Frequently Asked Questions

About IASE and the IASE Online Community

Q. What is IASE?

A. Founded in 2003, the International Association of Space Entrepreneurs ("IASE") promotes global entrepreneurship in space ventures with educational events and networking functions. IASE is a 501(c)(6) tax-exempt not-for-profit organization incorporated in the State of Delaware, USA. We are extremely proud--and excited--to extend our work into the online world with this virtual community.

Q. What is the purpose of this online community?

A. Our purpose is to create a global "virtual incubator" for space-related business ventures. We want this to be a place where entrepreneurs from around the world can find all of the resources they need to create new, innovative, high-growth, and visionary space-related ventures.

Q. Why did you create the IASE Community?

A. When we originally launched IASE as a traditional membership association, we were overwhelmed by the global response to what we were doing. We were blown away by the pent-up (and growing!) demand for a mechanism by which entrepreneurs with an interest in space-related ventures could connect with each other and with the resources they needed. We quickly realized that we would not be able to scale fast enough under our old labor-intensive model based on local chapters, events, conferences, etc. It took a couple of years for the online networking phenomenon to mature so that we could leverage a much more scalable Web-based model for providing the same type of offering.

Q. Who should join the IASE Community?

A. We encourage participation by ANYONE who is interested in space-related entrepreneurial activity. An entrepreneur is defined in the dictionary as "a person who organizes, operates, and assumes the risk for a business venture." But there is more to this site than just entrepreneurs. Although this community is focused primarily on entrepreneurs, all successful entrepreneurs know that they can't do it alone. That is why there is a place here for anyone interested in space-related entrepreneurial activity.

Q. What are your future plans for the IASE Community?

A. Our purpose is to create a global "virtual incubator" for space-related business ventures. In order to achieve this, we need to continue adding features and functionality that will help entrepreneurs around the world build their innovative ventures. This will be a growing and evolving site, so we encourage active participation by our members!

Q. Who are the administrators for the IASE Community?

A. There are three folks primarily responsible for getting this community rolling: Wahid Tanner, Guillermo Sohnlein, and Andy Forbes. Please contact us with any questions, comments, or suggestions. We want to hear from you!!!

Q. Where can I get more information about IASE?

A. You can find our contact emails at the "About Us" tab, so drop us a line and we'll get you whatever you need.

Q. Sounds terrific, so how can I get more involved?

A. The best way to help us make IASE a valuable online community for ALL our members is to:

• regularly contribute new content (blog posts, forums, groups, comments, etc.)
• continue to encourage activity within your forums, groups, etc.
• spread the word about IASE by direct invitations and general promotion (your other online networks, IASE badge on your various online profiles/blogs, etc.)
• provide constant feedback to the administrators so we can continue adding new features.

Using the IASE Online Community

Q. What can I do on the IASE Community?

A. This site will continue to grow and evolve as we add more features and functionality, but right now you can:

• Create your individual profile and let folks know what you're interested in.
• Post to your own blog to share interesting ideas, insights, and resources.
• Find other like-minded individuals and become friends with them.
• Invite other colleagues and friends to join our community.
• Join/create groups focused on particular areas of interest.
• Post/respond to forum and group discussions.

Q. How do I update my page?

A. Click on the "My Page" tab. From here, you can (a) change the look-and-feel of your page by clicking on the "Edit Page Appearance" link, (b) change your settings (e.g., profile information, privacy, email, and account preferences) by clicking on the "About Me" link, and (c) manage your blog posts and comments by clicking on the "Manage Blog" link. You can also access your "About Me" information and manage your friends by clicking on the "My Settings" and "My Friends" links, respectively, under your name in the right-hand column on any page throughout the site.

Q. How do I create my blog?

A. Click on the "My Page" tab and then click on the "Add a Blog Post" link (the one with the green "+" symbol). PRACTICE TIP: if you include hyperlinks in your posts, you should consider adding "target="_blank"" to the href tag in the HTML source code to override the default and open the link in a new window.

Q. How do I invite others to join the IASE Community?

A. Click on the "Invite" tab (or on the "Invite More" link under your name in the right-hand column on any page throughout the site). You can either send individual invitations to email addresses you insert manually, or you can import email addresses from your "Web Address Book" or your "Address Book Application".

