About.com contains a section dealing with email - http://email.about.com/ - a useful resource for locating information
A recent post is a list of - 20 most important rules for email
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Saturday, June 21, 2008
Forums
An early form of Internet communication was the Bulletin Board where Person A posted a message and Person B would post a response. To keep up to date with messages on the bulletin board it was necessary to regularly log on to the site to read the messages.
Forums provide the opportunity for members of an online group to post and reply to messages but the original message and responses are emailed to all members of the forum group. Forum messages and responses are also usually accessible on a site in the same way as the former bulletin boards or have an archive facility where all the posts on a topic can be viewed together.
A number of organisations provide forums as part of their websites where members exchange views on topics of interest to members. Members subscribe (fill in an online form normally providing name and email address and password) to join a forum. As members they can then read and can post messages.
My Connected Community (mc²) provides a collection of Internet base networking tools for the free use of community groups – a forum being one of the tools. Members of mc² groups automatically receive messages posted in the forum unless they elect not to receive messages.
The forum can be used to ask questions, provide information on a topic of interest to group members, publicise a book, offer items no longer needed for a new home, provide information about grants or awards etc. They provide a great resource for sharing information. Sometimes there will be a great response to a topic in the forum with a number of people from all parts of Victoria sharing their views on a topic. At other times there may be no response. This does not matter as forums function as information resources as well as a discussion opportunity. I often meet people who receive messages from the History Victoria Support Group mc² forum who tell me that they had taken information provided in one of the messages and discussed the topic at a committee meeting.
Using the features provided in My Connected Community is easy. You just need to be able to type in a box and press a button to send the message.
Other resources provided in mc² groups include a links page providing links to useful web sites, an events page where members can publicise the activities of their group, an images section and a section for sharing files of interest to group members. Any member of the mc² group can add material to the mc².
The RHSV website – www.historyvictoria.org.au – provides information on joining mc² plus a list of mc² groups relating to local history. Mc² groups you might consider joining include the History Victoria Support group mc² containing information relevant for members of historical societies, Computers and cataloguing mc² for those particularly interested in computer related projects and the Royal Historical Society of Victoria mc² for information relating to Victoria’s history – this is an excellent site to post information about forthcoming events for your group.
Forums provide the opportunity for members of an online group to post and reply to messages but the original message and responses are emailed to all members of the forum group. Forum messages and responses are also usually accessible on a site in the same way as the former bulletin boards or have an archive facility where all the posts on a topic can be viewed together.
A number of organisations provide forums as part of their websites where members exchange views on topics of interest to members. Members subscribe (fill in an online form normally providing name and email address and password) to join a forum. As members they can then read and can post messages.
My Connected Community (mc²) provides a collection of Internet base networking tools for the free use of community groups – a forum being one of the tools. Members of mc² groups automatically receive messages posted in the forum unless they elect not to receive messages.
The forum can be used to ask questions, provide information on a topic of interest to group members, publicise a book, offer items no longer needed for a new home, provide information about grants or awards etc. They provide a great resource for sharing information. Sometimes there will be a great response to a topic in the forum with a number of people from all parts of Victoria sharing their views on a topic. At other times there may be no response. This does not matter as forums function as information resources as well as a discussion opportunity. I often meet people who receive messages from the History Victoria Support Group mc² forum who tell me that they had taken information provided in one of the messages and discussed the topic at a committee meeting.
Using the features provided in My Connected Community is easy. You just need to be able to type in a box and press a button to send the message.
Other resources provided in mc² groups include a links page providing links to useful web sites, an events page where members can publicise the activities of their group, an images section and a section for sharing files of interest to group members. Any member of the mc² group can add material to the mc².
The RHSV website – www.historyvictoria.org.au – provides information on joining mc² plus a list of mc² groups relating to local history. Mc² groups you might consider joining include the History Victoria Support group mc² containing information relevant for members of historical societies, Computers and cataloguing mc² for those particularly interested in computer related projects and the Royal Historical Society of Victoria mc² for information relating to Victoria’s history – this is an excellent site to post information about forthcoming events for your group.
Friday, June 20, 2008
Notes on Email
From time to time I receive questions about using email or how to set up an email account.
Many historical societies now have email addresses. A major advantage of email is that an email can be sent at any time and the recipient reads and answers the email at their convenience. The original sender reads when they next log on to the computer. This is a great improvement on the telephone system where a message can be left on an answering machine and the recipient leaves a message on another answering machine to acknowledge receiving the original phone call.
