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Introducing the New, Improved EDA Working Group Forums

New, improved EDA Working Group Forums are now open at the new ElectionDefenseAlliance2.org website.*

Everybody is invited to read the following intro and illustrated guide to the new Forum features.

Current Working Group members** are invited to come on over,  do a walk-through,  poke the buttons, upload files,  and generally get to know all the things you can do in the new EDA Working Group Forums,  generation 2.

** Note: Working Group registration is required to access Forum areas, and you will need to log in with your EDA Username and password.

Click this link for the new EDA Working Group Forums entry page *
* Note: The URLs for EDA2 are temporary while the site is being built, but will become ElectionDefenseAlliance.org when site 2 is finished.


Guide to New Features in Working Groups Forums

Screenshot of gateway page to the new Working Group Forums.

Gradual Transition, Old to New

The new EDA Working Group Forums all reside on the new EDA 2.0 website still being developed,
but the new Working Group Forums at site 2 are fully functional now, and new content can be filed in the new Forums by any member, at any time.
 
The original Working Group Forums on the main EDA website remain open, and are where most of the Forum content still resides.  Go to the original Forums if you are seeking those resources. 

(Reminder: Forum access requires you to log in to the site with your EDA account Username and password.
See this Web Account Guide for a refresher).

Want to Help?
All content in the original Forums will be copied over to the new  2.0 website, but this is a manual process, and will take some time.
However, it will take less time if Working Group members would like to help. It is copy-and-paste work, using the Content Editor tool.
You will soon learn everything you need to know about posting and composing pages on the EDA site (or any other Drupal-based website).

Drop me a line if you would like to help.  Put "Moving Day" in the subject line.

The Transition to EDA  2.0
Exclusive of the new Forums, and the new EDA Webstore (coming next),  all other EDA website content will remain for the time being on the original EDA website location. Migration of original site content to the new 2.0 website will take place gradually over a longer timeline.
When all the content has been copied to the 2.0 site, the original site will be turned off and the ElectionDefenseAlliance.org domain will be turned on at the 2.0 site.

Skipping Between EDA1 and EDA2

Navigation links in the top-level menu systems of both sites, will shuttle you back and forth between  EDA1 and EDA2,
depending on where the pages you are seeking, actually reside.

Because your EDA Web account Username and password are the same for both sites, you will be able to switch back and forth
with no problems.

Continue Reading for illustrated How-to
==========================

Navigation and Forum Feature Links

Below here is a screenshot of navigation links you will find at the top of each page inside a Working Groups Forum.

Notice on the top line, left, a link to return to the "EDA home page."  This refers to the home page on the EDA original site.

The link on the top right,  "Return to the working groups home page," takes you to the front door page for all the EDA2 Working Group Forums.

Navigation and Feature Links

Below the site navigation links you see a block of menu links that connect to the different work space and communication features of the Forum, which are:

 Forum,  Blog,  Calendar,  Wiki,  Forms,   Chat,  and Broadcast  (an internal mail list).

You can upload files to any of these locations, and all the files will be accessible from any page in the forum.

=============================
Details About Workspace and Communication Features


Forums:  Like the old discussion forums -- enter new forum topics, attach files, comment and reply to topics.

Blog:  A Group blog that any member can write to.  May be used internally, or even published to the public.
           Could be a very good way to keep public informed and to draw attention of press reporters.

Broadcast:  An internal e-mail list that connects to all group members.  You can post messages to PREP members
any time you are working in the Forum, without having to switch to another mail program.

Also, Broadcast can send you automated e-mail notifications whenever any group member has entered a new post or file.
You can manage subscription delivery settings for your individual account to your liking.

Calendar:  A group calendar that anyone can post events to. This will be a good way to keep everyone apprised
at a glance about the timeline for  group work objectives and events in the legal proceeding.

Wiki:  A wiki is a document creation format that enables simultaneous group content creation and editing;
           great for writing out working plans and for adding annotations to case documents.

Forms:  Forms is an all-purpose tool for creating quick forms of multiple varieties:
              Checklists, Contact Lists, Questionnaires, Petitions -- whatever you need, you can build.
              (Some learning time required).

==========================

Content Creation Links

At the foot of each Forum page, you will see this set of content creation  links.

These are what you click to create a new posting of any type (forum topic, calendar post, wiki note, etc.)


No matter which feature type you are creating,  the link will open up a content editor,
consisting of a main text entry box and associated control fields to assign a title, an URL, and other features of your post.

The content editor has a visual interface and an  HTML or "rich format" formatting palette,
similar to that in Word or any other word processor.

Content Editor

Content Posting Steps

  1. To create your post, have the content you wish to create already available, in a plain text format whenever possible.
  2. Select and copy your plain text,  and paste into the content editing box.
  3. Apply formatting features to your newly created post, using the formatting palette.
  4. You can also insert hyperlinks and graphic files  (and more media formats to come).
  5. You can also attach files to your post using a file upload control box you will find further down the content editor page.
  6. When finished, click Save.
  7. Your post will publish and other Group users will get a notification.

====================

Additional Post Settings Controls

Explore the additional posting settings you will find below the main content editing box,
and pretty soon you will be posting and uploading files and publishing posts with the same
ease and familiarity that  have composing  e-mails or Word documents.


 ====================
As in most new things, there's a bit of a learning curve, but this content creation system
is about as simple as it gets.

The best way to learn is to jump right in.

I hope you will enjoy and make good use of the new improved EDA Working Group Forums.

Dan Ashby
Co-Founder, Director
ElectionDefenseAlliance.org

EDA mail:      Dan@electiondefensealliance.org
Phone:           877.375.3930
Fax:               877.375.3916
Fax messages will be transmitted as PDF attachments via e-mail.

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The right of voting for representatives is the primary right by which all other rights are protected.
To take away this right is to reduce a man to slavery. . . Thomas Paine
 
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