Q. How do I become friends with other members?

A. Go to the member's personal page and click on the "Become Friends" link under their photo. A request will be sent on your behalf. When the other member accepts your invitation, you'll be friends. One thing to keep in mind when doing this is that you are not given the chance to type a message to send with your request. Until the ability to introduce yourself along with your request to become friends is implemented, you should consider establishing contact first so that the other member at least has an idea of who you are. We encourage everybody to be helpful and friendly here, so don't be afraid to make friends.

Q. What are "Forums" and how can I use them?

A. Forums are the core of any online community, since they are topic-specific discussions among the members. You can do a lot in this section, including:

• Read existing discussions and participate. Click on the "Forum" tab to see the current discussions posted by members. They are broken down into the categories listed in the left-hand column. You can read each one by clicking on its link, and then you can participate by leaving a reply.
• Share existing discussions. You can share a discussion with other members and colleagues by clicking on the "Share" link at the bottom of the initial discussion post.
• Follow existing discussions. If you want to receive an email every time new content is added to a particular discussion, then simply click on the "Follow" link at the very bottom of the discussion (you can "Stop Following" in the same way).
• View all of a member's discussions. Each discussion includes information about the member who created it. You can learn more about the member by clicking on their photo, you can see all of their discussions by clicking on the "View Discussions" link, you can send them a message by clicking on the "Send a Message" link, and you can invite them to become your friend by clicking on the "Become Friends" link.
• Create new discussions. You can create your own discussion by clicking on the "Start a New Discussion" link with the green "+" symbol. You can add hyperlinks, photos, tags, and even attach files. Remember to choose a category for your new discussion! Afterward, you can view all of your discussions by clicking on the "My Discussions" link in the left side just under the primary navigation when you're in the "Forum" section of the site.

Q. What are "Groups" and how can I use them?

A. Groups are ways for IASE Members to join together with others who share similar interests, whether it's based on industry (e.g., Satellites, Launch Systems, Software, UAVs, VLJs), geography (e.g., Europe, India, Southern California, Shanghai), affiliation (e.g., Harvard Business School, Space Frontier Foundation, SpaceX), profession (e.g., Entrepreneurs, Rocket Scientists, CFOs), or ... whatever. If you click on the "Groups" tab, you can read about existing groups and join one, or you can create your own (making it as public or private as you'd like). After that, you can participate in discussions specific to your group's particular interests.

Q. What is Ning and why are you using it?

A. Ning is a platform for creating online communities. After assessing multiple approaches, services, and enabling technologies, we decided that the Ning platform was the best fit for our needs. We get to use their initial set of core functions, while also benefitting from their own ongoing development of new features. As they develop interesting functionality, we will be evaluating it for use on the IASE Community site. In addition to Ning's in-house features, we can also create our own additional functionality later, since Ning uses the OpenSocial development standard.

Q. What are Ning communities?

A. There is another benefit to our using the Ning platform. As a Member of the IASE Community, you can also participate in hundreds (if not thousands) of other communities on the Ning platform. Go to www.ning.com and explore! (Just to set expectations ... not every Ning community is "fully baked" but there are some active ones out there that are really good.)

Q. What is the "Ning Toolbar"?

A. Find your name in the WAY upper left-hand corner of the site (above the IASE logo). If you click on your name, this will open an application showing you your friends in other communities as well and which other communities you belong to. If you click on the envelope icon, this will open an application that you can use to send/receive messages. If you click on the person icon, this will open an application that you can use to manage your received, sent, and blocked requests. Click on "Hide" in the far right to close the current application.

Q. Do you have any other helpful hints?

A. Just a few (for now!):

• Check out the "Getting Started on the IASE Community" discussion for a quick overview.
• When you create a new discussion or post a new blog entry (or when you read an interesting piece by another member), look for the "Share" link and let your friends know!
• When you find a discussion or blog that you like, look for the "Follow" link so you can be notified whenever new content is added!

Q. What if I have a problem or a suggestion for how to improve the IASE Community?

A. This site is for, by, and about our members, so PLEASE let us know how we can make the experience more valuable to you! You can either contact one of the administrators (Wahid Tanner, Guillermo Sohnlein, Andy Forbes) or send us an email via the contacts in the "About Us" tab.