FAQ
Contents |
The GMnext Wiki
Q. What is the GMnext Wiki?
A. The Generations of GM Wiki (GMnext Wiki) is GM’s global history via an interactive, online "digital scrapbook."
You are encouraged to contribute your personal stories, recollections, anecdotes, factual information, photos and videos to augment the official timeline and provide a uniquely personal history as told through the eyes of employees, retirees, associates and the generations of families who shaped or experienced GM’s history firsthand. Personal stories posted to the GMnext Wiki will not be edited in any way but will be screened to assure they follow the Rules of the Road.
The "history" portion of the GMnext Wiki will be a collaborative effort tapping into the knowledge of participants. An official timeline has been provided as a starting point. Contributors can expand on those initial milestones to reconstruct a more comprehensive history or post entirely new articles. Postings may be expanded or enhanced by other GMnext Wiki contributors. All contributions will be screened to assure they follow the Rules of the Road. Moderators and subject matter experts will referee disputes among different versions of the history.
Q. What are the GMnext Wiki Rules of the Road?
A. The Rules of the Road:
- The Generations of GM Wiki is an historical account based on facts … it is not a discussion forum.
- Information should be truthful and verifiable. You are encouraged to cite sources (or link to online sources) when applicable (not required for personal stories).
- Always be respectful of competitors and adversaries, no matter what the situation.
- Content must be free of profanity, disparaging comments, personal attacks, depiction of unlawful behavior, commercial or political messages, racism, slander and libel.
- Posted content must be on-topic (relevant to the subject you are contributing).
- Content must not infringe on any patent, trademark, trade secret, copyright or other intellectual or proprietary right of any party.
- By posting content, you are granting GM a copyright license to utilize your content.
- All Privacy Rights (applicable for submitting country) must be observed.
Note: Submitted content (or changes to existing content) will not be posted if the Rules of the Road are not followed. Should any content be rejected, the submitter will be notified via email.
Account Management
Q. How do I create an GMnext account?
A. An GMnext account allows you to participate in the GMnext community by adding comments, uploading videos or photos, editing a history entry or creating your own personal story. Note, you don’t need an account to view content in the GMnext community.
Create account
Q. How do I sign into my GMnext account?
A. Once you have created a GMnext account, there are several ways you can sign in.
- In the upper right-hand corner of gmnext.com, click “Sign In.” When prompted, enter your user name and password, and click “Submit.” GM employees should click the "sign in" link to the right of the GM logo
- If you attempt to contribute (add comment, add article to the GMnext Wiki), and are not signed in, you’ll see copy prompting you to sign in. Click “sign in,” enter your user name and password, and click “Submit.” GM employees should click the "sign in" link to the right of the GM logo
Q. How do I change my password or my email address?
A. When logged in, click on "My Account" in the upper right-hand corner of the page. This will access the "Account Management" page. Follow the instructions to change your password or email address.
View this instructional video:
Click here to download and view in Windows Media Format.
Adding Articles
Q. How do I add an article to the GMnext Wiki?
A. These are the steps to add an article:
- In the left-hand navigation, click the "Add page" link
- On the “Add page” page, enter a page title and click "Add." This will be the actual title of the article. This title cannot be changed once the page is created
- The article page is created, but there is no copy yet. So, click the “Edit” button. This allows the content of the article to be inputted or edited. You can type directly into the article, or you can copy and paste content from a Microsoft Word or PowerPoint document (recommended)
- You can preview your article by clicking "Show preview" under the article entry field. This does not save your changes. In the preview mode you can continue adding or edit content
- When you are satisfied with your article, click “Save page.” The page will refresh with your article
- Once your article has been saved, you can spice it up by adding photos, video, links and tags
Notes:
a. Submitted content (or changes to existing content) will not be posted if the Rules of the Road are not followed. Should any content be rejected, the submitter will be notified via email.
b. For more help, reference the GMnext Wiki Cheat Sheet How to use Wiki
View this instructional video:
Click here to download and view in Windows Media Format.
