Communications Functions & Protocols

1. Links/Databank:
   This is one of the most important group work tools that our project Intranet has to offer. It is here where we are all invited to share our best links and information on sites, tools and programs that will be of especial interest to the group and the preojct.

   You may wish to give a thought as well to multimedia links, to useful graphics, audio and video files, including links to conferences and presentations that some of us may not have been able to get to for one reason or another.

   In some cases, additional software may be needed in order to run them. In the event that this is not clearly explained in the linked site itself, further information is available in the section, Software Counsel and References Here

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2. Public Library/Documentation Center:
   The shared library constitutes another of the central elements of our communications and support package. It is where anyone is pir group can upload and access print materials, other media, etc. (Note: The library has a 20MB limit, so that it is always preferable, whenever possible, to go to the Links section and place a hotlink to your document or item on its site of origin. All submissions over that limit will be refused by the robot, so we must be prudent in our use of this limited space.)

   For full details on how to upload and otherwise make use of the Vault, your are referred to its dedicated Help file. Please note that some of these documents may be quite large. The exact size is specified in all cases. It is advised that you look check out their size before downloading, especially of course if you have a slow modem or it's a busy time of the day on the Net.

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3. Group and Personal Calendar::
   This is a handy utility of which we are all invied to make good and copious use. Overall, the calendar is an easy and effective way to organize and announce group events to members. It is available to post events of common interest, with provision for automatic notification and timely reminders to the group.

   You can also create a personal calendar. The group calendar is used to post group events while the personal calendar can be used for any personal and/or group event. When an event is posted to the calendar, the person who posted the event can also have a reminder message sent out to all the group members to remind them of the upcoming event. ( Go to Calendar Help for more here.)

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4. Group Email & Discussions:
   This component offers a flexible facility for immediately contacting and informing all group members of important information. Intended for focused comments and exchanges of materials on specific issues that will be of interest or use to the group as a whole. Kindly note this is not a "discussion list" in the sense often encountered on the Net. If you, for example, have a comment which is really intended for one or two of the partners, or if you are moved to write "I agree with Fred" or the like, then tell it to Fred in a private note (see below). If you have a complaint or question about the site, please contact the Webmaster directly. We must be extremely careful to avoid information overload or otherwise degrading the profile of usefulness of this privileged channel. By making a careful distinction between group and private mail you will do a favor to us all, including to yourself.

   Copying content of earlier communications! Please do not simply copy and pass on the content of all previous communications. Nobody, nobody likes to wade through this stuff. Moreover, it obscures the point of your message for those whose time is important. Where you need to cite an earlier note for context purposes, please do this in a sparing and structured way. We will all appreciate your thoughtfulness.

   Retaining Subject Headings: Once a discussion of any given topic has got underway, it helps to continue to respect and retain the original subject heading. This is because this heading in one of the main ways in which we can recall any given dialogue and exchange around that topic, a process of recall which we believe is extremely important to the extent to which this collective intellectual patrimony is available to be mined for subsequent uses. Likewise, if you note that the subject heading is preceded by a FWD: or Re: in any given case, it's a good idea to delete this so that your message will enter into the correct repertory. Thanks for giving this your attention.

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5. Message Center Archives:
   This component of each site holds all past communications of and to the group under this Forum for convenient reference purposes. You can sort all messages by topic, author or date, simply by clicking the respective column head. For more information, consult Message Help here.

   This message database is fully searchable. Let's take an example. For further information on searching eGroups, have a look here at eGroups Search Help.
   

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6. Private Mail:
   In addition to the global group communications, you will find that there is ample scope for private email exchanges . As indicated, this is the preferred way to contact anyone when the exchanges are not of high priority for the group as a whole. So, if you have something that you feel the others need not be troubled with, please make use of the Private Mail icon and direct your communications for those who are specifically going to benefit from it.

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7. Member List:
   This section simply identifies all registered members. (This information is accessible to registered users only.)

   
   

8. Signing In:
   Full step by step help is available when you go to Sign In in the @Forum for more here. This should be quite adequate; however if you run into troubles that they do not provide answers to, all you have to do is click the Post Office link right here and let us know about your problem. We will try to help out quickly.

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9. A Closing Word on eGroups For the last several years we have been using eGroups as the supporting platform for these important central communications and information storage functions. We chose to do this because we felt they provided good functionality in support of our independent cooperative program, and because it was free (bearing in mind that we carry out all these programs under The Commons without any form of external financial support... so money is scarce). The only shortcomings of this arrangementare the publicity messages and the need to sign in, but this has been judged by most of our colleagues as a bearable inconvenience under the circumstances.

   On the other hand, you may have some better ideas for us. We know we can do better and want to hear from you. So if you have leads, free storage space or money to throw at the problem, don't be shy. We're ready to listen.

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