Frequently Asked Questions About eOrganic

General Questions

What is eOrganic?

eOrganic is the Organic Agriculture Community of Practice (CoP) for http://www.eXtension.org. We are dedicated to the publication of current, peer-reviewed science-,  experience-, and regulation- based information in a variety of media formats on our public website at http://www.extension.org/organic_production. In addition, eOrganic's virtual community and online collaborative workspace at http://eorganic.info, supports university researchers, extension educators, farmers, certifiers, and agricultural professionals from across the U.S. as they network, communicate, collaborate, learn, and work together on organic agriculture projects.

I'm confused. What's the difference between eOrganic, eorganic.info,and eXtension.org/organic_production, and eXtension.org?

• eOrganic is the national information, training and networking virtual community made up of http://www.eOrganic.info and http://www.extension.org/organic_production.
• http://www.eOrganic.info is the online workspace website where eOrganic members collaborate in groups, have discussions, and create content.
• http://www.eXtension.org/organic_production is the public website where the content that is created on eOrganic.info is displayed once it is published.
• http://www.eXtension.org is an Internet-based educational partnership of land-grant institutions that helps people improve their lives by providing access to objective research based information and learning opportunities. In recent years, eXtension.org has focused on providing professional development opportunites for extension educators through their Impact Collaborative.

What is a Community of Practice?

From the eXtension.org Community of Practice Handbook: 

"For eXtension, a Community of Practice (CoP) is defined as a virtual network of subject matter content providers consisting of faculty, professional and para-professional staff, county educators, industry experts, clientele and government agency representation who share knowledge or competence in a specific content area and are willing to work and learn together over a period of time to further develop and share that knowledge in forms of educational products and programs."

What can I do on eOrganic?

• Network: find people with expertise in organic agriculture to learn from and work with
• Work in Publication Groups to develop articles, videos, FAQs and other content for publication to our public site at eXtension.org/organic_production
• Work in Project Groups to develop and manage organic agriculture research , education and outreach projects
• Learn together: learn about organic agriculture projects, share experiences, discuss issues

How can I use eOrganic for my research or outreach project?

You can use eOrganic to promote your group, and use our tools to make collaborative work more efficient. Click here to find out more. I

What tools are available to eOrganic groups, and what do they do?

Each eOrganic group receives the following tools:

• Announcements: Post an announcement to inform your group(s) of important news or events. The post will send out an email to group members and post the message on the groups' home pages.
• Articles: Add new articles that will be peer reviewed and published on eXtension.org.
• Discussion forums:  Start a discussion with your group, or use the forum to ask a question or make a decision.
• Calendar: Plan group meetings and events using a group calendar that will show up on the group home page.
• eXtension publishing Here, you can find links to all articles for eXtension in various stages of development, as well as links to Ask an Expert and eXtension tools.
• Files: Upload a document, presentation or spreadsheet to share with your group that will be shared on the group workspace.
• Group Pages: Share and collaboratively edit pages with your group. Examples include meeting agendas or proposal drafts, or group plans and policies. These will show up on the group workspace.
• Group Home Page Find a description of the group, group updates, announcements, and the calendar.
• Member List: Learn about others with similar interests and projects
• Photos: Upload photos to share with your group.These will show up on the group workspace.
• Workspace: Find group pages, uploaded files and photos here.
• See below for additonal tools such as video sharing and web conferencing.

Who can become a member of eOrganic? 

University researchers and collaborators, extension educators, farmers, certifiers, and other agricultural professionals with expertise in organic agriculture who agree to eOrganic's membership responsibilities and the eOrganic Code of Conduct.

How do I invite someone to be a member of an eOrganic group?

It depends. If they are already an eOrganic member, they can go to the Groups page and click "join" or "request membership" next to the Group's name. If they are not an eOrganic member, send them to http://eorganic.info where they can find a link to create a new account. Ask them to put your name in the "eOrganic Contact" field. 

Why should I create an eOrganic profile?

Creating a profile that describes your areas of expertise, and research, education, and outreach work in organic agriculture contributes to the value of eOrganic as a networking community. Providing this information allows members who share similar interests to find out about the work of others. To edit your profile, go to My Account, then click Profile, Edit, and Save. Make sure to enter information into the About Me section.

Who can see my contact information?

Only eOrganic members can see any information you provide on your About Me page, and can contact you through the eOrganic site. Your email address will not be visible to anyone except the eOrganic leadership and administrative staff unless you have entered it into your About Me page or linked to your website that contains your email address.

