Frequently Asked Questions

General

Q.  What is ShareGrove and why is it offered?

A.  ShareGrove is a better way to converse with your friends over the web.  Unlike email and instant messaging, it integrates web content through built-in search functions (e.g., from Google, YouTube and Yelp) and allows access to your friend list on Facebook.  It also allows you to converse in real time (like IM) and over time (like email) through a single web-based application.

 

Q.  Do I need to register with ShareGrove to use ShareGrove?

A.  You can participate in ShareGrove conversations to which you've been invited by others without registering.  However, if you want to start a new conversation or have access to your Facebook friends and their images, you must register with ShareGrove either by clicking the Facebook Connect.

 

Q.  What's required to register with ShareGrove?

A.  Registration is free, quick and easy.  If you're a Facebook user, you can get started by just clicking the Facebook Connect button on the home page of the application.  You can also register using an valid email and password (and you can separately use Facebook Connect).  If you use Facebook, you can get instant access to your friends (and their images) by completing Facebook Connect on your profile page.

 

Q.  What should I do if ShareGrove freezes or stops functioning properly?

A.  Simply click your browser's reload button and you will go back the ShareGrove home screen (that is, the list of conversations).   We hope this never happens, but please remember, this is a beta release and may still have some bugs.

 

Q.  Does ShareGrove work on the iPhone or other mobile devices?

A.  Only to a limited extent--right now.  Depending on your mobile device, you may see email notifications of activity to your ShareGrove account, which may include active links to web sites (and YouTube videos or Maps in the case of the iPhone).  While ShareGrove doesn't offer a special iPhone application, we plan to in the future, so stay tuned...

 

Q.  Can I use ShareGrove as an IM or email client?

A.  No. ShareGrove does many things that IM and email clients can't--including enabling conversation in both real time and over time; integration of search and inline rich media from the web; and interface with Facebook.  While you can choose to be notified on an existing email account of ShareGrove updates, you cannot send or receive emails through ShareGrove.

Notifications

Q.  How will my friends know when I add them to a conversation or post to an existing conversation they're in?

A.  Notification in ShareGrove can happen in several ways.

1.   
The best, fastest and most dependable way for a friend to be notified of an update on ShareGrove is to register and log in to ShareGrove.  Upon entry, your friend will see a red box with a number indicating how many new posts have been made in each conversation group:

 

 

2.    If your Facebook friend hasn't registered on ShareGrove he will appear in the list of participants with an asterisk over his image and a prompt to invite him to ShareGrove:

 

 

When you click on your friend's image, a personal Facebook message will automatically appear from you to the friend inviting him directly to this conversation, which looks like this:

 

Simply click Send and the notification will be on its way.

 

Whether you send a personalized message or not, your friend will receive a Facebook notification whenever the conversation group is updated.  Facebook notifications can be found by clicking the red square at the lower right of the Facebook screen.

 

 

3.    If your friend has entered a valid email address in her ShareGrove settings, she will receive email notifications directly at the address entered that look like this:

 

 

 

 

Q.  How do I change where I'm notified of new conversations or posts on ShareGrove?

A.  By clicking on your "Settings" page and adding or changing your email address or by choosing "Facebook"  (assuming  you have connected your ShareGrove account to Facebook).  You are not limited to using your login email address for your notification email, as long as both are active and valid.

 

Q.  Can I change the frequency of notification to my ShareGrove account?

A.   Not at this time, but this is a feature we are planning to offer in the future.

 

Q.  Can I tell if a friend is logged into ShareGrove and available for a real-time conversation?

A.  Not at this time, but this is a feature we are planning to offer in the future.

ShareGrove Settings and Facebook Connect

Q.  Where/how do I change my login credentials (email and password)?

A.  On the "Settings" page by clicking the Profile button at the top of the page.

 

Q.  What is Facebook Connect and why should I use it?

A.  Facebook Connect allows you to see and select your friends on Facebook to include in ShareGrove conversation.  Your friend list will automatically update as you add friends on Facebook and they change their profile pictures.  Plus, you can choose to be notified of ShareGrove updates through Facebook and your friends on Facebook can include you in ShareGrove conversations without entering your email address.

 

Q.  If I choose to use Facebook Connect, will ShareGrove have access to my Facebook login credentials?

A.  No, Facebook Connect is a feature and function of Facebook.   Your Facebook login credentials are invisible to ShareGrove and always will be.

 

Q.  If I've been invited to ShareGrove conversations through different email addresses, how do I see all my conversations in one place?

A.  You can consolidate all of your conversations into one account by registering with ShareGrove and adding (then verifying) all email accounts through which you've been invited by others on your Settings page.  Your Facebook account will also be connected to any and all email accounts in your profile.  You can select, and later change, the single email account to which your notifications are sent.

Friends

Q.  When I add a Facebook friend to a ShareGrove conversation, other Facebook friends appear sometimes; what's going on?

A.  This is a convenient way for you to see common friends on Facebook (of both you and the friend selected).   If you have no friends in common, no other images will appear.  And, as you add participants, the list of additional common friends may be reduced until there are no common friends among you and all of the friends selected.

 

Q.  Can I add someone to a ShareGrove conversation who isn't a Facebook friend?

A.  Yes.  You can enter a valid email address of a friend in the field at the top of the conversation viewer (next to the + sign button)--whether or not you're friends on Facebook or your friend is even on Facebook.

 

Q. Is there an address book in ShareGrove where I can see and edit email addresses I've entered for friends and also see new friends I've made on ShareGrove?

A.  Not at this point, but this is a feature we are planning to offer in the future.