About CivilWarTalk

Who is the Webmaster and What is the purpose of CivilWarTalk.com?

As the webmaster and founder of this web site I feel that I need to answer this question in a personal way.

This web site was originally intended to bring experts and amatures who share the desire to learn more about the Civil War together, and to take that shared knowledge and make it available to anyone and everyone on the internet.

Since this web site's founding back in April of 1999, CivilWarTalk has developed a reputation as one of the best Civil War internet communities that can be found. We have a great variety of members who are friendly and knowledgeable about all kinds of Civil War topics.

Now I have to say that things have not always worked to perfection, sometimes things don't work the way they were planned, and sometimes I fail to do things as quickly as I'd like. However, I think that this site will always be a work in progress, and although we may never achieve perfection, we will always strive to be as perfect as possible... as a web site.

I like to think that some of the best and brightest people on the internet use our web site. If you have questions about the Civil War, we have people with answers, or at least they can get you pointed in a direction to get an answer.

Now, I don't pretend to be a historian, I'm a computer tech by trade. I am also an N-SSA member, which means that on the field I may look like a typical reenactor, but I shoot more live ammo with my musket than many reenactors fire blanks each year. I do have a love for the Civil War, Artillery, and facts, figures, and statistics.

So you ask what's the purpose of CivilWarTalk? I think that it's first purpose is to be a friendly community, a proverbial "Cyber-campfire" if you will, for all who wish to post their thoughts or questions, and for all those who wish to listen. It's second purpose is as a powerful research tool, with a wide array of resources for the student of the Civil War.

I hope you enjoy what we've created here, and I hope you find yourself visiting CivilWarTalk again and again!

I am, respectfully, your obedient servant,



Mike Kendra

The Staff at CivilWarTalk

Mike Kendra - Webmaster, Owner, Designer, Editor, and Founder
From: Clifton, New Jersey, USA
Member Since: April 1999
Unit Info: 1st NJ Light Artillery, Clark's Battery 'B', N-SSA
Nickname: NJArtillery, CivilWarTalk
Email: mike@civilwartalk.com

• Mike's Web Sites:
  • CivilWarTalk - Owner/Designer, http://civilwartalk.com
  • War Between the States Radio - Owner, DJ, Program Director, http://warbetweenthestatesradio.com/
  • 1st NJ Light Artillery, Battery 'B' - Member/Owner/Designer, http://1njla.com/
  • CivilWarWiki - Owner/Designer, http://civilwarwiki.net
  • SkirmishNotes - Blog, http://skirmishnotes.com

Current Forum Staff:
Ami - Super Moderator
Ole - Moderator
ME Wolf - Moderator
Matthew McKeon - Moderator
Nathanb1 - Moderator
jpeter - Moderator
wilber6150 - Moderator

Retired Staff:
Brass Napoleon
Johan Steel
Glorybound

Additional Staff:
Dred/Ray Bois - Facebook Page Manager
Bmac48 - Wiki Manager

Additional Contributors:
Joe Bilby, Bob Sullivan, Paul Calloway, Tom Kelley, Tony Beck, Mike Kotyk, Chris Sullivan, & Rod Ploessl.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

How much do I have to pay to use CivilWarTalk?

Nothing! CivilWarTalk is a completely free web site! Our message board does have a voluntary membership, but you can register to use it for free! CivilWarTalk does accept donations to help cover operating costs and upgrade expenses, but all donations are voluntary. Thanks to everyone who has donated to CivilWarTalk!

Will CivilWarTalk keep my personal information private?

Absolutely, yes! CivilWarTalk is committed to keeping your personal information private. We strive to keep your email address spam free, and confidential. We do not require any member's personal information to be publicly displayed. If you require further information please refer to our Privacy Statement.

What may I do to keep my account safe?

This forum has built-in features that attempt to detect hacking and hijacking. In regards to the latter, a guest may be "locked out" from logging in for several minutes if he fails five times to enter the correct password.

Relatedly, you would do well to use a strong password, and choose a different one for each website you make an account for. Of course, if someone has the skill and is determined enough, he may compromise your account anyway, but by taking steps to secure your account, you will lessen the probability of heart ache or annoyance.

Have you made sure your password is secure?

- Does it contain at least 8 characters?

- At least 40% of which are numbers?

- There are no dictionary words at all?

- Is just a random mix of numbers and letters?

- You changed it in the last month or two?

- You haven't told anyone it or written it down where someone else may see it?

