Yahoo Forum Archive

I posted earlier at MEFA-Discussion because I thought we were moving
the troubleshooting there, but as it seems to be continuing here, just
wanted to add to my earlier post...

I just successfully submitted a test nomination, but in order to get it
accepted I had to fill in EVERY field, not just those marked with an
asterisk. As I mentioned in my first post, I thought nominators only
had to fill in the first three fields: author, title, and URL.

Anthony and Dwim, on the other hand, seem to have created test noms
with just the minimal info. So, I'm stumped!

Kathy (Inkling)

I replied to your post at mefa-discussion, but just to be complete.

The problem is that Anthony and Dwim aren't Author Liaisons. I think
I've figured it out, and will upload some changes that should solve the
problem and let Author Liaisons nominate stories with the minimal
information, just like the rest of us.

Oh, and I may remove all the asterisks, because what's required changes
depending on what kind of story (fiction doesn't have to answer the
non-fiction questions, for example).

Also, the way I have it, if you don't answer, sometimes it puts 'N/A'
for you, and sometimes it leaves it blank. I'm not sure what's best,
but for now, I'm allowing blanks, so for some items, you'll see an N/A,
and for some it'll be blank, which means N/A.

Anthony

On Apr 29, 2006, at 10:14 PM, Kathy wrote:

> I posted earlier at MEFA-Discussion because I thought we were moving
> the troubleshooting there, but as it seems to be continuing here, just
> wanted to add to my earlier post...
>
> I just successfully submitted a test nomination, but in order to get it
> accepted I had to fill in EVERY field, not just those marked with an
> asterisk. As I mentioned in my first post, I thought nominators only
> had to fill in the first three fields: author, title, and URL.
>
> Anthony and Dwim, on the other hand, seem to have created test noms
> with just the minimal info. So, I'm stumped!
>
> Kathy (Inkling)

Great, thanks Anthony.

--- In MEFAwards@yahoogroups.com, Anthony Holder <aaholder@...> wrote:
>
> I replied to your post at mefa-discussion, but just to be complete.
>
> The problem is that Anthony and Dwim aren't Author Liaisons. I
think
> I've figured it out, and will upload some changes that should solve
the
> problem and let Author Liaisons nominate stories with the minimal
> information, just like the rest of us.
>
> Oh, and I may remove all the asterisks, because what's required
changes
> depending on what kind of story (fiction doesn't have to answer the
> non-fiction questions, for example).
>
> Also, the way I have it, if you don't answer, sometimes it
puts 'N/A'
> for you, and sometimes it leaves it blank. I'm not sure what's
best,
> but for now, I'm allowing blanks, so for some items, you'll see an
N/A,
> and for some it'll be blank, which means N/A.
>
> Anthony
>
> On Apr 29, 2006, at 10:14 PM, Kathy wrote:
>
> > I posted earlier at MEFA-Discussion because I thought we were
moving
> > the troubleshooting there, but as it seems to be continuing here,
just
> > wanted to add to my earlier post...
> >
> > I just successfully submitted a test nomination, but in order to
get it
> > accepted I had to fill in EVERY field, not just those marked with
an
> > asterisk. As I mentioned in my first post, I thought nominators
only
> > had to fill in the first three fields: author, title, and URL.
> >
> > Anthony and Dwim, on the other hand, seem to have created test
noms
> > with just the minimal info. So, I'm stumped!
> >
> > Kathy (Inkling)
>

Hey all,

I've addressed all of the comments I've seen tonight, and have updated
the site to reflect those changes, including the GMT issue, which
didn't take as long as I thought it might.

One comment I'd like to make is about the order of the stories. Last
year, the stories were ordered by date nominated, as a default. That
probably led to a bit of preference for the stories on the first page.

This year, I'm ordering the stories by
cosine(userID*1000000+storyID*10). It's a pseudo-random number that
won't change for any given story. Thus, as new stories are nominated,
they may fall anywhere within the list, not just at the end, BUT
they'll always stay in the same relative order, and more importantly,
each person will have a different order.

