Getting Started
Getting to know Gather
A good way to become
familiar with the variety of content on Gather is by simply
exploring! Use the tabs across the top of the page to visit the
People, Groups, and Explore. You'll see all the most
recent activity on Gather, organized by timeframe, popularity,
and community rank (most viewed, most discussed, highest rated)
as well as staff picks from our Editorial Team.
Once you find something interesting, click a tag or group,
or explore a member's other content. There's something new
behind every click. Another option is to use the search tools
located at the top of any page.
Create your Gather profile
After joining, visit your profile; it's all about you! What are your interests and
affiliations? What makes you unique? The more you share, the easier it will be for others
to find and connect with you. Make sure to update your profile often with your most
current info and interests.
Create your personal Gather icon
Having an icon is a great idea. Icons personalize your Gather experience and help other
members recognize you. Your icon can be a picture of yourself or anything you choose.
Whatever photo you select, it will represent you on the site -- on your profile page,
next to any comments you post, and with all content you share.
To create your icon, simply
upload a new
photo. To set a photo you previously uploaded as your icon, check the
"Make this photo my personal icon on Gather." box on the "edit photo" page. Save it, and you're all set.
Invite people and make new friends
Gather is a great place for you and your friends to get together and share the
important moments of your lives. You can even discover new things about each
other! Start by inviting the
people you know to join you on Gather.
You
may already know lots of people on Gather, or maybe you're looking to make some
new friends. The more people you connect with, the larger your network becomes
-- and the entire Gather community benefits from the sharing of your thoughts
and comments. Search for people to
locate folks from your school, work, or community or to find people who share
your interests. Then visit their profile pages to add them as your friend on
Gather.
Join Gather Groups
Want to connect in a whole new way? Groups are a great way to do it. They're
centralized, shared spaces for members to share posts, photos, and videos with
a common theme or for a common purpose. A group can be anything from a fan club
to a writers' workshop to a college alumni club. Search for groups to find some that
interest you. If you have your own special interest, you can also create a group on Gather.
Visit your My Gather page each day
Your My Gather page
is where you can keep up with all the recent activity by your friends and
groups, plus the stuff you're into -- and plenty more. This page contains your
"dashboard," where you can link to the Invite, Share, and Mail
features. You'll see alerts for friend requests, new group invitations, private messages,
and accepted invitations, as well as your Gather Points earnings. You can also directly
access your own content.
Tell all your friends about your profile
Your profile is like having your own website to showcase your interests and talent, and
it's located at username.gather.com. This space details everything Gather-related about
you -- and it's where others will find all your Gather contributions: Posts, Photos,
Videos, Comments, People, Groups, profile information, plus a history of your recent
activity. Keep it up-to-date and your friends will flock to your profile to see what's up
in your world.
Express yourself
There are plenty of ways to express yourself on Gather. Don't be shy. Start off
by simply commenting on something that inspired you. See a member you like?
Ping that person's profile. Sharing photos is a fun way to be creative and show
people your view of the world. You can even dive right in by sharing your
perspective or poetry in a post. Even video is easy on Gather. So if you've
always wanted to be a star, show us what you've got.
Registration
Joining is free
Yes. Gather membership is absolutely free.
Email address confirmation
Confirming your email address is how we make sure you're a real person and
prevent spam and other undesirable behavior on Gather. Be sure to take this
step right away; your registration isn't complete until you confirm. After 7
days, if you don't confirm your email address, your registration will expire
and your username will be released.
Be assured: we respect your privacy. Gather never sells or rents member email
addresses. And YOU decide what email communications you wish to receive (if
any) on your email preferences page.
Email confirmation problems
Don't worry; we'll get you set up. One possible problem is the link you
received in your email may be disabled. Typically this happens if the link
associated with your invitation is incomplete. You can copy the visible link
from your email and paste the link URL into your internet browser's address
bar. Be sure to copy the entire link and make sure it isn't broken into two or
more lines.
- Use your cursor to highlight the entire link.
- Copy the link.
- Place your cursor into your internet browser's address bar.
- Paste the link into the address bar.
- Press Enter on your keyboard.
If
you've tried the options above and are still having trouble, you can still
register for Gather.
Registration takes about a minute. If you continue to have
trouble, please use our Contact Member Support form
and provide a detailed description of what happened when you tried the steps
above.
Gather emails in my spam folder
If the email is in your spam folder, select the message and mark it as
"not spam" or "not junk." Make sure
memberinfo@gatherinc.com is not blocked by your spam prevention settings and
doesn't appear on your blocked senders list. Add memberinfo@gatherinc.com to
your address book and/or safe email list, plus gather-updates@gather.com for
Gather news updates and promotions@gather.com for
contest and events information. To ensure you'll continue to receive emails
from Gather:
- Outlook Users: From the Actions menu, select Junk E-mail and "Add Sender to Safe Senders List"
- Hotmail, Yahoo and AOL Users: Click the "Add Address" or "Save Address" button or link beside the "From" address at the top of this message
- Users of Other Email Systems: Please follow the software or service-provider's instructions for adding memberinfo@gather.com to your "safe senders list" or "whitelist."
My username
Your username can be any combination of up to 16 numbers or
lowercase letters. Don't use capitals, spaces, symbols, or underscores. Your
username is different from your display name, which is how your name will
appear on Gather.
Your
Gather username is the only personal info you are unable to update. If you need
to change your username, please get in touch with us using our Contact Member Support form.
Send us your existing username and three alternatives for
a new username (in case one and two are already in use by other Gather
members). We'll notify you when the change has been made.
Account deletion
We'd
hate to see you go. But if you'd like to cancel your membership, please get in
touch with us using our Contact Member
Support
form. Be sure to include both your username and your primary email address on
Gather. Once your account is closed, all of your content, Gather Points, and
preferences will be deleted from Gather. An alternative is to visit your
"my account" page on Gather and turn off all your email notification
preferences. This will make your account dormant in case you wish to try Gather
again in the future.
Member Sign-In
Sign-in problems
Here are some tips for signing in. Try these first:
- Remember that your username must be all lowercase letters. Capitals and special symbols are not permitted.
- Make sure you have cookies enabled in the internet browser you're using.
- Experiment with lowering your browser's security settings.
- Try using a different internet browser.
If
none of that works, click the "Forgot your sign-in?"
link on the sign-in page. Select the information (either username or password)
that you wish to receive. Enter your email address in the field. Be sure to
enter the email address associated with your Gather account. If you're
requesting your username, we'll display that on-screen. If you've forgotten
your password, we'll email you with a link you can use to change your password.
Forgot username
Visit the "forgot your sign-in" page, check the box next to
"username" and type your email into the box provided. We'll display your
username. Be sure to enter the email address associated with your Gather
account.
Forgot password
No problem; it happens to the best of us. Visit the "forgot your sign-in"
page, check the box next to "password," and type your email into the
box provided. We'll email you a link to change your password. Be sure to enter
the email address associated with your Gather account.
My Gather
About My Gather
Your My Gather page helps you keep track of the latest that's happening with you,
your friends, your groups, and all the other stuff you care about. The Content for
Me section lists all the posts, photos, and videos shared by your friends, your groups,
and about your interests. Another section contains all the comments by your friends,
and a third one lists your friends' social activities and updates.
Content for Me
Content for Me, located on your My Gather page, shows you all of the latest posts, photos,
and videos shared by your friends. You can also change the view to show the latest content
shared to your groups ("by groups") or about your interests ("by interests"). To customize
who you see in the "by friends" view, just click "settings." Select the "selected friends"
radio button to add and remove the friends you want to keep up with. You can also customize
the groups you include. When viewing the "by groups" list, click the "settings" link. Select
the "selected groups" radio button to add and remove the groups whose activities you want to
keep up with. To find content about your interests, select "by interests." Into photography?
Big fan of ballet? Just type those keywords into the interests field to get up-to-the-minute
posts, photos, and videos about the very stuff you love.
Friend Updates
Friend Updates will help you keep up-to-date on the latest activities of your Gather friends.
You'll see the new friends they make, their profile updates, pings they leave and receive, and
the groups they join and create. To customize who you see in Friend Updates, just click "settings."
Select the "selected friends" radio button to add and remove the friends you want to keep up with.
Comments by My Friends
Comments by My Friends lists the comments your friends have contributed to conversations all over
Gather. Exploring comments is a great way to learn about what your friends are reading, as well as
find great conversations where you can voice your point of view. To customize who you see in the
Comments by My Friends section, just click "settings." Select the "selected friends" radio button
to add and remove the friends you want to keep up with
My Activities
My Activities, located on your profile page, shows your visitors all the public stuff you've been
up to. They'll see the posts, photos, and videos you share, as well as what you comment on, the new
friends you make, your profile updates, pings you leave and receive, and groups you join and create.
