Frequently asked website questions and answers. If can’t find the answer to your problem here, please send us an email and we’ll try to help you out.
Accounts & profile pages
How do I register?
Find the register link on the top line of the site, click on it and fill out the registration form – providing your contact details and choosing any local group you’d like to join. Submit the form and you’ll be logged in for the first time. However, you need to check your email and click on the confirmation link to be fully registered. This ensures your email address is valid and then allows you to post to the site (it’s an important protection against spam).
I never received my registration email. What happened to it?
If you use AOL, Yahoo, Hotmail or any other webmail provider, it is possible the registration email ended up in your bulk or junk mail folder. If you still can’t find it there, get in touch, and we’ll send you out a new password manually.
How do I unsubscribe?
Unfortunately you can’t yet unsubscribe yourself (it’s on the todo list). However, just send us an email with your username, and we’ll remove your account for you.
How do I add my personal profile to the site?
First of all, you need to register. Then, click on “account” (next to your username on at the very top of the site). After that, either i) use the “edit” links at the top of each section (“details”, “crags”, “carbon” etc.); or ii) go to the “edit” tab, then the “your details” or “your carbon” tabs. Enter your information and click submit!
How do I upload my photo or avatar?
Click on “account” (next to your username on at the very top of the site), then on the “edit” link to the right of your username. Find the “picture” section, and click on “browse” to find your photo on your computer (maximum dimensions 85×85; maximum size 10kB). Then click on submit to upload. It should now be displayed alongside your posts on the forum, within group and sitewide members lists, and on your profile page.
Writing posts
How do I add formatting, links or tables to my text?
When you edit your text, you can use a simple set of symbols (or “markup”) to add formatting (eg. bold, italic), links (external or internal) or tables. The symbols and how to use them are described in the CRAGs Markup Quick Reference card.
How can I include an image in a thread or wikipage ?
Upload your image to the site (using “add image” in your local group spaces or in “files”), then take a note of the ID number (XXX) shown underneath the title. When you add your thread, or other post, write [acidfree:XXX] (replacing XXX with the id number) in the main body of your text whereever you want the image to appear. Other options (such as size and alignment) are described in the CRAGs Markup Quick Reference card.
Groups
How do I add a webspace/page for my local group?
Go to the “Groups” tab (at top, just below “Carbon Rationing Action Groups”) and click on your country. At the top-right of this page, there is a link called “start new CRAG”. Click on it, follow the instructions to fill out the form, and press “submit”. You’re done!
How do I change my group introduction & description?
Either click on the “edit” links at the top-right of the relevant section, or go to the “Group settings” tab on the bar at the top of your group page. The “welcome message” box contains your group description, whilst the “description” box edits your group description. Make your changes and click “Submit”.
NB At the moment, only the group “manager” (ir. the person who first started the group) can edit the description and welcome message (see below).
I’m an admin, so why can’t I see “group settings” or update my group description?
Unfortunately, only one person – the group manager/owner/co-ordinator – can get access to “group settings” at the moment. The group manager is listed first in the membership panel on your group home page, followed by (manager). If they are not able to update your page, please email us and we’ll switch the group ownership over to someone else.
Please be assured that this issue is high up on our todo list – so all admins will be able to access “group settings” soon!
How do I put my group on the map?
Go to “group settings” on your group page, and find the “location” section. Find your town on the Google map and double-click on your location, showing a marker and adding the latitude/longitude details to the boxes below. To move or remove the marker, click once on it, then double-click again on the new location. If you already know your latitude/longitude details (eg. by entering your postcode on http://www.multimap.com), you can add them directly to the boxes below the map.
Can I control how people join my group space?
Yes. Go to “group settings” and find the “subscription requests” section, where several options control who can or cannot join your group:
- Open: Anyone registered on the site can join your group.
- Moderated: When someone asks to join your group, you will receive an email allowing you to approve or deny the request.
- Invite only: People can only join your group when you send them an invitation (go to “group admin” and “invite new members”).
- Closed: Nobody can join your group, unless you add them manually (go to “group admin” and “add members”).
These changes show up in the membership area on your front page. If your group is open or moderated, a “join” link shows up for visitors. If “invite only” or closed, there is no such link.
To make your group available to new members when they first register with the site (ie. without having to visit your group page first), go to “group settings” and find “subscription requests”, selecting “registration form”. This option is on by default, and makes it easier for people to join your group.
How do I join my local group?
Just go to your group page (you should be able to find it from http://www.carbonrationing.org.uk/groups), and click on “Join” in the light blue members box at middle right.
If the group is open, you’ll be signed up immediately. If membership is moderated, then an email will be sent to the group admin, who will then need to approve you before you are signed up. Some closed groups do not accept new members, in which case the “Join” link just does not appear.
There are a few presentations: look is under the presentations tag. Cards, an A5 leaflet and a footprinting worksheet are available in the Files section. The CRAGs short guide is also useful to have around at a launch – there are some interesting FAQs in there. Please email us if you’d like the source versions so you can work up your own local versions of these materials.
Keeping up-to-date
Notification emails allow you to keep up with posts to the site via your email. Whenever someone posts a new comment, an email is sent to your registered email address. You can reply by clicking on the links at the bottom of the mail.
You can add RSS feeds to your internet browser or to a special RSS program. These then give you an up-to-date list of the latest posts (new threads, but not individual comments), together with links to read the full version.
How do I switch on, or turn off, email notifications from the site?
Login and go to your account page (click on “account” next to your username on the very top line), then “edit”. Under “Groups settings” there are a number of “Email Notification” options that control when the site sends you emails:
- Never send email notifications: switches off all notification emails for all sections of the site
- Always send email notifications: sends you email notifications for new posts or comments in all the main sections of the site (ie. forum, files, wiki), as well as any local groups you are subscribed to.
- Choose whether to send emails on a per-group basis: allows you to choose which sections or local groups you receive email notifications from. Once you’ve selected this option, find the “email” icon on a group page (a white “letter” symbol at top/middle right, next to the orange RSS icon), then click on it to turn notifications on or off for that section or group.
NB: the “email” icon at top/middle right of any relevant page tells you whether email notifications are switched on or off on the page: enabled notifications appear as a white email icon; disabled notifications are the same, but crossed out with a red cross.
The addresses for the main feeds are listed on the RSS feeds page. Alternatively, look for the orange RSS icons at top/middle right of relevant pages. If you want to add the feed to your browser (eg. in Mozilla Firefox), click on the links and follow the instructions. For a separate feed reader, you usually need copy the link address (by right-clicking on it) and add it manually within the program.
