Inbuilding Help

Forum features and rules

Arlo Guthrie — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 15:35:00 GMT

The Inbuilding Forums should be self-intuitive to use. However, there are a couple of important things to know and some useful features we'd like to highlight.

Get stuck in!
The Inbuilding Forums can be a very valuable resource. Somewhere you can post a question (anonymously if needs be - see below) about almost anything, personal or professional, for others in the profession to come and offer their thoughts, advice or support. But remember, for the community to flourish, it's important to try and give as much as you take. So, if you see a post you think you can help with, please do. It will make it more likely that someone else will return the favour when it's you that has the question.
Who can read my posts?
The registration process for Inbuilding.org is designed to deter people from outside the profession (or not closely associated) joining the community, and we do carry out spot checks. However, the system is not infallible and you should always presume that what you write in any forum (not just this one) might be read by someone other than an architect. This has not proven to be a problem in the past, but you should keep it in mind, and not post things which might bring the profession into disrepute.
Anonymity
The InBuilding Forums are based on transparency and in the normal run of things, we strongly encourage you to display your real name next to your posts (set in 'My Account'>'Edit My Profile'). Nevertheless, we recognise that there may be situations when you would prefer to ask a question, or ask for support anonymously. To do this, log out of the site, and then log back in using the following details:

Username: Anon
Password: 1nbu1ld1ng (ones instead of the letter i)

Remember to log back out again after you have made your anonymous post.

Incidentally, it is impossible for anyone, even the administrators of this site, to know who has logged in using the Anon account. For this reason, it may ONLY be used for the purpose of seeking advice from other members, and may NOT be used to post any derogatory remarks about any named individual or company.

Forum Features

Subscribe
You can subscribe to be alerted whenever there is a new post to any or all of the forums, or just a specific thread. Just click Forum Subscriptions in the right hand margin, and then click on the Yes/No link adjacent to each forum name in order to make your selection.

If you only wish to be notified of posts to one particular thread, there's a 'subscribe to thread' link in the right hand margin of each thread.

NB: PLEASE ENSURE THAT YOU HAVE SET ANY SPAM PROGRAM YOU OR YOUR ISP IS RUNNING SPECIFICALLY TO ALLOW EMAILS FROM @INBUILDING.ORG, AND FOR YOUR EMAIL PROGRAM TO ALLOW IMAGES IN INBUILDING EMAILS. OTHERWISE YOU MAY NOT RECEIVE THE ALERTS YOU REQUESTED.
Private discussions
Within each post are numerous options for contacting the person who made the post. You can add them to your colleagues, send an email, or start a private discussion about a thread or post with them on Inbuilding.
Polls, videos and other attachments
When you post a new message, you'll see there are various tabs at the top of the posting page which allow you to conduct a poll, or attach a video / photo or other files.

Forum Rules

It is Working Communities' sincere wish that this forum serves only to benefit the architecture profession through the exchange of ideas, experiences and opinions. When posting messages on this forum, please abide by the following rules:

SHOW YOURSELF
We strongly recommend that before posting in the forums, you first create a profile ('My Profile' link at the top of every page), including a photograph and a biog which gives a short summary of your career, and lists some of your interests outside work. This helps give your posts context, and will help you connect with other members with similar interests. In addition, being accountable for what you post helps ensure healthier debate.
BE POLITE. ALWAYS.
The purpose of this rule is not to stifle genuine debate. However, do not ever post comments which are patronising, belittling, dismissive or in any other way discourteous to another member, whatever you may think of their opinion. Accept that you may have misunderstood their post, and even if you haven't, they are as entitled to their opinion as you are yours. Disagree by all means. Just do not let it become personal.
THREE STRIKES
Breaking the above rule will earn you a yellow flag on the first and second occasion. On the third, it'll be a red flag and the suspension of your account for two weeks. A fourth will lead to a permanent ban.
CLARIFY WHEN YOU'RE JOKING
Whilst the idea of using 'smilies' may make some of you cringe, we encourage you to use them to 'soften' your post, or make it clear that you're joking if clarity is needed. It may make the difference between a yellow/red flag or not.
TRY AND STAY ON TOPIC
When contributing to a forum discussion, please try to remain on-topic, i.e. keep your contribution relevant to the original title of the discussion. If there is a new subject you would like to discuss, please start a new thread.
INDUSTRY MEMBERS
Members representing industry are encouraged to add a 'Signature' in their profile, which should include job title, company, and telephone number. This helps give your post immediate context.

