor role. By applying to the current editing community and being accepted, you can edit more extensively throughout the site and take on more management responsibilities. See the WiserEarth Community Roles for more details. - Who are the current WiserEarth editors?
See the current list of WiserEarth editors and administrators here. To find this page, open 'Using WiserEarth on the left column. Scroll down to the 'WiserEarth Editor's Community', and click on the link labeled 'WiserEarth administrators and editors' - Will WiserEarth share my email address or personal information with anyone?
WiserEarth will not share your email address with anyone. It will not allow any information on the site, or information about the WiserEarth community to be sold in any way. Please see WiserEarth's privacy policy. - How do I talk to other users on WiserEarth?
You can start or participate in a discussion forum, make a comment on any of the pages you visit, send an internal message to any user, or email any user who has shared their email address with the community. - How is homepage content chosen?
The homepage content is currently chosen by the staff at Natural Capital Institute. The staff makes an effort to feature recently added content from the WiserEarth community. In addition, if a user licenses their images under Creative Commons, then the staff will use it on the homepage. In the future, WiserEarth will allow users to suggest and vote on homepage content. - What are Edits and Additions and how are they tallied?
An Edit is any modification to any page on WiserEarth (includes one's user profile, organization, event, wiki, group). An edit does not include new entries and is tallied everytime a page is saved. An Addition is a new organization, resource, event, job, etc. added to WiserEarth.
- What are Areas of Focus (AOF)?
Areas of Focus are a comprehensive categorization (taxonomy) of all of the different spheres of activity relating to the environmental and social justice fields. All entities entered into the WiserEarth database (organizations, people, resources, events, jobs) can be tagged with several areas of focus. This tagging allows a user to find organizations, people, resources etc. within their Area of Focus.
For each Area of Focus there is a portal, where a user can see a collection of information specific to their topic of interest. Any recent postings (new organizations, resources, people, events, jobs) that have been tagged to an Area of Focus will appear in the respective portal automatically. - Where can I find the Areas of Focus?
You can find the entire list of Areas of Focus by clicking on the link in the left navigation bar, or by clicking here or going to this introduction page.
You can also use the search bar to search for individual Areas of Focus. Just type the Area of Focus or keyword you are looking for into the search bar, click on Areas of Focus and then Search. - Why do I need to choose related Areas of Focus when adding personal profiles, organizations, events, resources, or jobs?
By tagging your data with an Area of Focus, your information will be associated with this topic and therefore easier for others to find when searching or browsing by topic. I more extensive answer can be found at the Areas of Focus (AoF) Selection : Discussion.
- Who can change the information of an organization?
Any user that has signed up for a user name and password can edit the organization pages. - Can the information be blocked from other users?
Only under certain circumstances can the entity be blocked. Vandalism is one of these circumstances. If an organization is constantly under attack of malicious editors then an admin can block either the editors or the entire page. - How can I link myself to an organization?
There are two ways to connect to organizations. From your profile, click “Add” (beside Network). This will direct you to searchable fields for the organization of your choosing. Select boxes to the left of the results and then click “Add Connections” at the bottom right of the page. From an organization's page, click “Add to my Network” in the top right column. - How do I add an organization?
click Add an Organization in the left navigation bar.
- What is a WiserEarth resource?
Finding resources can be done similarly to searching for people and organizations. The Resources section includes a wide collection of books, journals, awards, government programs, articles, quotes, standards, internet resources, blogs, databases, directories and other forms of data that have been posted by the WiserEarth community. Anyone can search, add to or repurpose this library of community resources and information for their own purposes. Resources are searchable by keyword, name, area of focus, country, website, author, publisher, type of resource or scale of activity (e.g regional/global/national). Resources, when added, are always tagged to Areas of Focus, making them easier to find. - How do I change a listing once it has been posted?
Log in, then go to the listing and press [edit]. - Can my resource be linked to my organization?
In the “About” section of your resource, select the “internal link” icon to connect to your organization. This is currently a one-way link. Repeat these steps from organization to resource for two-way connections.
- How do I change a job listing once it has been posted?
Go to the listing and press [edit]. - Can my job posting be linked to my organization?
Yes. In the “About” section of your job listing, select the “internal link” icon to connect to your organization. This is currently a one-way link. Repeat these steps from organization to job listing for two-way connections.
- How can I receive updates about job postings?
Go to the Jobs page and click on the link called "Add to watchlist" located on the right column of the page. To check your watchlist at any time, go to your profile and click Watchlist. - Can organizations find my profile?
Yes they can.
- What is a Wikipage?
