Questions and Answers About Sixent For CommunityZero Advantage and CZ.com Users
Questions and Answers About Sixent For CommunityZero Advantage and CZ.com Users
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What is Sixent?
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What does "Beta" really mean and when will the final product be ready?
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Why have you developed a social network?
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Can I create a profile at Sixent.com for my business, school, association, non-profit organization, etc?
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Are you making Sixent available to your corporate customers?
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How does Sixent compare to CZ.com?
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Will Sixent eventually have all the same features as CZ.com?
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Does your new product mean you're ending the CZ.com service?
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When can I migrate my CZ communities over to Sixent?
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How does Sixent compare to CZ Enterprise?
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Will Sixent eventually have all the same features as CZ Enterprise?
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Are you exiting the online community space?
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Does your new product mean you'll no longer be offering CZ?
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Will you continue offering improvements to CZ beyond bug fixes?
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How long before existing CZ customers must move to Sixent?
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Why didn't you offer Sixent to enterprise customers from the start?
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Will you help to migrate my communities/data over to Sixent Enterprise when the time comes?
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Who should I contact if I have questions about my CZ account or about Sixent?
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Is Sixent Enterprise fully segregated from the public population?
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Can I customize the profile fields for my corporate use?
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Will I be able to connect the corporate site to my existing base of users?
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Will you offer an API to read and write data remotely?
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Will you be compatible with OpenSocial to allow integration of external applications into a Sixent corporate site?
- What is Sixent?
- Sixent
is a free social networking service that lets you configure
and selectively share profiles and content with your diverse network of
contacts. It helps you build more meaningful and relevant interactions
with friends, family, co-workers and anyone else by letting
you share your life differently. At Sixent, it's not about sharing
less, but rather sharing the right information with the right people.
Sixent is currently in a Beta release.
- Sixent
is a free social networking service that lets you configure
and selectively share profiles and content with your diverse network of
contacts. It helps you build more meaningful and relevant interactions
with friends, family, co-workers and anyone else by letting
you share your life differently. At Sixent, it's not about sharing
less, but rather sharing the right information with the right people.
Sixent is currently in a Beta release.
- What does "Beta" really mean and when will the final product be ready?
- At Beta, Sixent contains all of its core functionality but
we are still adding new features and want to learn what end-users think of the product before declaring it as a full first version. During this Beta period
we hope to gain insight from users in terms of
impressions, bugs found, and suggestions. Their feedback will help us
to keep Sixent's product development in line with end-users' needs.
- At Beta, Sixent contains all of its core functionality but
we are still adding new features and want to learn what end-users think of the product before declaring it as a full first version. During this Beta period
we hope to gain insight from users in terms of
impressions, bugs found, and suggestions. Their feedback will help us
to keep Sixent's product development in line with end-users' needs.
- Why have you developed a social network?
- Social networking platforms enable individuals to connect and collaborate online. Their member base extends beyond the boundaries of more traditional online communities and in doing so, deliver a more complete, satisfying user experience. We think social networks are a natural complement to online communities and a valuable addition to the way we work and live as individuals. With Sixent, we'd like our members to create a large and varied social network that becomes a place where they can achieve anything. After all, with more members, there are more connections, more content and in the end, that all leads to more opportunities for everyone.
- Can I create a profile at Sixent.com for my business, school, association, non-profit organization, etc?
- During Beta, only
individuals can create profiles on Sixent.com. In time, businesses and
other organizations
will also be able to join the public network and create profiles. In the meantime, we're introducing Sixent Enterprise to accommodate businesses and other organizations
in Sixent.
- During Beta, only
individuals can create profiles on Sixent.com. In time, businesses and
other organizations
will also be able to join the public network and create profiles. In the meantime, we're introducing Sixent Enterprise to accommodate businesses and other organizations
in Sixent.
- Are you making Sixent available to your corporate customers?
- Yes, Sixent Enterprise is offered as a service to corporate and non-profit enterprises.
- How does Sixent compare to CZ.com?
- Sixent is a next-generation consumer-focused social networking platform. Right now, its functionality does not significantly overlap with the capabilities of our proven CommunityZero offerings for enterprise-grade collaboration. The foundation of CommunityZero is one of group collaboration around content. Each community is an island, walled-off from the wider, global network of online users. A CZ.com community relies on its administrators to really stimulate initial growth until a "critical mass" of users is reached and the community becomes somewhat self-sustaining. Sixent takes a different approach by focusing activity around individual users. The social networking tools in Sixent strengthen the value a user can gain from participating as part of a greater network, instead of only private communities.
- Will Sixent eventually have all the same features as CZ.com?
- We're certainly keeping the strong focus on security, rich permissions and inter-operable tools that are the foundation of our CommunityZero offering. However, we believe the market needs a new offering with a Web 2.0 feature set that is more relevant to how we live and work today. As a result, some features in CZ.com are not present in Sixent but you can expect all the popular tools like Discussion Boards, Media Gallery and File Sharing will be retained and improved upon in Sixent.