My posts, photos, and videos
Every post, photo or photo album, and video you share lives on your My Gather page. There, you'll also find sections
for your profile, comments, friends, and groups. Just think of your My Gather page as your whole
Gather world -- right at your fingertips.
Share, Invite, and Mail
The dashboard of your My Gather page includes links that give you access to the Share, Invite, and
Mail features. The Share feature lets you add posts, photos, and videos to the site. Invite will let
you invite all your friends to Gather. Mail lets you access your personal Gather private messaging mailbox.
Friends of My Friends
Ever wondered who else you know who might be on Gather? Viewing Friends of My Friends helps you find
acquaintances you have in common with your friends so you can send them a friend request. To keep a
member from showing up again in this area, just click "no thanks" and that person will no longer be
displayed as a friend recommendation.
Managing Your Account
Account settings
In the dashboard of your My Gather page, you'll find a link to "my account". There,
you can change your display name, password, email, location, guarded viewing
preferences, and notification email settings. The account options you may
customize are:
- First Name/Last
Name -- Your first and last name will create your "display name" on
Gather. This is how your name is displayed on your profile and with your
content. To best build your Gather brand, make sure this is how you want
others to know you. Your first and last name can be updated at any time on
your "my account" or profile pages.
- Location --
Your location is displayed along with your display name. It can be your
city and state, metro area, region, country -- it's up to you. There is a
45-character limit for location. Your location can be changed at any time
on your "my account" or profile pages.
- Username --
Your username is used to log in to your account on Gather, and cannot be
duplicated by another member. Your username also acts as the prefix to
your profile URL (username.gather.com), which is public on Gather and is
visible to other members. Members cannot currently change usernames. If
you need to change your username, please get in touch
with us using
our Contact Member Support form. Usernames can use up to 16
numbers and/or lowercase letters. No capitals, spaces, symbols, or
underscores.
- Password --
Your password is a security feature used while signing in, and should be
kept completely to yourself. Your password must be 5 to 20 characters and is
completely private. Use it to sign in and redeem Gather Points. You may
change your account password by clicking on the 'change password' link on the
my account page.
Email preferences
In the dashboard of your My Gather page, you'll find a link to
"email preferences." You can select which emails you want to receive from
Gather. Gather does not share your email address with anyone. View our privacy policy.
Guarded viewing
Gather has a feature to allow members to either block content or
allow content intended for mature audiences. In order to view this content,
which may include nudity, graphic violence, or crude language, the member must
be 18 years of age or older. This feature is located on the "my account" page,
which you can access from the dashboard on your My Gather page.
Closing my account
We'd hate to see you go. But if you'd like to cancel your membership, please
use our Contact Member Support form. Be sure to include
both your username and your primary email address on Gather. Once your account
is closed, all of your content, Gather Points, and preferences will be deleted from
Gather. Another alternative is to visit your "my account" page on
Gather and turn off all your email notification preferences. This will stop any
unwanted emails in case you wish to try Gather again in the future.
Member Profiles
About member profiles
Profiles allow people to get to know each other better. Your
profile is all about you. Describe yourself and share some posts, photos, and
videos to let folks know what you're all about. Don't be shy; people want to
know you! Even your existing friends might learn something new. Your basic
information can help you reconnect with long lost friends or discover your soul
mate. Sharing your favorite book, band, or vacation spot may strike up a great
conversation. And you never know who might stop by to say hello from school.
Keep in mind that sharing your information with Gather members is intended to be
fun. Please carefully consider what you share online. We have controls in place
that allow you to decide exactly what information is public and what's
available only to the people you identify as friends, family, or colleagues (or
whatever you want to name your friend sets). In the end, you need to exercise
common sense about what personal information you choose to share.
Creating my profile
After signing in, click the "my profile" link on your My Gather page to input the
information you'd like to share with other Gather members. Each section of your
profile has an "edit" link that will let you change your info at any
time. You can also spotlight any individual photo or photo album, post, or video you've shared by
clicking "spotlight this" next to the content in your My Activities section or on
the content itself.
Profile information settings
The information on your profile page is optional, and you decide who can view
each part of your profile by setting the "Who Can View" options
beside each question. Share your information with everyone on Gather, or just particular
friend sets you've created. "Just Me" makes your information private,
but still allows Gather to display relevant info to you. The more info you fill
out, the more other Gather members will be able to get to know you.
Updating my profile
Update the info in your profile by visiting your My Gather page and clicking
the "my profile" link. Make sure you don't just set it and forget it!
Update your profile often to let others know what's new with you. Each section
has an "edit" link that will let you change your info at any time.
Profile information use
This information lets others get to know you and search for you by different
info in your profile. But your profile info must be public for others to find
you; that means only items shared with "Everyone" can be used in
people search. Some items in your profile are also used to display relevant
information to you on Gather, such as advertising. Your information is never
shared or sold to anyone, so rest assured that your privacy will be respected.
Changing my icon
To change your icon, use the "change icon" link on your profile.
Simply browse for the photo you wish to make your Gather icon and upload it.
You can also view your photo gallery or the photos in your albums, select the photo
you want as your new icon and click "edit." On the photo options
page, check the "Make this photo my personal icon on Gather" box.
Save it, and you're all set.
Icons are optional, but having one is a great idea. Icons personalize your Gather
experience and help other members recognize you. Your icon can be a picture of
yourself or anything you choose. Whatever photo you select, it will represent
you on your profile page, next to any comments you post, and on all content you
share. Make sure to choose a photo that will be recognizable in a small format.
Sometimes icons display only 60 pixels wide. A subject that fills the photo,
like a close-up of your face, is the best choice. Remember that square icons
display best, horizontal icons sometimes display very small, and vertical icons
can be too tall to display properly.
About pings
Pings are notes that other Gather members can leave on your
profile. You can also leave pings on other people's profiles. It's a great way
to say "hi" to someone you know and meet others who interest you.
Ping settings
By default, any Gather member can ping you. You can control your ping settings
using the "edit settings" link at the top right of the "ping
me" area of your profile. Choose to let just your friends ping you, or
restrict pings by unselecting the "allow pings on my profile"
checkbox. Want to know when you get a new ping? Just leave that option on in
your email preference settings. You can also choose to approve pings before
they appear. If you turn this option on in your email preference settings,
you'll be notified when new pings need your review.
Deleting pings
You can delete any ping posted to your profile, plus any ping
you post on someone else's. Just click the "delete ping" link under
the member icon photo. But realize that once a ping is deleted, it's gone
forever!
My Activities
The My Activities section of your profile page shows your visitors what you've been up to on Gather.
Everyone can see your My Activities list, but they can only see the things they have permission to see.
You also have the option to turn off My Activities; just click the "change settings" link and update your settings.
Profile spotlight
A spotlight is a place for you to feature your content. Just
click the "spotlight this" link beside the content in your My Activities section or on the
content itself. All of your visitors can see your spotlight, but they can only
see the things they have permission to see. To turn a spotlight off, just click
the "spotlight off" link. The content will be removed from your spotlight, but
will still be available in your profile. Your spotlight can hold a maximum of 5
posts and a combination of 4 photos, photo albums, and videos. Once you add another item, the
oldest one will be removed from your spotlight.
Viewing my profile as others see it
In your dashboard, click the "View Profile as: public" link to
see your profile as others see it. Others' view of your profile differs from
your own view, so it's sometimes helpful to see yourself through another
person's eyes.
Search
Searching for content, people, and groups
Using the search tool at the top of every page, you can search
for posts, photos, videos, people, and groups. You can then refine your results
or used the advanced search options to find more specific results. Search
results show posts by default, but you can change your view to see photos,
videos, people, and groups. Results for posts, photos, and videos show the most
popular tags and groups used in the items found in your search. Refine the
search by selecting the tags and groups that interest you. Results for groups
show the most popular tags and locations used by the groups found in your search.
Refine the search by selecting certain tags and groups. Results for people show
the most popular tags and locations used by the person found in your search.
Refine the search by selecting certain tags.
Searching for people using profile information
Use the search tool at the top of every page and its refine
options to find people by the info in their profiles. Your results will show
the most popular interests, affiliations, and information for the people found
in your search. Refine the search for more specific results, or remove these
refinements by clicking the items in the "refined by" section. The more
interesting and complete your profile, the easier it is for others to find and
connect with you! Be aware that only public information (profile info set to
"Everyone") will be searchable.
Search refinements
Refine your search results by selecting items in the refinements
column. Selecting refinements will narrow your search results. To remove search
refinements, simply click the items that you want to remove in the "refined by"
section. You'll then get broader search results.
Advanced search
After you run a search, you have the option to run an advanced
search, for which you can specify more detailed search criteria up front.
