Faqs

  1. What is the Orange Room?
  2. What can I find in the Orange Room?
  3. What kind of content can I post in the Orange Room?
  4. Why should I post my content to the Orange Room?
  5. How does the 5-star rating system work?
  6. I've been making my own videos about the election, can I post those?
  7. How do I get my own video into Orange Room?
  8. What about videos that I didn't make myself? Can I share those in the Orange Room?
  9. I took a great picture. How do I get it in the Orange Room?
  10. I read an interesting article/blogpost. How do I share it in the Orange Room?
  11. I posted something on my own blog about the election, can I post it to the Orange Room?
  12. What can I do to maximize exposure for my content in the Orange Room?
  13. Will I be able to see what I posted right away?
  14. I posted something, but it hasn't shown up yet. Should I try posting it again?
  15. What are "tags" in the Orange Room?
  16. What are "categories" in the Orange Room?
  17. What does "Orange Pride" mean?
  18. Do I have to resize my images before uploading them?
  • What is the Orange Room? The Orange Room is a one-stop shop for anyone looking to find - and share - media related to the New Democrat election 2008 campaign. This is citizen-driven media. It blends the best of YouTube, Flickr, Facebook and blogs to keep you engaged. Back to top
  • What can I find in the Orange Room? Photographs, videos, news, blog posts and more. You'll also find tools that'll help you get involved in this election campaign using your own blog and Facebook account. Back to top
  • What kind of content can I post in the Orange Room? Anything to do with your local New Democrat campaign or the national campaign to elect Jack Layton as Canada's Prime Minister. Back to top
  • Why should I post my content to the Orange Room? It gets your stuff out to a wider audience of engaged citizens. The most popular postings get promoted to the site's front page - more exposure still. And each contribution earns you points and a shot at special prizes. Finally, you're helping to create something special: a diverse multimedia window onto this historic election campaign. Back to top
  • How does the 5-star rating system work? The best content deserves the best exposure - and we're inviting you to make that call. While viewing any item, look for five grey stars under "Your rating." Click on the star that corresponds to your vote - from 1 (awful) to 5 (awesome). Top-rated postings automatically bump up to the site's front page. In the Orange Room, every vote counts. Back to top
  • I've been making my own videos about the election, can I post those? Absolutely! New Democrats across Canada want to know what you have been seeing, thinking, saying, and working on so far this election. Back to top
  • How do I get my own video into Orange Room? All Orange Room videos are hosted on YouTube www.youtube.com. So you'll need to create a YouTube account and upload your video there first. Copy and save its URL (web address) before returning to the Orange Room.

    Back here in the Orange Room: Select Upload Content from the menu bar, then choose Videos from the right-column options. Fill out the form that appears - adding your video's title, YouTube URL, and other details.

    Also see these: general posting tips. Back to top
  • What about videos that I didn't make myself? Can I share those in the Orange Room? Yes. You can share any video that is hosted on YouTube. Just follow the same steps outlined above for uploading your own videos. Back to top
  • I took a great picture. How do I get it in the Orange Room? It's just like sending an e-mail attachment, or uploading a picture to Facebook. From anywhere inside the Orange Room: Select Upload Content from the menu bar, then choose Images, and fill out the form that appears. (Clicking the button beside "File" opens a dialog box enabling you to browse your computer for a JPG or GIF image file to upload.)

    Also see these: general posting tips Back to top
  • I read an interesting article/blogpost. How do I share it in the Orange Room? From anywhere inside the Orange Room: Select Upload Content from the menu bar, and choose News from the right-column options. Fill out the form that appears -including the Internet URL of the article or posting you want to highlight.

    Also see these: general posting tips Back to top
  • I posted something on my own blog about the election, can I post it to the Orange Room? Yes, we'd all love to see it. Just follow the same steps outlined above for sharing any article or blog posting. Back to top
  • What can I do to maximize exposure for my content in the Orange Room? Above all, when posting a new item, think carefully as you fill out these three fields:
    • Title: Make it concise but informative
    • Description: Say enough to give people a reason to click through to see more
    • Tags: Add keywords that capture the "what" and "where" of your item (e.g. "Toronto, Chow, Trinity-Spadina, housing"
    Back to top
  • Will I be able to see what I posted right away? New content passes through an approval process before going live. Our commitment to you: no inadvertent v1aGRA ads polluting in the Orange Room! Our team of moderators is working hard to approve material as soon as possible. Back to top
  • I posted something, but it hasn't shown up yet. Should I try posting it again? Give it some time. It might still be waiting for approval. If you still don't see your content within a day or two, it may be lost in the ether - and you'll have to re-post it. Back to top
  • What are "tags" in the Orange Room? Tags are keywords that you make up and assign to your digital media uploads. Tags help other users find your content using tools like Google or the Orange Room search. Choose tags that capture the "what," "who" and/or "where" of your content. (Example: "Thunder Bay, John Rafferty, victory speech"). Back to top
  • What are "categories" in the Orange Room? To make browsing easier, all digital media here is organized into a tree-like structure. When you upload new content, you'll be asked to assign it first to a "category" and then to a "sub-category." You must choose one and only one of each-so choose carefully. Back to top
  • What does "Orange Pride" mean? "Orange Pride" is a special Orange Room sub-category for multimedia that shows how proud we are to be on Jack Layton's team of New Democrats. Proud and loud! No apologies! Watch for this sub-category when you're posting new images and videos. Back to top
  • Do I have to resize my images before uploading them? You can upload GIF and JPG images of any size. But the Orange Room system will automatically resample images to a standard size. Back to top