How do I change my password?

When you're logged in to eOrganic, go to My Account. Click Edit, and scroll to the place to enter a new password in 2 fields. Then scroll down to the bottom of the page and click Save.

Creating Content

How do I write an article for eXtension?

Our Instructions for Authors page contains detailed information on writing, formatting, and publishing articles for eXtension.org. To start an article from a group home page, make sure you are a member of the group and click the +Article link on the right of the screen. Click here for more information on where and how to start an article

Can I contribute to an existing article draft without asking anyone?

In the ideal Community of Practice, members collaboratively author documents and it is possible, as in Wikipedia, for members to add to any article drafts; however, the reality is that many members are not accustomed to this way of working, particularly for peer-reviewed publications. It is therefore recommended that you contact the authors if you would like to contribute to articles started by others.

Can anyone come in and rewrite my articles?

While it is possible to edit articles in your group, not all members cannot actually publish the revisions. It is possible for group members to edit article drafts; however, members should contact the original authors if they would like to contribute to an article that another member started. All revisions are saved. While members have suggested changes or updates to existing articles, we only publish changes to an article with the original authors' permission.

Can I start an article about anything or do I have to ask a group leader's permission?

You may wish to discuss a proposed article with a group leader or coordinator to see where your idea fits into previously published content, but this is not required. All articles for eXtension.org  will undergo the eOrganic anonymous peer review process and organic certification check before publication.

What is a webinar?

A webinar is a live online presentation, often in the form of a PowerPoint, in which viewers can ask questions of the speaker via voice or instant messaging. In some Webinars, it is also possible for viewers to interact with one another.

How can I share a video?

Contact Alice Formiga who manages the eOrganic Youtube account so that you can upload videos and create pages in which they will be embedded with a transcropt so that they can be viewed on eXtension as well.

How can I share photos?

If you 'd like to share photos for members of your group to use in articles, you can upload them to one of the group workspaces. All images that are used in eOrganic content should be uploaded into an workspace.  The image galleries provide the only means of attaching source, permissions, and other data to that image (metadata).  Each image in a workspace has its own separate page where information about that image can be accessed as well as edited by other members wishing to use that image.  Therefore, load ALL images to an image gallery and fill out a proper description, so both you and any others interested in using your image know the source of the image and what it depicts. Find instructions here.

What size should my images be?

For eXtension articles, images should have a maximum width of 500 pixels. eOrganic gives you the option to change the size while uploading photos.

How do I resize images?

You can resize images when they are uploaded to eOrganic using the built-in file browser. 

How do I get an image from the photo section of a group into an article or page?

There is no way to put images uploaded into a group's photo section onto an article page. If you want to use an image that is in the photo section, you'll have to first download the image onto your computer and then upload it into the article. Find more help here.

Can I publish articles onto eOrganic that I have already published elsewhere?

eOrganic encourages members to publish original content; however, it is also possible to summarize previously published articles and provide a link to the full text if copyright permission has been obtained.

Who owns the copyright of published content on eOrganic?

Please refer to the eXtension contributor agreement at http://about.extension.org/wiki/Contributor_and_eXtension_Business_Agreement

Can I republish articles that I've written for eOrganic in other publications?

Articles published through eOrganic are subject to the terms of the eXtension contributor agreement. If you would like to republish articles that you've written for eOrganic and that have been published on eXtension, you need to obtain permission from eXtension by sending an email to Larry Lippke at eXtension.org.

How do I use the Ask an Expert System to answer questions

See this page for information on Ask an Expert. Click here to log in to the Ask an Expert System.

Communication

How do I send an announcement to my group?

Visit your group and click the +Announcement link on the right. You can select to broadcast the message to all groups of which you are a member.

How do I send an announcement to everyone on eOrganic?

The best way to do this is to request that the message be mentioned in the newsletter; to do this, contact Alice Formiga.

How do I start a group discussion?

Click the Discuss tab in your group to see all discussions. Add a new one by clicking +Discussion on the right side. This will send an email to your group members, and all subsequent comments will also be sent out.

How can I organize a web meeting on Zoom?

eOrganic has a Zoom account that can manage online meetings, trainings, and workshops. There are currently two different online meeting rooms available. The account manager is Alice Formiga, please contact her to use the service. You may also schedule the use of our free conference call line.

Help

Where can I get more help?

If have additional questions that are not answered here, you can try looking on our Help pages, attend a training, or contact Alice Formiga  by email or at 541-737-3483.