How To Find Your Way Around The Giannino Bassetti Foundation Website

This page will help you understand our website layout and the potential of our navigation systems (menu, links and search engines). For further information, see "Information On The Giannino Bassetti Foundation Website [2]" and the RFC [3] blog.

Page content:

• Layout
• Menu
• Sub-menu
• Homepage
• Page columns
• Content lists
• Footer
• Glossary
• FAQ

LAYOUT

The Giannino Bassetti Foundation's website's layout is centred around a core section, called Focus [4]. The latter contains published articles and relevant material on issues which the Foundation commonly deals with. The Blog [5], (News & Press) [6] and Call for Comments [7] sections "gravitate" around the Focus.

Individual authors are responsible for the blogs. Blog articles are usually open to reader comments. The News & Press section features events News and a Press Review

The Call for Comments section plays a key role: it comprises areas (and moments, given that it has specific opening and closing periods) in which the editing team explicitly asks visitors for their input on ideas and further discussion.

Reader-visitor exchange is one of the Foundation website's core raison d'être's.

The website comes in two languages, although not everything is published in both English and Italian. For example, News & Press articles are mostly in Italian and many of the blogs are in one language only. When website content is available in both English and Italian, you can switch from one language to the other thanks to links that indicate this possibility (see the section in this page on the left column). On the other hand, if you wish to switch between the Italian to English website, use the link on the main website menu (under the page header).

For further technical information, see "Information On The Giannino Bassetti Foundation Website [8]" and the RFC [9] blog which also give the reasons behind specific technical solutions.

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MENU

All new website pages (for the others, see "brief history of this website [10]") feature a horizontal navigation menu immediately below the page header.

This paragraph describes the menu options.

Italian/English

The web address www.fondazionebassetti.org takes you to the Italian homepage. To access the English version, simply click on the first menu option (English), which is different from the others and marked by a small icon. This "key" takes you from one language version to the other.

Home

The Home option features pages that introduce visitors to the Foundation, its mission and activity.

The sub-sections are as follows:

• What is GBF?: specific information on the Foundation's mission, general activity and a brief biography of Giannino Bassetti.
• About us?: information on the Foundation premises, Chairman Piero Bassetti, the Board of Directors, website staff and collaborators.
• Events: presentation of high-profile Foundation events (past and forthcoming).
• Publications: presentation of the latest Foundation publications.
• Newsletter: this page publishes the newsletters that are sent to Mailing List subscribers.
• Contact us: contains all contact information for the Foundation administrative office and website staff, as well as how to reach the Foundation offices.

Focus

This website section publishes articles, documents, bibliographies, material, reports and so on. The publications in this section bring readers up to speed on issues that concern Foundation activities at any given time.

The sub-options are as follows:

• Index: click here to access the chronological list of all articles published in the "Focus" section (see the Content" section on this page).
• Last posts: this page highlights the last three articles published in Focus, together with brief sub-headings.
• Random in: every time you call up this page, it will generate three new articles at random. Curious? Go and see what it is about!
• Best of: this page presents articles which we often refer to, or which attract the most reader hits. It also features a space where you can read particularly enlightening quotes.

Blog

Author blogs: some authors have a blog within the GBF website. In keeping with the Foundation's core issues, it is in these pages that we explore the frontiers of ideas and encourage readers to take part in thinking about responsible innovation. So if you've got something to add after reading these articles, post your comments (see how to do it!)

Call for Comments: as mentioned previously, the CFC section is dedicated to reader-visitor exchange. Questions are posted at precise times, often linked up to a Foundation event (conferences, readings, forums). If we cannot answer questions together, we can at least explore systematic approaches to them. Take part!

Click on the menu to access the contents list of closed CFCs and those in progress. Closed CFC material is always available. This means you can get up to date and perhaps post your view to the editing team using the Contact Us [11] page. When CFCs close, the website does not stop exploring issues that have been touched on.

Closed blogs: this page lists blogs which, for editorial reasons, have been archived. As with the CFCs, the issues discussed are never abandoned so reader comments are always very welcome.

News & Press

As this deals with publications and events mainly in the Italian sphere, it is not translated into English.

• News: this column announces events with direct Bassetti Foundation involvement, or which are in keeping with Foundation investigations.
• Press Review: this is an overview of publications in Italian and foreign journals.

Search

Using the search tool in the main menu, you can access the entire website content. Meanwhile, the search box in the right column of certain pages only looks for results within that page's section.

For a more targeted search, click on one of the sub-menu options:

• advanced search: here, you can look for documents using any set of words, documents which contain all keyed-in words, or an exact phrase.

Searches may also be performed by category or by tag (see glossary).

