FAQ
news December 2, 2005 - 12:49pm
What is AboutLife?
AboutLife is an on-line magazine of the Christian Life. It's content is derived from the AboutLife by-invitation network for friends and alumni of the Alpha course. It offers a place to read, and especially write, about the lives of Christians the world over. It does this by offering members a blog (short for "web log"), a kind of on-line journal, and a means of finding and communicating with other members who share the same interests and passions wherever in the world they are located.
Who is behind AboutLife?
AboutLife is a non-profit organisation which supports the work of Alpha International
What is the purpose of AboutLife?
- To bring to a wider audience stories of the wonderful things that God is doing in the world today.
- To enable fellowship between geographically dispersed friends and alumni of Alpha.
- To enable friends and alumni of Alpha to support it's work by telling their stories and donating financially.
- To support churches running the Alpha course by providing them with additional resources including on-line news from their own congregations
How do I become a member?
You have to be invited by an existing member. If you have not already been invited you will likely be invited soon. If you can't wait, please register your interest via the link on the home page.
Who can be a member?
Anyone who supports the work and aims of Alpha
What does it cost?
AboutLife is free. We do ask all members if they would like to donate. Donations will help someone, somewhere do an Alpha course.
How do I donate?
If you’re from outside the UK click here.
If you’re from inside the UK click here.
What happens to donations?
AboutLife donations are used entirely to help fund the international work of Alpha. The Alpha course is used by more than 30,000 churches in 160 countries many of them very poor. Currently more than 1m people a year do the course. The demand for resources and help with running Alpha far outstrips our ability to provide. Any donations made will help us to close that gap.
What is a blog?
A blog (short for "web log") is an on-line journal usually kept by an individual. It places the journal entries in date order with the latest entry always at the top. They have become extraordinarily popular in the last two years. Current estimates exceed 25m blogs being kept. They have proved influential on the political debate, are used by companies to keep customers up to date, but are equally used as a social medium to record and share people's high and lows and everything in between. The best way to get a feel for the medium is visit a number of blogs.
How do I post an entry?
On your blog page you click the large button "post new blog entry". This will take you to an input page. You simply fill in a title, write the entry in the box marked "Body" and then scroll all the way down to the bottom and press the button marked "Submit". You will then see your new entry. If you then go back to you blog by pressing "my blog" you will see your new entry at the top of your blog. Sometimes you may need to hit “refresh” in your browser to make sure you are seeing your most recent entries.
Can I delete my posts?
Yes. Feel free to experiment. You can always delete anything you have written. You can also restrict who can see your posts.
What should I write?
You can write anything at all (so long as it complies with the Terms of Service), your blog is yours. However, we would be pleased if from time to time you included anything related to Alpha or what God is doing in your life in any other way. Generally blogs are most interesting when people write about things that they know about. Have a look at other peoples blogs if you need ideas and inspiration. Please be yourself - but be kind to other people too!
Finding things you’ve written – tagging
Tags are index words which allow you to find similar entries in your and other people’s blogs. For example tagging a post ‘prisons’ will put that keyword under your entry; clicking on it will bring up all the posts with the same tag. Multiple tags can be attached to each post. Tags are in the form ‘prisons, alpha, news’. Please note the commas between words are important. Tip: Use lots of tag words, in due course you’ll find them really useful in finding your old stuff and guiding people to different areas of your blog.
Can I invite others to be members?
Yes. All members will be given some invitations to give to their friends. The number of invitations issued will vary from time to time. This allows us to control the growth of the network and ensure we can always deliver a top class service.
Who should I invite?
Anyone who supports the aims of Alpha is welcome. The value of the network depends on everyone knowing and vouching for the other members they invite. So please never ever invite someone you do not know.
How do I invite someone?
On the left side of your blog click ‘invite a friend’. You will need to fill in your friend’s email address. You can edit the personal message. By default the invitation assumes your friend attends the same church as you. If they attend another church and its not on the list please tick the box ‘I do not wish to provide church details’.