Advanced searches are only run against the search results type you are
currently viewing '- posts, photos, videos, people, or groups '- and only
results that match all the requested information will be found. The 'search
terms' field considers all these information categories. Providing information
in other categories will narrow your search.
Items not appearing in search results
There are a number of reasons why you might not be able find something or
someone on Gather. Are you sure you searched by the correct name or title? If it's
a post, photo, or video, it may have been deleted by the author. If it's a
group or piece of content, it's possible that it has mature settings, so you'd
need to be signed in and have your guarded viewing turned off to see it. And if
a group you're looking for is private, it may not be visible.
Inviting
Inviting others to Gather
Inviting friends, family, and colleagues to Gather is a great
way to keep in touch and grow your Gather network with new friends. You can
find the link to Invite on your My Gather dashboard. You can import email
addresses directly from other email programs. Simply choose the Webmail
or Social Network option, then click the Get Contacts button, which
lets you select an email account or a social network to import addresses from.
We've preloaded a standard invitation message, but you can customize it any way
you want. Finally, click the Send Invites button. Your invitations will be sent
from the email address you registered with Gather; you can change that address
at any time on your account settings page.
When you share a photo album, you can invite friends and family who aren't on
Gather to join and see your photos. It's a great way to share memories of a party,
holiday, or vacation with folks who were there -- and those who weren't! Any time
after you share a photo album, post, or video (either publicly or with your friend sets),
simply view that content again to send an invitation to those you'd like to join
Gather and see your stuff.
You
can also bring new members to the site using a personal invite link. After you
access the Invite feature from your My Gather page, click "invitation links" to
check out the cool text banners, graphic banners, and standard links you can
use. Post them anywhere on the web; people simply click on your link to join
you on Gather!
Who to invite
Invite anyone! Bringing your offline friends online will help
you keep in touch with the people in your world easier than ever. Invite your
family, your friends -- anyone. And remember that you can create as many
different friend sets as you need in order to share particular content with
particular friends.
Benefits of inviting people
The more people who join Gather, the larger and more diverse the community
becomes, and the site's content becomes more varied, too. Not only will you be
able to find anything your friends share, including their comments, but you'll
also have access to their friends. And connecting is a two-way street;
inviting more people increases the number of people who will want to read your
posts and give feedback on your content -- and the easier it becomes to keep in
touch with each others' lives.
Old invitations
Your invitation remains open until the recipient joins. A
reminder may be sent after 5 days from your initial invitation. You'll earn
points whenever they do decide to join, as long as they use your invitation to
do so. Anyone can register using a different email address than the one the
invitation was sent to -- but they need to register via your invitation for you
to be credited with the registration. Your friends, family, and colleagues
can't become part of your My Friends network unless they register with Gather.
Personal invitation links
You can invite people to Gather using your blog, website, email,
or IM. After you access the Invite feature from your My Gather page, click
"invitation links" to see your options. You can choose a standard link URL, a
text banner, or a graphic banner. When you copy one of the links, be sure to
copy it exactly as it's displayed for the invitation to work correctly.
Friends
About friends on Gather
Friends are the people you've connected with on Gather, also
known as My Friends. Invite as
many people as you'd like to join. You'll be connected automatically to them when they join Gather.
You can also search for people already on Gather using the search box located at the top of every page.
And the Friends of My Friends section of your My Gather page suggests people in your extended network you may know.
If you're interested in making a current member your friend, simply click the Add as Friend button
on the member's profile page and send a friend request; you then have the
option to organize your friends based on how you know them by adding them to a
friend set or by creating a new one. The member will receive your friend
request and he or she can accept or decline.
Connecting expands your personal network (My Friends), as well as your readership. The
more people you're friends with, the more personal networks you join. The
result? More people read, comment on, and rate your work, and others get the
same benefits for their own work. It all adds up to the best experience for
each Gather member. And if you also bring your offline friends online, you can
more easily keep up with what's new in each other's lives.
My Friends
The My Friends page lists all of your connections on Gather. Check out the Friend Updates,
Content for Me, and Comments by My Friends sections on your My Gather page to find out what your
friends are up to. If you want email updates on what they're sharing and doing on Gather,
simply choose the desired notifications on your
"email preferences" page
or click the "friend settings" link near each of your friends on that
page. Whenever content or comments are shared, new connections are made, and
profiles are updated, these details will show up in your Friend Updates; you can also
choose to get an email letting you know.
Friend sets
Friend sets are a simple way for you to organize your friends
based on how you know them. We've started by suggesting Friends, Family, and
Colleagues, but you can change these or create your own. Friend sets are
optional and private; only you can see how you've organized your friends.
Friend sets also let you control who appears in the Friend Updates, Content for Me, and
Comments by My Friends sections of your My Gather page; friend sets also let you share content with
selected friends. Have a picture you only want your coworkers to see? Now it's easier than ever.
When you accept or send a friend request, you'll be asked how you know this person.
By clicking your friend sets in the list, you can associate each person with
the friend sets you make. You can change these at any time from your My Friends
page by clicking the "friend settings" link under the icon of each
friend listed.
Managing friend sets
On your My Friends page, you'll see all your friend sets listed
on the left side of the page. Click the "edit friend sets" button
below the list to add, change, or delete any friend set. On the Edit Friend Sets
page, simply select the friend set you wish to edit from the list on the left.
Then add or remove people from the selected friend set using the lists of
people provided. The people on the left are not part of the selected set, and
the people on the right are part of the selected set. Make your selections,
then click Save before editing a different set.
Connecting with a Gather member
You can find specific members by searching for their first name,
last name, city, state, or username from the search box at the top of the site.
Visit their profile pages and request to be connected by clicking the Add as
Friend button. Then check out those friends' friends to see if they're
connected with someone you may have missed.
Removing a friend connection
To remove a connection at any time, simply click "friend
settings" beneath the member icon in your My Friends list or on that
person's profile page. Then click the "remove friend" option.
Groups
About groups on Gather Want to connect in a whole new way? Groups are a great way to do
it. They're centralized, shared spaces for members to share posts, photos, and
videos with a common theme or for a common purpose. A group can be anything
from a fan club to a writers' workshop to a college alumni club. It can be
public and visible to all Gather members, or private and only visible to its
members. The same goes with content: group members can share posts, photos, or
videos to the group only or make content accessible to everyone.
Searching for groups Use the search tool at the top of any page to find groups that
interest you. The search engine will check groups by name, groupspace URL,
group tags, and description. Your results will show the most popular tags and
locations used by the groups found in your search. Refine the search by
selecting certain tags and groups. Or, remove these refinements by clicking the
items shown in the "refined by" section.
Joining a group
After you've found a group you'd like to join, click its name to
go to the group's homepage. You'll see the Join This Group link on the
left-hand side of the page. If the group membership is moderated, your
membership request will be sent to the group owner and moderator/s. You'll
receive an email after your request has been reviewed, letting you know if
you've been accepted. If the group membership is not moderated, you'll be able
to participate in the group immediately after joining.
Creating a group
Once you're a member and signed in, click
the Create a Group link
under the Groups tab in the main menu. The group creation page is
straightforward and easy to use. Give your group a name, a unique username, and
a brief synopsis, and list a few tags so others can find you. We recommend that
you also give your group a description and a group icon to spark interest in
potential members.
Group permissions
Permissions vary by group, and are determined by the group
owner. A group's owner (who is also the group creator) has full group
permissions. Many groups allow all members to share posts, photos, and videos,
see all content, and comment on each other's work. Some groups allow all
members to invite others to the group, as well. Group members may also be given
permission to moderate content posted by other members or to moderate group
membership. But again, all permissions are assigned on a group-by-group basis.
Always contact the owner if you have questions or concerns.
Inviting others to a group
If you're the group owner or a group member with permission to
invite, you'll have an Invite Members link in the left-hand column on the group
page. You'll be able to invite current Gather members to your group and also people
who aren't yet Gather members. And you'll earn Gather Points for recruiting new
people to sign up.
Sharing content with a group
Sharing a post or photo with one or more groups is just like
sharing content with the rest of the Gather community. The only difference is
that group owners place permissions on their group that either allow or prevent
other members from sharing with the group. When a group owner has set the group
to allow others to share with it, you go through the typical process and simply
select the group you want to share with. The list of groups you belong to will
be listed in the content options. The groups will also show if they are public
or private and whether or not they're moderated. To share content with your
groups, simply check off the boxes of each group in "Share this content with
the selected group(s)" at the end of the sharing process. If your group is
moderated, your content will be reviewed and accepted if it meets the
moderator's guidelines.
Removing my content from a group
If you'd like to remove posts, photos, or videos you've shared with
a group but keep the content on Gather, just change the sharing settings.
Simply click "edit" next to your name on your content page. You can
remove any or all groups from the share list. Make sure you click Submit to
save your changes.