Uploading Photos, Adding Video Embeds
Q. How do I upload a photo? What file formats do I use?
A. These are the steps to upload a photo or image:
- In the left-hand navigation, click "Upload file"
- Follow the directions on the "Upload file" page and click the "Upload file" button
The GMnext Wiki accepts:
File format: .jpg
File size: 200k maximum. Files less than 100k are recommended
Resolution: Between 72 and 300 dpi
Note: Submitted content (or changes to existing content) will not be posted if the Rules of the Road are not followed. Should any content be rejected, the submitter will be notified via email.
View this instructional video:
Click here to download and view in Windows Media Format.
Q. How do I attach a photo to a GMnext Wiki article?
A. Assuming the article has been added (see How do I add an article to the GMnext Wiki? above) and the file has been uploaded (see How do I upload a photo? above), these are the steps to attach a file to an article:
- Capture the name of the file to be attached (example: Photo1.jpg)
- Access the article, and click “Edit” (because we want to add an image.)
- Position your cursor in the article copy where you want the image to be added. The image can be added in the middle of the article, at the end of the article, etc.
- Just above the article field is a toolbar with GMnext Wiki mark-up codes. Click the button with a picture frame. This will input the GMnext Wiki mark-up code to add a photo into your article. The code will appear as: Image:Example.jpg
- Within the brackets, replace the "Example.jpg" with the actual name of the image to be attached. Assuming the photo is named Photo1.jpg, the revised code would look like this: Image:Photo1.jpg
- You can preview the insertion of the picture by clicking "Show preview" or save the insertion by clicking "Save page"
Submitted content (or changes to existing content) will not be posted if the Rules of the Road are not followed. Should any content be rejected, the submitter will be notified via email.
View this instructional video:
Click here to download and view in Windows Media Format.
Q. How do I upload a PDF to a GMnext Wiki article?
A. A PDF is uploaded the same way an image is, with a few additional steps. These are the steps to upload a PDF:
- In the left-hand navigation, click “Upload file”
- Follow the directions on the “Upload file” page and click “Upload file” button
- Assuming a successful file upload, search for your uploaded PDF using the GMnext Wiki search functionality in the left-hand navigation. In the search field, enter a keyword included in the name of your PDF and click “Go”
- Once on the search results page, scroll to the “Search in namespaces” section at the bottom of the page. Deselect “Main” and select “Image.” This will restrict your search to PDFs/images. Click “Search”
- Find your PDF on the search results page and click it
- Once on your PDF page, click the blue link to your PDF. This should refresh your browser with your PDF. Capture the URL in the browser address window. You will need to include this link in your article page
- Access the article to which you want to add the PDF. Click “Edit.” Position your cursor where you’d like to add the PDF link. Using the GMnext Wiki toolbar, click the External Link icon (the one with a globe.) Replace the http URL with the one for your PDF (captured in #5 above.) Change “link title” to whatever you want the link to your PDF to appear as
- Click “Show preview” to see what the link looks click. When satisfied, click “Save page” to submit your revisions
Q. How do I upload a video or embed a video file in a GMnext Wiki article?
A. Videos cannot be uploaded directly to the GMnext Wiki. However, video embeds can be included. To embed a video file in a GMnext Wiki article, follow these steps:
- Upload the video file to BrightCove by clicking here. Note: if you do not have a BrightCove account you will need to create one
- Copy the <embed> tag from BrightCove
- Navigate to the GMnext article page you wish to add the embed tag to
- Click on “Edit” and locate where you’d like to see your video. Enter the following code there: <html> </html>
- Between the two html tags, paste the embed code you copied from Brightcove
- Click the “Show preview” button to ensure that you have embedded the correct video and it is in the correct location
- If you are satisfied with the video, click “Save page” button and it will be submitted for GMnext review
Note: Submitted content (or changes to existing content) will not be posted if the Rules of the Road are not followed. Should any content be rejected, the submitter will be notified via email.