Email can also use as a communication tool in real time. On more than one occasion I have replied to an email only to receive a follow up question a few minutes later. This can be a convenient (and inexpensive) way to communicate, especially if distance between the parties is a problem.
There are many different types of email accounts. Some can only be accessed only on the computer home computer.
However a number of html email accounts that can be accessed from any computer are now available including Hotmail (www.hotmail.com), Yahoo Mail (http://au.yahoo.com) or (http://mail.yahoo.com/) and Gmail (http://mail.google.com/). Although you provide details of an individual when you sign up, accounts can be established using the name or initials of the society as the user name, rather than the name of an individual. It is important to keep a copy of the user name and password in a safe place.
With email, remember there is email etiquette. It is always advisable to read through an email before using the Send button to dispatch the email. Because it is so easy to ‘dash off an email’ emails can convey a ‘tone’ which may not have been the intention of the sender. Most email programs have a facility for saving a draft of an email so it is possible to read it through again later and make changes if needed before sending.
Emails are correspondence. Copies of emails relating to the historical society should be included in the correspondence at society meetings.
Emails can also be used to send one email to a number of people as a batch email. Some email programs restrict the number of names in a batch so it may be necessary to read the Help section of the specific program for information on how to do this. This facility can be useful for sending a message to a group members or circulating a newsletter by email or for alerting members that the latest copy of the email is online.
Attachments – documents, images, spreadsheets – can also be sent by email. It is advisable to restrict the size of a file sent by email. Some email programs restrict the size of attachments. Large files take a long time to send and the person receiving the email may not have enough space in their In Box to receive the incoming email with the attachment.
Only send attachments that can be opened by the receiver. Some word processing programs use file extensions that are not recognized or cannot be opened on all computers. Documents ending in .doc are usually OK though some early versions of Microsoft Word cannot open Word documents saved in later versions. Microsoft Office 2007 saves Word documents with an extension that will not open in earlier version of Word unless a special program has been downloaded and installed from the Microsoft website. Files created in Word 2007 can be saved using the .doc extension so if sending email documents as attachments it may be advisable to save the file using the .doc extension. Files saved with .rtf extension should be able to be opened in any word processing program. Pdf documents can also be sent by email. The receiver, however, will need a program such as Adobe Acrobat Reader to read the document.
Two warnings: Never send an attachment that has not been scanned by virus protection software and never open an email, especially if there is an attachment, when you do not know the sender or are suspicious of the content.
Email is a powerful and useful communication tool. Use it wisely.
Many historical societies now have email addresses. A major advantage of email is that an email can be sent at any time and the recipient reads and answers the email at their convenience. The original sender reads when they next log on to the computer. This is a great improvement on the telephone system where a message can be left on an answering machine and the recipient leaves a message on another answering machine to acknowledge receiving the original phone call.
Email can also use as a communication tool in real time. On more than one occasion I have replied to an email only to receive a follow up question a few minutes later. This can be a convenient (and inexpensive) way to communicate, especially if distance between the parties is a problem.
There are many different types of email accounts. Some can only be accessed only on the computer home computer.
However a number of html email accounts that can be accessed from any computer are now available including Hotmail (www.hotmail.com), Yahoo Mail (http://au.yahoo.com) or (http://mail.yahoo.com/) and Gmail (http://mail.google.com/). Although you provide details of an individual when you sign up, accounts can be established using the name or initials of the society as the user name, rather than the name of an individual. It is important to keep a copy of the user name and password in a safe place.
With email, remember there is email etiquette. It is always advisable to read through an email before using the Send button to dispatch the email. Because it is so easy to ‘dash off an email’ emails can convey a ‘tone’ which may not have been the intention of the sender. Most email programs have a facility for saving a draft of an email so it is possible to read it through again later and make changes if needed before sending.
Emails are correspondence. Copies of emails relating to the historical society should be included in the correspondence at society meetings.
Emails can also be used to send one email to a number of people as a batch email. Some email programs restrict the number of names in a batch so it may be necessary to read the Help section of the specific program for information on how to do this. This facility can be useful for sending a message to a group members or circulating a newsletter by email or for alerting members that the latest copy of the email is online.