Content ownership in groups
Everything you share on Gather (as long as it's yours to begin
with) remains yours. The owner of a group may remove content from the group as
he or she sees fit, but any content deleted from a group will still be
available in the list of content on your profile.
My content was removed from a group
The owner or designated moderator of a group may remove content from the group,
but it's still available under your own profile. If you have any questions
about a particular group's policies, always contact the group owner.
I can't share with a group
Here are several reasons that may keep you from sharing to a
group. First, you must be a member of a group before you can share. Second,
some groups only allow certain members to share content. You can find out the
specific details of member permissions in the group's description or by
contacting the group's owner.
Removing myself from a group
To remove yourself from a group at any time, simply click
"remove" under the group icon in your My Groups list or on your My Gather
page.
Group owners and moderators
A group's owner is the creator of the group and has control over
all aspects of it. A moderator is a member who has been given permission by the
owner to accept, reject, and/or delete group content and/or moderate group
membership.
Custom group banners
To give your group a unique look, create a .jpg or .gif image
that's exactly 990 pixels wide by 220 pixels tall. On the Group Settings page,
use the Browse button to find the photo on your hard drive. Then simply click
Save, and the photo will replace the standard Gather banner at the top of your
group pages. Additionally, the photo should be 72dpi, any color palette, and
will be covered in part on the top and bottom by Gather's navigational
features. This space may not be used for commercial purposes, may not infringe
on any patent, trademark, copyright, trade secret, or other proprietary right
of any party (unless you are the owner of the rights or have the permission of
the owner to post such content), and it may not contain adult content. No group
owner will be allowed to sell or profit from this space without prior written
consent from Gather, and Gather shall have the right to remove any banner that
is objectionable or otherwise violates Gather's User Terms of Service Agreement.
Download the
complete groupspace banner specifications.
Custom group icon
Setting your group icon is as easy as visiting your Group
Settings page and uploading the photo you want to represent your group. If
you'd like to change the icon later, return to this page and upload a new
photo; the old one will be replaced.
Featuring posts in a group
To feature content in a group, you must first be the group owner
or moderator. Then, go to the group's homepage and click Content Settings in
the post listing; from here you can choose the content you want to feature.
Managing my group's settings, members, etc.
To manage your group, visit the Group Settings link on the
left-hand side of your group page; manage your group members via the Member
Settings link on the Group Members page. You can update them at any time,
assigning and reassigning permissions to each of your members. If you remove
someone from the group, they may join at a later time. If you block someone,
they're not eligible to rejoin unless the owner or a moderator removes the
block. Keep in mind that if a member is no longer part of the group, his or her
content will remain in the group unless it's removed via the Content Settings
link.
Assigning moderation permissions to group members
Advanced Member Settings allow a group owner to assign special privileges to
select members. A group owner might decide to allow certain members to moderate
content and other members, feature posts, photos, or videos, or participate in
other group activities.
To assign advanced privileges to group members, you must be the group owner.
Simply click the Member Settings link on your group's homepage. You can assign
general privileges, which apply to all group members, plus individual
privileges for those who you want to moderate content and members, and other
group activity.
Deleting a group I created
To delete a group, send us a request using our Contact
Member Support form.
Commenting
About comments on Gather
Interested in starting or joining a conversation? Comments are a
great way to contribute to the Gather community and build your network of
friends at the same time. Every comment includes a link to the commenter's
profile, so others will see you and check out your stuff. Write a comment about
a member's content or in response to comments others have made. Just type in the
box under the content's "rate this" section and click "Submit."
Careful: you won't be able to edit it once it posts. And always remember to
respect others with whatever you have to say.
Finding comments I've made
Comments you've made will appear in My Activities (on your profile), on the My
Comments page linked off your My Gather page, and in the Friend Updates that your Gather friends see.
Finding comments others have made
You can find comments another member has made by clicking Comments on his or her profile.
Comments posted by your friends also appear under Comments by My Friends on your My Gather page.
Responding to a comment
Simply scroll down to the comment section in the post, photo, or
video you're viewing and write your own comment in the window. Make it clear that
you're responding to something already said, possibly with a brief quote from
the previous comment or a name reference. If you'd rather respond privately,
you can send a private message.
Deleting a comment I've made
Click "delete" immediately following the posted
date at the bottom of your comment. Nothing will be shown on the post, photo,
or video for comments deleted by the comment writer. Comments deleted by the
comment writer will not be visible anywhere on Gather.
Removing others' comments from my content
After a comment has been posted, the content owner can remove
it, but this action is irreversible. Once a comment is removed, it will remain
on the comments page of the comment writer. A note indicating how many comments
have been removed by the content owner will appear on the content display page.
Editing a comment
Comment editing is not available at this time. It's a good idea
to reread your comments before posting.
Placing photos or links in comments
Some HTML may work in comments, but HTML as a rule is not
currently supported in the comments section.
Commenting permissions on my content
Each time you share a post, photo, or video, you can choose
which Gather members can comment on it. Either all site members can comment,
only your friends can, or no one is allowed to comment on your content,
including yourself.
Approving comments made on my content before they appear
By default, any Gather member can comment on your content. But you can restrict
commenting to Gather members who you're friends with, or turn off the comment
option entirely by unselecting the "allow comments" checkbox. You can
also choose to approve all comments before they appear; if you do, you'll be
notified when new comments require review. You can edit these options at any
time. If you have any comments pending approval when you make changes to these
settings, you'll still need to approve them before they appear.
I don't see my comment on a post, photo, or video
There are a couple of reasons why your comment might not be showing up. If a
content owner has chosen to review comments before they appear, your comment
can't be seen by others until it has been approved. Your comment status can be
reviewed at any time on your "my comments" page of My Gather. Another
possibility is that your comment has been removed by the content owner. This
comment will remain visible for others to see, based on the content-viewing
permissions, only in your "my comments" page.
I can't comment on a post, photo, or video
If you're unable to post a comment, either you must be connected
to this Gather member to post a comment, or the member has disallowed comments.
The content display page will indicate if any restrictions have been set.
Comment statuses on "my comments" page
Depending on the permissions members have placed on their content, your
comments can be: (a) in review, (b) declined, or (c) removed. "In
review" comments need the content author's approval. "Declined"
comments have been refused by the content author and won't become public (but
will still remain on your "my comments" page under My Gather).
"Removed" comments were once posted for others to see, but have been
removed by the content owner. (These are still visible to others on your
"my comments" page and under "comments by me" in the
Comments menu based on the content-viewing permissions). Approved comments are
live and visible to everyone.
Comments removed by a content owner
If your comment has been removed, you won't receive a
notification. And if someone has removed your comment, this action can't be
reversed. This comment will remain visible for others to see, based on the
content-viewing permissions, only on your "my comments" page.
A note
indicating how many comments have been removed by the content owner will
display on the content display page. Removed comments will remain visible for
others to see, based on the content-viewing permissions, only in the comment
writer's "my comments" page.
Comment restriction rules
If you restrict or disable your commenting options, your content
may not be viewable on the Most Discussed content pages and might not be
eligible for some Gather-sponsored contests. Remember: you can remove unwanted
comments from your post at any time. Gather encourages all members to allow
open discussion and debate on their content.
Private Messaging
About Gather private messaging
Private messaging is private member-to-member communication that
exists solely inside the Gather community. Use private messages to communicate
with other Gather members conveniently, keeping your personal email address
private. Want to know more? Learn just how important your privacy is to us here.
Blocking senders
Gather doesn't want you to be bothered by messages from people
you don't want to hear from. Each time you receive a message, a "block
this sender" link will appear beside the sender's name. To block the
sender, just click the link. The sender will not be notified that his or her
messages are being blocked.
When to use private messaging
When you'd like to communicate with a member one-on-one, send a
private message. When you'd like to critique or create dialogue about a
member's content, post a comment. Private messaging helps build private
relationships, and commenting benefits the entire Gather community.
Sending a message to a member I'm not connected to
If you want to contact Gather members you're not connected to,
send them a private message. Just click the Send Message button under the icon
on any member's profile page.
Content Sharing
About content sharing on Gather
In short, you can share anything you wish -- if it's yours. Have
an interesting story to tell? Want to share your favorite recipe or show off that
fantastic set of pictures you just took? Have a video of your dad's birthday
party? Gather is the place to show it off. You can share almost anything, from
haiku to horticulture.
Content ownership
You own and are responsible for all of your original content on
Gather. Anything you create on Gather is copyrighted by you as soon as you
share it, as long as the content is legally yours.
For
more information on copyright law, please see the United States
Copyright Office's circular.
Sharing content "intended for mature audiences"
If your post or photo were a movie, would it be rated R? If the answer is yes,
or if you think your piece would get an even more mature rating, then your
piece is probably intended for mature audiences.
