This site is all about communication - providing various ways for members to share information. As such, many of the features are designed to allow members to add their own materials in the form of comments, web links, photos, and so on. In some sections, posting is restricted, but in most cases the restriction can be removed by making a request to the site administrators.
If you're viewing this on the site's home page, click the Read more link for an overview of the site's many features. Otherwise, just scroll down.
Front page (Home)
The front (or home) page is what greets you when you arrive at the site. Recent or important news and FAQs are shown here in the center of the page. To the left and right of the center news section are several small windows that provide a sampling of the site's other content, status displays, and other useful information. Keep in mind that many of these windows are not visible until you log in.
Front page news and FAQs (Read more...)
The news and FAQ entries displayed in the center section of the front page are chosen by the site administrator as being the most useful or interesting to users. As new news and FAQ articles are submitted, the site administrator decides which should be shown on the front page. Of course, all of the news and FAQ articles are accessible in the news and FAQ sections of the site. Sometimes an article is too long to be shown in its entirety on the front page, in which case you'll see the first paragraph or so, followed by a Read more... link. Click this link to read the entire article.
Main components of the site
The main features of the site are called components. They are the workhorses of the site, and are listed below:
News
News articles are essentially important announcements of interest to all the site's registered users, and in some cases, even non-registered site visitors. Here you will find family and event announcements, along with news about the web site itself. Any registered user can submit news.
Blog
The blog is a running journal of activity related to this site, genealogy, the Niebuhr clan and other family-related issues. Currently the blog is authored only by Roberta Rivett and Jeff Rivett, but more authors may be added later. If you want to contribute to the blog's content, contact the site admins.
Calendar
The calendar shows the details of upcoming Niebuhr-related events. Only registered users with special permissions can submit an event to the calendar. Contact the site admins if you'd like to do that.
Photos
The photos component is where you can see other users' family-related images and upload your own for other users to see. There are separate galleries for photos from past Niebuhr family events. At this time, only the site administrator can add photos. If you would like to contribute photos for posting on the site, use the 'Contact us' link in the sidebar to let us know.
Documents
The documents component is a repository for family- and genealogy-related documents of all kinds. For example, the repository already contains scans of the actual immigration records of some of our ancestors! Any registered user can submit documents to the repository.
Discussion
Note: this feature has been removed for site security reasons. It may return if there is demand for it.
Web links
Have you discovered a web site about the Niebuhr family, genealogy or anything else that may be of interest to the site's users? Submit the site here. Several categories have been set up. Browse the existing links to find some useful web sites. Any registered user can submit web links.
Search
The search component is where you can perform advanced searches on all of the site's content. Search for any words, all specified words or an exact phrase, and specify the sort order of the results.
Custom menus
Most of the main components of the site include component-specific menus. These menus appear in place of the main menu when you navigate to any of the main components (e.g. Photos, Calendar, etc.) Custom menus include actions that are specific to the component.
Site modules
This site includes a variety of small windows (modules) that provide overviews of the site's content as well as useful controls. Site modules currently in use are listed below:
Quick search
At the top right of the page is a small text entry box containing "Search..." This allows you to perform a site-wide search from an easily-accessible and always visible part of the site. Simply enter into the box the text you would like to search for and press Enter. The results of your quick search will be displayed.
Logged out menu
This site contains a variety of menus. You may notice that some of the menus are not visible unless you are logged in to the site. When you are logged out, you will see only a reduced version of the main menu (the topmost section of the left side of the site). This limits access to the site's features for unregistered users.
Logged in menu
Once you are logged in, the main menu will fill out and the user menu will appear below the main menu.
Login box
The login box is where you log in to the site. Before you log in, it shows text entry boxes for Username and Password, a checkbox labeled Remember me, a Login button, a Forgot login? link and a Register link. To log in, enter your username and password and click the Login button. If you don't want to have to log in again the next time you start your web browser and go to this site, put a checkmark in the Remember me checkbox. If you have forgotten your password, click the Forgot login? link. If you haven't yet registered, click the Register link.
