LikeTheDew.com

Scroll down this page and you’ll find questions and answers on sharing, how to submit a story, the site and privacy. Or click to jump to: Do I need to log in? How to blog, contribute news or links to LikeTheDew?

1. Is just anyone allowed to submit a story?
2. Will my story post on the site right away?
3. What is the criteria for “appropriateness”?
4. I’m afraid that I will screw things up, can I just send you my story and you do the hard part?
5. I’ve registered, what are these new options under my login?
6. When I submit a story, do I get notified on reader comments?
7. Okay, I’ve clicked “Write an article,” what do I do now?
8. What about all those other options? Do I just ignore them?
9. What do I do if I have problems while submitting?
10. How do I add a link to another site?
11. Can I add a YouTube video?
12. How do I add images?
13. Who owns the copyright?
14. How do I edit my story?
15. Somebody put my story on their site. What do I do?

How to share and promote LikeTheDew?

1. What’s the share buttons all about?
2. How do I find LikeTheDew on Facebook or Linkedin or Twitter?
3. I’ve seen links to sites like the dew, but LikeTheDew.com isn’t there. What gives?

Questions about LikeTheDew?

1. What’s this “Like the Dew” all about?
2. So it is about old and retired journalists?
3. So it is about Atlanta?
4. So is it all about spreading the cancer of liberalism?
5. Are you planning to make money off the backs and hard work of writers like all the other sites?
6. Why does the site load so slowly?

What’s your official privacy statement?


Login options?

1. Do I need to log in?

   You may read LikeTheDew without logging in, but to comment, you’ll need to give us an email address (pretty please, provide a real email address – too much abuse and will make it mandatory – plus, it is only good manners for other commentors to know who they are writing with) – you may also use your social media accounts to skip our comment login (facebook, twitter, etc.) – this is accomplished such that we have no access to your personal information. If you wish to submit a story, you must be registered on LikeTheDew.com. If you forget your password or you have not changed it since we reset passwords, just click on “Forgot password” and a new one will be sent within moments. If you are not registered, you may request registration by emailing webmaster@LikeTheDew.com – please include your name and some way for us to tell that you are real. We will send you a password via email to the address you provide. You might also need to add “webmaster@likethedew.com” to your address book. If you have problems or other questions, please contact webmaster@likethedew.com.

How to blog, contribute news or links to LikeTheDew?

1. Is just anyone allowed to submit a story?

   Yes. You are required to register and log in on this site with a valid email address (we are not going to sell or give your email to anyone). Login is found at the top right of every page and the bottom-left of our home page. Once you login, you will be offered links to submit a story. If you are not registered, you may request registration by emailing webmaster@LikeTheDew.com – please include your name and some way for us to tell that you are real. We will send you a password via email to the address you provide. You might also need to add “webmaster@likethedew.com” to your address book. If you have problems or other questions, please contact webmaster@likethedew.com.

2. Will my story post on the site right away?

   No. All submissions are reviewed as they are received by our editors for appropriateness on this site. If it is determined that changes need to be made before it is published, we will contact you via the login email you provided.

3. What is the criteria for “appropriateness”?

   It’s a moving target and tested each day. Here are some of the elements: • It should be interesting and well written – yes, poorly written submissions will get a request for re-write. • We’d like it to be either written by people living in the South, about the South or from the South. • We do not censor opinion on issues. In fact, we invite different views and love nothing better than vigorous debate. • We do require submitted stories to be true. If you make statements of fact that are not generally accepted, please cite and provide links to back it up. • Fiction and poetry are not accepted. Reviews of published fiction or poetry, however, are acceptable. • Humor, satire and parody are gray areas. Sometimes, yes. Sometimes, not. • Dirty words & pictures – We are an all ages site and expect any words published here, be acceptable for prime time TV. • Self-promotion – If you profit from something in your story, it must be disclosed and we will review it on a case by case basis. If you are an author, get someone else to review your book or offer an excerpt. If you have an event, submit it and we may suggest edits. If you own a store or sell a service or product, it depends on the angle and value to our readers. When in doubt, ask.

4. I’m afraid that I will screw things up, can I just send you my story and you do the hard part?

   Go ahead and try it. It isn’t hard and we check everything before it posts. But if you still don’t want to submit it yourself would prefer one of us to post on your behalf (under your byline), you may email your story, links, images, etc.

