Frequently Asked Questions

What is a Neighborhood Forum?

Your neighborhood's Front Porch Forum is a place to share neighborhood news, have discussions, work on neighborhood improvement projects, and post items for sale, to borrow, lost and found, etc. All of these actions add up to a more healthy and vibrant community.

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Is there a fee?

No fees at this time. Front Porch Forum is developing a sponsorship program to help cover the cost of offering this free community service.

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I'm swamped! Why should I take on one more thing?

We know the feeling! In fact, that's one of the driving forces behind the creation of Front Porch Forum. We've found a way for busy neighbors to connect without any real time commitment. Our members love their forum. In fact, 98% of respondents in a recent survey said they read or skim every forum posting from their neighbors.

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Will I get spam from this service?

No. Front Porch Forum will not share your email address with anyone outside of your Neighborhood Forum.

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Will this flood my inbox?

No. As a member of your neighborhood's Front Porch Forum, you'll receive one forum via email every few days.

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Who writes the messages in the forum?

Residents of each neighborhood write their neighborhood's forum. So, you and your neighbors write your forum!

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What kinds of messages can I post?

All sorts of good stuff. This is your chance to help build a healthy, respectful and vibrant community. Messages that don't detract from that are welcome— see samples. Remember, your full name and address will be automatically attached to each message you post to your Neighborhood Forum.

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My neighborhood already has a mailing list/newsletter/website. Why should I bother with your service?

Keeping up with a stand-alone neighborhood mailing list, newsletter or website is often a heavy burden for a volunteer. Front Porch Forum has worked for years to develop a way to make this process easier to maintain. In many neighborhoods with something already in place, when the volunteer moves away or burns out, the project dies. Front Porch Forum, once in place, will carry the administrative weight and keep the service going through thick and thin.

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Can I trust this service? What if I have questions for a real live person?

After you register, check your forum's home page to find your Neighborhood Volunteers. These folks are your neighbors and they've stepped up to play an extra role in ensuring the success of your forum.

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Can I register more than one email address for myself? For my household?

Yes, and yes. Once you register and log in, you can add more email addresses from your Account page.

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Can I join more than one neighborhood forum?

No. Please select the one neighborhood where your primary residence is. Local officials whose jurisdiction covers more than one neighborhood are an exception. If this is your situation, you can address it during the registration process and from your Account page.

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Why do you need my address information?

Since we provide services to neighborhoods, we need to be able to place you in the correct neighborhood. Also, each message posted in your neighborhood's forum is automatically signed by the neighbor who wrote it with his/her name, street and email address. The goal of the Front Porch Forum is to promote healthy communities where neighbors know each other. Rest assured that we treat this information with respect. To learn more, please see our privacy policy.

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Can anyone read the messages posted in our neighborhood's Front Porch Forum?

No. Only residents of your neighborhood who register to become a Front Porch Forum member have access to your neighborhood's forum. Some guests, such as your City Councilor or School Board Member, may be registered too.

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Can I join a forum if I don't live in that neighborhood?

No. Each Front Porch Forum is designed for one specific neighborhood. We'll be happy to work with you or other people in your neighborhood to help set up your own Front Porch Forum for your neighborhood.

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I want to share a message with multiple neighborhoods around me. Can I do that?

Front Porch Forum encourages you to post your message on your neighborhood's forum. If you want to reach other Neighborhood Forums, then you'll need to find a member in each of those other forums and ask them to post your message under their membership. Also, you could ask one of your Neighborhood Volunteers to help by sharing your message on the Volunteer forum.

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Can I promote my business through the forum?

Yes! We've found that neighbors tend to be very supportive of local businesses that they learn about through their Front Porch Forum. Learn how your business can become a sponsor of select Neighborhood Forums.

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What's a Neighborhood Volunteer?

Neighborhood forums work best when one or more neighbors take a special interest in their success. Front Porch Forum Volunteers encourage neighbors to participate... that's the bulk of the job.

In exchange, Volunteers gain access to the FPF Volunteer forum, where Volunteers from various neighborhoods exchange tips about building successful forums - and healthy neighborhoods.

Learn more about Neighborhood Volunteers.

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What about my neighbor who doesn't use computers or isn't online... can he/she participate?