Can I restrict who sees my posts?
Yes. Towards the bottom of the "post new blog entry" page you will see some buttons in a box marked "Access controls". The buttons read "Public", "Members Only" and "Restricted". They restrict who can see this particular post. The first two are self explanatory the third a little more involved - but very useful. Basically it allows you to define which other members can see this post. You can create groups of members quite simply and give each group a name e.g "local friends", "project group". The mechanics of creating a group are discussed below. Once a group is created it will be displayed in the "Access controls" box. To set that level of access, press the "Restricted" button and then tick the control group you desire. You can always come back later and change the level of access.
How do I format my post?
On the "post new blog entry page" at the top of the box marked "Body" you will see some icons. These apply formatting to text in the box. To make text bold or italic simply highlight the text and press the appropriate button. The rest of the buttons are mostly self explanatory. The next two entries provide particular help with the three buttons at the extreme righthand side as these actions may not be familiar.
How do I make a link to another web page?
Including a link to another web page is easy. The simplest way is to simply type the website address in your post. It will then automatically be formatted as a hyperlink. If you want more control over how the link is named and how it opens you can use the link controls. Start by highlighting the piece of text that you want to form the link. When you highlight any text you will note that the buttons on the right hand side looking like the link of a chain and a broken link, light up. You then click on the one that looks like a link and a dialogue box will come up. In the first box you must fill in the web address of the page you want to link to. Once you have completed the other input boxes, press "Insert" and you will see the link completed in your text. In the same manner the broken link button will break a link to another page.
How do I set the length of “teasers”?
AboutLife breaks entries into "teaser" (the part seen on your main blog page) and the body i.e. the rest of the story. AboutLife will set the break automatically. However, it can be overidden by placing the cursor in the text at the point you wish to end the teaser and pressing the button on the extreme right (it looks like a dash).
How do I find friends?
There are a number of ways in which you can find friends on AboutLife.
- If you know their "handle" (the name they call themselves on AboutLife) or the title of their blog you can search for them using the search box - remembering to press the "users" tab on the results.
- If they are in your church (and it's not too large) you can go to your account page by pressing "my account" at the side of your blog and click on the name of your church. You will get a list of all the AboutLife members in your church.
- You can do something similar if they share an interest by clicking on that interest.
- If you still can't find them but you can find one of their friends, go to the friend’s blog and look on their list of friends.
If you still can’t find them maybe you need to send them an invite!
How can I read friends’ posts?
Every blog has a link "add to friends". If you click on this, that person will be added to your "friends list". It really means that you want to subscribe to there blog, not that you are necessarily friendly with them! Once you have done that, when you click on the "my friends' blogs" button on the left of your blog you will see all the latest entries from all the blogs you have subscribed to.
How do I promote/relegate/delete friends?
The right hand column of your blog has ‘Featured Friends’ a space on which you can highlight some of your favourite AboutLife blogs. To add to your ‘featured friends’ simply click ‘my friends’ and then click ‘list’. Once you’ve found the friend you want to add click ‘add to featured friends’. To remove or delete simply reverse the procedure.
Can I comment on other people's posts?
At the bottom of each blog post there is a "comment" box. Simply write your comment and press "submit". Your comment will be shown under the blog post.
How do I know when someone comments on my post?
On the right hand side of your blog is a "recent comments" box. This will show the most recent comments on your blog. We will be looking to provide email notifications very soon.
How can I contact other members?
You can check their biography page. The click on the tab labelled "contact". Either there will be a message saying they don't wish to be contacted or there will be a form you can fill in that will send them an email.
How can others contact me?
Please never leave your email address on the site or in a post or comment unless you like receiving spam. You can go to your own biography page (top right on your blog), click on the "edit" tab and scroll down. Towards the bottom there is a check box which you can set either to receive messages or not.
How can I report inappropriate content or problems with the site?
Simply click on the ‘Report Page’ link which is in the header section of every page and.
Does AboutLife work properly in all browsers?