Therefore, you don't have to worry about whether you are favoring the
first story in your list, because it won't be the first story in
everybody's list.

During nomination season, it will make it a bit harder to keep track of
things, but you can always sort them by ID manually, if you want to see
the new stories at the end of the list. Just click on the 'ID' label at
the top of the ID column.

Once nomination season is over, and the categories are set, when you
filter by a category, the stories in the category will be sorted in
this same pseudo-random order, and each person's list will stay the
same, so if you want, you can work your way from the top to bottom of a
category without worrying about favoring anybody or feeling that you
have to jump around.

Also, I've added 'Skip' and 'Wish' lists for you. If you know that you
don't want to read/review a story, you can mark it 'skip' and it will
disappear from all the story lists, unless you ask to see the stories
on your 'skip' list.

'Wish' just gives you a way of quickly marking stories that you want to
review, but don't have time to review now, and don't want to forget.
You can look at your 'wish' list at any time, as well.

Marking 'skip' and 'wish' opens a new window telling you what you've
done. You can close that window and go back to browsing.

Finally, I've added some feedback on stories that have been withdrawn.
The admins/liaisons have a list of reasons for withdrawal that they can
choose from (if you need more, just let me know!), and the reason is
shown when you see a withdrawn story.

At any time, you can choose to show the withdrawn stories on the story
list (see link at the bottom of the page), and there is a special page
for all of your stories and nominations that have been withdrawn.

Dwim, I withdrew one of your nominations, to test the system. Liaisons
should withdraw a story or two (and reinstate them, as well) to be sure
they understand the system, and see if there are any more things to add
to the list.

If a story you nominated is withdrawn, you may or may not be allowed to
nominate a story to replace it, depending on the reason for withdrawal.
The FAQ should (hopefully) list these cases, but I'm not sure.

Good night all,
Anthony

--- In MEFAwards@yahoogroups.com, Anthony Holder <aaholder@...> wrote:

>
> Hey all,
>
> I've addressed all of the comments I've seen tonight, and have
> updated the site to reflect those changes, including the GMT issue,
> which didn't take as long as I thought it might.

I have a couple of questions, but I am doing this from memory since I
can't login (it gives me this: Fatal error: Call to a member function
on a non-object in
/home/mefaward/public_html/mefa2006/pages/ctnavbar.php on line 64
). When I look at storytype and I want to nominate short story, what
storytype should I select? What about a novellength fic? As it says
that it is accordingly to the FAQ, but I searched the FAQ at the
mefawards.net site and nothing is in it about that. Every link refers
to Ainae's site, so which FAQ will we use? The one at mefawards or at
Ainae's site?

There are a couple of things I find confusing, for example with main
events there are three listed with checkboxes ánd, you can add one
yourself. Now I am wondering what happens if I for example select the
Akallabêth, is this just a cosmetic thing (it is there to illustrate
as an example) or does the system select it automatically if you do
check it? I wonder if it is clear enough that you simply can ignore
these three if the story is not about them and that you can add your
own. (I wish I could try it myself again). I am concerned that
nominator's who weren't familiar with that discussion back in December
or January about this form will think these are the only 3 options the
can choose from since that was my first thought as well.

I also had a look at the nomination e-mail text. I will post my
comments to the mefa-discussion :)


Rhapsody

> it gives me this: Fatal error: Call to a
> member function on a non-object in
>

/home/mefaward/public_html/mefa2006/pages/ctnav>
bar.php on line 64


I'm getting the same error, which means that I
can't add our new members. Any idea when we will
be able log in again, Anthony?

Resha

~To forgive calls upon our love, to forget calls upon our strength~

AIM: Naresha21 MSN: candyman_gypsy@hotmail.com Yahoo: fruitcake5m1
Personal LJ: http://www.livejournal.com/users/nareshaninya/
Writing LJ: http://www.livejournal.com/users/writingsofresha/

My Website! Slash Me Happy
http://www.websamba.com/SlashMeHappy

http://quiz.ravenblack.net/blood.pl?biter=Resha

Send instant messages to your online friends http://au.messenger.yahoo.com

> I'm getting the same error, which means that I
> can't add our new members. Any idea when we will
> be able log in again, Anthony?
>
> Resha
>

Which leads to another question--are we adding new members to the 2006
site yet or to the 2005 site still? I had added the last new users (on
the 16th, 17th and 23rd of April) to the 2005, since Marta said we
hadn't copied users yet. Should we add users from now on to the 2006
site since we've apparently copied the database now?