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SUB-MENU

All internal pages feature a sub-menu on the left under the header, immediately before page content begins. The link sequence in the sub-menu tells you which website section you are in.

For example: Home>Focus>Innovation and Politics In this case Home and Focus are active links (they are red). This means that Innovation and Politics is is found under Focus, which can be accessed from Home (from menu). When visiting our pages, you will notice that it is rare to find pathways longer than two steps: indeed, the entire website is set up so that all content is just two clicks away (read "Our website accessibility [12]")

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HOMEPAGE

The header features the Giannino Bassetti Foundation logo and slogan (for further information, watch this video clip [13]). Below the slogan, there is the menu (see the menu section on this page) on the Home tab, and a short presentation of the Foundation and the website, with links to pages with further details.

The rest of the page is divided into different parts: first are sub-headings on the latest website articles. These do not include blog articles or Call for Comments, which have their own space and feature lower down the page.

Immediately below the initial sub-headings, if there are any open Call for Comments, you will find a presentation and direct link to that CFC. Otherwise, you will find the latest blogs posted by authors.

The page also features a footer, as with all web pages (description on this page).

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PAGE COLUMN

New web pages are divided into three or four content columns. Leaving aside the images and article columns, it is worth learning about the content in the left and right columns.

Left column

This column contains numerous useful links to content and further details. You may find all or some of the following, depending on the page:

• Categories: each article is assigned to a category. This provides rapid content description and indicates which group of articles any given text belongs to.
• See also: when present, this links the article in question to others in the website so that you can explore and locate additional contributions on the topic published.
• Leggi in Italiano: when present, this means that the article is also available in English.
• Print this page: click to print the page on the screen.

Right column

The right column content is tailored for internal and external website surfing. The first group of links refers to the website area of a given page.

At the top, there is a search box that pulls up content from the page on the screen. Lower down, there are links to previous and subsequent posts (for blogs) and chronological and alphabetical content lists that allow you to switch between posts and articles from that website section. This column also features a category list. As well as listing the content of that specific Blog, Call for Comments or Feature, this list provides rapid access to a selection of articles from a given category by clicking on the various options. In some cases, there are useful links for posting comments or accessing specific areas and pages quickly. Immediately below, in the second group of links, we find other website and external addresses.

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CONTENT LIST

Many areas of the website have their own homepage or opening page: this instantly highlights new features for users before they open articles. If you go to a blog opening page, for example, you will find a brief content list of the latest posts (the most recent at the top, the oldest at the bottom). If you want to access all blog postings, click on one of the links in the right column: "Chronological list" or "List of all posts". Alternatively, you can read individual blog postings or search within a blog. The GBF website has developed its topic indexes up to 2005, which you can access byclicking here [14]. All new articles and blog postings are organized by category, with content lists generated automatically through a conventional search by category.

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FOOTER

The footer is at the bottom of the page. It features a series of links and icons worth describing here.

First of all, there is a second search menu, which is simple and text only (no tabs). This lets you access the principle website areas, including this page of further information.

In addition to the page description, we have the following icons:

• Feed Rss: (What is RSS Feed? See the glossary) ) click on this icon to sign up for the Foundation's feeds. Click on the icon on the Homepage to sign up for feed from the entire site and click on the icons on individual pages to receive feed for that page's website section (for example, an individual blog).
• Creative Commons Licenses:Copyright protection is a fairly controversial theme which is even more complex on the internet. We have decided to adopt this standard, which is growing throughout the network: we feel that it is an up-to-date, serious, effective project. To find out more, visit the Creative Commons [15] website. Click on this icon to use the material published on this site [16].
• Movable Type: Most of our website is based on this content management software. It allows authors to easily post their text, and system administrators to manage content dynamically.
• W3C xhtml - W3C css: The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C—see the glossary for more information) is not a standards body but rather it asks manufacturers to follow its recommendations on the use of specific, widespread techniques on the Internet. By exhibiting this logo we are showing that we have received certification that our site's use of the XHTML and CSS languages meets the quality, correctness and accessibility standards recommended by the W3C.

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GLOSSARY

Blog:

"Blog" is a contraction of "web log". A conventional blog is like an ordinary web page; it contains a series of messages, notes and, generally, brief texts. Blogs are always identified by author and date. In this sense, they are very like online diaries. If we view blogs as diaries, the original meaning of "web log", in many cases, does not correspond with their actual use . Over time, blogs have been transformed. In many cases, like ours, they have become a useful way for organizing even complex discussions. Of the original meaning, "web log", only the idea that we can trace pathways of thought remains. (For an interesting account of the evolution of blog technology in our website, read Gian Maria Borrello's page "What is a blog? [17]".)