WikiPages are like blank sheets of paper. They can be used to start a blog, a topic portal, or to set up a geographic group. They can be connected to other entities on WiserEarth (i.e. organizations). Wikipages may bring more visibility to the needs of the community and lead to the development of more specialized features (i.e. Discussion Forums). The 'Add a WikiPage' feature in the left side bar enables you to create simple webpages (or articles) without needing to know any HTML. Just give your new page a name, type in some content and you've created a webpage! Learn more about the definition of wiki, blogging on WiserEarth, or creating Wikipages.
Comments
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Thanks for your very fast reply Peggy.
The FAQs say a group admistrator can change members' status to editors ... Group administrators create and manage a Group, similarly to WiserEarth administrators managing WiserEarth. They can perform a few restricted functions within the Groups feature, in addition to the functions of an editor. An administrator can change members to editors, change editors to administrators, determine Membership Settings, and determine Privacy Settings. I'm a group adminstrator but I can figure out how to do this. Can you help me? |
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Lorna, only editors and administrators can send internal messages.
We are about to change this logic as it has been confusing for users to understand the difference between editors and members. In around two weeks, we will merge those two roles so it is less confusing for everyone. meanwhile, I would recommend you put all your members as Editors. |
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Can "members" use the Group Messaging Feature or only "adminstrators" and "editors"?
I can't find an answer to this, and since I'm an "adminstrator" in my group, I can't test it out! Thanks for the site and all the great features - I'm really enjoying playing with it. |
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thanks doug, for some reason I'm having a hard time adding the tag, I'll try to address it tomm.
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Missing name tags for some entries, e.g.:
<li><a href="#Areanyorganizationsexcludedfromthedatabase">Are any organizations excluded from the database?</a></li> but no corresponding "<A NAME=>" code - only: <li><strong>Are any organizations excluded from the database?</strong><br /> compared with: <li><strong><a name="HowAreFeaturedOrganizationsEventsAndResoucesSelected" title="HowAreFeaturedOrganizationsEventsAndResoucesSelected"></a>How are "featured" organizations, events, and resources selected?</strong><br /> |
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The ability for deleting groups is under development at the moment (based on the Group FAQ page @ http://www.wiserearth.org/article/GroupsFAQ). So, you can not delete group (even though your an admin for that group).
You can try however to contact one of the WiserEarth administrator @ http://www.wiserearth.org/index.php/user/search/?q=role%3Aadministrator and see if they can do it for you. >> Can we create sub-groups inside of our group. Yes we can. There's a "Related Groups" section in your group's "Home" page. In it, there's a "Create" link, which will help you set up groups as sub-groups for your main group. Remember to always create these sub-groups using the "Create" link there, and not use the standard "Create a Group" link (which can be found in WiserEarth homepage) as it will not show up as your group's sub-group. If you have more questions about WiserEarth, please write them up in any of the following places: - Feedback >> Questions forum @ http://wiserearth.org/forum/view/Questions - WiserEarth Help Desk @ http://www.wiserearth.org/group/helpers - WiserEarth Group Support @ http://www.wiserearth.org/group/Groupers (a group specifically set up to help users set up their group and make it a successful one). |
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How do I delete a group? the system created two groups for me today both with the same name. Gateway to Consviopus Evolution. I do not want to confuse my community and would love to delete one of them. I have sent an invitation from one of them so if you can delete the other one that would be great.
Also is there a way for people to choose to not get e-mail from the group. We will have quite a large group and some may not want to get e-mails from everyone in the group. Can we create sub-groups inside of our group. We have a global learning community that operate as a single group and then have small learning groups within it. Would they have to create a separte group? Thanks. The site is looking great. I look forward to playing with it and contributing to its growth. |
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This comment was removed by a WiserEarth editor for the following reason:
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Hi Tim,
We are constantly updating this page. The link has been added. You can also access the current list of editors by clicking 'Using WiserEarth' on the lefthand column. You will see a section titled 'WiserEarth Editor Community' which has a link to all current editors. |
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"Who are the current WiserEarth editors?
See the current list of WiserEarth editors and administrators here." There is no link provided |
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Contributors to this Page
Hey, Lorna: Well, it's the night shift (just kidding). To modify a member's status, you need to 'hover the mouse' over the photo of the member in your group page--a small box appears with the name, status, and at the bottom, 'Edit Member Status'. Click this--a new page opens with the photo, member status, and a small dropdown menu with the choices will appear. Click on the appropriate choice, then "Finish", and then you should see the change in the same 'hover' box as before.
This should work, but if it does not, there may be a bug, and we'll have to call the Cavalry!
David
Messages done with sustainable energy, with Wind and Sun!