Attachments – documents, images, spreadsheets – can also be sent by email. It is advisable to restrict the size of a file sent by email. Some email programs restrict the size of attachments. Large files take a long time to send and the person receiving the email may not have enough space in their In Box to receive the incoming email with the attachment.
Only send attachments that can be opened by the receiver. Some word processing programs use file extensions that are not recognized or cannot be opened on all computers. Documents ending in .doc are usually OK though some early versions of Microsoft Word cannot open Word documents saved in later versions. Microsoft Office 2007 saves Word documents with an extension that will not open in earlier version of Word unless a special program has been downloaded and installed from the Microsoft website. Files created in Word 2007 can be saved using the .doc extension so if sending email documents as attachments it may be advisable to save the file using the .doc extension. Files saved with .rtf extension should be able to be opened in any word processing program. Pdf documents can also be sent by email. The receiver, however, will need a program such as Adobe Acrobat Reader to read the document.
Two warnings: Never send an attachment that has not been scanned by virus protection software and never open an email, especially if there is an attachment, when you do not know the sender or are suspicious of the content.
Email is a powerful and useful communication tool. Use it wisely.
Thursday, May 29, 2008
Putting the audio files online
Much of the day has been spent finalising the web pages for the podcasts. The general layout of the podcast introduction page and the page containing additional information and opportunities for accessing each item had been prepared some time ago but needed to be finalised and tested and recent audio files added.
The audio files can be played, using the media player on the page, or by clicking the Download Name of Podcast link. Right clicking on the link allows the user to save the file to a computer or portable digital player.
A page providing information about how to listen to and / or download the audio files is provided to help users who have not previously used audio files online.
The other page that had to be created was the xml page containing the RSS feed information. Podcasts can be accessed automatically when someone subscribes using the URL of the xml page and inserting it in RSS reader such as Bloglines or a podcasting program.
Getting the xml correct was a challenge as there are definite rules to follow. When the page is saved and then opened any errors are noted and the text on the page will not be displayed. Particular care has to be made that there is no white space - empty lines - in the code and that characters, such as ampersands, need to be coded - eg. instead of the symol (&), the symbol (&) followed by the combination letters (amp) and a (;) is used (no brackets of course in the actual code).
The coding chosen to be used for the RSS is the coding used by iTunes - details as to what is required can be found on the iTunes Specifications page. For the podcasts to be included in the iTunes store an account needs to be established and then a form completed to submit the podcasts.
After completing the pages I then tested the RSS using Bloglines and the Live Bookmarks feature in the Firefox browser. The RSS feed worked with the four items at present online appearing in the list of both sources. After much trial and error it was a good feeling to see it actually functioning properly.
Now that all the pages are set up any additions should be straight forward.
When the next audio file is added online, the section of coding for individual items will be copied and added to the existing code and then the information altered for the new item.
The audio files can be played, using the media player on the page, or by clicking the Download Name of Podcast link. Right clicking on the link allows the user to save the file to a computer or portable digital player.
A page providing information about how to listen to and / or download the audio files is provided to help users who have not previously used audio files online.
The other page that had to be created was the xml page containing the RSS feed information. Podcasts can be accessed automatically when someone subscribes using the URL of the xml page and inserting it in RSS reader such as Bloglines or a podcasting program.
Getting the xml correct was a challenge as there are definite rules to follow. When the page is saved and then opened any errors are noted and the text on the page will not be displayed. Particular care has to be made that there is no white space - empty lines - in the code and that characters, such as ampersands, need to be coded - eg. instead of the symol (&), the symbol (&) followed by the combination letters (amp) and a (;) is used (no brackets of course in the actual code).
The coding chosen to be used for the RSS is the coding used by iTunes - details as to what is required can be found on the iTunes Specifications page. For the podcasts to be included in the iTunes store an account needs to be established and then a form completed to submit the podcasts.
After completing the pages I then tested the RSS using Bloglines and the Live Bookmarks feature in the Firefox browser. The RSS feed worked with the four items at present online appearing in the list of both sources. After much trial and error it was a good feeling to see it actually functioning properly.
Now that all the pages are set up any additions should be straight forward.
When the next audio file is added online, the section of coding for individual items will be copied and added to the existing code and then the information altered for the new item.