Any of
the following content is considered to be intended for mature audiences:
nudity, crude or indecent language, and graphic violence.
It's
your responsibility to correctly classify any content you share on Gather. The
Gather Editorial Team reserves the right to add adult settings to your work, or
in extreme cases, to delete material that violates the Gather Editorial Policy.
Please see the Gather User Terms of
Service Agreement for more information.
Content sharing and copyright law
According to the standards of Fair Use, you can reprint brief
quotations of copyrighted material. But you must give proper credit to the
original source and use it as an addition to your own original content.
Understand, though, you're responsible for everything you share,
including any material that may infringe on the rights of others, as is stated
in the Gather User Terms of
Service Agreement.
For
more information on copyright law, please see the United States
Copyright Office's circular.
Content sharing and Gather Points™
You'll also get Gather Points™ just for participating online. Inviting new
users and submitting outstanding content will earn you points. The more people
you invite to join and the more valuable content you submit, the more points
you acquire. Gather Points are your currency to purchase goods and services
from your favorite Gather Points partners. Top earners can even earn cash.
Fair Use rules for quoting another author
When sharing a portion of someone else's content, it must be for
the purpose of criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, or
research, according to the United States Copyright Office. There's no clear
definition of what constitutes Fair Use, but acknowledging the source of the
copyrighted material is no substitution for obtaining permission. As a general
guide, only quote specific lines or passages from another source, not the
entire piece. Also, you must use the cited material as an addition to your own
original content. You should familiarize yourself with the copyright laws to make
sure you don't infringe on someone's rights.
For
more information on Fair Use in copyright law, please check out the United States Copyright Office's Fair Use
guide.
Editing content I've shared
Go to your My Gather page and visit your "my posts," "my
photos," or "my videos," or any individual post, photo, photo album, or video you've shared
on Gather. There you have the choice to edit or delete the content. Click
"edit" located under the content title. Make your changes and click Save. Gather will stamp your
content with the date you made the modification, but no one in your network
will receive any notices about your content being edited, and you won't lose
any ratings or comments.
Deleting content I've shared
Go to your My Gather page and visit "my
posts," "my photos," or "my videos," or any individual post, photo, photo album, or video
you've shared on Gather. There you'll see the option to edit or delete the content.
Click "delete," under the content title. Your content will then be removed from Gather.
Increasing my content viewership
There are many ways to increase your readership on Gather. One
way is to invite more people to Gather and into your My Friends network.
Another is to create the best content you can. Write your best posts, share
your best photos, and show your best videos. You can even highlight your
favorite content by adding it to your spotlight. To spotlight something, just
click "spotlight this" beside your favorite post, photo, photo album, or video in your My
Activities section, and it'll be the first thing others see when they view your profile. Of
course, you can always add privacy restrictions, but you get the idea. Also, if
you comment on others' content, more people will know your name and check out
your profile and content. Use descriptive tags to make it easier for people to
find your work -- and always use tags that really describe what you're sharing.
Sharing content with select groups or friends
To share content with a group, first join the group. Then, when sharing your content, you can choose
who can view it. If you choose "Everyone," your choices will be all of Gather and a list of the public
groups you belong to. Just click the names of the groups in the "My Groups" list to add them to the
"Share with these groups" list. Clicking a group name under "Share with these groups" will remove that
group from the list. All members of these groups will now see your new content in the Content for Me
"by groups" section of their My Gather pages. Be sure your content meets the requirements of the groups
you select before sharing.
If you set your viewing preference to "private," only selected friends or
your private groups will be available. Your content will also be visible for
these friend sets to view in their Content for Me section. To share with selected friend
sets or private groups, just click the names of the groups in the "My
Groups" or "My Friend Sets" list to add them to the "Share
with" list.
Remember that when you share content privately, only the selected friends or members of
the selected private groups can see your work.
For moderated groups, your content will be reviewed before it's accepted or
declined, so you may not see it posted in the group right away.
Sharing content with private and public groups
Content can't be posted simultaneously to private and public
groups. If you really need to share something with both public and private
groups, you'll need to share the content again with a different audience.
Sharing content with groups and selected friends
Content can't be posted simultaneously to groups and friend
sets. If you really need to share something with multiple audiences both public
and private, you'll need to share the content again with a different audience.
Importing my blog
RSS tools are available. If you'd like to import your blog,
please send us a request using the Contact Member Support form.
Sharing Posts
About sharing posts
It's easy to share posts on Gather. Choose Share under the
Explore menu or click Share in the dashboard on your My Gather page. Next, type
in or cut-and-paste your post. Add a title, choose tags, and add a photo if you
want. Then set the options, such as selecting who can view it. Please check the
appropriate descriptions for content involving subject matter than can be
described as adult content. Then, click Submit and you're done. To avoid losing
your work in progress, be sure to check the "keep me signed in" checkbox when
you log in.
Saving post drafts
You can begin sharing a post and come back any time to finish
it. Click "Save as Draft" whenever you want to stop. When you're
ready to work on it again, click Share and your draft will appear in a box at
the top of the "Create Your Post" page. Click "edit" next
to your draft and continue working on it. You can do this as many times as you
want. When you're ready to share your post, remember to format it and add tags,
assign it to a group if applicable, and select who can view the post. Share
your post with any groups you're allowed to share with. Please check the
appropriate descriptions for content involving subject matter that can be
described as adult content. Don't forget to click Submit when you're done.
Post editing tools
You have the following controls available to create and format
your posts:
- Clear. Click on this button to clear the contents in the post window.
- Cut. Highlight text, and then click on the scissors to remove the text from your post. Cut text can be pasted elsewhere.
- Copy. Highlight text, and then click on the copy button to hold your text in the editor so it can be copied elsewhere in your post
- The Paste button is used to insert text you have copied from elsewhere. Position your cursor in the section of your post where you'd like your copied text to appear. Left-click your mouse, then left-click on the paste button.
- Click the Undo button to reverse your last edit.
- Click the Redo button to reverse an undo.
- Click this button to Left-Justify your text.
- Click this button to Center your text.
- Click this button to Right-Justify your text.
- Click this button to Full-Justify your text.
- Use this button to create a Numbered list. Position your cursor in the text you'd like to organize as a list, and then click the numbered list button. Repeat this process until your list is complete.
- Use this button to create a Bulleted list. Position your cursor in the text you'd like to organize as a list, and then click the bulleted list button. Repeat this process until your list is complete.
- Indent your text by clicking on this button. Position your cursor over text to be indented, and then left-click the indent button until the text is positioned as you wish.
- Reverse indented text by clicking on this button.
- Use the Link button to add a clickable URL to your text. Position your cursor in the text where you want the URL to be located, left-click the link button, and then enter the URL of the address you are linking to. You can select the "launch in new window" option if you would like the link to open in a new browser.
- Delete the link from your text with this button. Position your cursor on the link, then click the delete link button.
- Click the Paste as text button to display a popup. Paste your content into the popup to purposefully remove all formatting.
- Paste from Word button will display a popup to paste your content into but will specifically clean up Microsoft Word formatting and maintain as much as possible.
- Use the Remove formatting button to remove all previous formatting. If content has formatting applied that you wish to remove, highlight the text and then click this button.
- Edit HTML Source. This will display a popup that allows you to enter your own HTML source code, or, if you already have a post in the editor, this popup will allow you to see the HTML source code and make granular changes.
- Resize Editor vertically. This allows you to resize the editor on the Share page where you create your post. If the size is changed, it will be cookied so it's the same the next time you visit the Share page
Using HTML tags in posts, captions, and comments
If you know how to use them, the following HTML tags are recognized in posts:
<a>, <b>, <i>, <u>, <br>, <p>, <em>,
<strong>, <blockquote>, <img>, <font>, <span>,
<div>, <pre>, <ul>, <ol>, <li>, <table>,
<tr>, <td>, <thead>, <tbody>.
Gather will automatically remove or disable other restricted HTML code in posts, including embed code, unless it is from one of the following sites: Google, MySpace, Yahoo, YouTube, Tagworld, Photobucket, APM, Nabbr, Polldaddy, CBS, Hulu, Fox News, CNN, and NBC.
Using HTML attributes in posts, captions, and comments
If you know how to use them, the following style attributes are allowed:
Font-weight, Font-style, Text-decoration, Color, Margin, Width, Height, Float.
Adding a photo to my post
Adding photos to your posts can take your content to the next level. Use the
Add Photos to Your Post link just below the text editor window to access the
post photo upload page. There you can add up to 40 photos at a time, plus captions, tags,
and geotags for each. When you're done, use the Return to Post Editor button to finish your post. Once
your uploaded photos are available, you can use the small photos that appear
beneath the text editor, or click any photo to access it in a larger version.