Q. What file formats do I use for videos?
A. The GMnext Wiki accepts:
File formats: .mov, .mp4, .avi and .wmv
File size: 100MB
No resolution requirements
Adding Links
Q. How do I add an internal link to a GMnext Wiki article? Note: An internal link clicks to a page in the GMnext Wiki.
A. Assuming the article has been added (see How do I add an article to the GMnext Wiki? above), the steps to add an internal link to an article follow:
- Capture the title of the page to which you’d like to link
- Access the article to which you’d like to add the internal link, and click "Edit". Position your cursor in the article copy where you want the link to be added. The link can be with the article, at the end of the article, etc.
- Using the GMnext Wiki mark-up toolbar (just above the content field), click the button with the internal link code, with Ab underlined. This will input the internal link code into your article. The code will appear as: Template:Link title
- Within the brackets, replace "Link title" with the name of the page to which you’d like to link. Assuming the page is titled Site Map, the internal link code would look like this: Site Map
- You can preview the link by clicking "Show preview” or save the link addition by clicking “Save page”
View this instructional video:
Click here to download and view in Windows Media Format.
Q. How do I add an external link to a GMnext Wiki article? Note: An external link clicks to a page outside the GMnext Wiki.
A. Assuming the article has been added (see How do I add an article to the GMnext Wiki? above), the steps to add an external link to an article follow:
- Capture the URL of the page to which you’d like to link
- Access the article to which you’d like to add the external link, and click "Edit." Position your cursor in the article copy where you want the link to be added. The link can be with the article, at the end of the article, etc.
- Using the GMnext Wiki mark-up toolbar (just above the content field), click the button with the external link code, with the Globe. This will input the external link code into your article. The code will appear as: link title
- Within the brackets, replace "http://www.example.com" with the URL of the page to which you’d like to link. Then, replace "link title" with how you’d like the link to appear in your article page
- Assuming the URL is www.gm.com and the desired link title is GM.com, the code would be changed to: to GM.com the link appears like this: GM.com
- You can preview the link by clicking "Show preview" or save the link addition by clicking "Save page"
Play this video to see and hear the instructions.
To view this video in Windows Media format, click here to download and view.
Tags, Adding Tags
Q. What is a tag and how do I add one to a GMnext Wiki article?
A: A tag is a relevant keyword or term associated with or assigned to a piece of information (a picture, an article, a video). The tag describes the item and enables keyword-based classification, search and relevance.
On the GMnext Wiki, a predetermined set of tags has been established. The tags relate to the list of Categories in the left-hand navigation and their corresponding Subcategories.
These are the steps to add a tag to an article:
- Access the article to which you’d like to add the tag, and click "Edit"
- Reference the 2 dropdown menus just above the content portion of the article -- they read "Add Article to Category" and the one to the immediate right
- The left dropdown menu contains the list of predetermined Categories. Click the arrow to view the available Category options, and select a Category
- Once the Category is selected, you can view the list of Subcategories by clicking the down arrow on the right dropdown menu
- When the Category and Subcategory tags are assigned, click "Add"
Notes:
a. More than 1 tag can be added to a GMnext Wiki article. Repeat the process to add another tag, and thereby, assign the content to another Category (as applicable)
b. In some instances, there may not be an applicable, predetermined Subcategory. In this case, select "None" as the option
c. You can preview the tag(s) by clicking "Show preview" or save the tag(s) addition by clicking "Save page"
View this instructional video:
Click here to download and view in Windows Media Format.
Q. Why has my article not been published?
A. All submitted articles are moderated to ensure they meet the Rules of the Road. If the Rules of the Road are not met, the content will not be posted and the submitter will be notified via email.