Once you are logged in, the Login box changes so that it only displays a greeting with your username and a Logout button.
Random image
This module on the left side of the site shows a random image from the Photos component of the site. Click the random photo to go to the Photos component.
Upcoming events
This module, also on the left side of the site, shows the next few upcoming events according to the calendar component. Clicking an event in this list displays the details for that event.
User actions
This module on the left side of the site lists any pending actions you need to take. The actions listed here are typically associated with user management. Most users will only see items here that are related to the connections feature of the site. See below for more information regarding connections. To deal with a listed user action, click the linked item.
Who's logged in?
This module on the left side of the site lists users that are currently logged in to the site. Click a listed username to see that user's details.
Statistics
This information module on the left side of the site displays some stats about the site, including the number of registered users, the number of news and FAQ articles, the number of submitted web links and the number of visitors the site has received.
News feeds
Some of the content on this site is syndicated. This means that the content is available in the form of RSS feeds. Using RSS reader software, you can receive updates whenever RSS-enabled content is posted on this site. Click the RSS icon in your web browser to set up your RSS reader to receive content updates, or click the 'Subscribe' link that appears in some menus.
Polls
We want to know what's important to you and what you would like to see on this site. One of the ways we find this out is to create polls. The current poll appears on the right side of the site on the home page. To participate (please do!), read the poll, select the option that fits best with your opinion and click the Vote button. To see the poll results, click the Results button. You may only vote once on each poll.
Mini-calendar
Appearing on the left or the right side of the site (depending on the context), the mini-calendar shows the current month, with today's date highlighted. Click one of the days to show events for that day.
Latest Items
Appearing on the right side of the site in some contexts, this module lists the most recently-added news and FAQ articles. Click one of the listed items to see the complete article.
Popular Items
Appearing on the right side of the site in some contexts, this module lists the most-viewed news and FAQ articles. Click one of the listed items to see the complete article.
User information
The site records a variety of information about its users and allows access to that information to all registered users. User-related controls, as seen on the user menu (just below the main menu on the left side of the site) are listed below:
Your Details
This displays your own personal details. Since access to this information is restricted to registered (and vetted) users, feel free to fill in all your contact details as they will be kept away from prying eyes. Here you may also view or change a few personal settings related to the site.
Connections
An experimental feature of the site, connections allow you to identify relationships between registered users of this site. For instance, I (Jeff Rivett) have set up connections between myself and my mother and sister, who are also registered site users.
User list
Displays a list of all registered site users. Click a username to see all their details.
Submitting information to the site
The user menu includes links that allow users to submit content to the site. There are several ways in which you can contribute, listed below:
Submit News
Any registered user can submit news.
Have some news of interest to the site's users? Submit it here. Your submission will be reviewed and approved within a day or so. If there are any problems with your submission, the site administrators will contact you. Depending on the relative importance of your news, it may even appear on the front page! Detailed instructions for submitting news will appear in a separate FAQ.
Submit Event
Currently, only users with special permissions can submit events. If you would like to add events to the calendar, please contact the site admins.
Is there a family-related event that the site's users need to know about? Submit it here. Your submission will be reviewed and approved within a day or so. If there are any problems with your submission, the site administrators will contact you. Detailed instructions for submitting events will appear in a separate FAQ.
Submit Photo(s)
Do you have family-related photos you'd like to share? Use the 'Contact us' link in the sidebar to let us know, and we'll make arrangements to get your photos posted onto the site.
Submit Document
Found some interesting family-related documents you think may be of interest to the site's users? Submit them here. Your submission will be reviewed by the site admins and approved within a few days, otherwise you will be contacted. Detailed instructions for submitting documents will appear in a separate FAQ.
Submit Weblink
This is where you submit web sites for the Web Links section of the site. Your submission will be reviewed by the site admins and approved within a few days, otherwise you will be contacted. Detailed instructions for submitting web links will appear in a separate FAQ.