- About
- Accounts
- Communities
- Creating a community
- Forums
- Events
- Members
- Library
- Wiki
- Blogs
- RSS News feeds
- Search
- Alerts
- Feedback
- Messages
- My Profile
- Online Presence
- Privacy
- Font size
- What are tags?
- Community Themes
- Online facilitation Guide
- What is a cloud?
- Shoutbox
- Community Hub
- Phase 3c Release note 9/10 May 2009
- Invite people to join a community
- Sharing content with others
- Video Walkthroughs
About
What is communities of practice for local government?
Communities of practice for local government is a website that supports collaboration across local government and the public sector. It is a freely accessible resource that enables like-minded people to form online communities of practice, which are supported by collaboration tools that encourage knowledge sharing and learning from each others’ experiences.
A Community of Practice (CoP) is a network of individuals with common problems or interests who get together and explore ways of working to identify common solutions and share good practice and ideas.
This service is provided by the Improvement and Development Agency for local government and a partnership is in place with the Improvement Service for local government in Scotland.
If you are based in England and Wales and need assistance please email communities@idea.gov.uk
If you are based in Scotland please email communities@improvementservice.org.uk
What are the benefits?
The benefits of CoPs lie in providing a collaborative environment that connects people to other people, information and knoweldge. Specifically CoPs can:
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encourage the development and sharing of new ideas and strategies
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support faster problem-solving
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cut down on the duplication of effort
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provide potentially endless access to expertise
What browsers does Communities of practice for local government support?
www.communities.idea.gov.uk runs best on the following browsers:
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Internet Explorer 6 and above
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Firefox 2 and above
Although you're welcome to use communities of practice for local government with a browser that is not in this list, we cannot guarantee that all of our features will work correctly.
Does Communities of practice use Javascript?
Communities of practice uses javascript in the text editing areas of the communities allowing members to hyperlink between sections such as events, library, wikis and external websites without the use of long URL's. Enabling Javascript is not essential to the use of www.communties.idea.gov.uk but it will help make the user experience much more comfortable.
What do others say about communities of practice?
"If you want to know what's coming out and how people are converting high livel concepts into reality, it's the place to go. You know that there is someone out there who is probably at the peak of the subject." Silvina Katz, Northampton Borough Council, policy team leader, corporate coordinator for equalities standard.
"You could spend a lot of effort and energy trying to work something out, when another local authority has already done the work." Tracy Marshall, Corporate Projects Officer, Calderdale Council.
"I responded to a question from someone trying to set up an innovation fund and I posted up a link to an article I'd read. That's the value of CoPs - putting questions up and someone has an answer and points you in the right direction." Matthew Lumsden, Policy & Performance Officer, London Borough of Haringey.
Accounts
How do I register?
To register, select the "Register" button on http://www.communities.idea.gov.uk and become a community of practice member today. Follow the simple steps to set up your profile.
How do I sign in?
Enter your e-mail address and password section and select "Sign in".
How can I change my profile, password or email address?
Go to www.communities.idea.gov.uk and sign in.
Click "My profile"
then "Edit my profile".
Here you will be able to change your personal details including your profile, picture, password and email address. Once relevant changes have been made select "Save changes” at the bottom of the page.
How do I change my profile photo?
Go to www.communities.idea.gov.uk and sign in.
Select "My profile" then "Edit my profile".
Select the "Browse" button under the “Your photograph” field to locate an image on your computer.
Please note the image you use, can be a maximum of 75 x 75 pixel, approx 20KB in JPEG, GIF or PNG formats
When you upload a new photo, the old one will be deleted. Select "Save changes” at the bottom of the page.
What do I do if I've forgotten my password?
If you've forgotten your password, select "Forgot my password?".
You will be taken to another page where you'll be asked for your email address.
Enter your email address and you'll be sent an email with a password reminder.
If you've done this a few times and have not received the password reminder or receive an error with the email address, please email communities@idea.gov.uk.
How do I log out?
Select the “Logout” link in the top middle of the screen.
This will log you out of www.communities.idea.gov.uk and take you back to the welcome page.
How can I remove my profile from www.communities.idea.gov.uk
If you no longer wish to belong to www.communites.idea.gov.uk supported by IDeA, please login in with your email address and password. Select "My profile" in the Tools section select "Remove my registration" you will be asked to confirm this action by selecting "Go".
This will remove you from Communities of Practice for Local Government all your existing community memberships will all be revoked and you will no longer receive any email alerts.
Communities
How can I search for communities?
Select “Communities” at the top of the page, and you will be taken to a list of all communities currently running.
Once you arrive at the communities page there are four ways for you to search for or find a community:
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Alphabetically: select the "A-Z index" tab at the top of the page, all communities will be listed alphabetically or you can select a letter and be shown all communities starting with that letter.
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By Date Started: select the "By date started" tab at the top of the page, all communities will be listed with the most recently created first.
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By Tag Cloud: select the "Cloud" tab at the top of the page. You will be taken to a 'tag cloud', which is a representation of key words that have been 'tagged' to individual communities. The more prominent, the more communities have been 'tagged' with that word. Click on any of the words and you will be taken to a list of communities that have been tagged with that word.
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Standard Search: to perform a standard search enter search terms in the box on the right hand side of the page, or select the "Search" tab at the top of the page and enter search terms in the box that appears on the following page.
Alternatively, you can select "Find a community" under "Tools" on your overview page.
How do I join a community?
