Thanks Mike for your elaboration. Seems such an addition could range from help with acquiring data, formatting data and/or sites and posting data to suggestions for various elements to assist the coordinators give visitors other tools in their research efforts. Tim On Fri, Mar 20, 2015 at 1:33 AM, Mike (Dino) Peterson <[email protected]> wrote: > Tim, > speaking strictly in basics and generalities, the current state web site > is designed to help the researcher. I’m suggesting the purpose of the site > become two-fold; 1) help researchers, 2) help Minnesota coordinators.. > Mike > > *From:* Timothy Stowell via <[email protected]> > *Sent:* Thursday, March 19, 2015 7:14 PM > *To:* [email protected] > *Subject:* Re: [MNGEN] USGenWeb Requirements > > Mike, > > Would you elaborate what you mean by 'separate from the PR to researchers'? > > Thanks, > > Tim > > On Thu, Mar 19, 2015 at 9:37 PM, Mike Peterson via <[email protected]> > wrote: > > > Good note Karen ! > > I think the state web site should have a ‘coordinator’ section similar > how > > USGenWeb and some other states do it. Separate from the PR to > researchers. > > Also, I think our state site should have a guidelines page for us – > > similar to USGenWeb - http://usgenweb.org/volunteers/guidelines.shtml . > > Sincerely, > > Mike > > Clay Co > > > > From: Karen De Groote via > > Sent: Thursday, March 19, 2015 5:55 PM > > To: List MNGenWeb > > Subject: [MNGEN] USGenWeb Requirements > > > > Greetings CCs, > > Below is a very important email that we all need to read so that we > > are on the same page. If you have any questions or comments, please > > feel free to write one of the leadership team or post on the list for > > general discussion. > > > > We need to get our sites up to snuff and this email will serve as a > > simple explanation of what we should do. Now that we have gotten > > MNGenWeb up and running again, we need to take it to the next level. > > Sometime in the next 10 days you need to take a look at your > > county(ies) to make sure all is in order. As a valued member of the > > USGenWeb project we need to get polished up now that we are once again > > standing on firm ground. > > > > At the end of the explanations is a short list of all the > > requirements. You can use that as a check list in making sure your > > sites comply with USGenWeb requirements and read the detailed > > information for clarification. > > > > Additionally, Tim, Shirley and I, as your leadership team, have > > divided up the counties among the three of us, in order to make it > > easier to visit all counties. The division is as follows using an > > alphabetized list of couties and making sure we do not have a county > > personally in our respective divisions: > > > > Tim: counties A-H > > Karen: counties I-O > > Shirley: counties P-Y > > > > What this also means is that you have a specific leadership person who > > will bring to the team any questions and concerns that you may have, > > whenever you need them. > > > > > > The leadership team will begin reviewing their counties at the end of > > this 10 day period for the basic requirements and you will be getting > > an email of congratulations or whoops we have something yet to do. > > > > USGenWeb CC requirements can be found at: > > http://www.usgenweb.org/volunteers/guidelines.shtml > > > > Point by point explanation of requirements: > > > > 1. The first requirement is a name and email on your index page. It > > is very important that visitors know who they can contact about YOUR > > county. It is perfectly acceptable to have first name only but there > > must be a name. It is also perfectly fine to have a text or picture > > link of the email rather than a hyperlink if you want to cut down on > > spam. Another good idea is a hyperlink to a contact page. (See > > Nicollet County for this example: > > http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~mnnicoll/) Many people will use > > this method so they merely have to change one page, not page after > > page on a site. It is up to you and how you want your email to appear > > but we do > > need a name and an email contact of some sort on the index page.. > > This name and email should be easily found, not hidden at the bottom > > of page or hidden in a similar color. This is especially difficult > > for our color blind visitors. > > > > 2. The next requirement is responding to emails from researchers in a > > reasonable time period. If someone writes to you from your county > > page, some response should go out within a reasonable time frame. In > > this day and age it shouldn't take more than a few days to get back > > with people. This response can simply state that you do not have the > > information they seek or you need more time to dig up their answer, if > > you are so inclined. If you go on vacation or away from your email > > for quite some time, let your leadership team know you will be out of > > communication for X amount of time. Visitors complain to the SC if > > they don't get responses. > > > > 3. Item 3 will come under separate cover: Copyright > > > > 4. Solicitation of funds is inappropriate except as allowed in the > > bylaws, Section IX. To paraphrase this requirement, no memberships, > > contributions or materials for sale are allowed on the index page. > > The USGenWeb project has a commitment to free genealogy for > > researchers and it would not do to have monetary demands on the index > > page of your county. It does not, however, prevent links to purchase > > genealogical materials or hire a paid researcher on pages other than > > the index page and dedicated to these services. > > > > 5. All index pages require the prominent display of the USGenWeb > > logo. We have 4 acceptable logos we can use. These were voted in to > > official use some dozen or so years ago. The logos page is at: > > http://www.usgenweb.org/volunteers/logos.shtml Prominent display > > means you don't have to go looking for them, they are showing when you > > open the page. Your county site should immediately indicate that you > > are a member of the USGenWeb project, with the proper and prominent > > placement of one of these official logos. You must also link the logo > > itself or provide a text link immediately under the logo to the > > USGenWeb home page: http://www.usgenweb.org > > > > 6. As a CC you are required to be subscribed to this mailing list. > > Obviously if you receive this message you are good to go. Some have > > complained of the great amount of email on this list in the past. In > > order to cut down on the amount of emails during a discussion, you can > > subscribe to this list in digest mode which will send one email a day > > with the pertinent discussions. > > > > 7. All counties must offer some type of query system. The easiest > > method is to provide a link to the Rootsweb/Ancestry query board for > > your county but you can use your own county based query system. A > > countyabased system provides a query system that is on your country > > site where you post all queries you receive manually. If that is > > what you like to do, you are welcome to do it in this manner. > > > > 8. All county sites must provide a link to the state site. We voted > > on an official logo for this project and if you use a MNGenWeb logo, > > it MUST be the official logo for this project. If you use a logo you > > must either link the logo to the state project page at, > > http://rootsweb.ancestry.com/~mngenweb/, or provide a text link > > immediately under the logo. Here is the page with our official logo > > and the acceptable banner that can be used on other pages that are NOT > > the index page: http://rootsweb.ancestry.com/~mngenweb/logo.htm. > > This is an area that we have problems with in this project. Some are > > using the old logo and some are using the the new BANNER on the index > > page for a logo rather than the official logo. It only takes a few > > minutes reformat your index page to utilize the official MNGenWeb > > logo. You are welcome to ADD a banner somewhere on your index page > > for decoration but it cannot take the place of the official logo. > > > > 9. The official name of our project is MNGenWeb, exactly like that. > > Capital M, N, G, lowercase e, n, capital W, lowercase e,b. Any other > > title is unacceptable. Minnesota spelled out is not acceptable. > > Counties should be called Subject County, MNGenWeb or even Subject > > County Genealogy, a MNGenWeb county. MNGenWeb has to be in your title > > for identification purposes. Anoka County is one example of proper > > branding: http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~mnanoka/intro.htm > > > > It should take a person no more than 15-30 minutes to correct any > > deficiencies in their index page. To recap the the list of required > > items: > > > > 1. Name and email (or contact link) on index page > > 2. Respond to emails from researchers in timely manner. > > 3. Current copyright > > 4. Solicitation of funds handled properly > > 5. USGenWeb logo and link > > 6. Subscribed to email list > > 7. Query system offered > > 8. Link to state site, official logo if using logo > > 9. Official name in MNGenWeb > > > > There are a number of recommended and strongly recommended items on > > the National rules page that you may wish to add to your sites. They > > are not a requirement at this time but if you choose to use these > > elements, please make sure they are correct. For example Pico Search > > is no longer in business so if you have them on your page, they need > > to be replaced by a working search engine. > > > > Thank you so much, one and all! > > > > Karen De Groote > > ASC > > Tim Stowell > > SC > > Shirley Cullum > > SC > > > > ------------------------------- > > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > > [email protected] with the word 'unsubscribe' without the > quotes > > in the subject and the body of the message > > > > ------------------------------- > > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > > [email protected] with the word 'unsubscribe' without the > quotes > > in the subject and the body of the message > > > > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > [email protected] with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes > in the subject and the body of the message >