On 30/4/06 4:43 am, "rhapsody_the_bard" <rhapsody74@gmail.com> wrote:

> --- In MEFAwards@yahoogroups.com, Anthony Holder <aaholder@...> wrote:
>>
>> Hey all,
>>
>> I've addressed all of the comments I've seen tonight, and have
>> updated the site to reflect those changes, including the GMT issue,
>> which didn't take as long as I thought it might.
>
> I have a couple of questions, but I am doing this from memory since I
> can't login (it gives me this: Fatal error: Call to a member function
> on a non-object in
> /home/mefaward/public_html/mefa2006/pages/ctnavbar.php on line 64
> ).

I'm getting that error, too, so I'm going by memory as well.

> When I look at storytype and I want to nominate short story, what
> storytype should I select? What about a novellength fic?

By 'story type' I assume you mean the list that includes things like
"drabble/ficlet", "drabble series", "poem", etc.? There is a selection for
"Other Fiction" which you would select if your story isn't one of the
specialized forms listed. There's a separate drop-down where you can select
the length.

> As it says
> that it is accordingly to the FAQ, but I searched the FAQ at the
> mefawards.net site and nothing is in it about that. Every link refers
> to Ainae's site, so which FAQ will we use? The one at mefawards or at
> Ainae's site?
>

No, those should be pointing to the new FAQs, the ones at
http://www.mefawards.net/faq/ . For quick references:

About what stories are eligible:
http://www.mefawards.net/faq/viewforum.php?f=1

About the nomination process:
http://www.mefawards.net/faq/viewforum.php?f=2

About story ratings:
http://www.mefawards.net/faq/viewforum.php?f=3

About the categorization process, and about how sub-categories are used and
created: http://www.mefawards.net/faq/viewforum.php?f=4

About casting votes, different types of votes, etc.:
http://www.mefawards.net/faq/viewforum.php?f=5

FAQs for author liaisons: http://www.mefawards.net/faq/viewforum.php?f=6

FAQs about the banner contest:
http://www.mefawards.net/faq/viewforum.php?f=7

FAQs for people making announcements about the MEFAs at other groups:
http://www.mefawards.net/faq/viewforum.php?f=8

Forum to request new FAQs: http://www.mefawards.net/faq/viewforum.php?f=9

Official rules: http://www.mefawards.net/faq/viewforum.php?f=10

> There are a couple of things I find confusing, for example with main
> events there are three listed with checkboxes ánd, you can add one
> yourself. Now I am wondering what happens if I for example select the
> Akallabêth, is this just a cosmetic thing (it is there to illustrate
> as an example) or does the system select it automatically if you do
> check it? I wonder if it is clear enough that you simply can ignore
> these three if the story is not about them and that you can add your
> own. (I wish I could try it myself again). I am concerned that
> nominator's who weren't familiar with that discussion back in December
> or January about this form will think these are the only 3 options the
> can choose from since that was my first thought as well.
>

Well, I can't see the form myself, so I can't see what we finally decided
on. Going back to my old emails, I know that I suggested the following
description of what to do at this point:

> Identify the events around which your story is set. If you do not see the name
> of an event you would like to include, type an appropriate name into one of
> the blank fields below. (Read the list of already submitted events carefully
> to make sure it is not already listed under an alternate name.) You may
> designate up to three events.
>

That's about as clear as I can see how to make it. Do you have any
suggestions on how to make it clearer?

I was still logged in, and the error only came up when you weren't
already logged in. Sorry.

1) Other Fiction is anything that is not a Drabble/Ficlet, Poem,
Non-Fiction, or Incomplete. The length is a separate selection.

