The platform
How do I ask (or answer) a question about the platform?
To ask a question, click the "Community Support" button situated on the left-hand menu. Then select the "Discussions" and click the blue "Start a Discussion" button on the right side of the page. Enter your question title and further detail in the Title and Content boxes, and click "Post Discussion" to submit your question and the community will be alerted about your question. Then, you’ll be notified by email each time someone answers. If you want to opt-out of these email notifications, you can do so on the Notification Preferences page.
To answer a question, go to "Community Support" in our left-hand menu and click on the Discussions tab. Select the Discussion you would like to contribute to and click
How do I help fellow community members get to know me?
The 5 best ways to help fellow community members get to know you are:
- Complete your profile so others know more about you than just your name
- Like and comment on content so others know what you’re interested in
- Ask questions so we know what matters to you
- Start and join conversations in rooms to share your views and connect with others
- Contribute a post, video or document.
How do I publish an (introduction) post?
- Click ‘create’ at the top right of your screen and then click on create a post, video or document
- Click the green button +new post/document/video, dependent on which you are posting
- Fill out the title, introduction and the body of the content (an introduction isn’t needed but is preferred)
- When creating your post, relevant buttons to use are located on the right of your screen labelled poster image, badges, channels and contributors. Explanation of these below:
- Poster image: upload a banner image that will be presented behind the title and introduction on your post to represent your post on the homepage
- Badges: use these tags to describe the topic areas relevant to your content - if there are no suitable badges you do not need to add any
- Channels: add your content to the channel which is most suitable or leave this blank if your post does not fit into any of these categories
- Contributors: add any contributing SEND Network members who may have contributed to the content
What are rooms?
Rooms are spaces for special interest groups - sub-communities of the wider community - from regional forums to groups for those in specific roles. They contain content relevant to the members in question and - more importantly - are home to conversations with like-minded others. Anyone can access rooms and take part in conversations. Simply click on the room you’re interested in to view the content and click into the Conversations tab to see what’s going on.
Can I create my own room?
Only the admin team can create rooms, but we’d love to hear your ideas for new rooms. Send a message to one of our Experts with details on your proposed room idea and we’ll get back to you with our feedback.
What are channels?
Channels are spaces for posts, videos and documents on a specific topic. Visit the channels on the subjects that are of most interest to you. You can read all the latest insights from our community in the channels.
How do I start / join a conversation?
Conversations take place in rooms, dedicated spaces for special interest groups. Anyone can take part in any conversation in any room. Simply click on the room in question and then the Conversations tab. You’ll either see the active conversations in the room or a message that tells you ‘There are no conversations in this room’. If that’s the case, don’t be shy! Feel free to start a conversation on a topic of relevance to the room in question. Click the “Start a conversation” button and enter your conversation opener, be it a question, an opinion or a link to something interesting, and expand on your opener in the “What’s on your mind?” box. Click Post and wait for the responses to come in! You’ll be notified by email when they do. To take part in an active conversation, click the title of the conversation you want to join and enter your response in the “Leave a reply” box before clicking the Reply button. The person that started the conversation and anyone that has previously taken part will be notified by email about your reply and invited to respond, which you can do by email.
How can I invite other members to the Lippincott Author Community?
You will be able to invite new members through the invitation bar on the homepage (see screenshot below). Click on the 'invite' button on the right and a screen will pop up in which you can enter the name and the email address of the person you would like to invite.
How can I find content that is older?
The latest content is always available on the homepage. But as the network develops, you’ll have access to a wealth of great content on a whole host of subjects. To find what you need, either browse the channels (accessible in the left-hand menu) or rooms or use the search bar at the top of the site to search for content and experts on the subjects you’re into.
Can I contact another member directly?
When you click on a member's avatar anywhere on the site you will see their profile page, which contains a variety of information to help you get to know them better. They may have chosen to provide an email address at which to be contacted. If so, you’ll see a blue Contact button under their avatar which, when clicked, starts an email to that member. Otherwise, the best way to communicate with your fellow community members is to start a conversation, which you can do by clicking on the "Start conversation" button under their avatar. Alternatively, you could start a conversation in the relevant room and see who jumps in!
What is following and why should I do it?
Following is a great way of making sure you don’t miss out on the expertise that matters to you. By following a member, you will be notified by email whenever they create content or start a conversation. What’s more, they will be notified by email when you follow them so it’s a great way to introduce yourself! Wherever you see a member’s avatar, you can either click on the “follow” button alongside or click their avatar to be taken to their profile page, on which you will find a “follow” button. If you don’t want to be notified by email when you are followed, you can opt-out of this email in Notification Preferences in the Account Settings section.