   1. You must be registered at LikeTheDew.com
   2. Using the email address you registered with, send your post to: webmaster@likethedew.com
   3. Put the title of your post in the subject line (no quote marks or apostrophes allowed).
   4. Write or paste your story, complete with links, in the body of the email.
   5. Add photos or videos (for YouTube’s, just include the link URL) you wish included as email attachments.
   6. If you wish to use photo captions, list them after your story as imagename=’caption’
   7. Then add a list of keywords, separated by commas.

   You’ll get a confirmation email that we received it. We’ll then check out the story for appropriateness, double check how it looks, and will contact you if we have any questions or feel it needs editing. That’s it. So please dew submit. If you need even more reassurance, contact Lee@LikeTheDew.com

5. I’ve registered, what are these new options under my login?

   Once you have logged in, you’ll see a couple of new options below the login (which should now be called “Control Panel”) on the bottom-left: • Dashboard – lets you see some site stats. • Write an article – this is what you should click when you want submit a story. • Profile and personal options – here you can change your password, set how your name is seen or unseen when you published a story, add a photo, update your profile and those sorts of things. We almost always require an author to provide some background our of respect for readers and commitment to transparency. Here’s a link that will show you how to add a photo and your profile: http://codex.wordpress.org/Users_Your_Profile_SubPanel

6. When I submit a story, do I get notified on reader comments?

   You must comment on your own story and subscribe to comments on it. You will then receive an email each time someone comments on your story.

7. Okay, I’ve clicked “Write an article,” what do I do now?

   This is where you’ll add your story. • The one line deep box at the top just under ” Add New Post” is for your headline. • The large box (underneath the formatting buttons) is for your story. You may type in this window or copy/paste. Don’t be too concerned with formatting as most of it is handled automatically. You can also click the “Preview” button on the right side to see how it will eventually look. • When you are finished with your article, click the “Submit for Review” button and we will do the rest. Here are a couple of links that have photos and other information that may make you feel more at ease: • http://codex.wordpress.org/Writing_Posts • http://tinymce.moxiecode.com/examples/full.php#

8. What about all those other options? Do I just ignore them?

   Yes. Well, it would be nice if you added “Tags.” There’s a box on the right side for Tags. These are words that search engines use to find something. You should, but don’t have to, add these. Words or phrases, each separated by a comma.

9. What do I do if I have problems while submitting?

   If you have any problems, write me at Pundito@LikeTheDew.com and I’ll be happy to help.

10. How do I add a link to another site?

    Linking to other sites is a good practice when it provides the reader more information and/or gives credit for something you have cited in your story. Just select the word or phrase that will act as the link, then click the Insert/edit Link button in the toolbar, then type or paste in the destination of the link (the web address you want it to go to – you must include the http:// or it won’t work) in the Link URL and then set Target to Open in a New Window. Here’s a link to show you how that includes pictures: http://support.wordpress.com/links/

11. Can I add a YouTube video?

    Sure. To share a YouTube, paste in the address (for instance: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v…..GAFOz5GA8I) and then change the “http:” to be “httpv:” – that’s all there is to it. One note: currently, it won’t show on our home page without some extra steps that will sound complicated if I put it here. So drop me an email at Pundito@LikeTheDew.com if you do, so I can make it work.

12. How do I add images?

    There are several ways to add images (or media) to your post and each takes a couple of steps (if it seems too complicated, just to email your images to me at Pundito@likethedew.com, include your article title and we’ll add). • If your image is on flickr or some other web site and you know the address of the image (for instance: http://farm4.static.flickr.com…..55d238.jpg), then position your cursor where you want it to appear in your article (the beginning works for me) then click on the “Add an image” button, then paste the image address in the Image URL block. There are other options and use them if you like and click on the “Insert” button. That’s it. • If you need to upload it from your computer and have author permissions or greater (you’ll know because the option will either be there or not), click the “Add an image” button (at the top next to Upload/Insert – you can also upload video, music or video using the other buttons here). This is the preferred method. Select your files from your computer and wait for them to upload. Delete anything in the caption window (because it will create an error on LikeTheDew). Add a link if you like. Click preferred alignment and image size (medium is typically the best for your post – it will be automatically re-sized for the home page) and then click Insert into post. You can edit this size or delete the image by clicking on the photo so that the edit image or delete icons shows up. Here’s a link to a page that will show you how to add an image and includes pictures of each step: http://support.wordpress.com/links/image-links/ One note on images: Please do not post images that you have grabbed from other sites unless you know that it is okay (legal, ethical, and appropriate) to use them.