In addition:

Working Communities does monitor this forum regularly. However, due to its real-time nature, it is impossible for us to guarantee to review any or all messages or confirm the validity of any information posted. Please remember that Working Communities is not responsible for any messages posted by other users of this forum, and nor can the company vouch for or warrant the accuracy, completeness or usefulness of any such messages. All messages express the views of the author of the message, not necessarily the views of this forum or any entity associated with this forum. Any user who feels that a posted message is objectionable is encouraged to contact the editor immediately. We have the ability to remove objectionable messages and we will make every effort to do so, within a reasonable time frame, if we determine that removal is necessary. This is a manual process, however, so please realize that we may not be able to remove or edit particular messages immediately.
You agree, through your use of this service, that you will not use this Forum to post any material which is knowingly false and/or defamatory, inaccurate, abusive, vulgar, hateful, harassing, obscene, profane, sexually oriented, threatening, invasive of a person's privacy, or which otherwise violates any law. You agree not to post any copyrighted material unless the copyright is owned by you or by this forum.
Although Working Communities cannot guarantee to review any messages posted, and is not responsible for their content, we reserve the right to delete any message for any or no reason whatsoever. You remain solely responsible for the content of your messages, and you agree to indemnify and hold harmless Working Communities, and their agents with respect to any claim based upon transmission of your message(s). Working Communities reserves the right to reveal your identity (or whatever information we know about you) in the event of a complaint or legal action arising from any message posted by you.

Ask The Expert Forums

Arlo Guthrie — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 15:22:34 GMT

We've got together a panel of experts from allied professions to answer questions from architects.

At present, they are:

David Hall from Hazelcliff Construction, in Ask The Builder
Ruth Haynes from South Stoke Structures, in Ask The Structural Engineer
Rob Gillespie from Impact Planning Services, in Ask The Planning Consultant
Arlo Guthrie, also co-editor of this site, in Ask The E-marketing Consultant

Post your question for any of the team in their respective forum, and they'll endeavour to reply as soon as possible. Note that all of our experts work full time, but they'll aim to reply within 24 hours.

Note that it can be quite hard to answer very project-specific questions without more detail than can be given in an Internet forum, so you will likely find you get more useful replies to questions about broad principles, or if you ask for an opinion about, for example, a building product.

The main benefit to you of this service is a second opinion from an expert who has no vested interest in the answer they give you.

Over the coming months, and as demand grows, we'll be expanding our expert team.

How to network on Inbuilding.org

Arlo Guthrie — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 09:10:00 GMT

There are two ways you might find others to connect with as 'Colleagues' on Inbuilding.org:

As you navigate round the site, you may find content posted by people you know, or would like to connect with. Click their name to visit their profile. Then click 'Add as Colleague', and a request will be sent to them.
Alternatively, use the search box top right of every page to find people you may know already (1st Feb 2012, this feature is temporarily disabled). At this stage, whilst the site is in its infancy, the chances are somewaht slim. But if you like the look of Inbuilding.org, you could invite your work colleagues to come and join, and then make them Inbuilding.org Colleagues.

Why use Inbuilding.org to network?

Arlo Guthrie — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 08:52:00 GMT

Inbuilding.org includes a similar social networking system to those used by facebook and linkedin. Request that someone becomes your 'Colleague', and they'll be added to your Inbuilding.org contact list.

Unlike facebook, your connections on Inbuilding.org are professional ones only. There's a lot to be said for keeping business and pleasure completely separate: less chance of a future employer finding a tagged photo of you at a stag night twenty years ago, dressed in a crotchless superman outfit.
Making someone your Inbuilding.org Colleague is a nice additional way to keep in touch with someone when you leave college or move practice.
It can also be a useful way to connect with your most important suppliers, in a way that makes it difficult for them to be overly intrusive.
When someone becomes your Colleague, you can see their activity on Inbuilding.org, which is particularly helpful if they are someone whose opinion you value, or you think usually has something interesting to say.