What are video panels and how do I have one?
Video panels are recordable video calls (a bit like Skype) that have three main uses:
- To chat with one or more users
- To record a video of you talking on a subject of interest to others
- To host (and record) a video of a discussion with up to 10 participants on a relevant subject
You can use video panels to chat with any members of the network.
- Go to your avatar at the top right-hand of the screen and then select ‘My Video Panels’
- Click the ‘Create video panel’ icon
- Then, if your panel includes other people, search for the member(s) with which you want to chat by typing their name and click on each user to add them to the panel
- Give your panel a name and click ‘Save’
- The panel is now created
- If appropriate, emails will be sent to the invited members to invite them to the panel, containing a link to the panel area
- When you are all ready to join the panel, click on the panel name and the video panel recording screen will open
- Click the ‘Join panel’ button
- You may be asked to allow the site to use your camera and / or microphone: give permission to do this
- After a few moments, your face will appear in the video panel recording area
- If appropriate, wait for the other attendees to join the panel
- When you are ready to start your discussion, click the ‘Record’ button. Once the icon has stopped scrolling, you are recording your panel
- Click the ‘Stop recording’ button to stop recording at any time. And click ‘Record’ again if you want to restart!
- Once you have created your videos, click the ‘Leave panel’ button
- You will now see a ‘Recordings’ button. Click this to see your videos!
How can I delete my post, comment or conversation?
A post can be deleted by going to your avatar (profile picture) in the right upper corner, then go to "your posts", click on the three dots next to the post you would like to delete and click 'delete'. Or you can go directly to the post, click on 'edit' and press 'unpublish'.
With a conversation (which you start within a room) or comment (e.g. under a post), it's different - you will need to get in touch with Lippincott Author Community admin and they can block the comment or conversation for you so that it won't appear on the site. Send a message to one of our Experts.
Can I embed a video or podcast into my post?
You most certainly can! Here is a guide to show how:
Your information
Can I sign up using my organization's name?
When registering with Lippincott Author Community, we ask members to use their first and last name, instead of their organization's name. The reason for this is that, as Lippincott Author Community members, we take ownership of our communications and are responsible for the effects we have on others by our words and actions (see our values in the "About" section). We do not have a sign-up process for organizations at the moment. We also encourage members to have one account per person, otherwise errors will occur on our platform.
Is my information public?
All of our content (including member profiles, content and comments in rooms) can be accessed and read without logging in, because we opted to be a community that shares information, tools and solutions more widely and for free. That content should also appear in Google search. However, if any of our members would like to post content to other Lippincott Author Community members only, they can get in touch with us (send a message to one of our Experts). There are two options that we can help with: 1) setting the content that you want to post or have posted as "member exclusive" and 2) creating a private room, where only people who have been invited to will be able to view the content and comments in that room. These options are not applicable to member profiles, however you can always edit your member profile. To edit your profile, visit the Edit Profile page under your avatar to the top right of the site.
How do I edit my profile?
Your profile is your way of helping the network get to know you, demonstrating your expertise and interests and showcasing your contributions. To edit your profile, visit the Edit Profile page under your avatar to the top right of the site. Here you can edit your personal details (name, organization etc.), create your bio, provide contact and social media details (if you like), and more.
How do I change my email notifications?
To edit your email notifications, visit the Account Settings page under your avatar to the top right of the site. Scroll down and click on 'Notification Preferences'. There are different email notifications, please find an overview in our Privacy Policy. When your notification is switched on, the toggle will appear aqua blue. When your notifications are off, this will be indicated by a grey toggle.
How do I change my email address?
Click on your profile photo (avatar) at the top of the page and go to Account Settings. Click the “Change Email Address” button and enter a new email address and your current password. Click “Save Changes” and an email will be sent to the new email address containing a link for you to click to confirm the change.
How do I change my password?
Click on your profile photo (avatar) at the top of the page and go to Account Settings. Click the “Change Password” button and enter your current password and a new password. Click “Save Changes” to confirm the change.
How do I set / change my profile picture (avatar)?
Profiles with avatars get more views and they help the community get to know you so make sure you’ve got one! To set or edit your avatar, click on your avatar and go to the “Edit Profile” page. You’ll see the tool for changing your profile picture at the top of the page. Top tip: your Twitter avatar will be the right size for this, so why not use that?
Who should I contact if I have problems with the site?
Please message one of our Experts.
How do I delete my account?
To delete your account, click on your profile photo (avatar) at the top of the page and go to Account Settings. Scroll down to the “Delete Your Account” section. Click the button and follow the instructions to delete your account. Your account will be deleted permanently in one hour and will not be able to be retrieved.