- Does your new product mean you're ending the CZ.com service?
- Over time, Sixent will evolve to include collaborative capabilities that may be of interest to select CZ.com customers. As more functionality is continually added to the free Sixent service, we expect that our CZ.com customers will naturally want to use it instead of CZ.com. For most customers, this migration will probably happen over the next twelve months. We will keep you updated and invite you to learn more. In the meantime, if you have any questions, please contact us directly at info@ramius.net.
- When can I migrate my CZ communities over to Sixent?
- You can create your community on Sixent right now by establishing a Group. A strategy to consider is to run a new Sixent Group in parallel with your existing CZ community and link them together. In our experience, trying Sixent out in advance can make the final move much easier because your users will have already familiarized themselves with the new platform. Unfortunately, there is no automatic or electronic migration of users or content from CZ to Sixent.
- How does Sixent compare to CZ Enterprise?
- Sixent Enterprise is currently being released with the same feature set as Sixent.com. That means not all of the features enterprise users of CommunityZero are familiar with will be availablea for a while. Over time, Sixent Enterprise will evolve to include a full set of collaborative
capabilities that may be of interest to corporate customers. Until then, CZ Enterprise
remains available to businesses to build scalable and secure online
communities.
- Sixent Enterprise is currently being released with the same feature set as Sixent.com. That means not all of the features enterprise users of CommunityZero are familiar with will be availablea for a while. Over time, Sixent Enterprise will evolve to include a full set of collaborative
capabilities that may be of interest to corporate customers. Until then, CZ Enterprise
remains available to businesses to build scalable and secure online
communities.
- Will Sixent eventually have all the same features as CZ Enterprise?
- We're going to take this opportunity to look again at what CZ Enterprise offers to corporate customers and update the feature set to be more relevant to how we now live and work. That might mean that some of the features in CZ Enterprise are not carried forward into Sixent but if they are still regularly used, we will certainly retain and improve on them. You can expect to see a similar focus on security, rich permissions and inter-operable tools.
- Are you exiting the online community space?
- Not at all. We think online communities are an essential component of
any social networking platform. They are such a valuable addition to
the way we work and live as individuals that we have built them into
Sixent - they're now called Groups.
- Not at all. We think online communities are an essential component of
any social networking platform. They are such a valuable addition to
the way we work and live as individuals that we have built them into
Sixent - they're now called Groups.
- Does your new product mean you'll no longer be offering CZ?
- CZ
Enterprise will continue to have a place in the market for corporate
customers who want a feature-rich online community platform without
needing a rich social network. We anticipate that corporate customers
will see value in the combination of social networking technology and
online communities, which will be provided under Sixent Enterprise. CZ Enterprise will not be withdrawn as a commercial product unless demand significantly diminishes.
- CZ
Enterprise will continue to have a place in the market for corporate
customers who want a feature-rich online community platform without
needing a rich social network. We anticipate that corporate customers
will see value in the combination of social networking technology and
online communities, which will be provided under Sixent Enterprise. CZ Enterprise will not be withdrawn as a commercial product unless demand significantly diminishes.
- Will you continue offering improvements to CZ beyond bug fixes?
- We're still listening to CZ Enterprise customers for their feedback and
ideas, but we're not planning to release any new features in the
software. All of our engineering effort is now being put into Sixent.
Of course, we will continue to release bug fixes on a regular schedule
as required to keep the software functioning effectively for our
existing customers.
- We're still listening to CZ Enterprise customers for their feedback and
ideas, but we're not planning to release any new features in the
software. All of our engineering effort is now being put into Sixent.
Of course, we will continue to release bug fixes on a regular schedule
as required to keep the software functioning effectively for our
existing customers.
- How long before existing CZ customers must move to Sixent?
- There is no immediate deadline for existing CZ Enterprise customers to
move to Sixent. Of course, we'd like you to join Sixent when our
Enterprise version is ready but we will work with you to determine
whether the transition to Sixent is relevant for your organization. If
you do decide to migrate your communities to Sixent, it may be best to
coincide the switch with the date of your annual subscription renewal.
Alternatively, you could align the switch with a corporate or community
event. Whenever you decide to move, we recommend you have a clear
understanding of Sixent's new features and how they can benefit your
organization. A plan to make the most of Sixent before beginning the
move will go a long way to easing the challenges of transition. And of
course we're available to help you make this assessment.
- There is no immediate deadline for existing CZ Enterprise customers to
move to Sixent. Of course, we'd like you to join Sixent when our
Enterprise version is ready but we will work with you to determine
whether the transition to Sixent is relevant for your organization. If
you do decide to migrate your communities to Sixent, it may be best to
coincide the switch with the date of your annual subscription renewal.
