The Forum system that has served us since 2001 is being retired on or about January 12 after a successful run. All FOBM participants should read this article and take the actions indicated below.
The Forums have been viewed in excess of 640,000 times, and several thousand comments have been posted. However, that aging software has become a spam mecca, and its technical support has become a burden for your web hosts and the FOBM team. (No Laughter, Many Tears - of frustration.)
A simpler New Forum system has been implemented that can be more fully integrated with the other features of the FOBM site. It will become fully operational the first week of January. In the interim, both systems are available.
The "old forum" will be locked and archived when the new one is activated, and it will no longer be possible to sign in or add comments there. We may opt later to integrate the old comments into the new forum, but this will not happen soon. In the meantime, we suggest that active users "replenish" key topics (threads) in the new forums, perhaps with a link back to the old post(s).
These changes will allow us to use a single login and password system with a permissions structure more suitable to the needs of the group. Signing in will allow you to
1. post a comment on any item in the News section
2. post a comment on any thread in the Forums
All recent comments on the site will be echoed on the home page, with a link to the related content, to allow you to quickly catch up on the conversation. This recursive navigation will attract more users to the site, as search engines will be able to index it more comprehensively.
ACTIONS NEEDED
In order to fully participate, YOU MUST RENEW YOUR MEMBERSHIP. This is easy.
1. Go to http://bettymacdonald.net
2. Find and click the Sign In link at the top right of any page's main body (white area). A login form will appear. Do not submit it; instead...
3. Now click the Lost Password link on the form. In the Lost Pasword form type
(a) the email address you used when you registered in the old forum OR
(b) the login name* you recognized in a recent mailing.
Now click the Send button.
The system will soon send to your address of record a message containing your login name and either your old password or a temporary one; you can then sign in.
If you no longer have access to your stored address, please use the Contacts link at the top of any page to notify us, and we will help you.
Once signed in, you can
1. Edit your profile, add a personal statement, change your password and complete other optional information. Note that you may omit or hide certain information and that we do not display, sell or otherwise share your stored email address.
2. Comment in the New Forums or in any News item.
PRIVACY: The new system offers greater privacy. Information in your profile is accessible to members only while they are signed in; please do not divulge your password, and if you use a shared computer, sign out of FOBM when you leave and close your browser window. The operators and hosts of the site make no assurance that total privacy is possible, which is true of all websites.
Please use the Contacts form or post a note in the Housekeeping forum if you have questions regarding the new forums.
We hope that you will maintain your membership by keeping your address updated in the future.
Thank you for your past and future participation.
Debbie Scott (Gubbie) for FOBM
Rees Clark for
...
Clark Internet Publishing
* Converted usernames: Following is a list of persons whose login names have been converted from the old system (with spaces and punctuation removed); we suggest you find your login name and copy it to your clipboard before proceeding to the login form. Persons who have already reported in are omitted.
Margaret, Deborah, johnftwa48in, jane, emily, sued, jomo, LibrarianRick, adrika, kim, sally, merry, gcathey, lorinda, grayjennifer, truckenmiller, mmtorrey, laura, jerricak930, Marilynn, kathymiller, Lilac, LindaIndy, Aimee, Kathryn, MarkFlorida, susanwalker, jen, Genevieve, PatH, SusanMutter, thunderandmud, jadecuk, cait, Pepsi, clayte, patsye, happyreader, DaNa, Neal, Gracie, 60mark, pattypan, Hazel, Dorothy, Lora, GreatgrandMacDonald, Elkhound, merrill, LisaM, Rachacova, Annie, rodentraiser, Laurels, DoyleBennett, Linda, KimVA, Suz, LindaShultz. Note that spaces and punctuation have been removed from IDs in the old forum.