All posts by Emily Peri

Cloyne Rocket.chat Intro

Hi Clones,

[tl;dr] Go to chat.cloyne.org and set up your Cloyne Rocket.chat account. You can log in with Facebook or Google, or create an account with username and password. There’s an iOS app and and Android app, or you can just run it in your phone’s web browser.

A couple of weeks ago Ellie, your network manager sent out an email announcement about Rocket.chat.

Why?

Because we are collectively trying to move from email to a chat platform for the bulk of our house-wide communication.

Why?

In attempt to simplify our communication. Do you ever experience overwhelm with the volume of Cloyne list-serve emails in your inbox (or filtered inbox)? Do you get frustrated by one-liner back-and-forth discussions over email? Having a house chat room might alleviate some of these concerns.

What is rocket chat?

Rocket.chat is communication application similar to Slack. Members can create and contribute to “channels,” i.e. group discussions.

It is free and open-source, meaning the code for the entire application is available to anyone to make a copy for themselves and customize it. We have our application hosted on one of our servers.

How to get started?

Go to https://chat.cloyne.org and click-on create an account.

From there, you can choose to log in with Facebook or Google, or create an account with username and password.  Or go to your app store and download the app on your phone.

  1. Download and install the Rocket.Chat app on Android or iOS
  2. Open the app and select “Connect to a server”
  3. Type “chat.cloyne.org” and tap “Connect”
  4. Select an option to log in. You must use the email address where you already receive cloyne.org emails. If you have trouble logging in, contact clonm@bsc.coop or closoft@bsc.coop.

Viewing and Joining Channels

Once logged in, on the left side-bar you have a list of existing channels. To see more, click on the directory button  in the top left .

You can view a channel by clicking on it,  but in order to chime in you need to explicitly join, by clicking on the box at the bottom of the page

Once you have joined, write your message in the dialog box

You can also leave and/or hide a channel, by hovering over it in the side bar on clicking on the three white dots.

On your phone, the process depends on the platform your using, but the options of searching, joining, and hiding channels remain the same.

Creating a Channel and Sending a Lengthier Post

Click  on the pencil and paper icon to create a new channel. There will be an identical icon if you are using your phone.

You can optionally make a private or public channel

If you make a post and realize that you made a mistake, (which I did several times) you can however over the message and three vertical dots will appear on the top right of the message, giving you options to edit, delete, pin, star, +more. Here is my post in edit mode:

One important tip while writing from your desktop/laptop is to use SHIFT + RETURN/ENTER to create a new line. Simply pressing enter will send the message. (Though you can still edit the message after its been sent).

Done!

Notification Settings and Other

I actually don’t know what the current status is with desktop notifications, but mobile push notifications are available, and they will be set to default for each channel. Here is  guide on how to change them, however the specifics will change base on your mobile platform:

  1. Click on the channel for which you would like to change  your settings
  2. Clicking on the channel name at the top will bring up the following menu
  3. Look for an option for Push Notifications
  4. Change to your preferred settings

One last tip is keyboard shortcuts for your desktop/laptop. By clicking on the vertical dots on the top right of the page, you have the drop-down menu option “Keyboard Shortcuts” which may save you some time.

There is a lot more to explore on your own, but hopefully this guide is enough to get started!

How to use PeerMind

Hi house,

Here is a simple intro to resetting your password to Cloyne’s PeerMind, and how to use some of the basic features.

First though, what is PeerMind? It is online application where we hold discussions about house issues, which typically extend from agenda items brought up at council. We can also use PeerMind for online voting if we so choose in the future.

How to log in

If you have created an account at some point while living at Cloyne, but can’t remember your password follow these steps to reset and login. If you have never created an account, you will have received an email on February 24 to “rest your password”,  and can skip to step 4.

  1. Go to Cloyne’s PeerMind homepage and click on sign in 
  2. Click on forgot my password 
  3. Enter your email that is registered with the BSC
  4. Look in your each of your inbox filters for an email from “admin”, subject PeerMind. If you don’t see it immediately, check your spam folder
  5. If you still can’t find it, try using your email search bar with the key word PeerMind
  6. Follow the link in the email to reset your password
  7. If you encounter any problems, post in the comment section below! If you have never created an account, you should have received an email February 24, so can you can start at step 4.

How to use PeerMind

Currently, PeerMind is being used for online discussions on house matters. Once you are logged in, you may add view and comment on ongoing discussions or begin a new one.

Viewing a discussion
  1. After signing in, you can view ongoing discussions
  2. Let’s take a look at Online Voting Bylaw Change
  3. If you have a comment to make
  4. To create a new discussion, click on the plus sign on the Discussions page
  5. Create your discussion topic!
Voting
  1. So many options! Let’s start with a test vote for now Image (2).jpg 
  2. We love an interactive vote! Image (3).jpg
  3. The finished product! Yay democracy!! Image (4).jpg
  4. Once you’ve done that, your vote is in! Go back to the ‘Discussions’ page and click on the other discussions that say “voting open” to vote some more!

This concludes this short intro to PeerMind. If you have questions email the software coordinator (closoft@bsc.coop), house president (clohp@bsc.coop), and/or network coordinator (clonm@bsc.coop).

Originally drafted by Emily Peri in Spring 2019. Updated with section on voting drafted by co-House President Mary Antonia in Fall 2019.