Yes, but it's harder to do. Our service is aimed at people who use email. That said, we've known of Front Porch Forum members who have printed paper copies of interesting forums and taken them over to their non-emailing neighbors. Also, print-outs of your forums could be gathered in a three-ring binder and kept in some local public space, like a library or school. Non-member neighbors who wish to post a message on your forum can ask any member to post the message on his/her behalf. Finally, for those who want to get on board but lack resources, public libraries and other places offer internet access (sometimes free), and several online services offer free email accounts.

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I don't agree with the geographical boundaries of my Neighborhood Forum. Can they be changed?

Yes, under certain conditions. Front Porch Forum wants happy members, so please let us know if you think we should change the borders of your Neighborhood Forum. However, several tradeoffs are factored into the creation of each Neighborhood Forum, so we'll add your comments to the mix and make changes when appropriate. Send us a message with your ideas.

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I've got a better name for our Neighborhood Forum than the one displayed. Can it be changed?

Yes, if it makes sense. Several factors are weighed in selecting a name of a Neighborhood Forum, most importantly the opinions of our members who live there! So please let us know, and be sure to include all relevant information. We'll consider all points of view.

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Help! I'm not receiving my Neighborhood Forum via email. What's wrong and how do I fix it?

We regret any trouble that you're having. Try the following (in order):

1. Log in to Front Porch Forum and check your Account. Is a valid email address listed for you? If not, edit your email address on your Account page.
2. Check your email client software (e.g., MS Outlook or Apple Mail) to see if you have some kind of spam filter that is screening incoming mail from frontporchforum.com. Reset your spam filter to allow (i.e., whitelist) incoming email from frontporchforum.com.
3. Contact us and let us double check your account settings.
4. Your internet service provider (ISP, such as Earthlink or AOL) may be filtering out emails coming from frontporchforum.com. Contact your ISP and ask that they allow messages from frontporchforum.com to pass through its spam filter.
5. Log in to Front Porch Forum and go to your Account page and add a different email address for you. If you only have one email account, you could sign up for a free account with one of the web services that offer free email (such as Yahoo.com and Google.com).
6. If none of the above works, you can always use the Front Porch Forum website to view current and past messages, as well as to submit new messages. Thanks for your participation!

To learn more about different spam filters, read our About Spam Filters page.

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Do I need any specific software to use Front Porch Forum?

You don't need any special software other than a relatively recent web browser and an email account. Supported browsers include:

• Mac/Win: Firefox
• Mac OS X: Safari
• Win: Internet Explorer 6+
• Mac/Win: Netscape 7+

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Why can't I reset my password?

Some members can't recall their passwords when they return to Front Porch Forum and try to log in. You can reset your password if that happens. Front Porch Forum will email you a new password, so you need to be able to receive an email message from frontporchforum.com. Please check your email client software and adjust its spam/junk mail filter to allow any incoming mail from frontporchforum.com to pass through the filter. You might also check your spam/junk folder to see if any messages from us are already there. If all else fails, contact us.

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Why can't I successfully post a message to my neighborhood's forum?

If you are a registered member of Front Porch Forum, then you should be able to post a message to your neighborhood's forum. If you receive an error message, it may be because you are sending your message from a different email account than the one you used to register with us. Log in to Front Porch Forum's website and check your account. You may add secondary email addresses to your account that will allow you to post messages from those email accounts as well.

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Can children and teenagers participate?

Members must be 16 years old to post messages to their neighborhood forum. We strongly encourage parents to work closely with their children to practice safe and responsible internet use.

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Can I reach my school board members through my neighborhood forum? Other local officials?

Yes, if they're signed up! Local officials are encouraged to add their title on their Front Porch Forum Account page. For certain positions (e.g., police, school board, city council, selectboard, state rep.), we grant access to all of the forums in the official's district/ward. So, there may be some local officials on your neighborhood forum already. Please encourage them to join.

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Can elected officials campaign through Front Porch Forum?

