SocialGO Owners

Shevanity Said:
I'm in the same train of thought as Lob and posted my questions in the SocialGO for Dummies group as well with posting them in the Help Center. I did a comparision last night, and I really need to know the answers to my questions I posted. So could you please answer maybe a few of them? I would so appreciate any help so I can move forward with my venture here. :) Have a good one!
Shevanity

Change their profile page themes?

SocialGO - Yes. This ability will probably be determined by the network owner;
as to change the theme would imply getting rid of the networks logo and the
owner may not want that.

Be able to add links for MP3'S?

SocialGO - Sorry; Im not sure I understand the question? You mean links to mp3s
hosted on other sites? If so then this is a hot topic and subject to
copyright laws beyond our control. (ties in with my answer to your project
playlist question below)

A way for members to add graphics, etc; to their profile pages?

SocialGO - As per my answers to themes, yes; if you mean background images and
that sort of thing.

Add Project Play list on their profiles?

SocialGO - From what I gather (http://www.playlist.com/) is just a simple widget
that could be added when the profile theme system comes online.

Add photos and videos by phone or email?

SocialGO - Quite possible, however further down the track.

Add photos from their Flickr or Photobucket?

SocialGO - Embedding 3rd party photos etc is dependent on the 3rd parties
licensing, however at some point soon yes (as per the video embedding) we
could add photo embedding (it is on our future development list).

Search option for photos, videos, forum, events, magazine and members?

SocialGO - You are already able to search members groups and events as well as
forum and magazine; and shortly well be adding advanced member search which
will allow us to assess how users want to search the site and from there we
can move on to the other sections.

Customize your groups such as music and graphics are you working on changing
that? Or will that remain the same?

SocialGO - Music is one thing and was skipped for groups, but well see what the
demand for it is. Graphics sure as per the member profile theme system could
also be applied to groups. We are working on such a system and its
interface, it is def on the roadmap.

Is there a way to "shut the door" and keep the site private where the
public cannot view the content? My members like their privacy without the
lurkers.

SocialGO - Of course, via the admin system; set all of your tabs to members
only.

Adding features, such as being able to add pics, files, or hyperlinks on
post; There aren't any of these features when you respond to blogs, forum,
photos, videos, bulletins, and emails.
To respond to forum post? Will that change?

SocialGO - Yes it will change, and as we've had this requested quite often since
we went open a week or 2 ago, its on the fast track

Use the WHO IM on the site, is there a way that feature could be intergraded
that with SocialGO?

SocialGO - WHOIM is a widgetlabs widget, we are working closely with the lads
there and yes WHOIM will be available as a widget in the near future.

These are my concerns and questions;

Will drop down tabs be an option in the future?

SocialGO - Yes, as this is another frequently requested feature. We will be
making the sub options more dynamic and one of the options will be to show
them as drop downs.

Is there a way to move the Search box on left hand side lower so that only
the tabs scroll across the top of the page? If so, where can I find
instructions to change the codes.

SocialGO - At the moment we are stabilising the css (codes) and this option may
become available in the future. Very shortly we will be allowing you to add
more custom tabs via the admin system and the tabs already wrap. Have a look
at http://thegreatexperiment.socialgo.com (once logged in with them).

Do you charge for having another domain name during Beta? Either way, what
is the fee?
There isn't a network player, are you working on installing one?

SocialGO - No its free :) the pricing plan is under discussion at the moment;
stay tuned and check owners.socialgo.com as well as the blog
www.socialgo.com/blog

Also, Ning has an option whereas you can have a warning page before they
enter your site; will this be an option in the future for SocialGO?

SocialGO - I don't see a reason why not, depending on demand from our users. Our
attitude is to give users the control that they need over their sites, at
the moment you could simply put a warning on the welcome page.

Groups on the main page doesn't show the avatar, will that be changed?

SocialGO - Sorry? Which main page? Can you give me a url?

We also use CBOX chat on our site because it shows you the members IP
address, a feature the Ning chat box doesn't offer. Is there any way on
SocialGO to check members IP addresses without having to use the CBOX?
Having that option alone would eliminate a lot of the banned members from
trying to rejoin.

SocialGO - An interesting idea; it could be done, but would only be available to
moderators and the network owner.

You can't moderate what a member writes on a post/magazine. Will this be
changed?

SocialGO - This is subject to debate in the tech meetings at the moment; A blog
is a users expression point and the author should never be overriden in his
intent; At the moment you will need to talk with the blogs owner. If an
article is not suitable for use in the magazine simply remove it (as a
network mod and owner you determine what shows on the magazine page; and you
can set your network so that a mod would hae to approve a blog before it
went into the magazine)

Ning has Badges for members to display on their other networks. Will this be
an option in the future for SocialGO members?