This is one that the Liaisons will need to check carefully.

2) I added 'If your XXX is not in the list, add it here' to each of the
lists where that is appropriate.

Thanks for your upcoming comments on the nomination email.

Anthony

On Apr 30, 2006, at 3:43 AM, rhapsody_the_bard wrote:

> --- In MEFAwards@yahoogroups.com, Anthony Holder <aaholder@...> wrote:
>>
>> Hey all,
>>
>> I've addressed all of the comments I've seen tonight, and have
>> updated the site to reflect those changes, including the GMT issue,
>> which didn't take as long as I thought it might.
>
> I have a couple of questions, but I am doing this from memory since I
> can't login (it gives me this: Fatal error: Call to a member function
> on a non-object in
> /home/mefaward/public_html/mefa2006/pages/ctnavbar.php on line 64
> ). When I look at storytype and I want to nominate short story, what
> storytype should I select? What about a novellength fic? As it says
> that it is accordingly to the FAQ, but I searched the FAQ at the
> mefawards.net site and nothing is in it about that. Every link refers
> to Ainae's site, so which FAQ will we use? The one at mefawards or at
> Ainae's site?
>
> There are a couple of things I find confusing, for example with main
> events there are three listed with checkboxes ánd, you can add one
> yourself. Now I am wondering what happens if I for example select the
> Akallabêth, is this just a cosmetic thing (it is there to illustrate
> as an example) or does the system select it automatically if you do
> check it? I wonder if it is clear enough that you simply can ignore
> these three if the story is not about them and that you can add your
> own. (I wish I could try it myself again). I am concerned that
> nominator's who weren't familiar with that discussion back in December
> or January about this form will think these are the only 3 options the
> can choose from since that was my first thought as well.
>
> I also had a look at the nomination e-mail text. I will post my
> comments to the mefa-discussion :)
>
>
> Rhapsody
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Yahoo! Groups Links
>
>
>
>
>
>
>

Sorry about the login problem. The thing I added didn't affect me when
I uploaded it, because I was logged in, and it only happened when
you're not logged in. I've fixed it.

Yes, add new folks to the 2006 site. I had mentioned it to Marta, but
forgot that she's not the only one doing this.

I made the transfer after the 23rd, so we're OK there.

Eventually, I'll move the 2005 site over to mefawards.net, and I'll
open up membership to anybody that wants to register for themselves.

Anthony

On Apr 30, 2006, at 7:47 AM, elliska67 wrote:

>> I'm getting the same error, which means that I
>> can't add our new members. Any idea when we will
>> be able log in again, Anthony?
>>
>> Resha
>>
>
> Which leads to another question--are we adding new members to the 2006
> site yet or to the 2005 site still? I had added the last new users (on
> the 16th, 17th and 23rd of April) to the 2005, since Marta said we
> hadn't copied users yet. Should we add users from now on to the 2006
> site since we've apparently copied the database now?

Hi Anthony,

It worked! I just submitted a story with the minimal info. Also like
the new "submit nomination" button...much clearer.

But now for my next question: I wanted to try withdrawing a story,
but couldn't find that option listed anywhere. How do you do that?

Kathy/Inkling

--- In MEFAwards@yahoogroups.com, Anthony Holder <aaholder@...> wrote:
>
> I replied to your post at mefa-discussion, but just to be complete.
>
> The problem is that Anthony and Dwim aren't Author Liaisons. I
think
> I've figured it out, and will upload some changes that should solve
the
> problem and let Author Liaisons nominate stories with the minimal
> information, just like the rest of us.
>
> Oh, and I may remove all the asterisks, because what's required
changes
> depending on what kind of story (fiction doesn't have to answer the
> non-fiction questions, for example).
>
> Also, the way I have it, if you don't answer, sometimes it
puts 'N/A'
> for you, and sometimes it leaves it blank. I'm not sure what's
best,
> but for now, I'm allowing blanks, so for some items, you'll see an
N/A,
> and for some it'll be blank, which means N/A.
>
> Anthony
>
> On Apr 29, 2006, at 10:14 PM, Kathy wrote:
>
> > I posted earlier at MEFA-Discussion because I thought we were
moving
> > the troubleshooting there, but as it seems to be continuing here,
just
> > wanted to add to my earlier post...
> >
> > I just successfully submitted a test nomination, but in order to
get it
> > accepted I had to fill in EVERY field, not just those marked with
an
> > asterisk. As I mentioned in my first post, I thought nominators
only
> > had to fill in the first three fields: author, title, and URL.
> >
> > Anthony and Dwim, on the other hand, seem to have created test
noms
> > with just the minimal info. So, I'm stumped!
> >
> > Kathy (Inkling)
>