Here is an article that members may find helpful, especially the not-so-computer-savvy among us:

"5 Tips For An Unbreakable Password."

What should I do if I forgot my account password?

Use our Password Recovery tool: http://civilwartalk.com/lost-password/

What am I allowed to post on CivilWarTalk.com?

Many things, but not everything. For instance, you may not post copyrighted material on the Forum without the owners permission. You also may not post commercial messages in conversational areas.

You can find a complete list of rules in our Rules and Proper Etiquette Section.

What's the rank structure of this forum?

Ranks are determined by your status (Registered Member, Moderator, Webmaster) and how many posts you have made at CivilWarTalk. The forum automatically updates members' ranks (if any need updating) once every hour (specifically, the 25th minute of each hour). You may have to wait until the update script runs to see a new rank.

• New Members: Cadet
• 25 Posts: Private
• 250 Posts: Corporal
• 500 Posts: Sergeant
• 1000 Posts: First Sergeant
• 1750 Posts: Sergeant Major
• 2500 Posts: 2nd Lieutenant
• 3500 Posts: 1st Lieutenant
• 5000 Posts: Captain
• 7500 Posts: Major
• 10,000 Posts: Lt. Colonel
• 12,500 Posts: Colonel
• 17,500 Posts: Brevet Brigadier General
• Moderators: Brigadier General
• Super Moderator: Major General (Ami)
• Webmaster: Lieutenant General (CivilWarTalk)

Can I become a moderator?

Possibly, but only when we're in need of them. Don't start a conversation asking to be one prior to that time.

Who can I contact about Ancestry and/or Genealogical questions?

Please do not ask the webmaster your Ancestry and/or Genealogical questions, unfortunately he does not have the resources to answer such questions.

These questions are better answered in our community forums "Researching Your Civil War Ancestry".

http://civilwartalk.com/forums/researching-your-civil-war-ancestry.38/

STUDENT GUIDE

How do I cite this website as a source?

Articles should be cited in the following manner:

Authors Last Name, First Name. "Title of Article." CivilWarTalk. Online. World Wide Web. (Date page was accessed on the web). Available at http://CivilWarTalk.com.

If the Author of the document is not identified then use the following format:

"Title of Article." CivilWarTalk. Online. World Wide Web. (Date page was accessed on the web). Available at http://CivilWarTalk.com.

USING CIVILWARTALK: THREAD NAVIGATION

In order to Navigate our forums it is best if you understood how to navigate to posts in threads. The figure below is a sample view of a thread on our forum:

A: The Thread Title will take you to the first unread post.

B: The Thread Start Date/Time will take you to the first post of the thread.

C: The Most Recent Post Date/Time will take you to the last post of the thread.

This figure is similar to what you would see if you viewed recent threads on the home page, a forum thread listing, the What's New page, or in search results.

EMAIL & SUBSCRIPTION PREFERENCES

How do I stop all these emails?!!?

There are four areas you will want to check

• Stop Watching threads you've set to "Watched".

http://civilwartalk.com/watched/threads/all

Un-check the threads you'd like to adjust and use the selection box at the bottom to Disable Email Notification or Stop Watching Threads.

• Check your Contact Details, this controls the emails you would get if someone starts a Conversation with you.

http://civilwartalk.com/account/contact-details

Look for: "Receive email when a new conversation message is received"

• Check your account preferences, this controls the default settings for new posts and threads you create.

http://civilwartalk.com/account/preferences

Look for: "Automatically watch threads that you create or when you reply..."

Also: "and receive email notifications of replies"

• To stop emails from the Administrator (Mike), you may adjust the configuration in your Privacy Settings.

http://civilwartalk.com/account/privacy

For "Receive site mailings" to shut off Admin emails...

HOW DO I USE CONVERSATIONS

What happened to the Private Message System (PM System)?

In the conversion from our old forum to the new forum PMs became Conversations. The main difference is that conversations can be held between more than just 2 members, and that such discussions are held in a threaded format.

Do I need to worry about my Inbox size?

No! The new system does not require conversation limits, have as many conversations as you like! Also the new threaded format has no Inbox or Outbox, you can find all your conversations here:

http://civilwartalk.com/conversations/

How do I delete a conversation?

In the top right corner of the conversation, click "Leave Conversation". You will have the choice to Leave, but come back if another participant adds another message, or you can leave the conversation permanently. (Note: A conversation is only completely deleted if all parties to the conversation leave the conversation.)