Need Help?

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General Questions   [menu]

How much does a registration to ExperienceProject (EP) cost?

Registering and participating are absolutely free-- it takes only seconds to get started. Register now!

How old do I have to be to join EP?

You can only join EP if you are 13 years of age or older. EP is not intended or optimized for users under 16; however we understand that life experiences,and the benefits of sharing them, are applicable for even our younger users.

What is Experience Project (EP)?

Experience Project is the first social experience website where people are connecting with each other around experiences and ideas that matter the most, with people who just "get it." At EP it isn't about who you know, it's about who you are. Learn More about Experience Project

What is the community like at Experience Project?

The community at EP is made up of many unique individuals who together have created a comfortable place to share and connect. It's about support, openness, and acceptance.

Where did the idea for Experience Project come from?

Armen Berjikly, a Stanford graduate, started Experience Project after first creating a support community for multiple sclerosis patients. Inspired by a friend's diagnosis with the debilitating illness, Berjikly built a positive community chartered on empowering patients through knowledge. Along the way, the anonymous forum portion of the site became the most powerful tool of all - by giving a voice to a group of people known to suffer in silence, and the opportunity to be among new friends who truly understood each other's challenges. Read More (EP Story Page)

Who makes Experience Project happen every day?

EP is proud to have some of the coolest and most talent people working every day to create what members have come to love. Learn more about our team. (About Us Page)

What do I do if I have a suggestion to improve Experience Project?

If you have a suggestion, join the "I want to improve The Experience Project" group, and write a story to lets us know.

What are the guidelines for content and participation?

Please reference our community guidelines page.

How does Experience Project make money?

Given EP's architecture, where people claim the experiences and topics that are most important to them while remaining anonymous (e.g., we don't know a user's address, phone number, or real name), EP provides advertisers a way to reach the people most receptive to their products-- without overstepping boundaries. Likewise, members can purchase upgraded memberships that provide access to premium features while helping to support the site. With our backgrounds in online health, product management, and an intense passion for our community, we look forward to bringing conversational marketing opportunities without negatively impacting the user experience.

Does EP sell stories to other sites without telling me?

No.

Can I advertise on Experience Project?

Sure-- please visit our advertising section.

Does EP have a blog widget?

Yes, you can install an EP Blog Widget onto your blog (or profile page on MySpace, etc). The widget will show story titles from EP related to a bunch of topics that you can choose from. Please click here to get it.

Does EP have RSS feeds?

Yes, you can subscribe to feeds from groups-- so you'll always know the titles and short descriptions of the latest stories posted. You can then view this feed in your feed reader, like My Yahoo! or iGoogle. Just go to the group page and click 'subscribe.'

What do I do if my question is not answered here?

Head to the "I Want to Improve the Experience Project" group and ask away!

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Account Questions   [menu]

How do I change my username or password?

Go to your profile page, and click 'Account Settings'-- you may change many of your account parameters there, including username and password.

How do I change my Avatar?

Go to My Page then select Edit Profile. From there you can choose to upload a photo file under 1MB in size from your hard drive, or choose a new logo provided by Experience Project.

What if I forget my username or password?

Simply go to the login page, and under the box where you input the username and password, there will be links to password and username reminder emails.

How do I turn off e-mail notifications?

Go to your profile page, and click on account settings. You can turn off the notifications from there.

How do I delete my account?

Go to 'Account Settings' on your profile, and you'll see the option to delete your account show up.

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Community Values - What are EP's community values?   [menu]

We are about what's real.

• Real is an authentic and genuine representation of an idea, person, or experience.
• Real is not defined by society, it is inherent in who we are and the impact of our experiences.
• Being real is the most intimate connection to our spirit and inner human identity.

We represent authenticity.

• Our community is guided by the members and their experiences.
• EP encourage members to be candid and honest about who they are and what they represent.
• Anonymity allows members to share and contribute without hesitation and fear of judgment.

We build genuine relationships.

• Our place allows members to connect to people, issues, things, and ideas which are relevant and important to them.
• Experience Project believes people are not defined by a single experience, but are a product of all their experiences.
• The relationships between members and experiences are underlined with a sense of support, respect, and openness.

We promote respect and compassion.

• EP promotes members to interact with a sense of compassion and kindness.
• EP believes all members should work to treat each other with respect.
• EP encourages members to appreciate the differences that exist between all of us.

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Handling Member Misconduct   [menu]

How do I report a user who has violated the terms of service?

There is the option to report the member on the profile page of every member, in the top right hand corner of the page, across from their user name.