Alternatively, you could align the switch with a corporate or community
event. Whenever you decide to move, we recommend you have a clear
understanding of Sixent's new features and how they can benefit your
organization. A plan to make the most of Sixent before beginning the
move will go a long way to easing the challenges of transition. And of
course we're available to help you make this assessment.
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- Why didn't you offer Sixent to enterprise customers from the start?
- We thought about this a lot. In the end, our belief that individual use
will inevitably define what is important for enterprise use meant that
we decided to focus on a consumer launch and build some momentum before
releasing the technology to enterprise customers. We think it will make
for a much better product in the end.
- We thought about this a lot. In the end, our belief that individual use
will inevitably define what is important for enterprise use meant that
we decided to focus on a consumer launch and build some momentum before
releasing the technology to enterprise customers. We think it will make
for a much better product in the end.
- Will you help to migrate my communities/data over to Sixent Enterprise when the time comes?
- Sixent is a new product from the database up, so it is not a simple
task to migrate communities and data out of CZ and into Sixent.
Certainly for the next year, we don't expect to have a tool that
automatically migrates data into Sixent. When the time comes for you to switch, you can talk to our Professional Services team to develop a migration
plan and get more hands-on help.
- Sixent is a new product from the database up, so it is not a simple
task to migrate communities and data out of CZ and into Sixent.
Certainly for the next year, we don't expect to have a tool that
automatically migrates data into Sixent. When the time comes for you to switch, you can talk to our Professional Services team to develop a migration
plan and get more hands-on help.
- Who should I contact if I have questions about my CZ account or about Sixent?
- For questions about your CZ Enterprise account, you should contact your Account Manager. For questions about Sixent, email Ramius at info@ramius.net.
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- Is Sixent Enterprise fully segregated from the public population?
- Corporate use of Sixent is fully segregated from the public population. That means you can setup custom URLs and brand
look-and-feel, build your own population and run reports to track what is happening without the concern of unintentional cross-over from Sixent.com.
- Corporate use of Sixent is fully segregated from the public population. That means you can setup custom URLs and brand
look-and-feel, build your own population and run reports to track what is happening without the concern of unintentional cross-over from Sixent.com.
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- Can I customize the profile fields for my corporate use?
- Yes, you are able to do this for your private social networks in Sixent Enterprise. In the consumer network at Sixent.com, the profile fields are common to all our consumer
users. If you have a suggestion for what you would like to see
changed, drop us a line at feedback@sixent.com and we will include your
idea in our ongoing design sessions. We're always open to great ideas
of how to make Sixent better.
- Yes, you are able to do this for your private social networks in Sixent Enterprise. In the consumer network at Sixent.com, the profile fields are common to all our consumer
users. If you have a suggestion for what you would like to see
changed, drop us a line at feedback@sixent.com and we will include your
idea in our ongoing design sessions. We're always open to great ideas
of how to make Sixent better.
- Will I be able to connect the corporate site to my existing base of users?
- Just
as with CZ Enterprise, our current online community offering, we intend
to provide a Single Sign On feature as part of our Sixent Enterprise
platform that allows you to connect with an existing base of users.
The details of this will be published closer to the release date for
this feature in Sixent Enterprise.
- Just
as with CZ Enterprise, our current online community offering, we intend
to provide a Single Sign On feature as part of our Sixent Enterprise
platform that allows you to connect with an existing base of users.
The details of this will be published closer to the release date for
this feature in Sixent Enterprise.
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- Will you offer an API to read and write data remotely?
- That's
certainly our intention. We want you to be able to use Sixent as
flexibly as possible. Right now, our priority is to extend the feature
set to a more comprehensive level. Once that is done, we will look to
release functionality aimed at opening up Sixent. That is most likely
to include taking in data feeds from external sources, offering APIs to
read and write data remotely and also tools to integrate Sixent with
third-party applications such as Twitter and Friendfeed.
- That's
certainly our intention. We want you to be able to use Sixent as
flexibly as possible. Right now, our priority is to extend the feature
set to a more comprehensive level. Once that is done, we will look to
release functionality aimed at opening up Sixent. That is most likely
to include taking in data feeds from external sources, offering APIs to
read and write data remotely and also tools to integrate Sixent with
third-party applications such as Twitter and Friendfeed.
- Will you be compatible with OpenSocial to allow integration of external applications into a Sixent corporate site?
- Sixent is being designed as a flexible social networking platform that enables users to do meaningful things. That means opening up the platform to external applications and enabling consumer users to integrate them as they want to. Compliance with OpenSocial standards is one way to achieve that goal and forms part of our longer-term roadmap for Sixent. When it comes to corporate, white-label use of Sixent, IT policy regarding the use of third-party applications will also factor into what the end user is able to do with Sixent.
