NZ Open Government Online Groups
User Manual
Getting Help
There are four ways of getting help at
NZ Open Government Online Groups:
from the user
manual, and
from
context-sensitive help.
from
the participation coach in a group,
and
from
NZ Open Government Online Groups Support.
Getting Help
from the User Manual
You can access
The
NZ Open Government Online Groups
User Manual
from any page on
NZ Open Government Online Groups.
To access help, carry out the following.
- Click on Help, in the main
menu-bar at the top of every page.
The Help page will open.
- Click on User Manual.
The
NZ Open Government Online Groups
User Manual
will open.
Getting
Context-Sensitive Help
Help that relates to a particular situation
— or context —
is avaliable on many pages.
To access the context-sensitve help, carry out the following.
- Locate the link to the context-sensitive help, which looks
like [?].
The link will be next to the item that the help
applies to.
- Click on the help-link.
The context-sensitive help will appear on the right of
the page.
The help may be closed when no longer needed.
To view the section of
The
NZ Open Government Online Groups User Manual that the
context-sensitive help comes from, click on
Read more at the bottom of the
help-window.
Getting
Help from the Participation Coach
The participation coach is the person responsible for
assisting group members with the interaction with
each other and NZ Open Government Online Groups.
To contact the participation coach, carry out the following
tasks.
-
View the group (see
Viewing a
Group).
- View the profile of the participation coach, by clicking
on the name of the participation coach, listed
in the Members section of the group
homepage.
- Contact the participation coach, by clicking on the link
listed in the Email addresses section of the
coache's profile.
Getting
Help from NZ Open Government Online Groups Support
You can get help from NZ Open Government Online Groups
Support by sending an email message, detailing your problem, to
support@onlinegroups.net.
Your message should contain a description of exactly what you are
doing, what is not happening, and what you think should happen.
If possible, supplying the email addresses you use, and your
user ID, would be helpful
to NZ Open Government Online Groups Support.
Logging In to NZ Open Government Online Groups
Registered users must log in to NZ Open Government Online Groups to use all the
facilities.
To log in to NZ Open Government Online Groups, carry out the following.
-
Click on Log In, on
the
NZ Open Government Online Groups homepage.
The Log In page will open.
-
Type your email address and password into the respective fields.
-
Click the Log In button.
The homepage will be shown, with your display name at the top-right of
the page.
Remembering Your Identity
If you select Remember me, your
identity will be remembered by
NZ Open Government Online Groups,
so you will not have to log in next time you visit.
However, you should not select this if you
are using a shared or public computer, such as a computer in
an e-cafe or library, as your privacy may be compromised.
Reset your password
To reset your password, carry out the following.
-
1. Click Reset Password on the login page. The Reset Password page
will be shown.
-
2. Enter the email address that you wish to use, with your online
groups on GroupServer, in the Email Address entry box. If you have
more than one address registered with GroupServer, enter your
preferred address into the Email Address entry box.
-
3. Click the Reset button. An email message, containing a link to the
password reset page will be sent to you.
-
4. Click the link in the password-reset email message that has been
sent to you. The Set Password page will be shown.
-
5. Enter your new password in the first entry, and repeat the
password in the second entry.
-
6. Click the Set Password button. Your profile page will be shown.
Note: Administrator Password-Reset
Some administrators can reset passwords for group members. If
this occurs, you will receive an email message informing you that
your password has been reset. From this message, you can carry
out the tasks 4–6 above.
Managing Profiles
A profile is information kept by NZ Open Government Online Groups about all users,
including you.
You can
view your
profile,
change
the information stored in your profile and
view
the profiles of other registered users.
Viewing Your Profile
To view your profile, carry out the following.
Your profile will show the groups that you belong to, the most
recent messages that you have posted, and the profile data listed
in
Profile
Information.
Viewing the Profile of Another User
To view the profile on another
user on
NZ Open Government Online Groups,
carry out the following.
-
Click on Members, on the homepage
of a group
(see
Viewing a Group).
The Members page, which lists all
members of the selected group, will be shown.
-
Click on the name of the user whose profile you
wish to view.
The profile of that user will be shown.
Alternatively, click on a user's name in a message, and the
profile for that person will be shown.
Managing Groups
Groups are online areas where people collaborate on
NZ Open Government Online Groups.