Hey Marta,

Rhapsody's questions and your answers make me wonder if there is some
ongoing confusion about what info a nominator is required to submit
this year, because I thought all of the fields being discussed below
are now up to the author to provide, not the nominator--who needs
only to provide author, title, and URL. Unless, of course, it's a
self-nom. Is that correct?

Kathy/Inkling

--- In MEFAwards@yahoogroups.com, Marta Layton <melayton@...> wrote:
>
> On 30/4/06 4:43 am, "rhapsody_the_bard" <rhapsody74@...> wrote:
> >
> > When I look at storytype and I want to nominate short story, what
> > storytype should I select? What about a novellength fic?
>
> By 'story type' I assume you mean the list that includes things like
> "drabble/ficlet", "drabble series", "poem", etc.? There is a
selection for
> "Other Fiction" which you would select if your story isn't one of
the
> specialized forms listed. There's a separate drop-down where you
can select
> the length.
>
> > As it says
> > that it is accordingly to the FAQ, but I searched the FAQ at the
> > mefawards.net site and nothing is in it about that. Every link
refers
> > to Ainae's site, so which FAQ will we use? The one at mefawards
or at
> > Ainae's site?
> >
>
> No, those should be pointing to the new FAQs, the ones at
> http://www.mefawards.net/faq/ . For quick references:
>
> About what stories are eligible:
> http://www.mefawards.net/faq/viewforum.php?f=1
>
> About the nomination process:
> http://www.mefawards.net/faq/viewforum.php?f=2
>
> About story ratings:
> http://www.mefawards.net/faq/viewforum.php?f=3
>
> About the categorization process, and about how sub-categories are
used and
> created: http://www.mefawards.net/faq/viewforum.php?f=4
>
> About casting votes, different types of votes, etc.:
> http://www.mefawards.net/faq/viewforum.php?f=5
>
> FAQs for author liaisons:
http://www.mefawards.net/faq/viewforum.php?f=6
>
> FAQs about the banner contest:
> http://www.mefawards.net/faq/viewforum.php?f=7
>
> FAQs for people making announcements about the MEFAs at other
groups:
> http://www.mefawards.net/faq/viewforum.php?f=8
>
> Forum to request new FAQs:
http://www.mefawards.net/faq/viewforum.php?f=9
>
> Official rules: http://www.mefawards.net/faq/viewforum.php?f=10
>
> > There are a couple of things I find confusing, for example with
main
> > events there are three listed with checkboxes ánd, you can add one
> > yourself. Now I am wondering what happens if I for example select
the
> > Akallabêth, is this just a cosmetic thing (it is there to
illustrate
> > as an example) or does the system select it automatically if you
do
> > check it? I wonder if it is clear enough that you simply can
ignore
> > these three if the story is not about them and that you can add
your
> > own. (I wish I could try it myself again). I am concerned that
> > nominator's who weren't familiar with that discussion back in
December
> > or January about this form will think these are the only 3
options the
> > can choose from since that was my first thought as well.
> >
>
> Well, I can't see the form myself, so I can't see what we finally
decided
> on. Going back to my old emails, I know that I suggested the
following
> description of what to do at this point:
>
> > Identify the events around which your story is set. If you do not
see the name
> > of an event you would like to include, type an appropriate name
into one of
> > the blank fields below. (Read the list of already submitted
events carefully
> > to make sure it is not already listed under an alternate name.)
You may
> > designate up to three events.
> >
>
> That's about as clear as I can see how to make it. Do you have any
> suggestions on how to make it clearer?
>