How to post in the galleries

Arlo Guthrie — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 18:29:00 GMT

Posting a basic entry is reasonably straightforward. However, we also offer some tips for enhancing your entry. If in doubt contact support@inbuilding.org.

Adding a basic entry to the Architectural Zeitgeist Gallery

First click the blue 'New Post' button in the gallery. On the subsequent page, you'll be presented with a form to complete. Ideally, your Zeitgeist entry should contain:

Google-friendly title as follows: Practice name / Project Type / Location.
Type this into the box captioned 'Name'
Main image showing the project in its entirety.
Press the 'Specify File / URL' button, then either browse for an image on your computer OR click the 'Link to URL' button and paste in the URL of a youtube video (for example).
Project description
Type or copy and paste this into the large text entry box marked 'Description. If you are copying text from elsewhere (such as another webpage or a word processing application, then make sure to press the icon that looks like a clipboard with a 'W' on it. That will ensure your text is formatted correctly.
Your company logo and/or contact details
These can be typed in at the foot of your text entry. However, you may wish to use the various formatting buttons above the text entry box in order to style this text.
IMPORTANT: A link to your website
This will probably form part of the contact details above. We highlight them simply to emphasise the importance of linking back to your website, because it will help improve your website's visibility in Google. If you don't link to your website, it won't improve your ranking!
Supplementary pictures and captions as necessary
If you wish to add additional, more detailed photographs of your project close up, you may do so by clicking the icon that looks like a colour polaroid with a + symbol (adjacent to the filmstrip) above the text entry box. Browse for the image you wish to add, then press 'insert'.

How to post and view job adverts

Arlo Guthrie — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 18:26:31 GMT

Posting a job advert on Inbuilding.org should be reasonably self-intuitive. However, there are a couple of tricks to be aware of:

Posting a job advert

In the right hand margin, you'll see the menu items: 'All Jobs', 'Manage Your Jobs', 'Create a Job Post'. Click the latter.
You will then need to complete a form.
In the large text-entry box marked 'Full Job Description', you may enter almost whatever you want. But if you are pasting details from a Microsoft Word document (or any other application), first press the small icon above the text entry box that looks like a clipboard with a 'W' on it. Then copy your details into the new window that opens up. This will remove any unnecessary code included by, for example, your word-processing application, and make sure that the layout is correct.
Hit 'Save'.

Editing jobs you have already posted

Click 'Manage Your Jobs' in the right hand margin.
Then click on the title of the job you wish to edit
Then either make your edits, scroll to the bottom of the page and 'Save', or scroll to the bottom of the page and hit 'Delete' if you no longer wish to advertise the vacancy.

Viewing jobs

Jobs are displayed in chronological order, with the most recently advertised at the top.
You can filter jobs by type by selecting the appropriate tab at the top of the list (Architect/Technician/Part 2/Part 1/Other)
You can further filter jobs by location and type (full or part-time) using the 'Filter Jobs' menu in the right hand margin.
You can contact the advertiser either through the details published in the advert itself, or by starting a connversation with the person who published the entry (click their name which appears above the ad).

How to post and view CPD & events

Arlo Guthrie — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 18:10:00 GMT

Adding an event to the diary should be easonably self-intuitive, but there are a couple of tricks you should be aware of:

Adding events

On the right hand side of the Events page, you'll see a menu marked 'All Events', 'Manage Your Events' and 'Create an Event'. Click the latter.
You will then be presented with a form to fill in. It is important to give your event a succinct but attention-grabbing title.
In the large text-entry box marked 'Full Event Description', you may enter almost whatever you want. But if you are pasting details from a Microsoft Word document (or any other application), first press the small icon above the text entry box that looks like a clipboard with a 'W' on it. Then copy your details into the new window that opens up. This will remove any unnecessary code included by, for example, your word-processing application, and make sure that the layout is correct.
FOR THE MOMENT, PLEASE DO NOT ADD TAGS IN THE FINAL BOX OF THE FORM. THERE IS A SMALL GLITCH, AND IT WILL CAUSE AN ERROR.

