Frequently Asked Questions and the Like

I have closed the forum, as the level of use indicates that it is not a facility which users require. If you have any questions or problems, please don't hesitate to email support.

Is the Maps API available for commercial websites?
I'm having trouble logging in.
Who should put entries in folk map?
I don't Like Cookies - why do I have to have then?
What browser can I use?
I'm using Firefox, but my map is grey.
Will this work on dial-up?
I see a message "GIcon is undefined".
I put in my club details, but part of it is missing.

Is the Maps API available for commercial websites?

From the Google Maps FAQ

Yes, it is, as long your site is generally accessible to consumers without charge. For example, if your website is supported by advertising, it likely falls within the terms of the Maps API. Or, if you charge people to place information on your map (e.g., to list their homes for sale), but you list this information on Google Maps on a free part of your site, you'll also meet the Maps API terms of use. However, not all commercial uses are allowed. For example,
Premium websites - If your site is only available to paying customers, you cannot use the Maps API.
Enterprise websites - The Maps API is not available for use within enterprise or intranet applications.

I'm having trouble logging in.

The registration / log in process goes like this :-

1) Register - you enter your email address, and a password you choose, both twice.
2) If the system accepts that, it will tell you it's sent a confirmation.
3) You receive an email, which tells you your email address, password, and a confirm code.
4) You go back to the log in page, and enter your email address, and your password.
5) The system now asks you for your confirm code.
6) If you get this right, the system logs you in.
7) You do not need the confirm code again.
9) Next time you log in use your email address and password.
10) At present the email address is case sensitive, and the password isn't - I'll change this in the next update, so neither are case sensitive.
11) If you forget your password, or have other problems, please email me

I never got a registration email.

Just email me from the same email address you used to register, and I'll sort it out.

Who should put entries in folk map?

1) Club, session and event organisers.
2) Someone operating on their behalf and with their knowledge.
3) Where there is no clear organiser, a regular participant prepared to act as ongoing contact for the event.

Why not just anyone who knows about an event?
It has been pointed out, and quite correctly that one of the problems with straightforward listing sites is that the data goes out of date, and is unreliable.
This is often because the information is posted by third parties, gleaned maybe from other listings sites. I run such a straightforward listing for the Tykes' News folk magazine http://www.tykesnews.org.uk/filofolk, and of course, I could transfer a lot of that information to the Folk Map, but that would just perpetuates error.
The "pins" in the folk map need to be "owned" by the organisers of the event. This can either be by direct posting by the organiser, or if they aren't able to do it themselves, by someone else with the organisers' agreement.
For sessions, where there might not be a clear "organiser", there is usually a leader, and certainly there are naughty members. These too could place a pin.
So, if you know about a club, session, dance side or other event that you feel should be on the map, please get the organisers to post their own pins.
Each pin has a validate email address associated with it. The pins will be confirmed on a regular basis with the owners through that email address. Persistent non-confirmation will result in the associated pin "dying".

I don't Like Cookies - why do I have to have then?

Whatever you have heard about cookies they are not "bad" things in themselves. a cookie on your computer is a tiny file which stores a bit of information about your visit.
The tiny file stays there until it reaches an expiry date stored in it, or until your browser tells it to "die". Some cookies stay for a long time, to store information between your visits to a website. Others are used, as the one in folkmaps is, to remember whether you are "logged in" or not, and to remember who you are between each thing you do on the site. The folkmap cookie is set to expire one hour after you leave the website. It contains only your email address. No one else can see it.
In some browsers you can set to delete all cookies when you close it, in others you can delete them on request. Further, you can find where the browser stores them on your computer, and delete them all by hand.
I found this more detailed explanation.
Anyway I can't do without that little file, so we have to have it.

What browser can I use?

Please read the follwing about browsers that work. If you don't have a suitable browser I recommend that you get FireFox, which is free, and reliable. It runs on Windows, Mac OS X and Linux i686, you can get it here :-
http://www.mozilla.org/products/firefox/all
You must use a late version browser.
This is not a restriction of mine, but of the Google maps API [software].
N.B. the front page of the website might tell you that your browser is compatible but subsequently the map doesn't work. This is due to faulty reporting by the Google Maps software.
Mac OS9 does not support any browser which can run the Google Maps application.

I develop on a Windows PC, and I get Jim Ellison to check how things look on the Mac.
On Windows the following browsers work:-
Internet Explorer 6.0.29
Firefox 1.0.7 +
Mozilla 1.7.12

This paraphrases Jim Ellison and others on u.m.f. re Mac:-
Quote:

It's fine on OSX 10.4.3
Safari 2.0.2 is fine.(2.0.2 may be "Tiger" only, but you could try Software Update.)
Camino 0.9a1 is fine too, passing the 'your browser is OK' test.
Mozilla 1.7a works
Firefox [version unspecified] works fine

No version of Internet Explorer works.
Safari 1.3 appears to work in the the first page but doesn't show the actual map.
OmniWeb 5.1.2 doesn't pass the test.

Mac OS9 does not support any browser which can run the Google Maps application.

I'm using Firefox, but my map is grey.

The most likely reason is that your browser is set to stop images being loaded from sites other than the site which originated the page you are viewing.
The map "tiles" come from Google of course.
Go to Tools -> Options -> Content
check "Load Images".
uncheck "for the originating website only"
John Freeman tells me on u.m.f. that on his Linux version this is under -
Edit/Preferences/Web Features.

Will this work on dial-up?

It will be horribly slow I'm afraid. This has more to do with getting the map "tiles" from Google than anything else. you can use the "No Google" option to access the data without the map.

I see a message "GIcon is undefined".

It's another symptom of not having a sufficiently sophisticated browser. The test on the first page is a Google Maps test, but it seems that it sometimes gets its answer wrong - Have a look at the FAQ entry on browsers, to see if that helps.

I put in my club details, but part of it is missing.

At the moment, the system isn't correctly handling some special characters - the most likely you'll find is ampersand "&". Try taking any unusual characters out of your details - replace "&" with "and".