As a registered user, you can
join a group,
leave a group,
view a group or
change your message settings for the group.
Join a group using email
To join a group using email, carry out the following tasks.
-
1. Send a message to the group, with Subscribe in the subject line.
You will receive a verification message in reply. If you do not
have a GroupServer profile, one will be created.
-
2. Reply to the verification message, making no alterations to the
message — other than those automatically carried out by your email
client. You will receive an email message, confirming that you have
joined the group.
Join a group using the web
To post to a group, and receive email messages from a
group, you must register an account with GroupServer.
To use the Web to register an account with GroupServer,
carry out the following tasks.
-
1. Click Register and Join in the group you wish to join. The
Register and Join page will be shown.
-
2. Enter your email address in the Email Address entry.
-
3. Click Next. Two things will happen:
* A email address verification message will be sent to you (see
Adding an Email Address, Step 4)
http://groupserver.org/r/post/6b5rm4OsiHJ4kWpZ37jUOl
and
* You will be shown the Edit Profile page.
-
4. Edit your profile. Your profile will allow other users of
GroupServer to get to know you better. At this stage you can also
join other groups, by selecting them in the Groups section of
your profile.
Tip: Nickname
Your nickname is a single word that is used to identify you and
your profile. Its primary purpose is to create the link to your
profile. By default, your nickname is created out of your
display name, with the spaces removed.
-
5. Click Next. You will be shown one of two pages.
* If you have not verified your email address (see Adding an Email
Address, Step 4) you will be shown the Waiting for Verification
page; once you verified click Next to see the Set Password page
(see Resetting Your Password step 6).
http://groupserver.org/r/post/3JJvi3M6zykWP5SCogRZK
* If you have verified your email address, you will be shown the
Set Password page (see Resetting Your Password, Step 6).
http://groupserver.org/r/post/3JJvi3M6zykWP5SCogRZK
-
6. Set your new password. You will be shown your profile page after
the password has been set.
Note: Administrator Registration
If you do not have an account with GroupServer, an administrator
can create one for you. If this happens, you will receive an
email message informing you that this has occurred. Clicking on
the link in the email message will take you to the Edit Profile
page (Step 4 above) and verify your email address.
Joining a Group
You will need to join a group to post messages to it.
To join a group, carry out the following.
-
Log in to NZ Open Government Online Groups
(see Logging
In to NZ Open Government Online Groups).
-
Click on Groups in the main
navigation bar.
The Groups page will be shown.
-
Click on the name of the group that you wish to join.
The Join page for the selected group will
be shown.
-
Select the delivery setting you want from the
Message Delivery Settings
list.
There are three settings possible.
- One email per post.
-
Every time a person posts to the group, you will
receive an email message.
- Daily digest of topics.
-
Once a day you will receive an email that
contains a summary of all the topics that have
been discussed in the group.
If no topics have been discussed you will not
receive a digest.
- Web only.
-
You will not receive any email when someone posts
to the group.
You can view the posts using the Web only.
-
Click on the Join button.
A message will be sent to your email account, informing
you that you have joined the group.
The Groups page and your profile will
list all the groups that you belong to
(see Viewing a
Group
and Viewing Your
Profile).
Leaving a Group
To leave a group, carry out the following.
-
View the group (see
Viewing a Group).
-
Click Leave.
You will receive a email message informing confirming
that you have left the group.
Alternatively, follow the instructions that is placed in the
footer of all email messages sent from that group.
Viewing a Group
Viewing a group allows you to see information about the group,
including who belongs to the group and the messages that have been
sent to the group.
(The exact information that is visible can differ from group to
group, and will depend on your group membership.)
To view a group, carry out the following.
-
Click Groups, in the main
navigation bar, to show the Online Groups
page.
-
Select a group from the My Groups or
Other Groups lists.
The page for the selected group will be shown.
Your profile also displays the My Groups
list, which can be used to access groups.
Changing the Message Settings for a Group
You can
change how you are notified of messages posted to a group
and
change which email address notifications are sent to.
Changing Your Message Notification Settings
Carry out the following, to change how you are informed of
messages posted to a group.
-
Join the group (see
Joining
a Group).
-
View the group (see
Viewing a
Group).
-
Click Change your email settings,
which is found in the
Members section of the group
homepage, or Email settings in the
context-menu for the group.
The Email Delivery Settings page for the group
will be shown.