Editing events you have already posted

Click 'Manage Your Events' in the right hand margin.
Then click on the title of the event you wish to edit
Then either make your edits, scroll to the bottom of the page and 'Save', or scroll to the bottom of the page and hit 'Delete' if the event is cancelled or you no longer wish to advertise it.

Viewing events

Events are displayed in chronological order, most recent at the top.
You can filter for events by type by selecting the appropriate tab at the top of the list (CPD/Exhibitions/Meetings/Other)
You can further filter events by location and date using the 'Filter Events' menu in the right hand margin.
You can contact the event organiser either through the details published in the event entry, or by starting a connversation with the person who published the entry.

Why post examples of your work in our galleries?

Arlo Guthrie — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 20:08:00 GMT

At present, there is one photo / video gallery on Inbuilding.org: What Architects Do. There are a number of reasons why you might like to add a case study of your work to What Architects Do.

Google visibility

Firstly, one of the most important factors that affects how highly your website ranks in Google is the number of websites that link to it. Google assumes that every website that links to yours (inbound links) is a sort of 'vote of confidence'. However, it's no good securing inbound links from any old website. They need to come from websites that are relevant to your work. They need to come from websites that don't exist purely to provide links for this purpose (link farms), and they'll be more valuable if they come from sites that themselves have a high ranking. Inbuilding.org is one of precious few websites that fulfil these criteria, so it really is worthwhile adding a case study that links to your own website.

To showcase your work

Secondly, there will be some of you that will have commercial or career reasons to showcase your work to others in the profession. For example, those of you that work as freelancers for bigger practices. Or perhaps to show the kind of work your practice undertakes, with the aim of attracting new talent.

For inspiration

Finally, as more people contribute examples of their work to the Architectural Zeitgeist, so it will become representative of the architectural spirit of the age, and a unique source of inspiration for others in the profession.

Settings

Arlo Guthrie — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 16:16:05 GMT

You can use your site settings to specify which additional information about yourself is displayed (or not), and configure certain site features. The following explains the most important features:

Profile Options Tab

Your name, birthday, gender and language choice should be self-intuitive.
The field marked 'Public Email' is redundant - we never share your email address with other members of the site.
Shared favourites allows other members of the site to see which things you have marked as 'favourites'
Shared feeds is not currently used.
Your SIGNATURE IS IMPORTANT. This appears beneath every post you make in the forums. It is particularly important to add a signature if you think it will give your posts context. For example, if you represent a manufacturer or supplier, your signature should include your job title, company name and company url. This helps ensure transparency if you are discussing something in which you have a commercial interest. Likewise, people who have specialist skills and experience may care to give details in their signature. Otherwise, some people use it to display a favourite quote which they relate to.
Email configuration should be self-intuitive.

Site Options Tab

Content Editor - 'Enhanced' allows you additional formatting options when you post content on the site, but may not work in certain mobile devices, in which case you can select 'Plain Text'
Enable Display Name - Allows the display of your name, as displayed in your 'Profile Options' above. If you untick the box, your login name will be displayed publicly, instead of your real name.
We recommend everything else up to 'account/profile activities' is left in the default setting.
Thereafter you can define which of your activities are displayed in the 'latest site activity' areas on the site. We recommend you keep these ticked, but it is not obligatory.

Sign in information

You can change your password here.
If you wish to changed your username, you will need to email support@inbuilding.org and request a new one.

Conversations

Arlo Guthrie — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 15:42:21 GMT

Conversations are private message threads between you and other members of the site.

To start a conversation with another member

Navigate to the profile of the person you want to start a conversation with. You can either search for them using the search box top right or click on their name which appears adjacent to anything they have posted online.

To reply to a conversation with another member

You will be sent an email notification of any message sent to you. DO NOT reply directly to the email, as this will just go back to us, the publishers of inbuilding.org. Instead click the link within the email and reply on the site. Alternatively, you can check your messages and reply to them by clicking the link marked 'My Conversations' at the top of every page.

