Getting started guide

Here’s a top-level overview of the layout and features of Yale71.org.  There’s a lot here, especially with our new design, so please explore — you can’t damage anything.  Note that our new design is dynamic — it fits whatever device you are on — so that things may not always appear in the same places, for example if you’re accessing by smartphone versus desktop computer.

TOP MENUS

In the white bar at the top of this screen, right across from the “Yale 71” seal, you’ll see a horizontal list of the following menu items. When you click on any of the items, you’ll go to that page.  On a small screen — a smartphone, for example — these may appear as a “hamburger” menu — a cluster of three horizontal lines.

  • Community is the heart of the site.  It has four drop-down sub-items:
    • Activity — a “diary” of your site contributions
    • Discussion Groups — threaded discussions on topics of interest
    • Members — self-submitted profiles from our nearly 600 classmates registered on the site, as well as some handy features for communicating with them
    • In Memoriam — memories of the classmates we’ve lost
  • Class News — all site entries, cross-referenced into the following drop-down categories:  Alumni in the News, Class Events, Friends We Miss, Philanthropy, and Women of Yale.  Some of these deemed of special interest are also featured in the rotating “carousel” on the home page.
  • About tells you about Class leadership and site management.
  • Contact is a quick way to submit news items or questions to the site managers.

At the far right is a search function (the magnifying glass icon).

Clicking on the upper-left seal itself always brings you back to the home page.  This is handy if you get “lost.”

BOTTOM MENUS

At the bottom are menu items in three columns:

  • MEMBER DASHBOARD allows you quick access to your Inbox, Your Profile, and a way to Log out of the site.
  • GROUPS are ongoing discussions on topics of current interest.
  • USEFUL LINKS takes you outside Yale71.org to other Yale-related sites that you may find interesting.  There are also convenient links to make Yale donations and pay your Class dues.

OTHER NAVIGATION

There are other items that function as links to other web pages, either inside or outside Yale71.org. These are usually underlined.  When you ‘hover’ your mouse pointer over link these before clicking, you’ll see your onscreen mouse arrow turn into a hand icon. Then just click once to go to the linked page.

At the very bottom are three support buttons:  a Contact form, a set of Frequently-asked questions about the site, and this Getting started guide.

LEAVE A COMMENT

In many cases, you have the option to add your comment to an existing posting. Your comments will be sent via a secure comment form after you click the SUBMIT button. By doing this, you’re giving us permission to post your comment on Yale71.org, attributed to you.

IF YOU HAVE TROUBLE

We’ve designed Yale71.org using WordPress and BuddyPress, also used by the New York Times and many other prominent sites. We try to make it as easy for you to use as possible, though it may take a little practice.  If you find things confusing, or things that don’t work the way it seems they should, please first review the common questions in the “FAQ” section. If you’re still having trouble, please let us know via the “Contact Us” page. We’ll respond to you privately.  There’s no question too rudimentary — and it’s entirely possible you will have discovered something in the site that is broken.