-
Select the desired notification option from the
Message Notification list (see
Message
Notification Preferences).
-
Click the Change button.
Message Notification Preferences
| Name |
Description |
| One email per post |
You will receive an email every time there is a post
to the group. |
| Digest of Topics |
You will receive an email that summarises the
daily-activity in the group; if there is
no activity for a week, then you will only receive
a message at the end of the week. |
| Delivery disabled |
You will not receive any email related to the
group. |
On the first day of each month, regardless of your message
settings, you will be sent an email-reminder by
NZ Open Government Online Groups that
lists the groups you belong to, the message settings for each
group, and how to leave the groups.
Choose Your Delivery Address
If you have multiple email addresses registered with
NZ Open Government Online Groups (see
Adding
an Email Address), then you can change where email
messages from a group are sent.
To do this, carry out the following.
-
Join the group (see
Joining a
Group).
-
View the group (see
Viewing a
Group).
-
Click Change your email settings,
which is found in the
Members section of the group
homepage, or Email settings in the
side-menu for the group.
The Email Delivery Settings page for the group
will be shown.
-
Select either of the following options.
- Default
- Messages are sent to the default email addresses or
addresses
(see
Setting the Default Email Address).
- Specific Address or Addresses
- Messages are sent to the selected addresses that are
listed below the
Specific Address or Addresses
option.
(If there is only one email address registered with
NZ Open Government Online Groups, then the
Email Addresses Used list will not
be shown.)
-
Click the Change button.
Participating Online Using NZ Open Government Online Groups
You can participate online using NZ Open Government Online Groups by
contacting
other users, by
working
with messages, or by
working with files.
Working with Messages
Messages form the basis of participation on NZ Open Government Online Groups.
You can
read messages that
others have posted,
create messages
and
link to messages.
Reading Messages
You can read messages that are posted to groups
by
using
the Web,
by
using
email,
or by
using
Web feeds.
Reading Messages using the Web
To read a message that someone else has posted to a group,
carry out the following.
-
View the group (see
Viewing a
Group).
-
Either
-
Click on the name of a topic in the
Latest Topics list, which lists
the six most active topics on the main page for the
group, or
-
Click on Topics
and click the name of a topic that is listed on the
Topics page.
The page for the selected topic will be displayed.
(If you are not a member of a group, you may not be able
to see any topics.)
-
Scroll to view the messages, which are displayed from oldest
(at the top) to newest.
Alternatively, click on
Latest post
to view the most recent post.
Reading Messages using Email
Depending on your message settings for a group
(see
Changing Your Message Notification Settings
)
you will either be sent
an
email whenever a message is posted to the group,
a
digest of posts,
or no email notification.
Reading Email Posts
If configured, you will receive an email for each individual
message that is posted to a group.
Messages from NZ Open Government Online Groups can be identified by the subject
that starts with the name of the group in square brackets,
followed by the name of the topic.
In addition, the message will be sent from an email account
that is named after the group, such as
example_group@onlinegroups.net.
The email message will contain the text of the post, and
a link to the relevant group and topic.
You can reply to the email to add a post to the group
(see
Posting a
Message).
Reading Topic Digests
If configured, you will receive a message digest once
a day.
The message will be sent shortly after midnight, and
can be identified by the subject line that will read
[Example Group] Topic Digest
, where
Example Group
will be replaced with the name
of the group.
The message will summarise the postings in each of your
groups, and provide links that can be followed to view
the postings on
NZ Open Government Online Groups.
If you reply to a message digest you will be sent a summary
of your profile; you cannot create a post from a message
digest (see
Creating
Messages).
Reading Messages using Web Feeds
On NZ Open Government Online Groups, Web Feeds (often known as
RSS Feeds
and
Live Bookmarks
) provide summaries
of the messages that are posted to groups.
They can be viewed in an aggregator, such as
Microsoft Internet
Explorer 7,
Mozilla Firefox and
Apple Safari.
Links to three feeds are provided, which summarise the
notices, files and topics that have been posted, are
linked of the homepage for the site.
Consult the documentation for your aggregator on how
to view a feed.
Creating Messages
Messages can be created by either
posting
a message to an existing topic
or by
starting
a new topic.
Posting a Message to an Existing Topic
You can post a message to an existing topic
using
the Web
or
using
email.