Having searched for the community you would like to join (see above) you will have two options. “Apply to join” indicates that it is a private community and facilitators of the community will have to approve your application. “Join” are open communities that any member of www.communities.idea.gov.uk can join.
How can I participate in a community discussion? Do I have to be a member of the community?
To participate in a community’s discussion, you have to be a member of that community. Once you are a member, select the "Start new topic" link to start a thread, or simply reply to an existing thread.
How many communities can I join?
As many as you like, join away!
How do I leave a community?
Go to the community you wish to leave. On the right hand side under "tools" select "Leave this community".
You will be taken to a warning message. If you are sure you want to leave the community select "Go".
Creating a community
How do I create a new community?
To create a new community select "Communities" then the "Create community" tab. To start your application please select "Create your own community". (Please read the details of the information required to set up a community below)
On each of the next three screens read the text and select "Agree and continue". Complete the required fields and "Confirm and submit". Your application will be sent to an administrator for approval.
What communities are eligible to be be created on CoPs?
To create a new community, you must be signed in as a member of www.communities.idea.gov.uk, and for a new community to be eligible on the CoP collaboration platform, your community must fit into one of the following categories:
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a community created for expert groups or not-for-profit organisations with expertise in specific areas relevant to the improvement of services provided by local government in the United Kingdom
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a community for national or regional networks / community organisations with membership around a specialist area relevant to the improvement of services provided by local government in the United Kingdom
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a community created specifically to achieve particular short-term goals related to the improvement of services provided by local government in the United Kingdom
If your community does not fit into any of the above categories, you may still be able to create it, however, you will need to gain approval from a CoPs administrator beforehand. Please email communities@idea.gov.uk to discuss your community with an administrator.
What's required to create a community?
We require a minimum of 3 community facilitators who will be responsible for supporting the work of the community and for admitting members.The first name will be the primary facilitator. All facilitators must be registered on Communities of Practice for Local Government to be able to complete the application.
The key elements needed for the community set up include:
Community Title (max 100 characters): if your community name is an acronym could you please use the full title then the acronym.
Lead Organisation
Lead Facilitator
Type: will your community be Private (The facilitator must approve new members) or Public (Registered users can automatically join)
Public Description (max 300 characters): this information is visible to all site members through the ‘communities’ section. The public description should state what the community is for, who it is for and give a contact name if someone needs more information.
Welcome Text and Purpose (600 characters): you will need some text to welcome your members and instantly define the purpose.
Location: England and Wales or Scotland
Features: allows you to select the functionality that you wish to have in the community,Forum and Member List are enabled in all communities. You can select from Event Calendar, Library, Wiki, News feeds and Blog entries.
Key Words: What areas does your community address? For example – rural issues, planning, efficiency etc. This information will help members find you.
What are my responsibilities in setting up and running a Community of Practice?
All communities require good, active facilitation and management by a team of facilitators. Facilitators network and connect community members by identifying the needs of the community, encouraging participation, facilitating and seeding discussions, and by keeping events and community activities engaging and vibrant. Some of the key responsibilities include:
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energising the community and serving as chief motivator
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identifying the community needs
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accepting and welcoming new community members
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encouraging participation in community events, discussions and activities
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working to keep online discussions engaging, flowing, and vibrant
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injecting insightful comments and making provocative points in online discussions
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providing closure when necessary and giving constructive feedback
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capturing knowledge nuggets
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working to network community members with Topical Experts
What are the key skills and attributes that facilitators require?
Personal attributes include:
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creativity and being innovative
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good networking skills and enthusiasm
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the ability to motivate and engage community members
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a highly proactive, responsive, trustworthy, collaborative and cooperative nature
Skills required include:
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experience (or willingness to learn) in online or face-to-face facilitation techniques for communities, teams or groups
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good interpersonal and communications skills
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proficiency and experience in online or face-to- face collaboration tools, software and technology or at the least, a willingness and enthusiasm to learn
Forums
What is a forum?
Forums are great for having discussions with other members of your community. They are probably the easiest way for new members to get involved too. An example of a forum post might be to draw community members to a certain document or news item, and ask for everyone’s views on the subject.
How can I start a forum discussion?
To start a thread, Select the Forum tab and then the "Start new topic" link
What is the text box (WYSIWYG)?
WYSIWYG, an acronym for What You See Is What You Get, is an editor that allows you to create formatted content that looks the same when you're editing it and when you publish it. The WYSIWYG editor is the toolbar you see at the top of the box when you edit the text.
The WYSIWYG includes:
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bold
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italics
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underline
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bullet points
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insert/edit image
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insert/edit link
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unlink
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insert/edit flash movie
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undo
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redo
- draw table
- table row properties
- table cell properties
- insert row before
- delete row
- insert column before
- insert column after
- remove column
- split merged table cell
- merge table cell
- copy from word (allows direct copying from word without losing formatting)
Can I edit my forum posting?
Yes! To edit, select the discussion where you have made a posting. Locate the "Edit" link next to your name and select.
You will now be able to amend your posting.
How do I add a hyperlink?
To make text into a hyperlink link, highlight the text and select the "Insert / edit link" icon in the toolbar. This button looks like a chain link. In the box that pops up, type the URL you want the text to link to.
Once you select“Insert” anyone can use the link.
How do I add an image?
You can insert an image by selecting the "Insert/edit image" button in the toolbar. This button looks like a tree. A window will pop up prompting you to select a photo from your computer to upload.
Once you've found the image you want, select the "Insert" button. This will insert the image.
How do I attach a file to my forum post?
