Getting into Cyama

Q: How do I become a member of Cyama?

A: Cyama is a community website geared toward a particular audience: Christian college and university students. To join Cyama, you must be a student at one of our partner schools. If you think you qualify, follow the instructions on our registration page.

 

Q: Can I still use Cyama if I haven't registered?

A: Cyama is a select community. As a non-member you'll get only a brief taste of the features and functionality you'd get as a member. In order to fully participate in the Cyama community, you'll need to register with us.

 

Q: I can't seem to join Cyama. Now what?

A: To join our community, you need to be registered as a student at a pre-approved Christian university or college and have an active email address from that school. Here is a list of pre-approved schools.

If your school is not on the list, go to this request form and we’ll be in contact with you. Thanks for your help with this.

 

Q: I filled out the registration form, but I can't get into Cyama. Help!

A: Before you can start using all of the features of Cyama, we need to verify your email address. Check your registered school email for a confirmation email from Cyama. Click on the link in the confirmation email, and you'll be confirmed into the system with full access to the Cyama community. Now go get started!

 

Q: I forgot my password. What do I do now?

A: No problem. We can remind you of your password if you click on the Forgot your Password link on the login page. Once you fill out the password request form, we'll email you instructions on how to change your password.

 

Q: How do I invite people into Cyama?

A: First, make sure you're logged into Cyama. Then, click on the Invite a Friend, fill out the form then sit back and relax. The Invite a Friend button is located on the top right hand side of your profile page, making it easy for you invite even more friends.

 

Searching

Q: I can't find someone. How do I search for them?

A: You can search for people by clicking on People in the top menu. If you want to perform a more precise search, click on advanced search and enter as much information as you know about the person.

 

Q: I'm looking for blog posts on a certain topic. How do I search for it?

Click on Search in the top menu. Then enter your search terms in the fields provided. Our search engine searches all of the blog posts, headlines, and tags to return the information you're seeking.

 

Q: I'm looking for a specific group that I want to join. How do I search for it?

A: Click on Groups in the top menu to fill in the group name, description, or tag in the search group box.

 

Safety

Q: What is reporting abuse?

A: Reporting Abuse allows users to monitor site content to ensure that Cyama continues to reflect the Christian values and norms of morality, mutual respect, tolerance, truth, honesty, and the freedom of rights. Below any of the user-generated content on the site -- comments, blog posts, images, or forum posts -- you'll find the Report Abuse. This feature will allow you to notify Cyama administrators of content that isn't up to par with our values. Our administrators will then review your reports and adjust or remove the offending text or images in compliance with our Code of Conduct.

 

Q: Why does Cyama allow users to report abuse?

A: Cyama's standards and content reflect the Christian values and norms of morality, mutual respect, tolerance, truth, honesty, and the freedom of rights. We'd like you to help us stay this way, so we've given you the authority to report any content you find distasteful. By allowing you to report abusive, offensive, or unacceptable comments, blog posts, or images, we can help ensure that Cyama remains a safe and non-profane place for all members.

 

Q: How does reporting abuse work?

A: All Cyama users have access to report abusive content. If you're browsing through the site, and you notice an offensive blog post that just doesn't seem in line with Cyama's values, click on the Report Abuse button below the post and drop the Cyama administrators a note to let us know what you think. Our administrators will review your reports, and adjust or remove the offending text or images in compliance with our Code of Conduct.

 

Q: Someone is harassing me with uninvited comments and unacceptable images. What can I do about it?

A: If you find certain comments, blog posts, or other site user-generated content offensive, you may report abuse to the site administrator. This action will flag the content in question for editing or removal by the Cyama site administrator.

We might also recommend that your set you page to private which ensures you will only receive comments from those in your friends network

f more severe harassment occurs on the Cyama network, please contact the Cyama administrator directly.

 

Q: What happens when something I posted gets edited or removed?

A: On occasion, the Cyama network moderator may edit or remove content that isn’t in line with our Code of Conduct. Depending on the infringement, we might send you a warning or we might need to suspend your Cyama account. See our Standards and Sanctions for details on repercussions for specific infringements.

 

Q: Is my email address shown to other Cyama users?

A: Never. As a safety precaution, your email is never displayed to other Cyama users. Not even your friends.

 

Edit My Profile

Q: What is a Cyama personal profile page?

A: Once you join Cyama, you'll be given a personal customizable page where you can share information about yourself with your friends and the extended Cyama network. What you share is up to you -- blog posts, favorite links, pictures of you and your friends, and more. You can also personalize the page with Cyama background designs to fit your style and taste.