Saturday, May 17, 2008
Web design for all computers
A major challenge when creating pages for the Internet, whether pages for a website or an online exhibition, is that people viewing the pages are going to be using different computers and different operating systems and different browsers. These variables will all affect how the finished page will appear on a computer screen. A page may look great on the computer where the page is designed but not as impressive on another computer screen.
Always check the pages in at least two browsers. The most commonly used browsers at present, in Australia, are Internet Explorer and Firefox. If the pages work in both of these browsers they should be OK. Sometimes specific coding that works in one browser may not apply in the other browser so alternative coding may be required to produce the desired effect.
Internet Explorer sometimes ignores coding that is not correctly entered - Firefox rarely does this - so if there are problems with a page in Firefox always check the coding carefully (particularly ending tags).
Different versions of browsers can also affect how a page looks on the screen. For example a page viewed in Internet Explorer 7 may appear differently to the same page viewed in Internet Explorer 6.
Different versions of browsers can also affect how a page looks on the screen. For example a page viewed in Windows XP may appear differently to the same page viewed in Windows 98.
The size of the computer screen will affect the way web pages are viewed. Some people have computers, often passed down from family members, with monitors with small screens while it is now possible to purchase computers with 22 inch screens.
Screen resolution also affects the appearance of web pages on a screen. A webpage designed in a screen with a resolution 1280 x 1024 pixels could look very different in a screen with the resolution 800 x 600 pixels.
To some extent it is a case of knowing your audience. Web pages for local history will often be viewed by people with older computers so it is best to design pages that will look reasonable on smaller screens.
Thursday, May 15, 2008
About.Computers
A useful website on a wide range of IT issues is About.com: Computers & Technology - http://www.about.com/compute/ . The site contains links to a selection of articles on a wide range of topics as well as product reviews.
There is also an online newsletter to which you can subscribe to receive regular articles. Online newsletter topics - About computers; Podcasting; Web design; Blogs.
I have been receiving the About computers newsletter for several years now and find it useful for an overview of what is available and an introduction to new developments.
There is also an online newsletter to which you can subscribe to receive regular articles. Online newsletter topics - About computers; Podcasting; Web design; Blogs.
I have been receiving the About computers newsletter for several years now and find it useful for an overview of what is available and an introduction to new developments.
Thursday, April 24, 2008
Pop up windows
A feature used in many websites is the provision of pop up windows. Pop up windows allow additional information to be appear in a separate window on the page.
This feature was experimented with on some of the pages when designing the MacRobertson's Round Australia Expedition online exhibition. Pop up windows can be useful for providing small amounts of additional information in a small window rather than linking to a full sized additional page on the topic however some browsers such as Internet Explorer on XP and versions of Mozilla Firefox can block the use of javascript or warn web page users that there is a pop up window each time the page is loaded. This becomes extemely annoying so it was decided not to use this feature on the site.
Pop up window example - provides an example of the use of a pop up window plus the code used to create it.
Some points to consider if planning to use pop up windows:
Popup windows - the basics
(includes explanation of each section of code)
How to make a pop-up window
The perfect pop-up
Popup windows
This feature was experimented with on some of the pages when designing the MacRobertson's Round Australia Expedition online exhibition. Pop up windows can be useful for providing small amounts of additional information in a small window rather than linking to a full sized additional page on the topic however some browsers such as Internet Explorer on XP and versions of Mozilla Firefox can block the use of javascript or warn web page users that there is a pop up window each time the page is loaded. This becomes extemely annoying so it was decided not to use this feature on the site.
Pop up window example - provides an example of the use of a pop up window plus the code used to create it.
Some points to consider if planning to use pop up windows:
- Javascript is usually used to create the pop up window and to provide control over the size and design of the window although a basic effect can be created with html
- On the page containing the pop up window the script information can be added to the head section between script tags
- In the body of the page, additional code is added to the link code to enable the pop up window to appear
- Punctuation is important
- If pop up windows are to be used on a number of pages an external javascript page can be created and saved for example as popup.js - reference to the javascript page (src="popup.js") is made in the script tag section in the header
- Because not all browsers cope with pop up windows, html code is normally included in the javascript to produce a direct html link to the page containing the information if the pop up window is not going to work
- It is useful, in the pop up window, to include information about closing the window either as text or by using additional javascript to produce a close button
Popup windows - the basics
(includes explanation of each section of code)
How to make a pop-up window
The perfect pop-up
Popup windows
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