How do I block a member?

There is an option to block a member on the member's profile page, on the left hand side.

How do I report potentially objectionable content?

Every story has a dropdown on the upper right that allows you to flag stories. Please choose the appropriate option to flag a story.

What if I see a copyright violation?

You may follow the copyright violation protocol, posted in our terms of service.

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Interacting with the EP Community   [menu]

How do I spell check my stories?

There is a spell check button (looks like the letter 'A') on the top right of the story submission box.

How do I subscribe to a group?

To subscribe to a group, go to the group page and click subscribe in the left hand option menu.

How do I subscribe to a story?

There is a check box under the comment box on the story page that allows you the option to be notified of all new comments.

How do I remove a friend?

Visit their profile and click "Remove from Circle" on the left hand side of their profile

How do I find others like me on Experience Project?

After you have joined some experiences, and written some stories, go to your profile and click on "recommendations" on the left hand side of your profile. You will find recommended stories, experiences, and people.

Where do I find a list of the stories I have commented on?

Go to "See My Stories" on your personal page, then click on "my comments".

What if I or another member are in a crisis?

Please visit our crisis resources page. Remember, handling a crisis should only be left to trained professionals, none of which are available on this site.

What should I do if I, or another member, are in a crisis situation (suicidal, abuse, etc)?

Please seek professional help immediately - there are dozens of 24/7 crisis lines with helpful, trained professionals worldwide that can immediately help. To that end, Experience Project has put together a list of outside resources. It is important to understand that neither Experience Project nor its members can provide the necessary and timely help for someone facing a crisis. Professional help is critical and should be found immediately.

What should I do if I feel I am in danger?

You should call your local police. Remember, handling a crisis should only be left to trained professionals, none of which are available on this site.

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Troubleshooting   [menu]

I have points, but I can't seem to buy gifts in the giftshop

There is a difference between points *earned* and points *spent*. You can see how many points you have left to spend in the giftshop. And you can always earn more points by participating on the site!

People say they can't send me private messages

If you're under 18, adults cannot send you private messages unless you know them and have added them to your circle. If you're over 18, please check your preferences (click Account Settings on your profile) for private messaging and make sure you have not blocked mail from outside your circle.

What is the best way to submit a bug report?

Let us know where you were on the site when the error occurred (looking at you personal messages, browsing confessions, using the random story feature ect.) and what the error was. The more specific you are, the more likely we can figure out what is going on, and get the bug fixed! You can submit your report to: support AT experienceproject.com

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Remaining Anonymous   [menu]

How do I remain anonymous?

The best way to remain anonymous is to omit revealing details from your stories. Avoid names of people, place names, and other details that could uniquely identify you. These specific details often lend nothing to the emotional impact of the story, and help maintain anonymity. Also, do not use the same username you use at other sites-- since that could be considered revealing.

Can I use my real name on EP?

You are strongly discouraged from using your real name in any public part of EP. It breaks the spirit of the site and can, ironically, prevent you from being yourself. Under no circumstance are you permitted to mention the real name of another member.

Will my stories appear in search engines like Google?

What if I find something in Google I want to remove?

Delete the content and the search engine will quickly update its links. Again, Google is not permitted by us to store a cached copy, so once the link is removed from their database, it is no longer possible to search for it. In extreme situations, please contact us to see if we can help.

Will content I post on EP show up other places on the Internet, like Google?

Anything you post in a public space online has the possibility of appearing in a search engine like Google, and you must always anticipate that possibility. Many search engines carefully follow strict protocols restricting what they can and cannot index - but unfortunately many others do not. This is why we stress that no personal details be revealed in publicly posted stories that could reasonably identify you (e.g., names, specific locations, etc.). Rarely do these details add anything of value to a story, and they could compromise your identity. For our part, we follow strict protocols developed with Google that they do not archive (story a copy) of stories and public blog posts. Search engines also cannot see your private mail, profile pages, or blogs marked 'private.'

To be more clear, nothing you post privately-- such as private messages or blog posts marked 'private'-- is viewable to anyone but your intended recipient, and thus will not appear anywhere else. Full member profiles (such as your groups, wall posts, etc.) are also not viewable to anyone outside of EP, and we have specifically instructed the search engines to not even link to them.