To attach a file to a discussion, select the "Browse" button at the bottom of the text box.
To attach a file to a discussion, browse your computer for the file you want and select "Open". Alternately you can upload the document into document library area and use the hyperlink option.
Can I embed videos from YouTube into a forum post?
Absolutely! Select the "Insert/edit flash" button within the forum you wish to add the YouTube video to. A pop up will appear where you can paste the YouTube video web address.
Select "insert" to embed to the video into the text box.
Can I delete a reply I've made to a forum post?
No, but you can edit your reply to a discussion at any time by Selecting "Edit" next to post you made.
Can I sort forum posts?
You can sort your forum posts by "Most current", "A-Z," or "My topics" under your Forum tab.
You can also sort forum posts by Themes.
What are forum themes?
Different forum topics can be catergorised by themes. To view forum topics by the themes they come under, select "view by themes" under "tools" on the right hand side of the forums page.
To return to the "all topics" view, select "view all topics" under "tools".
To add a new forum topic to a particular theme, while creating or editing the topic, select the drop down box underneath the heading "Themes (optional)" and assign your new forum topic to a particular theme.
What are tags?
Tags are a great way to categorise all items in a community, ie forums, events, documents, wikis and blogs by their content.
Tags are one-word descriptors that you can assign to community items to help you organise and remember them.
Tags are similar to keywords, but they're chosen by you, and they do not form a hierarchy. You can assign as many tags to an item as you like. So, tagging can be a lot easier and more flexible than fitting your items into preconceived categories or folders.
Tags are used to form a tag-cloud, which gives a visual indication of the type of information in the community.
Events
What is the events area? The Event calendar is a place for you to share and publish events. The idea is to create a comprehensive directory of all the conferences, seminars, workshops and courses coming up which are relevant to the community. How can I post a new event? To post a new event to a community, select the Event tab and then on the "Add new event" link. Adding attachments to an event You can also attach documents when posting an event. Just locate 'File attachments' having selected 'add a new event' and you will see the option of browing for a file to attach. You can attach a maximum of three files. WYSIWYG, an acronym for What You See Is What You Get, is an editor that allows you to create formatted content that looks the same when you're editing it and when you publish it. The WYSIWYG editor is the toolbar you see at the top of the box when you edit the text. The WYSIWYG includes: Can I edit my event posting? Yes! To edit, select the Event posting. Locate the "Edit this event" link where you can edit the posting. Sharing an event in the Community Hub You are now able publish your event in the Community Hub when creating it in a specific community. You may decide to do this in order to publise your event more widely than the community you have initially advertised it in. All you need to do is locate the 'Share in community hub' link when you are publising the event. You also have the option of removing an event posting in the Community Hub (which you initally shared). Just select on 'Withdraw from community hub' having clicked into the event posting from the community it was created in. How do I add a hyperlink? To make text into a hyperlink link, highlight the text and select the "Insert / edit link" icon in the toolbar. This button looks like a chain link. In the box that pops up, type the URL you want the text to link to. Once you selected “Insert” anyone can use the link. How do I add an image? You can insert an image by selecting the "Insert/edit image" button in the toolbar. This button looks like a tree. A window will pop up prompting you to select a photo from your computer to upload. Once you've found the image you want, select the "Insert" button. This will insert the image Can I delete my event posting? Yes! To delete, select the Event posting. Locate the "Delete this event" link. Your event posting will now be deleted. How do I attach a file to my event posting? To attach a file to a discussion, select the "Browse" button at the bottom of the text box. To attach a file to an Event, browse your computer for the file you want and select "Open". Alternately you can upload the document into document library area and use the hyperlink option. What are tags? Tags are a little bit like keywords, but they're chosen by you and the community, and they do not form a hierarchy. Each forum, event, document, wiki and blog can be tagged, to categorise it by a specific topic or theme using one-word descriptors. Tags are a great way to help you organise items and remember related items in the community. Any member in the community can assign as many tags to an item as you like and rename or delete the tags later. So, tagging can be a lot easier and more flexible than fitting your items into preconceived categories or folders. Tags are also used to form a tag-cloud, which gives a visual indication of how often a particular topic or theme is mentioned in the community. On the right-hand side of a community welcome page, is a "Tagged items" list. The bigger and bolder the tag; the more often it has been used to tag items in the community. By clicking on a tag in the list, it will show you all the items under this tag.
Members
How can I see all the members of a community?
Once you are logged in to the community click on the members tab and this will show you all the members of the community. You can sort the membership by Member, Role, Organisation or Joined. To sort select the relevant heading above the list of members.
Can I send messages to members of the community?
Yes, any member of the community can send a message to other members of the community. Go to the members section and click on the name of the member you wish to send a message to. Click "Send message”, type your message, and then click "Send message".
Can I see community members' profiles?
Yes you can. Click the members tab and this will show you all the members of the community. Click the name of the member you wish to view. You can now see their profile and a list of the communities they are a member of.
Who are the community facilitators?
To view the community facilitators select the Members tab and under the Tools select "Community facilitators" this wil show you the list of community facilitators and their profiles.
How can I send feedback to the community facilitators?
To send feedback to the community facilitators select the Members tab and under the Tools select "Community facilitators" under the Tools section select "Send your feedback to the facilitators". This will open the feedback box where you can enter your feedback. To send your feedback select the "Submit feedback" button.
Can I see how many contributions other members of a community have made?
You can view the number of different contributions each individual member of a community has made to that particular community. Go to the members area of a community and select the member whose number of contributions you want to view.
