Camino de Santiago de Compostela

[ivar]

...the doors are now open to the new virtual Albergue:
http://albergue.caminodesantiago.me/
...it's like Facebook, but for pilgrims.

The forum continues as before, the Albergue has been constructed as a annex next door.

Buen Camino!
Ivar

[Gareth Thomas]

the Albergue has been constructed as a annex next door

The only albergue on the whole Camino where you can guarantee there will be no bedbugs! Or will there be virtual ones...?

Gareth

[ivar]

the Albergue has been constructed as a annex next door

The only albergue on the whole Camino where you can guarantee there will be no bedbugs! Or will there be virtual ones...?

Gareth

We might have bugs in the program, but not in the bed

[Tia Valeria]

Ivar, please could you give some advice/instructions here about logging in/signing up to the Albergue. Do we use our forum details, or do we need a new, seperate registration? Can we keep the log-in seperate if we want to; etc.......
Sorry to be ignorant of the procedure, but maybe I am not alone in this. I don't want to mess up my Forum log-in by making mistakes!!
Thanks in advance for your help
Tia Valeria

[ivar]

Ivar, please could you give some advice/instructions here about logging in/signing up to the Albergue. Do we use our forum details, or do we need a new, seperate registration? Can we keep the log-in seperate if we want to; etc.......
Sorry to be ignorant of the procedure, but maybe I am not alone in this. I don't want to mess up my Forum log-in by making mistakes!!
Thanks in advance for your help
Tia Valeria

Hi there,

The forum and the albergue are two separate things. So your login info for one thing, has nothing to do with the other.

If you only would like to participate in the forum, just sign up there... if you are interested in the albergue you need to sign up there.

You can browse the albergue without registering, but if you would like to upload a photo/video or leave a comment you need to sign up and then sign in.

Gareth is currently walking the last bit of the Frances. He has added a few images from a few days ago. Have a look here:
http://albergue.caminodesantiago.me/pro ... rethThomas

I hope that answers your question.

Greetings from sunny but cold Santiago,
Ivar

[JohnnieWalker]

errrrr...what's the difference between the two and what's the point of the albergue as opposed to the forum?

[peregrina2000]

I'm so glad you asked that, John. I ask so many techno-idiot questions that I just couldn't bring myself to ask that one! Laurie

[ivar]

errrrr...what's the difference between the two and what's the point of the albergue as opposed to the forum?

In the albergue it is easier to share photos and videos, and I think it will be good if you want to post shorter messages (in comparison to the forum where the posts are usually a bit longer).

Were I think the albergue can be especially useful is for keeping in touch during the camino. The forum is a bit cumbersome during the walk, since you need to find a computer and you need to write "longer" messages... and when you are tired this is not so easy.

THE PROFILE PAGE
In the albergue each user get a "My page" (a profile page), this is mine:
http://albergue.caminodesantiago.me/profile/IvarRekve
... here all the messages, photos, videos and all comment I have made are collected in one place. This would be "your" place in the albergue.

Posting a message (and photos) to your profile can be done via the web, but also be done via e-mail. Each user has gets a secret e-mail address (you find it in your "Settings" page). Sending an e-mail with text and a photo to this e-mail address (from your phone maybe?) will post this photo and text automatically to your profile. As I said, it could be "Finally arrived in Sarria after a long day". Shorter messages that then other members could comment on and there could be interaction there... since this shows up on your profile, people followign your walk could keep an eye on that profile and see how things are going. This is not so easy in the forum.

All messages posted are visible to members and non members.

GROUPS
Another thing that I think could be useful is the groups feature. Any user in the albergue could create a group on a specific camino related topic. This could be "Fans of the albergue in Rabanal", "Pilgrims from Poland", "Camino food lovers" or a Confraternity of a certain country. These would be sub-communities that would live within the larger albergue. The person that creates a group would be the person that runs the group and that would be responsible for the group. We could call them hospitaleros? One could create a group that anyone could add themselves to or there is also a possibility to create a group where only certain people could become members (moderated membership). I will be of course helping out with any technical questions if this is needed.