Posting a Message using the Web
Carry out the following, to post a message to a topic using
the Web.
-
Log in to NZ Open Government Online Groups (see
Logging In
to NZ Open Government Online Groups).
-
View the topic (see
Reading
Messages Using the Web).
-
Scroll to the bottom of the page, where the
Add to the topic section is located.
-
Create your message.
-
Edit the text of your message in the
Message
entry.
-
Optionally, add tags to your message by writing them
into the Tags entry.
(See Tags.)
-
In addition, you may add a file along with your post
(see Posting
Files using the Web).
-
Click the Add button.
Your message will be shown on the topic page, and will
be sent to all group members who receive one email
notification of posts.
(If you do not belong to the group, you cannot
post messages to the group.)
Posting a Message using Email
To post a message to an existing topic using email, open
a message that was posted to the topic
(see
Reading Email
Posts)
and reply;
do not change the subject of the email
message, as this will cause NZ Open Government Online Groups to create a new topic
(see
Starting a New Topic Using Email).
Once sent, the message will be added to the Topics page for
the group, and be sent to all group members who receive
email notification of posts.
Starting a New Topic
You can create a new topic for discussion, in any group
that you are a member of, by
using
the Web
or
using
email.
Starting a New Topic using the Web
To create a new topic using the Web, carry out the following.
-
View the group (see
Viewing a
Group).
-
Click Start a new topic at the top
of the Current Topics list, or at
the top of the Topics page.
The Start a New Topic page will be
shown.
(If you are not a member of a group you will not be able
to create a new topic.)
-
Create your message.
-
Edit the text of your message in the
Message
entry.
-
Optionally, add tags to your message by writing them
into the Tags entry.
(See Tags.)
-
In addition, you may add a file along with your post
(see Posting
Files using the Web).
-
Click Start.
The topic page will be created, and messages will be sent
to all group members who wish to receive email notification
of posts.
Starting a New Topic using Email
To create a topic using email, send a message to the
email address for the group
(such as
example_group@onlinegroups.net)
with the message subject set to the name of topic;
do not use the name of an existing topic as this will cause
the message to be added to the existing topic, rather than
creating a new topic.
If you are not a member of a group you cannot create a new
topic, and you will be sent an error message informing you
why you cannot post to the group.
However, people who are not NZ Open Government Online Groups users will not
receive error messages.
Linking to Messages
Sometimes it is useful to send someone a link to a post.
To create a link, view the message you wish to link to
(see
Reading
Messages Using the Web)
and click short link, at the
top of the message; the post will be shown on a single
Web page.
You can copy the address of the message from
the location bar of your Web browser and paste it into any
message you wish to send.
If the recipient cannot view the post, because of inadequate
permissions, then an error message will be shown when he or she
tries and follow the link.
Working with Files
All documents, which are not messages, that are stored on
NZ Open Government Online Groups are files
.
You can
view files that others
have posted, and
post files to groups
that you belong to.
Viewing Files on NZ Open Government Online Groups
Files can be viewed
using
the Web, and linked to
using
email.
Viewing Files using the Web
To view a file using the Web, either
- View the topic that contains the file, or
- Go to the Files area for the group by
carrying out the following.
- View the group (see
Viewing a
Group).
- Click on Files.
The Files Area for the group will
be shown.
- The ten most recently posted files will be
listed.
If the file you want is not listed, use the
Items to Show,
Age of File,
Topic, and
Tags fields to limit
what files are shown.
Using either technique, when you have found the file,
click the link to the file and your Web browser will allow
you to view the file.
See also
Reading
Messages Using the Web.
Viewing Files from Email Notifications
If you have configured NZ Open Government Online Groups to send you an email whenever
someone posts a message, you will also receive an email when a
file is posted.
The file is not attached to the email. Instead, you will receive
a link to the file and a short description
(see
Viewing
File Information).
To view a file from an email, click on the link to the
file that is contained in the email message, and your Web
browser will allow you to view the file.
Viewing File Information
| Name |
Description |
| URI |
The location of the file on NZ Open Government Online Groups.
When viewed on the Web this becomes the link, which
your browser follows when you click on the
filename. |
| Filename |
The name of the file that is posted. |
| Topic |
The topic to which the file was posted. |
| User |
The user name of the person who posted the
file. |
| Size |
The size of the file. |
| Type |
The
MIME
type of file. |
| Tags |
The tags associated with the file by the user who
uploaded the file (see
Tags). |
| Date |
The date the file was posted, in year-month-day
format.
