User guide
The EASYPol User Guide provides information and instructions as to how to participate in a forum.
For ease of use, the User Guide is divided into two parts:
i. a brief guide providing a quick overview
ii. detailed list of instructions
Users can use the brief text to get an idea of the overall functioning of the forum and then click on the links to go directly to the more detailed information.
Forum guidelines
Forum members are encouraged to look through these guidelines to find out how the forum works, where there are step-by-step instructions.
Forum ethics
Forum members and moderators are asked to foster a constructive, respectful behaviour towards other participants to enable a professional helpful community interaction [see Forum ethics].
Contact us
Specific questions can be sent directly to the EASYPol Forum team EASYPol-forum@fao.org
Sending messages
Forum members can send new messages or reply to a specific message directly to the forum area or reply to a specific message. Registration is required prior to sending messages [see Registration].
EASYPol team
Discussions are moderated by the EASYPol team, but messages are not viewed prior to their posting in the forum.
Information on the Forum team is included in the Forum Presentation page which is available for each forum by clicking on "...more" under the forum topic title.
The Forum moderator issues all presentations, regular summaries and conclusions for each forum.
The Forum team checks discussions for relevance, clarity and language content. The team reserves the right to eliminate any irrelevant or messages that do not comply with the Forum guidelines on Forum ethics. If a message is considered not appropriate, the originator will be contacted accordingly for consultation.
FAQ
A FAQ area is being developed based on users' most common queries and with appropriate feedback we will be able to identify common query areas.
- Registration
- contribute to the forum by posting new messages or reply to specific contribtuions
- view other Forum members' profiles
- update their user profiles
Participants wanting to send post to any EASYPol forum are requested to register.
New members need to fill out the registration form and submit it to the EASYPol team.
Your registered information will only be accessible to other forum members. Registration provides us with useful information to expand the existing EASYPol mailing list. Other forum members can also find out who else is contributing and this detail could provide an open door to getting to know new people.
Once your registration is complete, you only need your user name and password to log into the forum in question or other on-going fora. Once this form is submitted, Forum members receive an automatic reply on their email account confirming their subscription.
With your user name and password, users may:
- Search forum
A search facility is provided [see Search Forum] for ongoing and closed forums.
The forum results of a given search are listed according to the "family" topic area.
The list of Forum titles can also be sorted according to title, date, last post.... by clicking on the relevant text on the title bar.
- How to send a message to the forum
- reply to a specific message [go to point 4]:
- provide a new message to the forum [go to point 5]
Step by step instructions to send messages to the forum:
1) Click on "On-going forums" in the left hand column
2) Click on the title of the forum of your interest
You will get a window with a list of messages.
3) You can choose to:
4) Click on the title of the message of your interest. You will get a window with information regarding the selected message [author, posts, etc.]
a) Click on "Reply to this message"
b) Write a meaningful title to your message
c) Write your text in the appropriate area [Please keep the forum topic in focus and provide concise, relevant feedback [see Forum ethics]
d) Provide useful website url, if relevant
e) Upload a file/photo in the "Attachments" area, if relevant [see paragraph on Connection and software requisites]
5) Click on "Send a new messge" and follow steps a to e above.
6) Your message is sent and posted directly in the forum area. The moderator reviews and monitors incoming post.
7) If relevant, include a link in the space under message box.
8) If relevant, include a file to your message. Click on select file under the message box. To avoid heavy attachments, we suggest that users convert files into pdf documents. We also encourage the use of links, if possible.
9) If you have any problems in sending messages, please contact the EASYPol Forum team at any time: easypol-forum@fao.org
- Reading post
All EASYPol users may read on-going forum posts without having to register.
Forum archives are also available to all EASYPol users.
- Connection and software requisites
Forum members do not need any specific software or high connection speed to participate.
To upload files:
New EASYPol users will be prompted to download the "X-upload" software, version 3.0.0.4
It is, however, recommended to keep attachments small and links are preferred especially for those members with slow connection.
Alternatively, files may be sent to the moderator who will check and convert files for uploading.
- Forum support team
The EASYPol forum area is managed by resource people from FAO who can provide you with assistance on problems when using the forum.
Please do not hesitate to contact us at: easypol-forum@fao.org
A forum topic will depend on identified areas of policy debate, or it could be to discuss new policy material being developed which would benefit from internal/external contributions to ensure quality, focus and relevance.
New pertinent policy areas are welcome.
An on-going forum is organised according to the "family" topic area.
The list of Forum titles can also be viewed through the On-going forums or the Search Forum facilities.
Results can be sorted according to title, date, last post.... by clicking on the relevant text on the title bar.
A closed forum is stored in the Forum archives which can be searched by title and by date. Results can be viewed and opened by all users. Users can view all summaries and conclusions.
A forum will be moderated by people with experience and knowledge in specific policy issues. This means that for each forum there will be a different Moderator.
Information on the forum, including who the moderator is, can be seen from the online Presentation sheet which is available for each forum.
Posts will be published directly on the forum. However, moderators check for content and relevance and reserve the right to withhold messages if they do not comply with the Forum ethics, in which case the originator will be contacted.
The EASYPol forum area is intended as a place for constructive discussions among users. A forum is actively moderated, but messages are not screened before they are posted. Only registered members can post.
We have also listed some tips if forum participants should want to quickly look through them to make contributions as constructive and to the point as possible.
The following guidelines are intended to help foster professional, helpful community interaction. Forum participants are asked to abide by these rules of etiquette. In general, participants are asked to treat each other with respect in all discussions.
Adherence to these general guidelines will ideally be self-regulated by and among participants; the forum moderator will intervene only if and when required.
FAO is a multicultural organization and a forum, is accessed by people with different nationalities, cultural and/or religious backgrounds. This implies that all the contributions have to be respectful of the different profiles of forum area users.
- Focus
When sending a message, be it a reply or introducing a new topic, please keep the post concise, narrowly focussed and relevant. Do not include more than a few points at a time.
Shorter posts are also more likely to be read. When lengthy messages seem appropriate, make sure you break up the paragraphs for easy reading.
- Use meaningful subject lines
When starting a new discussion topic, use a meaningful subject line. This will help people sift through the numerous posts to identify which ones are interesting to read. i.e., indicate the specific type of problem / discussion in question.
- Critical thinking
Critical thinking is encouraged, and positive criticism is accepted, but derogatory messages will not be accepted. Only post a reply if and when you have something constructive to share.
- Identify yourself
Please include your name, institute / organization / university at the end of the message.
- Respect for forum members
Argue the position, not the person. A forum is designed to encourage widespread interaction among an international community, made up of users with different levels of expertise. All relevant questions, even simple ones, will bring benefit to other forum members. A constructive attitude encourages and invites new members to participate adding value to the forum for all.
- Copyright
Never include material which is not your own without attribution to the original source. Forum members who want to share official published information can provide weblinks in their messages to share with the other participants.
However, bare links with no supporting discussion should be avoided.
- Disclaimer
The views expressed in this information product are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. http://intranet.fao.org/IntranetStatic/root/17847/11866/30710/31744/46204/88375/
The designations employed and the presentation of material in this information product do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) concerning the legal or development status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. The mention of specific companies or products of manufacturers, whether or not these have been patented, does not imply that these have been endorsed or recommended by FAO in preference to others of a similar nature that are not mentioned. The views expressed in this information product are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of FAO. http://intranet.fao.org/IntranetStatic/root/17847/11866/30710/31744/46204/46207/