There are reported problems with posting using Safari 2 on Mac, IE on Mac and IE7 on Windows
AboutLife is an on-line magazine of the Christian Life. It's content is derived from the AboutLife by-invitation network for friends and alumni of the Alpha course. It offers a place to read, and especially write, about the lives of Christians the world over. It does this by offering members a blog (short for "web log"), a kind of on-line journal, and a means of finding and communicating with other members who share the same interests and passions wherever in the world they are located.
Who is behind AboutLife?
AboutLife is a non-profit organisation which supports the work of Alpha International
What is the purpose of AboutLife?
- To bring to a wider audience stories of the wonderful things that God is doing in the world today.
- To enable fellowship between geographically dispersed friends and alumni of Alpha.
- To enable friends and alumni of Alpha to support it's work by telling their stories and donating financially.
- To support churches running the Alpha course by providing them with additional resources including on-line news from their own congregations
How do I become a member?
You have to be invited by an existing member. If you have not already been invited you will likely be invited soon. If you can't wait, please register your interest via the link on the home page.
Who can be a member?
Anyone who supports the work and aims of Alpha
What does it cost?
AboutLife is free. We do ask all members if they would like to donate. Donations will help someone, somewhere do an Alpha course.
How do I donate?
If you’re from outside the UK click here.
If you’re from inside the UK click here.
What happens to donations?
AboutLife donations are used entirely to help fund the international work of Alpha. The Alpha course is used by more than 30,000 churches in 160 countries many of them very poor. Currently more than 1m people a year do the course. The demand for resources and help with running Alpha far outstrips our ability to provide. Any donations made will help us to close that gap.
What is a blog?
A blog (short for "web log") is an on-line journal usually kept by an individual. It places the journal entries in date order with the latest entry always at the top. They have become extraordinarily popular in the last two years. Current estimates exceed 25m blogs being kept. They have proved influential on the political debate, are used by companies to keep customers up to date, but are equally used as a social medium to record and share people's high and lows and everything in between. The best way to get a feel for the medium is visit a number of blogs.
How do I post an entry?
On your blog page you click the large button "post new blog entry". This will take you to an input page. You simply fill in a title, write the entry in the box marked "Body" and then scroll all the way down to the bottom and press the button marked "Submit". You will then see your new entry. If you then go back to you blog by pressing "my blog" you will see your new entry at the top of your blog. Sometimes you may need to hit “refresh” in your browser to make sure you are seeing your most recent entries.
Can I delete my posts?
Yes. Feel free to experiment. You can always delete anything you have written. You can also restrict who can see your posts.
What should I write?
You can write anything at all (so long as it complies with the Terms of Service), your blog is yours. However, we would be pleased if from time to time you included anything related to Alpha or what God is doing in your life in any other way. Generally blogs are most interesting when people write about things that they know about. Have a look at other peoples blogs if you need ideas and inspiration. Please be yourself - but be kind to other people too!
Finding things you’ve written – tagging
Tags are index words which allow you to find similar entries in your and other people’s blogs. For example tagging a post ‘prisons’ will put that keyword under your entry; clicking on it will bring up all the posts with the same tag. Multiple tags can be attached to each post. Tags are in the form ‘prisons, alpha, news’. Please note the commas between words are important. Tip: Use lots of tag words, in due course you’ll find them really useful in finding your old stuff and guiding people to different areas of your blog.
Can I invite others to be members?
Yes. All members will be given some invitations to give to their friends. The number of invitations issued will vary from time to time. This allows us to control the growth of the network and ensure we can always deliver a top class service.
Who should I invite?
Anyone who supports the aims of Alpha is welcome. The value of the network depends on everyone knowing and vouching for the other members they invite. So please never ever invite someone you do not know.
How do I invite someone?
On the left side of your blog click ‘invite a friend’. You will need to fill in your friend’s email address. You can edit the personal message. By default the invitation assumes your friend attends the same church as you. If they attend another church and its not on the list please tick the box ‘I do not wish to provide church details’.
Can I restrict who sees my posts?