 

Q: What can I share on my personal profile page?

By default, your Cyama personal profile page will display the basic bio information you entered when you registered on Cyama: first name, last name, profile image, and user name. As you add friends and join groups, that information will automatically display to your network.

All of your blog posts will automatically be posted on your profile page as well. You can make your page even more your own by adding additional personal information, lists of favorites, and photos. You'll always have access to change the information displayed on your personal profile page, so you can keep it updated with your latest favorites and new interests.

 

Q: How do I add to or change the information on my personal profile page?

A: Navigate to Me using the top menu, and then to Edit My Account. Here, you'll be able to edit your Basic Information. Using the tabs along the top of the page, you'll also be able to change your ‘General Information’ and ‘My Favorites’. Fill out the fields you wish to display on your personal profile page, and then select access control to define who can view your information -- everybody, just friends, or nobody.

 

Q: How do I prevent people from seeing some or all of my profile information?

A: Navigate to Me using the top menu, and then to Edit My Account. Here, you'll be able to change your Basic Information. Using the tabs along the top of the page, you'll also be able to change your ‘General Information’ and ‘My Favorites’. Next to each of the fields, a drop down menu that allows you to select who can view your information: everybody, just friends, or nobody. If you change your mind, you can come back any time and change your settings.

 

Q: How do I change my password?

A: Navigate to Me using the top menu, and then to Edit My Account. On the Basic Information screen you'll be able to update the Password and Confirm Password text fields with your new password.

 

Q: How do I change my photo?

A: Navigate to Me using the top menu, and then to Edit My Account. On the Basic Information screen you'll be able to upload a photo from your computer by selecting browse.

 

Q: How do I change my email address?

A: Navigate to Me using the top menu, and then to Edit My Account. On the Basic Information screen you'll be able to update your email address.

 

Q: How do I change my screen name or URL?

A: Bummer. You can't change your screen name or URL at this time. When that changes, we let everyone know.

 

Q: What's the difference between My Page and My Public Page?

A: My Page and My Public Page look almost the same. However My Page is a private page that only you see. It has some extra controls and buttons so that you can manage the content on your page -- images, blog posts, links, etc.

My Public Page is the page that everyone else sees –minus the control buttons—when they navigate to your profile.

 

Q: How can I change the style of my personal profile page?

A: Navigate to Me using the top menu, and then to Themes. Using the tabs on the top of the page, navigate to select a themed template to represent your personal style.

 

Q: Can I delete people from being my friends?

A: Yes, you can un-friend people. Navigate to Me using the top menu, and then to My Page. In the Friends box in the top of the left column, click on the image of the person you wish to delete. Once you confirm that selection, that person will be removed from your list of friends. Your former friend will not be notified that they’ve been dumped.

Groups

Q: How do I create a Group?

Navigate to Groups in the top menu. Once you select “create a group" fill out the form fields, indicating everything from the Group Name, Category, tags, photo, and description. You can also set your group registration type to open, moderated, or invite-only -- depending on if you would like to manage group membership.

As the group founder, you'll have access to all group membership privileges: create post, view recent blog posts, add images to the group gallery, view the group gallery, and view other members of the group.

 

Q: How do I change information about the Group I created?

As the group founder, you'll have access to all group membership privileges: create post, view recent blog posts, add images to the group gallery, view the group gallery, and view other members of the group. You'll also have access to extra moderator control buttons that are available only on the group moderator's group page -- group settings, moderate, and manage content.

Click on ‘Group Settings’ to adjust the basic settings of the group -- the name, category, photo, tags, and description.

 

Q: How do I manage membership for the Group I created?

As the group founder, you'll have access to all group membership privileges: create post, view recent blog posts, add images to the group gallery, view the group gallery, and view other members of the group. You'll also have access to extra moderator control buttons that are available only on the group moderator's group page -- group settings, moderate, and manage content.

Click on ‘Moderate’ to view and manage the people in your group, including approving members (if you're running a moderated group) or removing members.

 

Q: How do I moderate blogs and forums for the Group I created?

As the group founder, you have access to extra moderator control buttons that are only available on the group moderator's group page -- group settings, moderate, and manage content.

Click on ‘Moderate Content’ to view and manage all blog, image, and forum posts. You can edit or delete content posted to the blog, image gallery, and forums that don't quite jive with you or your group.

 

Q: How do I join a Group?