(See G. Klyne and C. Newman,
Date
and Time on the Internet: Timestamps,
IETF,
July 2002.) |
Posting Files on NZ Open Government Online Groups
Files can be posted on NZ Open Government Online Groups
using the Web or
using email.
Posting Files using the Web
To post files using the Web, carry out the following:
-
Either
-
Click the Browse button and
select a file in the file dialog, instead of (or in
addition to) writing a message.
-
Click the Post button.
The file will be uploaded to NZ Open Government Online Groups and
displayed under the relevant topic, and messages
will be sent to all group members who wish to
receive email notification of posts.
Any tags that are set (see
Tags) will be
associated with the file, as well as the message that is
sent.
Posting Files using Email
To post files using email:
-
Either
-
Attach one or more files to your email message.
-
Send your email message.
The file/s will be uploaded to NZ Open Government Online Groups and
displayed under the relevant topic. A link to each file will be included at the end of your email
along with a short description.
Managing Pages
You can manage some pages on
NZ Open Government Online Groups.
The pages you can manage will have some of the following
tabs at the top.
Depending on the privacy settings you can
change the
page,
change the privacy of
the page, and
work with the history of
the page.
Change the Contents of
a Page
To change a page, carry out the following tasks.
- Navigate to the page that you want to change.
- Click Change.
The Change page will be shown.
(Only people with the correct permissions will see
the Change link.)
- Change the contents of the page, which is shown in
the
Content entry.
You can also change the
Title and
Publish fields.
- The Title is shown
in the title-bar of your browser, in the
navigation bar at the side of the page, and at the
top of the page.
- Select the Publish
to show your new changes to the groups
of people listed at the bottom of the
Change page (which is the default).
Unselect Publish if
you want the currently published version of the
page to continue to be shown to others; the new
version will only be visble to those that
can change the page.
- Click the Change button.
Your change will be saved to a new version of the
page.
Change the Privacy
of the Page
To change a page, carry out the following tasks.
- Navigate to the page you are interested in.
- Click Privacy.
The Privacy page will be
shown.
- Select the privacy setting for the field
View the page.
The three settings are as follows.
-
Anyone
-
Any person can view the page, including those
that have not loged in.
The person does not have to be a
member any site or group.
Any computer service, such as a search engine,
can access the page.
-
Logged in members
-
The page can only be viewed by members of the
group, if the page is part of a group, or members
of the site.
The person must be logged in to view the page,
and computer services cannot access the page.
-
Administrators
-
The page can only be viewed by administrators of
the group and site, if the page is part of a
group, or administrators of the site.
The person must be logged in to view the page,
and computer services cannot access the page.
-
Select the privacy setting for the field
Change the page.
The two settings are
Members and
Administrators.
-
Click the Change button.
The privacy for the page will be changed.
The permissions for administering the page cannot be
be more lax than for viewing the page.
History
NZ Open Government Online Groups
keeps a record of all changes made to a page.
You can
view a particular
version of a page.
While only one version is
published (shown
by default), you can
publish a
particular version.
View a Version of a
Page
You can view any version of a page by carrying out the
following tasks.
- Navigate to the page you are interested in.
- Click History.
The Version History page will be shown.
(Only people with the correct permissions will see
the History link.)
Each version lists
- If the version was published or just
created,
- Who created the version.
- When the version was created, and
- How large the version is.
- Click View in the entry
of the version you want to view.
The selected version of the page will be shown.
Publish a
Version of a Page
Only one version of a page can be
published (shown to
people by default).
You can publish an older version of the page to
correct an error, or publish a draft that has not been
widely shown to people.
To publish a version carry out the following tasks.
- Navigate to the page you want to change.
- Click Change.
The Change page will show the most recent
version.
- Select the version you want to publish
from the Version History
list and click Change.
The Change page will show the selected
version.
- Click View more if
the version you want to change to is not
shown.
The History page will be shown.
- Select the version you want to publish
from the Version History
list and click Change.
The Change page will show the selected
version.
- Click the Publish
button.
The version of the page will be published.
- If the version is already published the
Publish button will
be unavailable.
- The published version will be visible to the
groups of people listed at the bottom of the
Change page.