Help:User guide
from the Antique Jewelry University
The Antique Jewelry University (AJU) website is a wiki based website with the "mediawiki" software running behind the scene. This is the same software as wikipedia uses (actually it was designed for wikipedia). This means that most of the wikipedia functionalities work here as well (with some minor adaptations).
Although this website is optimized for most browsers, we recommend firefox for best performance.
Contents |
Navigation
We try to keep navigation as easy as possible and therefor you will find expanding menus on the images on the navigation images. For logic sake we categorize every page and sometimes you will follow a link to a specific category when there are more than one pages falling into a single category.
Any suggestions on making it more user friendly is highly encouraged.
Log In and Registration
You can log in or create an account by clicking the "member log in" link in the top right corner of any page.
For the casual reader there is really no need to register as you can read everything we write and only some pages are restricted for administration purposes.
When you do register, some options become available to you:
- You can upload images from your own collection (a "toolbox" with a link to the upload page will become available in the lower left corner).
- You can make comments on the pages through the "discussion" links on top of each page.
- You may start new articles through an extra form box that is presented to you in the upper left corner. We will review your additions and if any good, we will publish it.
Keep in mind that we research every entry and when we find that your entries are mere copies, we will delete them. We are looking for unique content, not copy & pastes from other websites or books.
Any images that you upload should be made by you or free of all rights, so we can publish them. You as the up loader are responsible for that.
Starting a new article
- this feature is only available to members
When you are logged in, you can start a new topic (or article) by entering the name of your topic in the text box. After pressing the "start new article" button, you can type in your data.
This data will be kept off the main site until a faculty member approves it and/or publishes it. Just one of the safety precautions we need to take in order to maintain the highest quality of information presented.
Note that this feature is only available for users who are logged in.
Commenting on articles
- this feature is only available to members
Most pages on the AJU can not be overwritten by members with normal access, but there are times you want to comment on the article. You can do so by clicking on the "discussion" tab.
Please keep comments on topic and use the forum for other comments you might have.
For faculty members (who can edit pages direct), this feature is recommended before making serious changes. A discussion on a page before it is edited is better than having to reverse it later.
Uploading images
- this feature is only available to members
When you are logged in, an extra "toolbox" with links becomes available below the calendar. When you click on the "Upload file" link, you can upload a file to the AJU from your own computer.
Please provide a descriptive - and unique - name to your image so it will not conflict with other images which are already published. Also make sure the image is free of all copyrights, or if you made the image yourself that you grant us use of the image indefinitely.
Please also provide a good description of the image with all relevant information.
User rights
Everyone who has registered will get some extra rights as outlined above in the "Registration" section.
Professional members in our industry with a proven record can apply (or are invited) to become a "Faculty" member. These people can alter most of the articles that are published on this website and correct errors. We do ask them to start a discussion on them prior to doing so, either through the "discussion" links or the forum.
Needless to say that we try and monitor everything to the best of our abilities so the best and most up to date information is given to our readers.
Forum
The AJU also has a forum for jewelry related discussions. Due to incompatibilities between the two systems used, you will need to create a separate account for it. There is also a "hidden" part on the forum which is reserved for trade members. Industry members can ask administration to have access to that section of the forum. Please do tell us a bit about yourself when you do.
For editors
The mediawiki language is much like normal HTML markup with all its possibilities, but also with some oddities. We don't require you to study them, you can just submit your articles and we will make sure they will be in the proper format.
If you desire to study the mediawiki language, consult the User's Guide for information on using the wiki software.
Suggestion box
The AJU is a community driven project and you probably have many suggestions on how to improve the functionality. If you need help or have suggestions, we encourage you letting us know through the contact page.
Book reviews
We use a standard set of forms to enter book reviews to establish some uniformity. You can read an easy tutorial in the help section for book reviews.