I have creates 3 groups, so take a look at what they could look like:
http://albergue.caminodesantiago.me/groups

These are some of my thoughts now at the start. But as it happens many times, these community sites has a tendency to take a life of their own. Let's see how it gets used. It is all about staying in touch, this is just a different way.

Please post any questions related to the albergue here, we could use this thread a a "Albergue FAQ".

Saludos from Santiago,
Ivar

[Gareth Thomas]

Another thing that I think could be useful is the groups feature. Any user in the albergue could create a group on a specific camino related topic. This could be "Fans of the albergue in Rabanal", "Pilgrims from Poland", "Camino food lovers" or a Confraternity of a certain country. These would be sub-communities that would live within the larger albergue.

Excellent idea. Can I be the first Pilgrim from Poland? I am in Portomarin and it is very much like Poland. All around me I see refugees from Poland. Please send a food parcel to me in Portomarin c/o Albergue O'Mirador (9 Euros, menu 9 Euros, view of the river Miño 9 Euros). I am told that the church is open from 9.30 am until 9.33 am if anyone wishes to have a quick visit.

Gareth

[kubapigora]

Another excellent idea Ivar. I'm signing in...

[andy.d]

Please send a food parcel to me in Portomarin c/o Albergue O'Mirador (9 Euros, menu 9 Euros, view of the river Miño 9 Euros). I am told that the church is open from 9.30 am until 9.33 am if anyone wishes to have a quick visit.

Gareth

Gareth,

after my recent Camino, I have invented Helado de Lomo (I had the great pleasure of lunch with Johnny Walker at La Terazza the other day, and both he and the staff there approved the idea).

I will send you 9 portions - I hope it doesn't melt in the post,

Andy

[ivar]

One good example would be to see how Gareth used the albergue during his latest walk.
http://albergue.caminodesantiago.me/pro ... e=activity

Here we have all comment made to and by him, his photos (that can be sent in by e-mail on the road by him) and some blog posts towards the bottom.

In the forum, this would have been difficult to achieve... in the albergue, everything is on one place: http://albergue.caminodesantiago.me/pro ... e=activity

Thinking about it, the forum is more based around topics. The albergue everything is focused around the pilgrim.

Saludos,
Ivar

[JohnnieWalker]

so why not merge the two and just have one place? Or is the "Albergue" on a different platform or something that prevents the forum having the same functionality - e mailing pics and so forth? I must confess I find it difficult to see the difference between the two. Take for example Falcon's latest post about his odd shoes - a pilgrim sharing a personal experience - how do users decide what to post where?

[Gareth Thomas]

so why not merge the two and just have one place? Or is the "Albergue" on a different platform... how do users decide what to post where?

That's a good point John. As the virtual albergue was launched while I was on the Camino, I immediately assumed it was intended for people who were on the road. I decided intuitively that anything of ephemeral interest would be more suited to the albergue (e.g. what refugios are open or comments on the weather conditions). Anything that might be useful for the longer term would be better placed on the Forum (e.g. a good mountaineering shop to buy socks in Leon).

In fact, it worked very well like that, as I told Ivar when I met him in Santiago for a drink at the end of my walk. However, I should say also that there were times when I wondered whether I should be posting a particular item on the albergue or on the Forum; and another aspect to consider is that logging in twice wastes valuable time (specially when you are paying for internet time at sometimes a Euro for twenty minutes in some places). There are pros and cons here. A single login for both would be helpful. Like any innovation, time will show how it is best used and it will find its own function or if it is redundant it will fade away.

Gareth

[ivar]

The albergue and the forum have things in common and things that separate them.

Forum: Good for discussions on a topic.... First post, then replies, and the discussion flows down one thread.

Albergue: You post a photo... you post a comment on another members profile, you upload a video. All that you do, becomes part of your profile. It's on that one page... it becomes "your story". In the forum this is not so easy to do, since your posts are all over various topics....

The forum is more built around topics and the albergue more around the user profile.

They are different tools for different things. Pick one you like (or both) and use that.

Regarding integrating the log-in. .... difficult to do... will have a look at it, but.... not sure if it is doable.

Greetings from Santiago,
Ivar