When you visit a Group, on the left of the screen is a Join this Group button (under the Groups icon). There is also a Join this Group button in the secondary menu bar. Clicking on either of these buttons enables you to join the Group.

The Groups icon and listing will then be displayed in your My Groups module. When you go to the Group Homepage, you will notice your list of Groups at the top of the page.

 

Q: How do I invite people into a Group?

A: Navigate to the homepage of the group you want to invite your friends to. Click on the ‘Invite’ button, fill out the form and we'll mail your invitation to your friend with instructions on how to join.

 

Q: How do I post an entry to a Group blog?

A: Navigate to the homepage of the group where you want to post your blog entry. Remember, you have to be a member of a group before you can post to their blog.

Click on the ‘Create Post’ button to write up your blog post. You can also select to post this blog entry to the blogs for other groups you've joined, or to the Cyama homepage. Then click Publish Post to publish your blog post to all the pages you selected.

 

Q: My blog entry won't post to a Group. Help!

A: In order to publish posts to a group blog, you need to join the group. Click on the ‘Join this Group’ button on the group homepage to join in.

If you belong to the group and your post still won’t post, report this problem to cy@cyama.com

 

Q: How do I join a group forum discussion?

A: Navigate to the group and then to ‘Forum’. You'll see a display of all of the forum discussion topics happening in the group.

To join a discussion that's already in progress, click on the title of the topic. You'll be taken to a page that displays the entire discussion. Fill in the form fields at the bottom of the page to post a reply.

To start up a new discussion forum topic, click the ‘Create Topic’ button. Now just add your forum posting, and get the discussion rolling.

 

Q: How do I leave a group?

A: Navigate to the group homepage. On the sub-menu of the top navigation, click ‘Unjoin’, and you'll be removed from the group.

 

Q: I've decided to leave a group. Does that mean I am no longer a member of Cyama?

A: Nope. If you leave a group, you'll no longer be associated with that group. But you will remain a member of Cyama.

 

Friends

Q: How do I add a friend?

A: On every personal profile page, you'll see links up at the top left of the screen that allow you to interact with the person. Click on the Add A Relationship link to add a person as your friend. They'll be sent an email asking them to confirm the request. If the person responds to your request, you will be sent an email confirming that they have either accepted or denied your request.

 

Q: Is there a way to cancel a friend request?

A: Nope. But accidental friends are OK, right?

 

Q: If I reject a friend request, will they find out?

A: Yes. But don't worry, we'll break the news to them gently

 

Q: Who shows up in the Friends module on my personal profile page?

A: The Friends module on your personal profile page shows randomly selected thumbnails of four of your friends. Click on the view all button to see all of your friends.

 

Q: Can I change the order that my friends appear on my profile page?

A: Not yet, but we plan to bring you this feature soon.

 

Gallery

Q: How do I upload an image to my photo gallery?

A: Navigate to Me using the top menu, and then to My Gallery. This is your online photo album. Click on the upload button to select an image from your computer, or add the URL of an image that's already online. Then add rinse and repeat.

 

Q: How do I remove a photo from my gallery?

A: Navigate to Me using the top menu, and then to My Gallery You'll see all of the photos in your gallery. Click on the trash can icon below the image you want to get rid of to delete it from your gallery.

 

Q: What are Cyama photo guidelines?

A: Cyama maintains the same standards for photos that we use for all content posted on the site. Please refer to our Code of Conduct for all the specifics.

 

Q: Can I post private photos?

A: You can set access permissions for all content you post on Cyama, including photos. If you want to make certain photos available only to your friends, select "friends" in the drop down menu for Image Access. If you don't want anybody to see your photo, select "nobody" in the ‘Image Access’ drop down menu.

 

Q: How do I edit titles and descriptions of my photos

To change them, browse to the specific photo you want to edit, and then click the "edit title" or "edit description" link. You can update the fields right there, without going to a different page.

 

Q: How do I make a photo "Friends Only"

A: You can set access permissions for all content you post on Cyama, including photos. If you want to make certain photos available only to your friends, select "friends" in the drop down menu for ‘Image Access’. If you don't want anybody else to see your photo, select "nobody" in the ‘Image Access’ drop down menu.

 

Q: Can anyone comment on my photos?

A: Anyone who has access to see your photos can also comment on your photos. If you want to prevent people you don't know from commenting on your photos, set Image Access to your photos as Friends Only. Or set your entire profile to private.

 

Q. Is there a limit to the number of images I can post?

Nope. There's no limit to the number of pictures items that you can upload to your gallery. However, there is a size limit for each image -- maximum 500KB.