Library
What is the library?
The library is a collection of items, such as documents, images, slides and other files, shared by community members. Any member of the community can add to the library.
How can I add a new item to the library?
To add a new item to the library of a community, select "Add new item" tab under "tools".
On the following page, add a "title" and a "description/accompanying notes" for your item.
To Upload the item, select the "Browse" button. To attach the file, browse your computer for the file you want and select "Open". Then "Submit document".
What file formats can be used in the library?-
Microsoft Word
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Microsoft Excel
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Microsoft PowerPoint
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Window Media Audio
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Windows Media Video
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Portable Document Format (PDF)
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Joint Photographic Experts Group (JPEG)
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Graphics Interchange Format (GIF)
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MP3
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WAV Waveform audio format
Please note that the maximum size of any upload is 50 megabytes
Sharing an item in the Community Hub
You are now able publish your library item in the Community Hub having posted it in a specific community. You may decide the file would be of interest to all members of the Communities of Practice platform rather than those just in the community you have posted it in. All you need to do is locate the 'Share in community hub' link when you are posting the item.
You also have the option of removing an item in the Community Hub (which you initially shared). Just select the 'Withdraw from community hub' link having clicked into the library item posting from the community it was initially posted in.
What are library themes?
Different library items can be catergorised by themes. To view library items by the themes they come under select "view by themes" under "tools" on the right hand side of the library page. To return to the "all items" view, select "view all" under "tools".
To add a new library item to a particular theme, while uploading an item, cross the box next to the relevant theme. The item will be assigned to that particular theme.
How do I rate and comment on a item?
If you see a very useful - or not very useful item, let people know by rating it.
Select the entry you wish to rate and using the radio buttons select from 1 (not very useful) to 5 (very useful). Then add a comment in the comment box before selecting "Submit Comment".
Your rating remains anonymous, so you can be honest.
How do I see the average rating for an item?
When you select the Library tab in your community a list of the latest items will appear. You will then see the average rating for the item on the right hand side under Rating. To view the number of members that have rated the item click on the item and it will tell you the number of members who have rated the item.
Can I delete my item?
Yes! To delete, select your item entry. Select "Delete this entry" on the right hand side of the screen. Your document will now be deleted.
Can I edit my item?
Yes! To edit, select your item entry. Select "Edit this entry" on the right hand side of the screen. You will now be able to edit the item or replace the original file.
What are tags?
Tags are a great way to categorise forums, events, library items, wiki’s and blogs by their content.
Tags are one-word descriptors that you can assign to community items to help you organise and remember them. Tags are a little bit like keywords, but they're chosen by you, and they do not form a hierarchy.
You can assign as many tags to an item as you like and rename or delete the tags later. So, tagging can be a lot easier and more flexible than fitting your items into preconceived categories or folders.
Tags are used to form a tag-cloud, which gives a visual indication of the type of information in the community.
Wiki
What is a wiki?
Wikis are web pages which anyone can edit. This means that any visitor to the wiki can change, update and add to its content if they desire. Wikis are good for using other people's knowledge and experience to help develop an idea or a piece of work.
How can I add a new wiki?
To create a new Wiki, select the Wiki tab and then the "Add new wiki entry" link
What is the text box (WYSIWYG)?
WYSIWYG, an acronym for What You See Is What You Get, is an editor that allows you to create formatted content that looks the same when you're editing it and when you publish it. The WYSIWYG editor is the toolbar you see at the top of the box when you edit the text.
The WYSIWYG includes:
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bold
-
italics
-
underline
-
bullet points
-
insert/edit image
-
insert/edit link
-
unlink
-
insert/edit flash movie
-
undo
-
redo
- draw table
- table row properties
- table cell properties
- insert row before
- delete row
- insert column before
- insert column after
- remove column
- split merged table cell
- merge table cell
How do I add to a wiki entry?
Select the wiki entry you wish to add to. Locate the "Edit this entry" link. You will now be able to edit the Wiki entry. Select "Save and continue" when you have finished.
How do I add a hyperlink?
To make text into a hyperlink link, highlight the text and select the "Insert / edit link" icon in the toolbar. This button looks like a chain link. In the box that pops up, type the URL you want the text to link to. Once you select “insert” anyone can use the link.
How do I add an image?
You can insert an image by selecting the "Insert/edit image" button in the toolbar. This button looks like a tree. A window will pop up prompting you to select a photo from your computer to upload. Once you've found the image you want, select the "Insert" button. This will insert the image.
Can I embed videos from YouTube into a wiki?
Absolutely! Select the "Insert/edit flash" button within the wiki you wish to add the YouTube video to. A pop up will appear where you can paste the YouTube video web address then select "Insert" to embed to the video into the text box.
How do I attach a file to my wiki entry?
You are unable to attach a file to an wiki entry but you are able to hyper link to the document. Place the document in the Library. You will then be able to insert a link. Highlight the text you want to be linked and select the "Insert / edit link" icon in the toolbar. This button looks like a chain link . In the box that pops up, click on the tab called document and selected the radio button next to the document you want the text to link to. Once you select“Insert” anyone can use the link.
What are tags?
Tags are a great way to categorise forums, events, documents, wiki’s and blogs by their content.
Tags are one-word descriptors that you can assign to community items to help you organise and remember them.
Tags are a little bit like keywords, but they're chosen by you, and they do not form a hierarchy. You can assign as many tags to an item as you like. So, tagging can be a lot easier and more flexible than fitting your items into preconceived categories or folders. Tags are used to form a tag-cloud, which gives a visual indication of the type of information in the community.