CfC:

CfC - Call for Comments: The Giannino Bassetti Foundation's Calls for Comments are specific initiatives, usually within limited time frames, that allow real-time reader interaction. Calls for Comments always have a moderator, who presents topics for open debate. When Calls for Comments are active, readers can write directly onto the website using a special form.

Feed:

this is an information unit designed so that its content is interoperable and interchangeable across different applications or platforms. This means that feed content can be read, and sometimes modified, by a feed reader that pulls it up from the graphics to access it in basic text form. If you register with our feeds, you can get real-time updates on our publications without having to visit our website (to find out if there is anything new). Depending on your RSS feed reader, you don't even have to open your internet browser.

Markup:

markup is a publishing term. Markups referred to annotations to highlight or correct parts of texts for the typesetter or typist. The markup (or coded expressions) typesetting technique requires a set of conventions or document markup language. In general, a markup language describes text representation mechanisms (structural, semantic or presentation) that use standardized rules and can be used by multiple supports. (Wikipedia [18])

Post:

A "post" is usually a "posted" article in a blog or feature column. Partly due to the personal nature of many blog articles, the simplicity of some notes, and bloggers' personal terminology, we chose to label content published in this section separately from content in the Focus section.

RSS:

RSS (acronym for RDF Site Summary and Really Simple Syndication) is one of the most popular formats for web content distribution. Based on XML, it has inherited its simplicity, reach and flexibility. RSS describes a structure that contains a series of news items, each of which comprises different fields (author, title, text, summary, etc.). When you publish RSS-format news, the structure is updated with new data. Since the format is preset, any RSS reader can present news from different sources in uniform manner. (Wikipedia [19])

Tag:

is a markup term (see markup in this glossary). Tags allow you to identify any kind of document and associate it with research, other documents, page lay-outs, etc. In our website, tags are used in a similar way to categories.

W3C:

In October 1994, Tim Berners Lee, considered the father of the web, founded an association called the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) at MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology). The aim was to enhance existing WWW protocols and languages, and help the web develop its full potential. (Wikipedia [20])

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FAQ

How do I buy GBF publications?

You can contact the GBF administrative office using the form in the Contact us [21] section. Or write to the publishing company. At any event, each presentation in the Publications [22] section tells you how to get copies.

How do I contact the editing team?

Use the form on the Contact us [23] page. Once you've written your message and clicked send, the following notice will appear if the process has been successfully completed, "Thank you for your interest. Your request has been received by our email server."

How do I publish my own article?

If you have a contribution to make (article, image, bibliography, even dissertations and so on) to our website, contact the editing team and explain what it is about. They will then evaluate your material and, if considered in keeping with our website and of high quality, it will be published under your name in the most appropriate website section. If your contribution is a comment on a specific article, see How do I write a comment? in this FAQ.

How do I receive GBF Newsletter?

Simply visit our Newsletter [24] page and follow the Mailing List "subscribe" link (see also How do I subscribe to the GBF Mailing List?). Registration with our Mailing List allows you to receive Newsletters by email. Remember to select your language option (English, Italian, or both)!

How do I write a comment?

Comments sent by readers do not appear online immediately. Indeed, the spamming that plagues the web has forced us to authenticate whether comments have actually been posted by a person rather than an advertising robot. Therefore, we authenticate comments before they are published. You can post comments using the forms at the bottom of articles or posts which ask for comments. If you don't find this form, perhaps the comments have closed or were never opened. But don't give up! You can send your views to the editing team (by visiting the Contact us [25] page)!

How do I subscribe to the GBF Mailing List?

The Newsletter [26] and Contact us [27] pages, and all page footers, feature links to Mailing List Subscription. Click here to access a series of fields that you need to fill in: we ask for personal data in order to send you our (bimonthly) newsletter and announce leading GBF events. There are very few compulsory fields, but if you provide just that little bit more information, it will help us get to know our public better. All personal data will remain in our database and be used exclusively for sending the emails mentioned above.

Why did the comment I wrote not appear with others on the web page?

Comments sent by readers do not appear online immediately. Indeed, the spamming that plagues the web has forced us to authenticate whether comments have actually been posted by a person rather than an advertising robot. Therefore, we authenticate comments before they are published. If the notice of comment delivery has appeared on your screen, rest assured that the process has been successfully completed. You simply have to wait for one of the editors to give your contribution the OK. We thank you already at this stage!

Can I use the content of articles?

This applies to all website material: unless there is a specific copyright statement, see this page [28] and Copyright and the Creative Commons Licenses [29].

Can I use images from the website?

This applies to all website material: unless there is a specific copyright statement, see this page [30] and Copyright and the Creative Commons Licenses [31].

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