SocialGO - Sure, we have tons of other more pressing items to deliver first;
however this is on our list of future developments and would probably be a
widget.

Is there a way to change the new members avatars so that when they join,
they already have a set avatar and if they choose to change it, they can?

SocialGO - Sorry not sure I understand you there. On sign up the user is
randomly assigned an avatar with the user can change at will.. You as a
network owner could also edit that users profile and change their avatar.

Thank you so much for taking your time to answer my questions...much appreciated! SocialGO seems to be on the right track and I'm very pleased to hear about all the new features. Now, I want to elaborate on our conversation...

Change their profile page themes?

SocialGO - Yes. This ability will probably be determined by the network owner;
as to change the theme would imply getting rid of the networks logo and the
owner may not want that.

Actually I have that same problem on Ning. I do use a logo and it shows up on all the members’ pages. I make sure I clean up the logo and make it transparent so it will look nice on all the pages.

From my research thus far on SocialGO regarding widening the width of the main header (top page picture) you have to change the width of the logo to widen the top area. By having the logo width so wide, this is where the problem lays regarding members changing their profile themes. Now, on Ning, I figured out a way around that by changing the width in the CSS codes and that eliminated that problem whereas I could use any size logo of my choice and not affect the members themes. Hence my first question to you regarding changing the width of the main header.

Be able to add links for MP3'S?

SocialGO - Sorry; Im not sure I understand the question? You mean links to mp3s
hosted on other sites? If so then this is a hot topic and subject to
copyright laws beyond our control. (ties in with my answer to your project
playlist question below)

From my understanding, peer to peer file sharing is legal. Whenever you add a link to your website from another website, and not downloading the file, then by doing so isn’t in Copyright violation and not a crime unless in the pursuit of profit. Logically, you would think that the host of the website would be the ones held responsible for paying the royalty fees because they are making it accessible to the public, not the user.

“Project Playlist, Inc. aspires to index and organize the music on the Internet in a responsible and efficient manner, and is therefore committed to copyright protection.”

Project Playlist

A way for members to add graphics, etc; to their profile pages?

SocialGO - As per my answers to themes, yes; if you mean background images and
that sort of thing.

I’m referring to glitter graphics, comment cards, animated graphics, etc; the majority of my members have the following on their pages…and are essential to them in how they express themselves on their profile pages.

Project Playlist, Graphics (which could be pictures from Photobucket, comment cards, glitter graphics) Profile themes are a must as well.

Use the WHO IM on the site, is there a way that feature could be intergraded
that with SocialGO?

SocialGO - WHOIM is a widgetlabs widget, we are working closely with the lads
there and yes WHOIM will be available as a widget in the near future.

Excellent! My members love the WHO IM! This is a must have for us and thanks!

Groups on the main page doesn't show the avatar, will that be changed?

SocialGO - Sorry? Which main page? Can you give me a url?

My bad and I apologize.lol! I didn’t see where the avatar picture was showing underneath the new groups tab.

We also use CBOX chat on our site because it shows you the members IP
address, a feature the Ning chat box doesn't offer. Is there any way on
SocialGO to check members IP addresses without having to use the CBOX?
Having that option alone would eliminate a lot of the banned members from
trying to rejoin.

SocialGO - An interesting idea; it could be done, but would only be available to
moderators and the network owner.

Having access to members IP’s would eliminate so much drama that occurs with someone who is irate and out of control. I did contact Ning regarding this matter and this is what they said about the situation, “As IP addresses are static and can be masked they aren't data easily accessible, or given out publicly.” I have to disagree with their view on this, they state that we are independent of our Networks however in the same breathe want to control the amount of power we have over our platform. If you don’t have the proper tools to work with as a site owner and be able to stand on your own, then that leaves you powerless with the member who is out of control. By us not having access to their IP’s, which leaves the door wide open for them to return to your site and do as they please without being noticed, by doing so causes a lot of damage and unnecessary drama that could have been avoided.

Is there a way to change the new members avatars so that when they join,
they already have a set avatar and if they choose to change it, they can?

SocialGO - Sorry not sure I understand you there. On sign up the user is
randomly assigned an avatar with the user can change at will.. You as a
network owner could also edit that users profile and change their avatar.

Ning has a feature where you can set all of the new members avatars to any picture of you’re choosing. It is set and you don’t have to change all the members’ pictures one at a time. It is very convenient and also adds a personal touch to your site.

I also noticed that you cannot add comment cards on the members pages, will this be changed in the future?

Also, are you guys working on spell check? Ning doesn't provide this feature and it is frustrating to members who are perfectionist and have to use Word.

I tried to use a smiley after that sentence and I'm not sure why it shows up as an X on my Vista browser?? Anyways...thanks again!

Shevanity