Your Profile

Arlo Guthrie — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 09:44:00 GMT

Your profile displays whatever information about yourself that you would like to share with others. Whenever you post something on the site, it is accompanied by a link to your profile.

We strongly recommend you add a head and shoulders photograph and short biography to your profile. It will help you connect with other members with whom you have stuff in common. It also helps give context to things you post elsewhere on the site, such as forum discussions and gallery case studies.

To create / amend your Inbuilding profile

Click the link marked 'My Profile' at the top right hand corner of every page of the site (see below).
Click the link marked 'Edit profile', which appears to the right of your name / photo (see below).
When you have finished creating / editing your profile, click 'Save Profile', which appears to the right of your name / photo (in the same place as 'Edit Profile' above).

Inbuilding Forums Help

Arlo Guthrie — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 09:53:22 GMT

The VetSurgeon Forums should be self-intuitive to use. However, there are a couple of important things to know and some useful features we'd like to highlight.

Get stuck in!
The VetSurgeon Forums can be a very valuable resource. Somewhere you can post a question (anonymously if needs be - see below) about almost anything, personal or professional, and be confident that others in the profession will offer their thoughts, advice or support, usually within minutes or hours. But remember, for the community to flourish, it's important to try and give as much as you take. So, if you see a post you think you can help with, please do. It will make it more likely that someone else will return the favour when it's you that has the question.
Who can read my posts?
The registration process for VetSurgeon is designed to deter people from outside the profession (or not closely associated) joining the community, and we do carry out spot checks. However, the system is not infallible and you should always presume that what you write in any forum (not just this one) might be read by someone other than an architect. This has not proven to be a problem in the past, but you should keep it in mind,
and not post things which might bring the profession into disrepute.

Forum Features

Subscribe
You can now subscribe to be alerted whenever there is a new post to any or all of the forums. Just click Forum Subscriptions in the right hand margin, and then click on the Yes/No link adjacent to each forum name in order to make your selection.

If you only wish to be notified of posts to one particular thread, there's a handy 'email me when someone replies' at the top of each thread. Additionally, you can select this option whenever you post a new thread,
or a reply.

NB: PLEASE ENSURE THAT YOU
HAVE SET ANY SPAM PROGRAM YOU OR YOUR ISP IS RUNNING SPECIFICALLY TO ALLOW EMAILS FROM @VETSURGEON.ORG, AND FOR YOUR EMAIL PROGRAM TO ALLOW IMAGES IN
VETSURGEON EMAILS. OTHERWISE YOU MAY NOT RECEIVE THE ALERTS YOU REQUESTED.
Private discussions
Within each post are numerous options for contacting the person who made the post. You can add them to your colleagues, send an email, or start a private discussion about a thread or post with them on
Inbuilding.
Polls, videos and other attachments
When you post a new message, you'll see there are various tabs at the top of the posting page which allow you to conduct a poll, or attach a video / photo or other files. However, if you want the greatest
number of people to view your attachment, it is probably better to upload it to the Inbuilding galleries and then link to it from your forum post.

Inbuilding Events Calendar

Arlo Guthrie — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 09:20:00 GMT

ANY member of Inbuilding.org can add CPD, exhibitions, meetings and other events to the Inbuilding calendar, free of charge. It's the ultimate collaborative diary for the profession.

To add an event to the Inbuilding Calendar

Click 'Create an Event' in the right hand menu.
Enter the details and press 'Save' at the foot of the page. Publication will be instantaneous, unless we decide to moderate this section, in which case it will be within 24 hours.
Please DO NOT add 'tags' to your entry. There is a fault with tags in this section, which will cause an error.

To edit an event already published on Inbuilding

Only the member that originally published the entry (and the site editors) can subsequently edit it.
Click 'Manage Your Events', whereupon events that you have entered will be displayed. Click the appropriate one, edit and save.

To browse events

To make it easier for yout to find the events you want, first select the appropriate tab at the top of the list.
Then refine your selection further using 'Filter Events' on the right hand side.