However, anything that can be viewed publicly without logging in-- such as stories, or your username which is shown in stories-- can be 'seen' by search engines, feed readers, etc. who may then post a link and a snippet from the page (a few sentences long) on their site. These may show up either in search results for a certain query, or 'headlines' widgets on other sites showing the latest stories posted at EP, etc., or a widget showing some of the best stories related to a certain topic. Those links will point back to EP, and the snippet will not constitute a significant portion of the story. This is so that, at any point, you may delete the content, and it's gone (thought it might take some time to update their links). We do NOT permit anyone to make copies of a story's full content for re-publication without explicit consent of the author.

If you follow our rules and do not post personally identifying information (phone numbers, names, locations, dates) in your stories, then these links will only increase the number of readers to your stories and help bring others who understand into your circle. Always remember that anything you post online in a public area can be read and indexed by search engines, so do not reveal information in public areas of the site that you would not want to see on a Google search or elsewhere.

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Promote EP  [menu]

How can I share EP on my Facebook or MySpace page?

You can show your EP pride by adding one of our many badges. Click here to find our badges.

I want to tell my story to help others find EP, what do I do?

If you would like to share your story about how EP has helped you, changed you or healed you click here. You could very well change some one's life and that's just cool!

How can I invite a friend to the site and stay anonymous?

That's easy, you can send an email message anonymously to your friend. If you want to share it's from you, you can do that too!

E-mail  [menu]

How do I ensure I receive mail from EP?

EP sends important messages through e-mail, like notifications of a new comment on one of your stories, or a new private message. Sometimes email programs inadvertently send legitimate mail to SPAM folders, or worse yet, don't deliver it at all. To ensure you get your EP mail, just add us to your address book using the instructions below. We will never spam you, or sell or rent your address to anyone.

AOL® 9.0
AOL® Mail & AIM® MAIL (Standard Versions)
AT&T/BellSouth®
Comcast®
Cox®
EarthLink™ Web Mail
Excite®
Gmail™
Juno®/NetZero®
Outlook®
Windows Live™ (MSN®/Hotmail®)
Yahoo!® Mail
Yahoo!® Mail Classic
Other Providers

AOL^® 9.0

• Open the message.
• Click the Add Address icon on the right.
• Click Save.

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AOL^® Mail & AIM^® MAIL (Standard Versions)

• Go to your Inbox or open the message.
• Hover over the sender's email address/name.
• Click the Add Contact link.
• Click the Add Contact button.

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AT&T/BellSouth^®

• Open the message.
• Click the Save Address link to the right of the sender's email address.
• An address book opens with the email address populated.
• Click Save.

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Comcast^®

• Open the message.
• Click the Add to Address link below the sender's name.
• The email address will be populated.
• Click Add.

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Cox^®

• Go to the Webmail Inbox window.
• Click the subject to open the message from the email address you want to save.
• Click the blue figure with the plus sign, located to the right of the email address in the From: or To: fields.
• The Add to Personal Addresses window displays.
• Click the checkbox next to the email address you want to add.
• Click OK.

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EarthLink^™ Web Mail

• Open the message.
• Click the Add to Address Book link to the right of the sender's email address.
• The Add Contact page opens with the email address populated.
• Click Save.

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Excite^®

• Open the message.
• Click the Add to Address Book link under the sender's email address.
• An address book opens with the full name and email populated.
• Click Add Checked Addresses.

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Gmail^™

• Open the message.
• Click on the arrow to the right of the Reply button (to the right of the date).
• Select the Add SENDER NAME HERE to Contacts List option.

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Juno/NetZero^®

• From your mailbox screen click on the Address Book tab.
• Next to the Lists tab click the Add New Contact link.
• Type in or cut and paste sender's email address into the Email Address block.
• Click Save.

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Outlook^®

• Go to the Inbox and right-click on the sender.
• Choose Junk E-Mail and select Add Sender to Safe Senders List.
• Click OK.

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Windows Live^™ (MSN^®/Hotmail^®)

• Open the message.
• Click the Mark as Safe link under the sender's email address.

OR

• Open the message.
• Click the Add Contact link under the sender's email address.

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Yahoo!^® Mail

• Open the message.
• Click the Add icon next to the sender's email address.
• Click Save.

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Yahoo!^® Mail Classic

• Open the message.
• Click the Add to Address Book icon to the right of the sender's email address.
• Click the Add to Address Book button.

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Other Providers

Adding an email address to your address book, contact list, safe sender list, etc., ensures that you'll receive emails from that sender. The instructions below are generic, so contact your ISP if you have any questions.

• Find the sender's email address and copy it.
• Open your address book, contact list or safe sender list.
• Select the option to add a new contact.
• Paste in the sender's email address.
• Click Save.

Thanks to Geico.com for providing this handy template for each email provider!

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