Simply click and drag the individual photos into the post editor and they'll
display inline with your text. Displaying inline photos in a post works in
Internet Explorer and Firefox if pop-ups are enabled. If you'd like the photo
to be attached to the post but not appear in it, then all you need to do is upload
the photo. As always, don't share copyrighted material unless it's your own.
Uploading photos to posts
To upload photos, you must allow your browser to work with the Gather uploader.
If you are using Microsoft Internet Explorer as your browser, you must install the
Gather Uploader ActiveX control when prompted. The installation only takes a few minutes
and you only need to do it one time. When you try to share a photo or video, a yellow information
bar will appear at the top of your browser window. Click the bar, then select Install ActiveX
Control from the dropdown menu. After the page reloads and a dialog box appears, click Install
and follow the instructions in the dialog box to add the control to your browser.
If you are using a browser other than Internet Explorer, you must install a Java Web plug-in
and "trust" the Gather uploader application. If you do not have a Java Web plug-in, a small graphic
and message will appear on the share page. Click the link and follow the instructions to install
the Java plug-in. You will also be prompted to "trust" an applet certificate for the Gather Uploader.
Select the checkbox to "always trust" certificates from Gather and save the setting. If you do not
select the checkbox to "always trust," you will see this prompt each time you upload photos,
videos, or a new icon.
Embedding video code in a post
You can embed video code from certain sites into your Gather posts. Embed code is permitted
from YouTube, Google, MySpace, Yahoo!, TagWorld, Photobucket, and of course Gather. To insert
the embed code, click the HTML edit button in the post editor toolbar, then paste the video
embed code into the HTML window. The embedded video will be viewable right in your post.
Sharing Photos
About sharing photos
Click Share, then click the Share Photos button. You can upload photos into a new
or existing photo album or as individual photos (not in an album). Photos uploaded
to an album will all have the same viewing permissions that you set for the album.
After making your album choice, click Choose Photos and select up to 40 photo files
from your computer. Or, you can open a directory-explore window on your computer and
drag-and-drop the photo files you want into the upload photos page. The following
file formats can be uploaded: .jpg, .gif, and .png.
When you have finished selecting files, click Upload. The progress
bar will indicate when your photos are fully uploaded. While the files are
uploading, you can edit rating and commenting settings. Make
sure you're applying the appropriate settings if your photo is intended for mature
audiences. Don't forget to click Share and Continue to save and share your work.
Next, you can add a caption, tags, and a geotag (to show where your photo was taken)
to each photo. The photos will be uploaded into your Gather photo gallery. If you added
the photos to an album, they'll appear on the "all albums" view; individual photos not
placed in albums appear on the "other photos" view.
Photo Albums
You can organize photos you upload to Gather into photo albums. When you share photos, you'll
have the option to select an existing album or create a new one by entering an album name
and description, and by setting viewing permissions. All photos you add to the album will
take on the viewing permissions set for the album, and a photo can only be in one album at a
time. All the albums you create will appear on the "all albums" view under "my photos."
Sorting photos into albums
Already uploaded some individual pictures? You can still sort them into albums. On your
"my photos" page, click the Organize Photos button in the left-hand column. This tool lets you view
the contents of an album or the photos not yet placed into albums and drag-and-drop them into
a new album. You can also delete photos from the site by dragging them into the delete area.
Changing my icon
Icons personalize your Gather experience and help other members
recognize you. Your icon can be a picture of yourself or anything you choose.
Whatever photo you select, it will represent you on the site -- on your profile
page, next to comments you post, and with content you share.
Make sure to choose a photo that will be recognizable in a small format.
Sometimes icons display only 60 pixels wide. A subject that fills the photo,
like a close-up of your face, is the best choice. When deciding what photo to
choose, remember that square icons display best, horizontal icons sometimes
display very small, and vertical icons can be too tall to display properly.
To change your icon, use the "change icon" link on your profile. Simply browse
for the photo you wish to make your Gather icon and upload it. You can also view your photo
gallery or the photos in your albums, select the photo you want as your new icon, and click
"edit." On the photo options page, check the "Make this photo my personal icon
on Gather" box. Save it, and you're all set.
Uploading photos to posts
To upload photos, you must allow your browser to work with the Gather uploader.
If you are using Microsoft Internet Explorer as your browser, you must install the
Gather Uploader ActiveX control when prompted. The installation only takes a few minutes
and you only need to do it one time. When you try to share a photo or video, a yellow information
bar will appear at the top of your browser window. Click the bar, then select Install ActiveX
Control from the dropdown menu. After the page reloads and a dialog box appears, click Install
and follow the instructions in the dialog box to add the control to your browser.
If you are using a browser other than Internet Explorer, you must install a Java Web plug-in
and "trust" the Gather uploader application. If you do not have a Java Web plug-in, a small graphic
and message will appear on the share page. Click the link and follow the instructions to install
the Java plug-in. You will also be prompted to "trust" an applet certificate for the Gather Uploader.
Select the checkbox to "always trust" certificates from Gather and save the setting. If you do not
select the checkbox to "always trust," you will see this prompt each time you upload photos,
videos, or a new icon.
Photo quality
Here are some guidelines for sharing the best quality photos with speedy
uploading and processing. Your photo file must be in .jpg, .gif, or .png format and the
file size can't exceed 6 megabytes. During
processing, we convert your file and change the photo size so it displays
properly. The full size a photo will display on Gather is 550 pixels wide. We
recommend that you save your .jpg file with a resolution of 72 dots per
inch (DPI), and resize the photo to 550 pixels wide before uploading.
Fair Use rules for sharing photos
When sharing a portion of someone else's content, it must be for
the purpose of criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, or
research, according to the United States Copyright Office. There's no clear
definition of what constitutes Fair Use, but acknowledging the source of the
copyrighted material is no substitution for obtaining permission. As a general
guide, only use a small number of photos or portions of photos from another
source, not the entire album or photo. Also, you must use the copied photo as
an addition to your own original content. You should familiarize yourself with
the copyright laws to make sure you don't infringe on someone's rights.
For
more information on Fair Use in copyright law, please check out the United States Copyright Office's Fair Use
guide.
Sharing Videos
About sharing videos
Go to the Share tab and click the Share a Video button. Then
click "Browse" to select a video file from your computer, in any of
the following formats .avi, .mpg, .mpeg, .mov, .wmv and .asf, or .wav or .mp3
audio files, up to 100 megabytes. Upload the videos, one at a time, into your
Gather videos gallery. Your file will begin uploading and processing
automatically, and the status will display while this is happening. At the same
time, you can create your title and caption, select tags, and choose settings
for your video. Please check the appropriate descriptions for content involving
subject matter that can be described as adult content. Then, click Share, and
you're done. Repeat this process for each video you want to upload. And if
something goes wrong, you can cancel and start over during the upload.
Video quality
Gather processes your video file and converts it to Flash
format. Keep in mind when editing your video that we use the frame three
seconds into it for the thumbnail photo that everyone sees. Follow these
guidelines to share the best quality video on Gather:
- Frame rate above 12 frames per second (FPS), 30 FPS preferred
- Bitrate 250 kps
- Frame ratio 4:3
- Resolution 640 x 480 pixels
- Non-interlaced
Uploading videos
To upload videos, you must allow your browser to work with the Gather uploader.
If you are using Microsoft Internet Explorer as your browser, you must install the
Gather Uploader ActiveX control when prompted. The installation only takes a few minutes
and you only need to do it one time. When you try to share a photo or video, a yellow information
bar will appear at the top of your browser window. Click the bar, then select Install ActiveX
Control from the dropdown menu. After the page reloads and a dialog box appears, click Install
and follow the instructions in the dialog box to add the control to your browser.
If you are using a browser other than Internet Explorer, you must install a Java Web plug-in
and "trust" the Gather uploader application. If you do not have a Java Web plug-in, a small graphic
and message will appear on the share page. Click the link and follow the instructions to install
the Java plug-in. You will also be prompted to "trust" an applet certificate for the Gather Uploader.
Select the checkbox to "always trust" certificates from Gather and save the setting. If you do not
select the checkbox to "always trust," you will see this prompt each time you upload photos,
videos, or a new icon.
Using video "embed code"
"Embed code" allows you to distribute a video shared on Gather on other
websites that allow you to post HTML. To embed a video on another site, simply
copy the HTML code from the "embed code" box and paste it on the new
website. You can share videos created by other members, unless they are
private. In that case, the embed code is only available to the member who
shared the video. You can place Gather video embed code in posts if you use the HTML
editing option when you create the post.