What are wiki themes?
Different wikis can be catergorised by themes. To view wikis by the themes they come under select "view by themes" under "tools" on the right hand side of the wiki home page. To return to the "all items" view, select "view all" under "tools".
To add a new wiki to a particular theme, while creating a wiki, cross the box next to the relevant theme. The wiki will be assigned to that particular theme.
Blogs
What is a blog?
A blog (also known as a web log) is an online journal reflecting the thoughts and activities of a community member on a web page. This form of web publishing has become an established communications tool, and is simple to create and use. A member normally updates their web page regularly with new things they've seen, read about, or heard of. Each item is presented in reverse chronological order, with the latest at the top.
Do I have a blog? Where is it?
Of course! Every member of communities of practice for local government has his or her own blog. To get to your blog, select "My Home". Find the "My Blog" box at the top middle of the page.
You can add a blog post by selecting "Add a new entry!" link. Once you write the first entry in your blog you can select which of your communities your blog is to appear in.
Sharing your blog in the Community Hub and you personal blog page
When creating your blog it will be made public i.e. viewable from the Community Hub and your personal blog page. If you would prefer your blog not be public and just viewable through selected communities uncheck the 'Public' box and just select the communities you would like them to be viewable from.
What is the text box (WYSIWYG)?
WYSIWYG, an acronym for What You See Is What You Get, is an editor that allows you to create formatted content that looks the same when you're editing it and when you publish it. The WYSIWYG editor is the toolbar you see at the top of the box when you edit the text.
The WYSIWYG includes:
-
bold
-
italics
-
underline
-
bullet points
-
insert/edit image
-
insert/edit link
-
unlink
-
insert/edit flash movie
-
undo
-
redo
- draw table
- table row properties
- table cell properties
- insert row before
- delete row
- insert column before
- insert column after
- remove column
- split merged table cell
- merge table cell
Blog views
You will now be able to see how many people have viewed your blog. When you go into your blog you will see this information under the blog heading and the date it was posted.
How can I see someone else's blog?
To view someone else's blog select the People finder and find the person who's blog you wish to read.
Once you have found the person select the "View Blog" link on the right side of the screen under "tools" to view the blog.
Can I edit a blog post after it has been published?
Yes, you can edit your blog entry after you've posted it! Select the My Home tab. Find the "My Blog" box in the middle column of the page. Find the blog posting and select "Edit this entry" next to the post you want to change. This will bring you to a screen where you can make tweaks to your post.
How do I add a hyperlink?
To make text into a hyperlink link, highlight the text and select the "Insert / edit link" icon in the toolbar. This button looks like a chain link. In the box that pops up, type the URL you want the text to link to. Once you select “insert” anyone can use the link.
How do I add an image?
You can insert an image by selecting the "Insert/edit image" button in the toolbar. This button looks like a tree. A window will pop up prompting you to select a photo from your computer to upload. Once you've found the image you want, select the "Insert" button. This will insert the image.
Can I embed videos from YouTube into a blog?
Absolutely! Select the "Insert/edit flash movie" within the blog you wish to add the YouTube video to. A pop up will appear where you can paste the YouTube video web address then select insert to embed to the video into the text box.
How can I comment on someone else's blog post?
Anyone who is logged into communities of practice for local government can comment on blog posts by typing comments in the "Add a comment box" or selecting "Add comment".
How can I tell who wrote a blog post?
The blogger's name appears as "by" under the entry
How do I see all of my old blog posts?
To see all of the blog posts you've written, select the My Home tab. Find the "My Blog" box in the middle column of the page. And use the page numbers at the bottom of the screen to link through.
How do I report an offensive blog post?
Select "Feedback," which appears as a link at the bottom of every page. Detail the offensive blog and “Submit feedback. This will alert the Community facilitators to the issue.
What are tags?
Tags are a great way to categorise forums, events, library items, wiki’s and blogs by their content.
Tags are one-word descriptors that you can assign to community items to help you organise and remember them. Tags are a little bit like keywords, but they're chosen by you, and they do not form a hierarchy.
You can assign as many tags to an item as you like and rename or delete the tags later. So, tagging can be a lot easier and more flexible than fitting your items into preconceived categories or folders. Tags are used to form a tag-cloud, which gives a visual indication of the type of information in the community.
RSS News feeds
What is the News feeds tab for?
Each community has the option to have a News feed based on RSS (Really simple syndication). News feeds allow you to see the latest headlines from the websites relevant to your community - in one place as soon as its published, and without you having to visit the websites individually.
If you cannot see the News feed within your community please contact one of your community facilitators to turn it on.
Search
What is the People Finder?
The People Finder is a search facility accessible by all members to search for other people registered on Communities of Practice. You can search by name, job title, keywords, region, or area of expertise.
To search for someone, select the "People Finder" at the top right of your screen and select the criteria you wish to search on.
How do I search for a community?
Select “Communities” at the top of the page, and you will be taken to a list of all communities currently running. Type your search criteria and select "Go". The results of all the communities with your search criteria will be listed. Alternatively, you can select “Find a community” under "Tools" on your overview page once you have logged in.
How do I search within a community?
Type your search criteria into the "search this community" box on the right-hand side of your community (please note you are unable to search by author name). The search results from your community will be listed.
You will also be able to see which other communities match your search criteria. To view, click "Results in all communities". You can view the results for the communities you are a member of, and will have to join the ones you are not a member of to see the results.
What is personalised community web search?