Yes. Towards the bottom of the "post new blog entry" page you will see some buttons in a box marked "Access controls". The buttons read "Public", "Members Only" and "Restricted". They restrict who can see this particular post. The first two are self explanatory the third a little more involved - but very useful. Basically it allows you to define which other members can see this post. You can create groups of members quite simply and give each group a name e.g "local friends", "project group". The mechanics of creating a group are discussed below. Once a group is created it will be displayed in the "Access controls" box. To set that level of access, press the "Restricted" button and then tick the control group you desire. You can always come back later and change the level of access.
How do I format my post?
On the "post new blog entry page" at the top of the box marked "Body" you will see some icons. These apply formatting to text in the box. To make text bold or italic simply highlight the text and press the appropriate button. The rest of the buttons are mostly self explanatory. The next two entries provide particular help with the three buttons at the extreme righthand side as these actions may not be familiar.
How do I make a link to another web page?
Including a link to another web page is easy. The simplest way is to simply type the website address in your post. It will then automatically be formatted as a hyperlink. If you want more control over how the link is named and how it opens you can use the link controls. Start by highlighting the piece of text that you want to form the link. When you highlight any text you will note that the buttons on the right hand side looking like the link of a chain and a broken link, light up. You then click on the one that looks like a link and a dialogue box will come up. In the first box you must fill in the web address of the page you want to link to. Once you have completed the other input boxes, press "Insert" and you will see the link completed in your text. In the same manner the broken link button will break a link to another page.
How do I set the length of “teasers”?
AboutLife breaks entries into "teaser" (the part seen on your main blog page) and the body i.e. the rest of the story. AboutLife will set the break automatically. However, it can be overidden by placing the cursor in the text at the point you wish to end the teaser and pressing the button on the extreme right (it looks like a dash).
How do I find friends?
There are a number of ways in which you can find friends on AboutLife.
- If you know their "handle" (the name they call themselves on AboutLife) or the title of their blog you can search for them using the search box - remembering to press the "users" tab on the results.
- If they are in your church (and it's not too large) you can go to your account page by pressing "my account" at the side of your blog and click on the name of your church. You will get a list of all the AboutLife members in your church.
- You can do something similar if they share an interest by clicking on that interest.
- If you still can't find them but you can find one of their friends, go to the friend’s blog and look on their list of friends.
If you still can’t find them maybe you need to send them an invite!
How can I read friends’ posts?
Every blog has a link "add to friends". If you click on this, that person will be added to your "friends list". It really means that you want to subscribe to there blog, not that you are necessarily friendly with them! Once you have done that, when you click on the "my friends' blogs" button on the left of your blog you will see all the latest entries from all the blogs you have subscribed to.
How do I promote/relegate/delete friends?
The right hand column of your blog has ‘Featured Friends’ a space on which you can highlight some of your favourite AboutLife blogs. To add to your ‘featured friends’ simply click ‘my friends’ and then click ‘list’. Once you’ve found the friend you want to add click ‘add to featured friends’. To remove or delete simply reverse the procedure.
Can I comment on other people's posts?
At the bottom of each blog post there is a "comment" box. Simply write your comment and press "submit". Your comment will be shown under the blog post.
How do I know when someone comments on my post?
On the right hand side of your blog is a "recent comments" box. This will show the most recent comments on your blog. We will be looking to provide email notifications very soon.
How can I contact other members?
You can check their biography page. The click on the tab labelled "contact". Either there will be a message saying they don't wish to be contacted or there will be a form you can fill in that will send them an email.
How can others contact me?
Please never leave your email address on the site or in a post or comment unless you like receiving spam. You can go to your own biography page (top right on your blog), click on the "edit" tab and scroll down. Towards the bottom there is a check box which you can set either to receive messages or not.
How can I report inappropriate content or problems with the site?
Simply click on the ‘Report Page’ link which is in the header section of every page and.
Does AboutLife work properly in all browsers?
There are reported problems with posting using Safari 2 on Mac, IE on Mac and IE7 on Windows
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