Editing Articles
Q. How do I edit an article on the GMnext Wiki?
A. Access the article you wish to edit and click "Edit." You are now in the edit mode and can add copy, images, tags, links, etc. When finished editing, click "Show preview" to see the changes. When satisfied with your changes, click "Save page" and it will be submitted for GMnext review.
There are some articles on the GMnext Wiki that cannot be edited. These include personal stories and milestone articles. Personal stories (content in the I was there category) can only be edited by the author. Milestone articles cannot be edited, but they may be added to.
View this instructional video:
Click here to download and view in Windows Media Format.
Q. Will my article be edited?
A. There are 2 kinds of articles on the GMnext Wiki – historical articles and personal stories. They have specific editing and enhancing rules.
Historical articles
Because the GMnext Wiki is a collaborative, participatory environment, historical articles may be edited or added to by other users. These articles may also be enhanced by the GMnext team, including:
- Addition of tags, links, photos, videos and PDFs
- Reformating the content into an article template
Personal stories/I was there articles
Because these are personal recollections, I was there articles cannot be edited by any user and will not be edited by the GMnext team. Users may add to your story, but they cannot adjust the content you submitted. These stories may be enhanced by the GMnext team, including:
- Addition of tags, links, photos, videos and PDFs
- Reformating the content into an I was there article template
Reference the Terms of Use and Privacy
Q. How do I determine what changes have been made to an article? How do I know who wrote an article?
A. Unlike word processing systems, GMnext Wiki does not have a track-changes function. If you’d like to compare different versions of the article, access the article and click "History."
To view a tutorial video on this topic in Windows Media format, click here to download and view.
For all articles, you can visit the History page to see the name of user who entered the article, and the name(s) of others who have subsequently edited or added to the article. To do this, access the article you’d like to learn about and click "History." Some articles include the name of author at the top of the page.
Watching Articles
Q. How do I learn about changes to certain articles of interest to me? Can I be alerted if someone updates an article I wrote?
A. You can follow articles using the watch feature. Access an article of interest and click “Watch.” Doing this adds the page to your "watchlist." You can check your watchlist by clicking "Special pages" in the left-hand navigation. From the list of links on this page, click "My watchlist."
You can use the Search functionality to find new articles written since your last visit. To do this, enter a keyword into the Search field and click "Go." The search results page will provide a listing of all articles with this word in the article title or body copy. Any or all of these articles can be added to your watchlist.
View this instructional video:
Click here to download and view in Windows Media Format.
Search
Q. How can I find or search for content on the GMnext Wiki?
A: The GMnext Wiki offers a title search and a full-text search. To use, enter text into the search field in the left-hand navigation and click "Go." The page will refresh with a listing of titles and articles related to your search criteria.
View the instructional video.
Click here to download and view in Windows Media Format.
In addition to the search functionality, content can be found in several other ways:
- Use the Category listing in the left-hand navigation. Click on a Category and the page will refresh with all of the articles in the GMnext Wiki within that Category
- On an article page, use the Tag Cloud at the bottom of the article. Click on a tag (i.e. Design) within the cloud and the page will refresh with all of the articles in the GMnext Wiki related to that tag
- Click the Site Map page (located in the global footer) and scroll through all the articles in the GMnext Wiki
View this instructional video:
Click here to download and view in Windows Media Format.
Contact Us
Q. I have a question regarding GMnext. Who do I contact?
For information about the GMnext program: Email info@gmnext.com
For Privacy and the GMnext program: Visit the Terms of Use and Privacy page, email contact@gmnext.com, or send a letter to:
General Motors Corporation
P.O. Box 33170
Detroit, MI 48232-5170
For technical difficulties or concerns regarding the GMnext Wiki: Email webmaster@gmnext.com
For media-related questions or concerns: Email media@gmnext.com
Terms of Use and Privacy
Q. Where can I find more information about the GMnext Terms of Use and Privacy?
A: Visit the Terms of Use and Privacy page.