All Communities of Practice have a facility for creating a personalised community list of websites that enable more focused and relevant search results to be returned for their particular domain of interest. Members have the ability to select or deselect any of the web sites in the community list for each web search query they submit, providing greater control over the number and relevance of results returned.
If you are unable to see the personalised community search, please contact one of you community facilitators to switch the function on.
Alerts
Can I receive email alerts on latest forum postings in a community?
Yes. Go to the forum within the community you wish to receive an email alert on. Select "Subscribe for email alerts for this forum" under forum tools and select "Email alert frequency" from daily email notification, weekly email notification or immediate email notification, and select "Subscribe".
Selecting to receive alerts from the top level ensures that you get notified if there is a new discussion started, and if any existing discussion threads get responses.
If you only want notification of changes in a specific discussion or discussions, you can subscribe to email alerts for those individual threads.
Can I receive email alerts on latest events postings in a community?
Yes. Go to that Events calendar within the community you wish to receive an email alert on. And select "Subscribe for email alerts on new events" under Event tools, and select Email alert frequency from daily email notification, weekly email notification or immediate email notification, and select "Subscribe".
Can I receive email alerts on latest items posted in the library of a community?
Yes. Go to the library within the community you wish to receive an email alert on. And select "Subscribe for email alerts for this library" under tools, and select Email alert frequency from daily email notification, weekly email notification or immediate email notification, and select "Subscribe".
Can I receive email alerts on latest wiki entries in a community?
Yes. Go to the wiki within the community you wish to receive an email alert on. And select "Subscribe for email alerts for this wiki" under Wiki tools and select Email alert frequency from daily email notification, weekly email notification or immediate email notification, and select "Subscribe". This will tell you if there are any new wiki pages created.
To receive notification of any changes to existing wikis, you need to subscribe to email alerts for each one you are interested in.
Can I receive email alerts on latest Blog entries in a community?
Yes. Go to the Blog within the community you wish to receive an email alerts on. And select "Get email alerts for blog entries" under tools, and select Email alert frequency from daily email notification, weekly email notification or immediate email notification, and select "Subscribe".
Alternatively, you can subscribe to email alerts for individual blog entries.
How do I manage email alerts?
You can manage how often you receive your email alerts by selecting "My home" and selecting email alerts in the green bar or Manage email alerts in the tools section of My Home
You are also able to delete any email alerts you no longer wish to receive, by selecting them and selecting "Remove selected" from the Tools section on the right-hand side.
Please note that you must save settings if you make any amendments.
Feedback
How do I report offensive material on a community page?
Select the "Feedback" link that appears at the bottom of the page within the community.
Complete your name and email address, and add the web link to the area you wish to report in the feedback section and select "Submit feedback".
This will notify the Community facilitator.
How do I report a technical problem on the Communities of Practice site?
Select the "Feedback" link that appears at the bottom of the page within your "My Home".
Complete your name and email address, and add the web link to the area you wish to report in the feedback section and select "submit feedback"
This will notify the Community facilitator.
Messages
You can sign in to Communities of Practice and select "Messages".
Can I send messages to members of the community?
Yes, any member of a community can send a message to other members of the community. Go to the Members section and select the name of the member you wish to send a message to. Select "Send message”, type your message and select "Send message".
You can also send a message to anyone who is registered on the platform, using the People Finder.
Can I receive an email alert to let me know I have a message?
Yes, go to "My Home", then "Messages". Then select "Get email alerts" under Message Tools.
My Profile
How can I change my password or email address?
Go to www.communities.idea.gov.uk/ and sign in.
select the "My profile" link in the top middle of the "my home" page, then "Edit my profile". Here you will be able to change your personal details including your profile, password and email address. Once relevant changes have been made select "Save changes” at the bottom of the page.
What size does my profile photo need to be?The maximum size for profile photos is (75 x 75 pixels, approx. 30KB).
While most computers come with image-editing software now capable of cropping/re-sizing photos (Preview for the Mac users and Paint for Windows users), there are also web-based solutions.
www.easycropper.com and http://pixer.us/ offer a fairly easy-to-use cropping system. You can just upload the image you want to crop, set your desired size and it'll do the rest for you.
How do I add or change my profile photo?Sign in to the website. Select the "My profile" link in the top right-hand corner of the screen, then "Edit my profile". Select the "Browse" button under the “Your photograph” field to locate an image on your computer. This will be the default picture for all the communities you join subsequently. On occasions your old photo will still show, press F5 on your keyboard which will refresh the page to show your new photo.
How do I delete my profile photo?
Select the "My profile" link in the top right-hand corner of the screen, then "Edit my profile". This will take you to a page where you can delete your profile picture. Select ”Remove photo” and save changes at the bottom of the page.
Online Presence
Can I see which other members are online right now?
Absolutely. Online presence is indicated by the "Active user" section on the homepage of the community. Whenever you see a name in the "Active user" section, you'll know that person is logged in to www.communities.idea.gov.uk
If I'm only signed in to one community I belong to, will I appear "online" across all of my communities?
If you're logged in to any community on www.communities.idea.gov.uk, you will be indicated as an "Active user" across all of the communities you belong to even if you're not logged in to each of those individual communities.
I just signed out of communities.idea.gov.uk but I'm still showing up as a "active user" in a community...what's going on?
It can take up to 15 minutes after you sign out of www.communities.idea.gov.uk for you to disappear as an "active user".
Privacy
Does www.communities.idea.gov.uk share my user information with anyone?