On 30/4/06 8:47 am, "elliska67" <elliska67@yahoo.com> wrote:

>> I'm getting the same error, which means that I
>> can't add our new members. Any idea when we will
>> be able log in again, Anthony?
>>
>> Resha
>>
>
> Which leads to another question--are we adding new members to the 2006
> site yet or to the 2005 site still? I had added the last new users (on
> the 16th, 17th and 23rd of April) to the 2005, since Marta said we
> hadn't copied users yet. Should we add users from now on to the 2006
> site since we've apparently copied the database now?
>

Someone may have already answered this, but if they hadn't: Anthony emailed
me saying we can now make changes at the 2006 site. Use that one from now
on. If you've made a change in the last day or two you might want to
double-check the 2006 site to see they were copied over.

Marta

Hi Kathy,

> It worked! I just submitted a story with the minimal info. Also like
> the new "submit nomination" button...much clearer.
>

I just nominated a test story by A L Milton, and it worked great for me,
too. Good work, Anthony - thanks!

> But now for my next question: I wanted to try withdrawing a story,
> but couldn't find that option listed anywhere. How do you do that?
>

Kathy, you can withdraw your own stories or (since you are a liaison) of
authors assigned to you.

To withdraw your own story:

1. Log in to the site.
2. Scroll down until you see a list of stories by you that have been
nominated.
3. Click the "withdraw" link below the story.
4. Choose a reason to withdraw the story, and click "Yes, withdraw story".

To withdraw a story by an author assigned to you:

1. Log in to the site.
2. Click "Show Authors and Stories".
3. Click the "withdraw" link below the story.
4. Choose a reason to withdraw the story, and click "Yes, withdraw story".

Marta

Thanks Marta...Anthony and Rhapsody also have been patiently
answering my questions over at MEFAStaff, so I think I'm clear on all
this now.

Kathy

--- In MEFAwards@yahoogroups.com, Marta Layton <melayton@...> wrote:
>
> Hi Kathy,
>
> > It worked! I just submitted a story with the minimal info. Also
like
> > the new "submit nomination" button...much clearer.
> >
>
> I just nominated a test story by A L Milton, and it worked great
for me,
> too. Good work, Anthony - thanks!
>
> > But now for my next question: I wanted to try withdrawing a story,
> > but couldn't find that option listed anywhere. How do you do
that?
> >
>
> Kathy, you can withdraw your own stories or (since you are a
liaison) of
> authors assigned to you.
>
> To withdraw your own story:
>
> 1. Log in to the site.
> 2. Scroll down until you see a list of stories by you that have been
> nominated.
> 3. Click the "withdraw" link below the story.
> 4. Choose a reason to withdraw the story, and click "Yes, withdraw
story".
>
> To withdraw a story by an author assigned to you:
>
> 1. Log in to the site.
> 2. Click "Show Authors and Stories".
> 3. Click the "withdraw" link below the story.
> 4. Choose a reason to withdraw the story, and click "Yes, withdraw
story".
>
> Marta
>

Hi Kathy,

> Rhapsody's questions and your answers make me wonder if there is some
> ongoing confusion about what info a nominator is required to submit
> this year, because I thought all of the fields being discussed below
> are now up to the author to provide, not the nominator--who needs
> only to provide author, title, and URL. Unless, of course, it's a
> self-nom. Is that correct?
>

Yep, that's correct. I think that either Rhapsody and I were discussing a
self-nomination (or one of us thought we were!), or else because we were
both liaisons we were seeing more of the form than we should have been
before that problem was fixed.

Anyway, to be clear:

If the nominator is not the author, they should

1. Select the author's name from a list.
2. Enter the story title.
3. Enter the story URL.
4. Enter nomination notes (optional). This is not required, but if there's
anything else the nominator wants to tell us so the liaison can see it, they
can put it in this field.

Everything else will be supplied by the author.

Marta