Fair Use rules for sharing videos
When sharing a portion of someone else's content, it must be for
the purpose of criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, or
research, according to the United States Copyright Office. There's no clear
definition of what constitutes Fair Use, but acknowledging the source of the
copyrighted material is no substitution for obtaining permission. As a general
guide, only use a small portion of video from another source, not the entire
piece. Also, you must use the video as an addition to your own original
content. You should familiarize yourself with the copyright laws to make sure
you don't infringe on someone's rights.
For
more information on Fair Use in copyright law, please check out the United States Copyright Office's Fair Use guide.
Editorial Policy
Gather's editorial policy
Gather's editorial policy is different from that of most media sites online.
Our editors' job is not to edit the content before it's posted. Instead, they
highlight the best of what the community rates and views to help the broader
audience find the best, most interesting posts, photos, and other content.
Gather's editors help maintain a healthy and constructive environment on the
site. When a member of the Gather community flags content as inappropriate, the
Gather Editorial Team makes sure the content has been rightfully flagged.
Underlying all of this is a strong belief in the First Amendment of the U.S.
Constitution, which allows you the freedom to say whatever's on your mind 24/7
on Gather.
To
learn more, read the Gather User Terms of
Service Agreement. Also, remember that you are responsible for everything you
share on Gather, including any material that may be offensive or infringe upon
the rights of others as is stated in the Gather User Terms of Service Agreement.
Content ownership
You create it? You own it. It's just that simple. Anything
original you create and share on Gather is copyrighted by you as soon as you
click Submit. By sharing content on Gather, you're giving Gather Serial Rights
to your content. This basically means you're lending your content to Gather,
who may use your content for marketing and related purposes -- but only as
limited to Gather. For instance, you might see your writing featured in a
weekly email promoting the content type you've shared. You can edit or delete
any of your content at any time.
If you
share content that's not your own, you must give proper attribution to the
author. But don't just cite the author's name. You need to add a little
something of your own. Introduce the piece or snippet of content and comment
about why you think it's worth sharing. For more information on Fair Use in
copyright law, please check out the United States Copyright Office's Fair Use
guide.
Keep
in mind that by sharing content online, your written word and photos fall under
copyright law, so it's important that you educate yourself about its basic
principles. For extensive information on copyright law, please see the United States
Copyright Office's circular.
What can be shared on Gather
The First Amendment states: Congress shall make no law
respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise
thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of
the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress
of grievances.
Free
speech is what Gather is all about. Gather is a place where you can share just
about anything you want: reviews, poetry, opinion, photos, advice. In regard to
your own original content, what you can share is limited almost entirely by
your imagination. Remember: if you're sharing a portion of someone else's work,
make sure to give proper attribution and introduce and discuss the content
you're presenting, in compliance with the standards of Fair Use.
Please
be aware that there is certain material that Gather does not permit. Most
prohibited content is due to United States or international treaty law, or is
prohibited in order to keep the service usable for all members. Keep in mind
that you are responsible for everything that you share on Gather, including any
material that may be offensive or infringe on the rights of others as is stated
in the Gather User Terms of
Service Agreement.
Reported content
Gather members may report content to The Gather Editorial Team if they believe
that the content is potentially inappropriate or violates Gather's Terms of Service. When
reported, your content will show the statement: "This has been reported by the
community as potentially inappropriate." Content with this flag has been
reported for the reasons displayed and will not be available publicly on Gather
until editorial review is complete. Gather's Editorial Team performs regular
review of reported content to determine if it is in violation of Gather's Terms of Service.
Content restricted for TOS violations
Gather's Editorial Team performs regular review of reported content and if
deemed in violation of Gather's Terms of Service, the
content is blocked from view on Gather and can only be accessed by the member
who shared it. When restricted, your content will show the statement 'This has
been restricted by the Gather Editorial Team for violations of TOS.' You may
edit your reported content to correct a violation or delete the content. To
resolve reported content, please get in touch with us using our Contact
Member Support form. Learn more here.
Gather's content supervision
Your contributions to Gather are not edited or censored. The
Gather Editorial Team may add adult settings to your work if you haven't
flagged it properly yourself. Gather also reserves the right to remove content
or members who engage in any "inappropriate, defamatory, infringing,
obscene, libelous, or unlawful content," or "restrict or inhibit any
other user from using and enjoying Gather." Learn more in the full Gather User Terms of Service Agreement.
Tags
About tags on Gather
Think of tags as an index of all the content on Gather. You can
click on tags to browse any content -- posts, photos, or videos -- they relate
to. Just found a post you really liked? Click on one of its tags to find
related information. Want more people to find your photos? Include tags that
relate to its subject. See a fantastic video and want to know more? Use the
tags to explore related content. Tags can be words or phrases; always make sure
your tags are directly related to what you're sharing.
Editing tags
To add or delete tags after you've shared content, click
"edit" from your post, photo, or video. On this edit page, you can
update your tags. Once you've added your tags, scroll to the bottom of the page
and click Save.
Choosing tags
Tags make it easy for members to search for content they have an
interest in. Ask yourself what your content is really about. If you could
describe your content in a handful of words, what would they be? Then choose
those words that most closely describe it. Remember netiquette and do not tag
spam.
Geotags
When sharing or editing a photo, you can set a geotag that identifies where it was taken.
When a user sees your photo, a map showing the location will appear with it. Geotagging is a
fun way to remember exactly where your vacation photos were taken or to share landmarks around
your hometown. To set a geotag, provide your city, state, country, ZIP code, or other address
to get started. Once the map displays the location you entered, you can move the pin to set the exact location.
Rating
Rating content on Gather
At the bottom of a post, photo, or video, just click "rate" and
select the number of stars that correspond with your rating: 1-10, with 10
representing some of the best content you've seen. You can only rate each post,
photo, or video once, and you're not able to change or remove your ratings.
Who can rate
Registered Gather members rate content on Gather. Any member who's signed in to
Gather can rate content, but members are not allowed to rate their own work.
Ratings are averaged to allow the most popular and best-rated work to rise to
the top, where they'll be featured on the Explore page in the highest-rated
category for posts, photos, videos. People with highest-rated content can be
found on the People page. A post, photo, or video must receive three or more
ratings to be included in a highest-rated list.
Changing ratings
Currently, there is no way to change a rating.
Knowing who rated my content
The rating system is anonymous, and each Gather member can only
rate each piece once.
Improving my ratings
Members who share a lot of content often get better ratings and
a higher readership overall. Why? Because when someone finds a post, photo, or
video they like, they're inclined to seek other content by the same author.
Also, the more you share, the more likely people are to see your content. So
share often and you'll quickly build a following.
Another
important factor in building your ratings, readership, and rankings: your
network. By adding friends on Gather and inviting your friends, family, and
colleagues to join Gather, you'll become more visible and more popular on the
site. Every time you contribute content, it will appear on the homepage of
everyone in your network, and your friends on Gather will get an email
reminding them of your new content (if they have their preferences set to
receive it).
Restricting ratings
If you don't wish to allow ratings on your content, you can
unselect this option when you share a post, photo, or video. But if you turn off
the ability for others to rate your content, it can't be listed on the
highest-rated content pages and won't be eligible for any Gather-sponsored
contests.
Please be aware that you won't be able to change this setting later. This is Gather's
policy in the interest of fairness, because members use ratings to suggest the
site's best content, and these recommendations sometimes help determine contest
winners.
Rankings
About rankings
Rankings are the basis for Gather's hot lists. Want to find the
most popular content on Gather? The most read contributors? The most popular
groups? To see rankings, check out the People, Groups, and Explore landing
pages. You'll find options to see items that are most viewed, most discussed,
highest rated, or most popular during different timeframes. Selecting "today"
means that the item was shared during the last 24 hours and has become popular during the last 24 hours. Selecting
"last 7 days" or "last 30 days" means that the items was shared during either
the last 7 or 30 days.
Viewing different ranked lists
Content, people, and group rankings are divided into several
categories. Posts, photos, and videos can be viewed by the following
categories: most viewed, highest rated, and most discussed. You can also view the
most recent content. People can be viewed by most viewed profile, updated profile, most
viewed content, highest rated content, and most discussed content. Groups can
be viewed by most popular and newest. You can view each ranking for the last
day, last 7 days, or last 30 days. For the highest-rated category, the more
ratings you have on a piece, the higher it will be listed. Highest-rated lists
require multiple ratings before that content will be added to the list. A
single rating will not add your content to this list.
Content view counts
You can see how many people have viewed your posts, photos, or
videos by looking at the lists in your "my posts," "my photos," or "my videos"
pages off your My Gather page. You can see the number of views for other members'
content by looking at any of their content lists in their profile.
Gather and Syndication
About RSS
Have you seen the acronym RSS, or the orange icon that looks
like this ()? RSS, which
stands for Really Simple Syndication, provides you with the ability to
subscribe to content you like to read frequently, and contain that content in a
"reader." The latest versions of all browsers, including Internet
Explorer 7.0, Firefox 2, and Safari 2.0 have built-in RSS readers.
