A Users Guide to Autonomedia/Interactivist network (Updated and Amended)

The following is broken down into the features that are most useful and the known problems. Because the use of the functionality relies upon being able to get arouind the existing bugs, we'll start with the flaws.

Known Bugs

Editors please note! At the moment there seems to be a problem with the database, nothing very serious. Sometimes when one clicks on the "Read More" tab below a new story there appears a page with no text at all. Once a few calls have been put into the database the problpme seems to resolve itself. This is something for editors to keep an eye on so that users don't encounter it.

Editors please note 2! When a user is submitting a story there is the option to classify it as an "article" under the drop-down menu. This is in fact fantasy: there are five categories: analysis/polemic, news, reviews, events and announcements. This means that if something is published as an article it will not appear within a section. If the publication option is set to "always display", it will appear on the front page, but only there. If one selects "only in section" then it will disappear. Unfortunately the option to submit as "article" is locked in by default and cannnot yet be removed. This means that everyone should keep an eye out for articles within the database where this mistake has been made.

There are some serious bugs, one specifically relating to cookie path problems accrued through the use of multiple domains which make things very confusing. This known bug, and one or two others will be clearly signaled. The crux of it is that in order to log in one must be at: http://info.interactivist.net and in order to write in one's journal it requires that you log-in a second time, then the menu changes.

This is a serious problem, we recognize that, and the best that can be done about it at the moment is to be explicit about its existence.

The other known bug is that the links to the science and technology sections bring you to a lost windswept feed. Use the search for technology articles. (Uncle Fluffy informs us that this has now been rectified).

Some Features Available to Registered Users

I might signal to you that once logged in you might find the following functionalities useful:

- journals

A space for you to throw up your mad comments without having to pass by the vigilant eye of the editorial group (!) - actually we really just sift the spam...

- moderation and comment filtering

The fundamental difference between this site and, for example, indymedia, is the ability to evaluate the comments of other users. Each comment has a score, which is the sum of users moderations.

Comments posted by anonymous users start at 0.

Comments posted by logged in users start at 1, or 2 if you have a history of positive contribution (this is judged by the software)

Under each comment, next to the "reply to this comment" button, there is a drop down menu where you can select from descriptions such as: redundant, troll, normal, insightful or interesting and have an effect of increasing or decreasing the rating.

Comments end up with a rating somewhere on a spectrum between -1 and +5. At the bottom of each story, before the comments begin, there is a dropdown menu titled "threshold" which allows you to eliminate all comments rated below a certain score. This shgould remove trolls and irrelevant shit.

Of course this facility only becomes useful if more people start commenting....

Getting Messages via the system: Oncfe logged in you can set a series of options that allow you to receive messages through the system to alert you to (a) new stories (b)a response to a comment you have made whil elogged in (c)a comment left on your diary (d) containing the headlines for the stories published each day. These me4ssatges can either be stored for you on the web-page, in which case their presence will be indicated each time you log in, or alternatively the can be sent directly to an email address of your choice.

http://info.interactivist.net/my/messages/ - digest option

Get the headlines to the new stories posted on the site

How: go to preferences (located above your user name) and then click on messages (an option which will appear below your user name). You can then set the system to send daily headlines or full articles.

- rss customization The boxes of headlines on the left hand side of the main page are RSS (really simple syndication) feeds. There are a wide range of sites that you can choose from. This will allow you to follow what is going on in these different places without the need to visit them individually.

We can also add feeds at users' suggestion.

- comment and general notifications If your friends journal has been updates, or if someone has responded to a comment you have made... how: in the same panel "messages" like the digest

- friends and foes

Friends and foes are accumulated by clicking on a user name (but it must be followed by the regstration number, eg:

by mr.smartarse (1111) whose link will be: http://info.interactivist.net/~mr.smartarse/

that will bring you to the appropriate member page. Under their name click on 'relation' - you can then edit appropriately. In this case that url will be http://info.interactivist.net/zoo.pl?op=check&uid=1111

Nominating someone as a friend can automatically increase the rating that your personlised system attaches to that persons contributions.

many of these are located in preferences panel; once you're logged in.

- unique id enabling anonymized communication via the site

Take your Rage out on Us ;-)

abh and I are putting together this how-to article right now, but more pressing tasks in the next days mean that it will not be out until after May 1, it will be then anchored in the top of the page.

Feel free to ask any other questions and make complaints. As far as I'm concerned it will help me put together the document that we need so badly.

The site is built off slashcode and is currently running the CVS version. The most detailed documentation of its features is to be found of course on slashdot, check out their FAQ here.