Our approach to this is evolving. Here's the latest (Nov. 2007)... 1. FPF welcomes paid campaign ads in its sponsor area. 2. Anyone running for local office who is on the official ballot may submit ONE message per election to be published in all the FPF neighborhood forums in the relevant area. These postings will be cut off at 1,000 characters (including spaces). 3. Select local public officials may join FPF and participate in all the neighborhood forums covering his/her district/ward/town. Posting should be limited to subjects related to the public servant's official duties. Campaign-related items are not permitted across multiple neighborhood forums. 4. Each FPF member is encouraged to post messages to his/her own neighborhood forum. Topic is left to each member. Political campaign postings are welcome from individuals (including incumbents in their own single neighborhood forum only). 5. Candidates and parties are also encouraged to ask their supporters to post their campaign messages, each supporter on his/her own FPF neighborhood forum.

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Does Front Porch Forum edit messages posted by members?

Front Porch Forum does not edit the body of messages, but we do frequently provide the headline for a posting. The vast majority of messages are posted by members with no headline, or one that is not helpful (e.g., "Re: yesterday's message"). Our intention is to provide a 3-to-5-word executive summary of the message for the convenience of readers who are skimming the table of contents. Further, lots of folks look through the online archive and meaningful headlines make all the difference. All that said, our preference is to go with whatever the member writing in has included.

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How much advance time does Front Porch Forum require for my posting?

Each neighborhood forum publishes its issues on an as-needed basis. If neighbors don't submit messages for awhile, then no neighborhood forum issues are published during that time. It's best to post your time-sensitive announcements at least 48 hours before you'd like to see it published... 72 hours is even better. And please be sure to clearly indicate if your message is time sensitive.

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What about flame wars and people behaving badly?

Front Porch Forum is designed from the ground up to encourage civil and constructive communication among nearby neighbors. Each message automatically is signed with the writer's name, street, and email address. Only residents of a given neighborhood may participate. All forums are moderated. We also ask that members keep in mind during the occasional contentious issue to "attack the idea, not the person."

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How do I update my email address, change my password, etc.?

Go to Front Porch Forum and click Log In. Enter your FPF email address and password. Once logged in successfully, click on Account and make changes on that page.

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Can I post attachments, photos and the like on my neighborhood's forum?

No, not at this time. Front Porch Forum is designed intentionally to support only plain-text email. So, no attachments, no photos or videos, no formatted text. We're keeping it simple. Best bet... post your attachment or photo somewhere else on the internet and then include the web address in your message to Front Porch Forum.

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How do I move or cancel my account?

If you're moving within our service area and would like to join the FPF forum serving your new neighborhood, please send us a note with your old and new street address. If you're moving out of our service region and would like Front Porch Forum to host a forum for your new neighborhood, please send us a cancellation note and then join our wait list. If you'd simply like to quit, please let us know.

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Can public officials campaign for re-election via Front Porch Forum?

Our approach to this is evolving. Here's the latest (Nov. 2007)... 1. FPF welcomes paid campaign ads in its sponsor area... http://frontporchforum.com/sponsorship/sponsors.php 2. Anyone running for local office who is on the official ballot is encouraged to submit a single message once to be published in all the FPF neighborhood forums in the relevant area. These postings will be truncated at 1,000 characters (including spaces). 3. Select local public officials may join FPF and participate in all the neighborhood forums covering his/her district/ward/town. Posting should be limited to subjects related to the public servant's official duties. Campaign-related items are not permitted across multiple neighborhood forums. 4. Each FPF member is encouraged to post messages to his/her own neighborhood forum. Topic is left to each member. Political campaign postings are welcome from individuals (including incumbents in their own single neighborhood forum only). 5. Candidates and parties are also encouraged to ask their supporters to post their campaign messages, each supporter on his/her own FPF neighborhood forum.

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Something is flaky when I try to fill out the form on the website... what gives?

Sometimes cleaning out your web browser's cache will solve all sorts of odd problems. Please try it... INTERNET EXPLORER: (1) Select tools from the menu, (2) Choose Delete Browsing History, (3) In the section that says "Temporary Internet Files" click the box that says "Delete Files." FIREFOX: (1) Click "Tools" at the top of the screen, (2) Choose "Clear Private Data" from the drop-down menu, (3) Make sure the box next to "Cache" is checked, (4) Click "Clear Private Data." AOL: (1) Click "Edit" from the menu bar at the top of the screen, (2) Choose "Clear toolbar history" from the drop-down menu, (3) When prompted, click "Yes." Or try a different computer and see if your problem disappears.

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