Additionally, websites like Yahoo!, Google, MSN, Rojo, and others offer the
ability to aggregate your RSS feeds on a single webpage. Instead of jumping
from one bookmark to another, you can review new content from your favorite
sources in your RSS reader.
Subscribing to RSS feeds on Gather
Gather allows you to subscribe to recent posts from your favorite authors and
groups with the click of a button. Next to every list of recent posts, there is
an orange button that looks like (). When you click on
the button, a window opens that allows you to select how you want to read your
feed. Here's a rundown of the options:
Submitting my RSS feed to Gather
Gather has a feature that enables individuals and media companies to use RSS
feeds to automatically pick up content and share it on Gather. If you're
interested in participating in this feature, please get in touch with us using
our Contact Member Support form.
Bookmarking content to Digg, del.icio.us, and other sites
Bookmarking is a popular and effective way of organizing information on the web
to make it more accessible. A bookmark is simply a link to an item on the web,
along with information that helps the community categorize it. Social bookmarking
sites like Digg and del.icio.us facilitate finding popular content by
organizing these links topically or by counting the number of links to a
particular item to show their popularity. Bookmarking high-quality content on
Gather on these services helps others across the Internet find the best content
by your fellow Gatherers more frequently. It helps our best authors reach a
broader audience, as well.
We've added buttons to Gather content to make it easy to bookmark them on
several of the major sites. To submit Gather content -- posts, photos, or
videos -- to one of these sites, just click on the bookmark link located
below the content and select the site you want. You'll be taken to a
submission form on the site you've selected, where information for the
content you want to bookmark may already be filled in. Simply complete
the remainder of the form and the content will be bookmarked! Note that
these sites require registration the first time you submit to them.
We ask all Gather users to be good netizens when submitting content to bookmarking
sites. Please make sure the bookmarks you create are of general interest and
good quality. Also, never submit any Gather content that has restricted access.
This includes content marked adult, or content that is shared only with private
groups or certain friend sets.
Linking to Gather content
You can link to any post, photo, or video on Gather by choosing
the "link to this page" option, which lets you copy a permalink. A
permalink is simply a web address, or URL, that will always point to that
specific Gather content item, even as our site grows and changes. To obtain the
permalink, right-click (control-click for Apple users) it, and select
"Copy shortcut" (Internet Explorer), "Copy link location"
(Firefox), or "Copy link" (Safari) from the menu.
Telling friends outside of Gather about content
There are several ways to share content with friends outside of Gather. When you
share a photo album publicly or with your friend sets, you'll have an opportunity
to invite friends and family who aren't on Gather to join and see the photos you've shared.
You can invite friends and family to view any of your albums, posts, or videos shared
publicly or to friend sets by clicking the "Invite your friends" link found
when you are viewing your content. You can also email content by clicking "email,"
located below each piece of content, or by clicking "link to this content," then
copying the URL and sending it to friends. When they follow the link to the URL, your
friends will be brought to Gather to see the content you picked, provided it's public
or they have permission to see it. Once on Gather, they can browse other content, as well.
To share videos on other sites, simply click "embed code," copy the HTML, and
paste it on another website. You can share videos created by other members, unless they're
private. In that case, the embed code is only available to the member who shared the video.
Gather Earnings Program
About Gather Points™
Each member earns Gather Points™, which are Gather's currency for rewarding its
members for site participation, especially for highly rated, popular content.
Each Gather Point has a value similar to a frequent flyer mile -- currently
about $.02 per point.
Earning points
A portion of the Gather advertising revenue is returned to its
members as Gather Points™. As Gather grows, there will be more members, more
advertisers, and therefore more revenue to share. We use different algorithms
to determine which individual user activities are creating community value.
Certain metrics -- for example, invitations that recruit new members, plus
post, photo, or video views and ratings, and group membership growth -- are
just some of the activities that help us understand how much value individual
members are creating for the community. The more value you provide, the more
points you'll earn.
We want to give Gather members incentives to do the very things that make Gather a
better place. To earn more, share content of high quality. Invite your friends,
family, and colleagues to Gather. Build great groups. Maintain a healthy,
respectful, playful conversation with other Gatherers.
Earning cash instead of points
Once you earn $50 in a calendar month, you'll be eligible to
earn cash, subject to Gather's discretion. Cash earners can request a payout at
any time, via check or PayPal™. You can request a payment from Gather at any
time, available via check or PayPal payment. Invitation to the cash program
will be at Gather's discretion. In the beginning, those in the cash system will
earn just a little. But as the Gather membership grows and advertising revenue
increases, those on the cash system could earn a living on Gather alone.
Points expiration
Currently, Gather Points have no expiration date. We'll notify
you in the future if that policy changes.
Becoming a Gather Points™ partner
Gather welcomes a variety of points partners. If you're interested in becoming
Gather's latest addition, simply contact advertising@gather.com.
Donating my points to charity
We offer charities (registered 501c3 organizations) that are
active on Gather the ability to accept points donations from members. We'll
transform these points into cash for the charity, so that your school, church,
soccer team, environmental group, public radio station, or other not-for-profit
can grow just by joining and participating on Gather. For complete details,
and/or if you know of a charity you'd like to recommend, please get in touch
with us using our Contact Member Support form.
Donating my points to another member
It's not possible to donate your points to another member at this time. You
may, however, donate your points to one of our affiliated charitable
organizations.
Members outside of the United States
All members can earn points. Currently, Gather members who reside outside of
the United States are unable to redeem Gather Points™ for gift cards or cash
compensation. We are researching ways to broaden our earnings program to
include all members, and aim to make it available for all members in the
future. However, you will never lose points once you've earned them. So the
points you earn now will be useful to you when we expand the program.
Gather Points™ Redemption
Redeeming Gather Points
Click the Gather Points link
in the dashboard on your My Gather page. This will take you to
earnings.gather.com, where you can redeem Gather Points™ for offers by
designated Gather Points partners. Gather Points can be exchanged for gift
certificates for goods from participating points partners or for a cash credit
to your PayPal account. Keep track of the
latest points partners and offers here.
Each Gather Points partner has different rules governing card redemption. We suggest
you review the merchants' websites to learn the specifics for redeeming their
gift cards. Have fun shopping!
Changing my name or address on an order
Your name is the only information you are unable to change on an
order. It's the name you provided in your W-9 and it can't be changed. You may,
however, change the address of the recipient if you want to send an item as a
gift.
Earnings history
Your earnings history isn't available at this time. But you can
access your order history at earnings.gather.com.
Transaction security
Our transactions are secured by GeoTrust technology. GeoTrust is
a leading global Certificate Authority for secure e-business transactions.
Patented smart seal technology provides fast, reliable, and user-friendly
website identity authentication.
Information privacy
We don't share your information with anyone -- not even Gather
Points partners. Read more information about our privacy policy.
Canceling or returning an order
Once an order has been sent for processing, it can't be
cancelled, nor can it be returned. For assistance with your order, please get
in touch with us using our Contact Member Support form.
Ordering more than one item
It's not possible to order more than one item in the same
transaction at this time. If you'd like to order more than one item, please
place a separate order for each item you want.
Processing time and late orders
You should expect to receive your Gather Points order within 21
days. If you haven't received your gift certificate, gift card, etc. within 21
days, please get in touch with us using our Contact Member Support form,
providing a brief explanation of the problem you're having.
Order history
To view your order history, reference your Earnings Account Info
under earnings.gather.com.
Cash Requests
Cashing out my earnings
You can request to cash out your earnings at any time, either
via a check from Gather or a PayPal payment -- whichever you prefer.
Payments through PayPal®
Anyone with an email address can send or receive secure online payments via
PayPal. If you have an existing PayPal account, you can use that address to
receive Gather payments. You'll receive an email from PayPal notifying you that
you have money waiting. If you don't already have an account set up, you'll
need to create one either now or at that time. To create a PayPal account now,
click here.
You should expect to receive your PayPal payment confirmation within 21 days (most
likely much sooner) of your request date. If you haven't received your PayPal
payment within that time period, please get in touch with us using our Contact
Member Support form.
Payments by check
You should expect to receive your check within 21 days of your
request date. If you haven't received it within that time period, please get in
touch with us using our Contact Member Support form.
Submitting an IRS Form W-9
If you've received over $600 in cash payments from a Gather account or have
redeemed Gather Points™ offers valued at over $600 in the same calendar year,
you must provide us with information on IRS Form W-9. You
may have your requests sent to any address or PayPal account, but you'll be
required to use the taxpayer name on file to receive your requested payment. To
change your information, download the IRS Form W-9 and
submit an updated copy to Gather. For assistance with this, please get in touch
with us using our Contact Member Support form.
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