 

Q: How do I view the gallery in one of my groups?

A: Go to the Group's homepage (e.g. by clicking 'Groups' in the main menu and then clicking the name of one of your Groups). Then click on ‘Group Gallery’ in the top menu. Alternately, you can click on an individual image in Group Gallery in the right-hand sidebar. This will take you directly to the group image gallery.

 

Q: How can I upload images into one of my Groups

A: Go to the Group's homepage (e.g. by clicking 'Groups' in the main menu and then clicking the name of one of your Groups). Then navigate to ‘Group Gallery’ in the top menu. On the image gallery page, click the Upload button to add new images to the Group Gallery

 

Q: Can I upload music?

A: Not yet. Right now, we're only allowing pre-approved bands to display their music to the system. If you think we’re missing a band that would be perfect for cyama.com, please let us know.

 

Q: Can I upload videos?

A: You can post YouTube and Google videos to your blog. Just grab the embed code for the video, and paste it directly into the description area of your blog post. However, we don't currently allow posting of video files like .mpeg, .avi, or .mov.

 

Q: Can I upload podcasts?

A: Not yet. Right now, we're only allowing pre-approved partners to display podcasts on Cyama.

 

Blogs

Q: How do I post a blog entry to my personal profile page?

A: Navigate to Me using the top menu, and then to My Page. Then click on ‘Create Post’ to add a new entry to your blog. You can also direct where you would like your post to appear -- on just your page, on your group pages, or even the homepage blog.

 

Q: How do I post a blog entry to the Cyama homepage?

A: Navigate to Me using the top menu, and then to My Page. Then click on ‘Create Post’ to add a new entry to your blog. If you want it to appear on the Cyama homepage, check the box for {Post to community blog}. Otherwise it will appear on your personal page only.

 

Q: I've got a typo in my blog post. How do I fix it?

A: Navigate to Me using the top menu, and then to My Page. Then click on ‘Manage Posts’. You'll see a screen that shows all of the blog entries you've posted. Locate the errant blog post in the list of posts, and click on the pencil icon to the left of the title. Update any or all of the information about your post. When you're finished the changes will be published everywhere your post appears.

 

Q: How do I delete a blog post?

A: Navigate to Me using the top menu, and then to My Page. Then click on ‘Manage Posts’. You'll see a screen that shows all of the blog entries you've posted. Locate the blog post you wish to delete in the list of posts, and click on the trash can icon to the left of the title to delete the blog post from Cyama.

 

Q: What’s a permalink (that link that appears below a blog post)?

A: A permalink is the permanent link to your post, which is the link you use to point people to your post.

 

Q: How do I feed my external blog posts from LiveJournal or Blogger into Cyama?

A: We currently don't allow feeds from external blogs like LiveJournal or Blogger to feed into Cyama.

 

Q: Where are events listed?

A: Event postings are integrated into the blog posts on the Cyama homepage, and on group pages.

 

Messages

Q: How do I send a message to a friend?

A: Navigate to Me using the top menu, and then to My Messages to access your Cyama inbox. Click on ‘Compose message’ and you’re on your way.

 

Q: How do I read email messages sent to me?

A: Navigate to Me using the top menu, and then to My Messages to access your Cyama inbox. Here you'll see all of the messages sent to you.

From your personal profile page, you can also see how many new email messages you have in the Messages module in the right column. Click on the new messages link to read those messages in your Cyama inbox.

 

Q: Can I receive messages from other Cyama members via my personal email?

A: Yes, you can receive email messages from other Cyama members in both your Cyama inbox and your personal email.

To set up your preferences about where you would like to receive email, navigate to Me using the top menu, and then to Edit My Account. Using the tabs across the top of the screen, navigate to ‘Notifications’. Use the checkboxes on the notifications screen to set your preference for where you would like to receive certain types of email, including friend requests and accepted invitations.

 

Partners

Q: Why do some people have both a personal profile page and a group page?

A: Good question. Cyama is set up so that partners - bands, schools, and other organizations - have a page to themselves, and a page for all of their fans, supporters, students, etc.

For example, a band has a profile page where they can post official band missives, concert dates, promo photos, and music clips. The profile page is their official site on Cyama. A band can also have a group page. The group page is for everyone - the band, their friends, and their fans. Anyone can post to a band's group blog, post photos from their favorite concert, and connect with other people who dig the band.

 

Q: How do I become a Cyama partner?

A: There are many benefits to becoming a Cyama Partner. If you're interested in partnering with us, drop us a line to let us know.