No. We respect your privacy and want to protect it.
Font size
Font size
To change the font size throughout www.communities.idea.gov.uk, choose the font size by selecting the relevant size under the Font size section on the right-hand side of the screen.
What are tags?
What are Tags ? Tags are a little bit like keywords, but they're chosen by you and the community, and they do not form a hierarchy. Each forum, event, document, wiki and blog can be tagged, to categorise it by a specific topic or theme using one-word descriptors. Tags are a great way to help you organise items and remember related items in the community. Any member in the community can assign as many tags to an item as you like and rename or delete the tags later. So, tagging can be a lot easier and more flexible than fitting your items into preconceived categories or folders. A list of tags is displayed under the title of every content item, clicking on a tag under a particular item will display all content items in that community that share the tag. Tags are also used to form a tag-cloud, which gives a visual indication of how often a particular topic or theme is mentioned in the community. On the right-hand side of a community welcome page, is a "Tagged items" list. The bigger and bolder the tag; the more often it has been used to tag items in the community. By clicking on a tag in the list, it will show you all the items under this tag.
My Tags page
There is a 'My Tags' page in a user's profile. Here you can view all tags that you have assigned to content items and to people (you can assign tags to people from the people finder pages). To switch between content tags and people tags select the appropriate link on the right-hand side of the 'my tags' page.
Community Themes
What are community themes? Each community has the option of setting particular themes by which forum threads and library items can be arranged. The themes are selected by a community facilitator and are common across both forums and the library. Members starting forum topics or adding items to the library will have the option to allocate the new posting or entry to a particular theme. What areas of a community can be divided into themes? Currently the forum, wiki and the library can be divided into themes. How do I save a forum posting to a particular theme? To add a new forum topic to a particular theme, while creating or editing the topic, select the appropriate box under the heading 'themes'. How do I save a wiki to a particular theme? To add a new wiki to a particular theme, while creating or editing the wiki, select the appropriate box under the heading 'themes'. How do I save a library item to a particular theme? To add a new library item to a particular theme, while uploading an item, cross the box next to the relevant theme. The item will be assigned to that particular theme.
Online facilitation Guide
Online facilitation in this context has often been likened to being the host of a party, so we will use this analogy to help you through the process.
All good parties have been planned to make them successful and an online community of practice is no different. The better the planning, the more likely it is that the community will be successful. You will see an Action Plan template at the end of this document, which should be completed before the community goes live. Use the following to feed into that Action Plan, helping to make the community a success.
The Preparations
Some items need posting to make the community look interesting before the invitations go out. It is not unreasonable even to have identified with a small group of ‘early adopters’ what the community might usefully contain in preparation for the participants. What are they likely to want to discuss, is it relevant to the time the community will launch? Have a few well chosen and well crafted items in the community and get them ‘seeded’ before hand, to spark debate. There are some other items, which are a must for every community:
- Introductions / Welcome – Create a discussion thread in the community forum called ‘Introductions / Welcome’. The day before you launch the community, go in and introduce yourself and ask one or two others to do the same. Do not do this weeks before hand, as the comment you make is time stamped and new comers are more likely to add their introduction if the last one made was recent.
- Notice Board - Create a discussion thread in the community forum called ‘Notice Board’. Every Community should have a Notice Board, which is a place where thoughts, ideas and questions are shared. On their own, these items are not in depth enough to require a separate forum. For example, you might want to alert your colleagues to something that came out in the news that has implications in your work … e.g. a government announcement or something similar. It’s also a place where you might go in and ask if anyone has information on something etc…
The Invitation
Timing the invitation is crucial to the initial success of the community. Often the facilitator hosts will have mentioned the idea of the CoP before hand and there will be a core group of people who are ready to use it. Time the invitation with a key online event that could be part of a face to face event as well.
The Canapés
You will see fairly quickly how things are going. It is usual for a first flurry of activity and then a pause. You need to pre-empt this pause and have lined up some strategies for getting through it.
First off, you need to set up some thought provoking and interesting discussions in which people will want to participate, hold a few back and use them as the pause begins. Then you need to do some individual facilitation.
That means that if there are some people who are not participating, phone or email them directly (not as a group email but as a personal email, or bcc’d) with a 'taster' of what is going on in the community, in order to get them to participate. This again needs phrasing carefully, in that it says something along the lines of, "Joe Bloggs has recently come in to share some interesting strategies on a, b and c ... although it seems his ideas are not shared by everyone's experience on the frontline ... logon to the online community to read more and add your experience of this difficult situation".
If people are not introducing themselves on the Welcome/Introductions forum, give them a quick call and ask if they are having any technical difficulties. (Make sure you welcome people when they do introduce themselves as well!) Phone your early adopters or ‘champions’ and ask them to go in and spark debate by posting comments and replies.
The Entertainment
Below are some examples of the type of activity you can use to seed the community and use when building your action plan:
- ‘Hot seats’ - are perfect for getting people into the community. It enables participants to ask the person in the hot seat (usually an expert in their field) questions, to which they can respond over a set period of time. These questions can be posted in a forum to help capture the responses. (For more details, see the document in the Facilitator’s Community.)
- Strategic Panels - This is a group of experts and leading thinkers contributing their thoughts, ideas and knowledge in their personal blogs. The panel will be able to ponder on topical issues and ideas, and challenge the ideas of its readers.
- Documents – What is your magnet content? By gathering and collecting relevant documents that your community members can use, you will provide quick wins for you members and this can encourage others to share their documents.