13. Who owns the copyright?

    Assuming you wrote it, you do. By submitting it to us, you give us the right to use it on this site and in ways that promote this site and readership of your story.

14. How do I edit my story?

    Login. Click Dashboard. Look to the left for “Posts” and click to expand the menu. Click Edit. When the window appears, your story will be listed. Click on it and it will open in a window that you can edit, then save. Or, you can email a revision to: Pundito@likethedew.com – be sure to include your article title.

15. Somebody put my story on their site. What do I do?

    Posting links to your story on a LikeTheDew.com is a good thing as it will help others find it and read it. Posting an excerpt or a cite of your story, is also good and a compliment, assuming it is properly credited to you and has links to your original story. Copying your story, however, is not allowed. Here’s a link to read more about content stealing, your rights and what you can do: http://lorelle.wordpress.com/2006/04/10/what-do-you-do-when-someone-steals-your-content/

How to share and promote LikeTheDew?

1. What’s the share buttons all about?

   It’s an easy way to share a story on LikeTheDew.com. With just a click or two, you can email, print, share on Facebook, Digg it, Twitter, Google and others. Please try it and keep doing it. This is the most important way you can help promote this site.

2. How do I find LikeTheDew on Facebook or Linkedin or Twitter?

   Please join social networking sites and share LikeTheDew.com with all of your friends. • Become a friend of our Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/pages/LikeTheDew/79772619712) and/or join our Facebook group (http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=60673926682). • Join our group on Linkedin (http://www.linkedin.com/groups?gid=1868352). • Follow us on Twitter (http://twitter.com/LikeTheDew/). We also need someone to volunteer to help maintain these groups and develop groups on other social networking sites like MySpace, Plaxo, Ryze, Buzznet, Live, Digg, Tumblr, Xanga, etc. Please help if you can. Email me of your interest at: pundito@likethedew.com

3. I’ve seen links to sites like the dew, but LikeTheDew.com isn’t there. What gives?

   We are new and all volunteer. If you could help by contacting sites and suggesting they link to LikeTheDew.com, it would be a big help. In fact, we need everyone as visit other places on the web, to brazenly comment with a quote and link to a story in LikeTheDew.com. Please help.

Questions about LikeTheDew?

1. What’s this “Like the Dew” all about?

   The old Atlanta Journal used to boast that it covered Dixie like the dew, and it was one of many newspapers that made covering the South a major part of its mission. In the belief that news about the modern South continues to be not only interesting but important to readers, LikeTheDew.com attempts to fill in some of the gaps in coverage. A journal of Southern culture and politics, LikeTheDew.com was founded by a group of former writers from The Atlanta Journal and Constitution and their friends.

2. So it is about old and retired journalists?

   No. LikeTheDew.com is a community of people writing, sharing, reading and commenting on the South. The not-so-old and retired journalists do regularly submit great stories and will always be a huge part of LikeTheDew.com, but they also mentor the quality of young (and old) and aspiring web-based journalists.

3. So it is about Atlanta?

   No. It started here, but we now have active contributors in throughout the country. We hope, expect and need more contributing writers in other areas to better cover the South, like the dew.

4. So is it all about spreading the cancer of liberalism?

   There may be no cure for that, but LikeTheDew.com is a virtual place for people of all political persuasion to debate the issues on the common ground of respect for ideas, free speech, diversity and fact. If you don’t like the politics here, get involved.

5. Are you planning to make money off the backs and hard work of writers like all the other sites?

   No. Should we ever get enough money, we are going to become a non-profit. Right now, we are a non-revenue, all-volunteer site that depends on donations – $20 bucks would help a lot. It costs a few thousand dollars a year to operate. We get a few hundred in donations. Do the math. We need some help. People, dewing things, too – read more.

6. Why does the site load so slowly?

   We are working on that. Please bear with us. If you notice a particular problem, please email: webmaster@likethedew.com. It would really help.

On Privacy:

What’s your official privacy statement?