- Hot Topics – are discussions around topics that are hot at the moment in time. It may involve a series of techniques such as a hotseat, a face to face, some documents which are all linked together around a discussion for a time period – usually a month. It allows for in depth exploration of a topic.
- Events – gather and publish events that members may wish to attend these could be large conferences or small working groups. This allows members to see what is happening and to network at face to face events. You can post agendas / minutes / working papers / uploaded presentations / conversations for those unable to attend or wanting to start/continue pre/post event discussions.
- Useful websites – everyone needs to know where you get your information from by gathering a list of websites that you use and asking others to build on this list you will be sharing one of your most important information resources.
Action Plan for the first 6 months
How to fill in the action plan:
- The focus of the action plan should be on the needs of the community. This is the first column to be filled in. See if you can identify a series of topics in which you think they will be interested at various times in the coming months, for example, ‘Budgeting’ in November or ‘Succession Planning’ in February. Fill this first column in before you go any further.
- Once you have done this, think about how you might be able to meet these needs using the notes on pages 3 & 4. What activities would you need to do? This is the second column.
- The next column asks you to identify who from the team will take a lead on this, making sure that all the jobs are done to make is a success.
- The final column is a place where you can list all the jobs that need doing to make the activity work. It might include things like ‘advertising’ the event or ‘seeding’ a discussion.
Initially this action plan should contain both start up and regular events. For example, start-up events might include such things as ‘seeding the community’, ‘launch event’ or ‘encouraging new users via phone’. Regular events might be such things as ‘hot seats’, ‘newsletters’ or ‘face to face meetings’. The key is to think about the needs of your community and then choose the appropriate activity to meet that need. There is a completed example, which you can download from the Facilitator’s Community to help get you started.
You should review your Action Plan regularly and re-do it every 6 months.
A copy of the Action Plan template is attached
What is a cloud?
The community 'cloud' or 'tag cloud' provides a visual representation of all the keywords pr 'tags' that have been assigned to content added to a community. It is a useful way to identify hot topics and key themes, as the more a particular word is used as a tag the more prominent (bolder and larger) it will be in the cloud.
As well as viewing tags as a cloud they can also be viewed in list form. As a list, they can be sorted by number of alphabetically.
Shoutbox
The shoutbox is part of the new 'Community Hub'. It provides a facility for any user to ask a quick question or post a short comment that will be visible to all members of the platform. A 'shout' can be up to a maximum of 250 characters long and any CoPs member will be able to respond to a post. The facility will enable users to post general questions or comments that are not specific to any particular CoP.
Community Hub
Community Hub
The Community Hub appears in the user’s ‘My Home’ page within their ‘My Communities’ list. All registered users of the CoP platform will have automatic membership of this new community. This new community will be distinctive in that (a) it will always appear first in the user’s list of communities, and (b) It will have a unique colour scheme to distinguish it from the user-subscribed communities.
The purpose of the Community Hub is to encourage more inter-CoP communication and collaboration, and to provide a shared space for content that is of potential interest to all registered users.
The Community Hub has all the usual tools and facilities, e.g. Forum, Library, Events Diary, Wiki, Blog, plus some additional features as follows:
- Shoutbox (see FAQ on Shoutbox for details) – this provides a facility for any user to ask a question or post a comment that will be visible to all members of the platform. The facility will enable users to post general questions or comments that are not specific to a particular community or CoP theme
- Cloud (see FAQ on Clouds for details) – this provides a visual perspective of tag names (keywords) that have been used across all communities on the platform. It is a useful way of identifying hot topics and key themes, which appear in bolder and larger font.
- Events added in a users CoP event diary can now be rolled up to the Community Hub event calendar (See FAQ on Events for details).
- When creating a new blog entry it will automatically be rolled up to the Community Hub and your personal blog page for everyone to view. The user retains the option to publish a blog post to just one, some or all of the CoPs that he/she belongs to without publishing the post to the Community Hub (See FAQ on blogs for details).
- The Community Hub home page will show an auto-generated list of the most active bloggers (called ‘Top bloggers’).
- There is a new Welcome Desk link on the Community Hub home page that connects to a Welcome Desk Forum. This will provide basic help and information for both new and established users about how to get the most out of the platform tools and facilities. Users will also be able to post queries into the Welcome Desk forum if they can’t find the answers they are seeking from the FAQ’s. The more experienced users of the platform will be encouraged to respond to any queries they can help with.
Invite people to join a community
You can invite other people who are not members of a particular community that you are a member of to join that community.
How to invite people to join a community
To invite someone to join a community that you are a member of select 'invite colleagues to join' from the tools section on the right hand side of any community home-page.
You will be directed to a new page where you are asked to provide details of the person you are inviting to join and are given the option of sending them a personal message. If you are a facilitator of a community the invitee is considered pre-approved, if you are an ordinary member the invitee will have to be approved for the community by the facilitator.
Sharing content with others
You can share interesting content with CoP users who are on your 'contacts' list using the 'Share with a contact' tool link that is displayed in the forum, events, library, wiki and blog sections of a community. To share select the 'share with a contact' tool on the right hand side of a particular content page.
You will be taken to a new page where you are asked to select which contact you want to share with and given the option of writing a personal message.
Video Walkthroughs
Please note all videos are hosted on Youtube and may not be viewable by all members of the platform
How to find a Community http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FcNwVdgxBVY
How to apply to join a private community http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MWhbB-1ertQ
How to update My profile http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_eNpl-AIM24
How to use the People Finder http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ggvoSAgJfYk
