Customizing a Group

Group Type Defaults
When you create a group, you select a group type as a starting point. The group type you choose adds different modules to your group homepage:

Once you’ve created a group, you can customize it any way you want. All modules are available to all group owners to use in their groups.

Group Homepage Layout
As a group owner, you can select which modules appear on your group homepage and customize the presentation (and, in some cases, content) of each module.

The following group homepage modules are available for the left-hand column:

• Featured Content — This module lists featured posts, photos, and videos on the homepage. You can set the number of list items, from 1-10, and select features by editing the content settings for each post, photo, or video. The “first,” “previous,” and “next” links on the module let people browse up to the most recent 500 features.
• Recent Content — This module lists all recent posts, photos, and videos in a single stream. You can set the number of list items, from 1-10. The “first,” “previous,” and “next” links on the module let people browse up to the most recent 500 additions. The Recent Posts, Recent Photos, and Recent Videos modules are alternatives to this one.
• Recent Posts — In the list view version, you can display 1-10 headlines from the most recent group posts. The full view version adds the full content of the most recent posts with a synopsis from the latest comment.
• Recent Photos — You can choose to display 4-16 of the most recent group photos.
• Recent Videos — You can choose to display 4-16 of the most recent group videos.
• Content Comments — You can choose to display 1-10 of the most recent comments added to posts, photos, and videos in the group.
• Conversation Space — If this module is enabled, group members can leave group comments. You choose whether group comments appear automatically or have to be reviewed and accepted before they appear in the group. Group comments are visible to everyone on Gather.
• Inbound RSS — You can syndicate content headlines from other sites with RSS capability into Gather. You must provide an external RSS URL for this module to display content.
• Announcement — You can post messages to the group using this rich HTML module.
• Custom HTML (left) — This module lets you customize an area of the homepage with any valid HTML.

The following group homepage modules are available for the right-hand column:

• Group Tags — Including a list of tags descriptive of the group’s content can help visitors browse your group and ensure it shows up when users search for groups. Up to 20 tags display on the group homepage, and you can edit them at any time. As content about those tags is added to the group, the number of related content items will appear next to each tag, and people can click any tag to see a list of that content.
• Popular Tags — As content is added to the group, the popular tags module displays up to 20 tags most common on the content in the group. Visitors can click each tag to see a list of the related content.
• Recent Members — This module displays the latest Gather members who joined the group.
• Archives — Useful for a blog or for indexing content, this module lets users click a past month and display all the content that was shared with the group in that month. Up to 12 months may appear, depending on when content was added.
• Stats — This module shows the number of group members, as well as the number of posts, photos, videos, and content comments added to the group in the last 7 days.
• Group Links — You can list up to 50 links to other favorite groups, member profiles, or external sites. The first 8 links will appear and the user can select to see the rest.
• Custom HTML (right) — This module lets you customize an area of the homepage with any valid HTML.

The group information and ads that appear in the right-hand column are required and cannot be moved.

Edit Group Home Layout

1. On the group homepage or any secondary-level page, select group layout in the dashboard.
2. Drag and drop modules onto or off of the layout area, then save your changes. Your updates will be shown immediately on the group homepage.

Module Options
Each homepage modules has settings or edit options that you can use to further customize each module.

• Module Settings — You can change the settings (such as the number of items that display) on modules that include content from Gather. Simply click the settings link, then modify the settings and save.
• Custom Modules — Some modules allow you to supply the information that will be displayed in them, as well as the module title. Custom modules will be “turned off” when you add them to the group homepage to allow you to edit and preview them before you turn them on to make them visible to others. Click “edit” to update the module and save. Be sure to turn on the module when you’re ready for others to see it. The Inbound RSS, Group Links, and Group Tags modules require you to enter specific information, but you can also edit the module title. The Announcement and Custom HTML modules let you use the standard text editor used to create posts to add unique content to your group homepage. The capabilities available when you share posts are also available here.

Group Theme
You can select a visual theme or “skin” to change the look and feel of your group. The theme applies to the group navigation, homepage, and subpages, and to the group tagspaces and search results.

Edit a Group Theme

1. In your group dashboard, select “group layout,” then “group appearance.”
2. Scroll through the theme carousel and choose the theme to apply, then save your changes. The new theme is applied immediately.

Group Graphics
To customize your group and give it personality, you can change its visual presentation using the following options:

• Group Banner — To give your group a unique look, you can create a custom group banner. The banner will appear at the top of your group pages between the Gather site navigation and the navigation for your group, and will replace the banner ad that appears there by default. The banner must be a .jpg .gif, or .png image that's exactly 990 pixels wide by 220 pixels tall. For best results, the image should be 72 dpi. It will be covered in part on the top and bottom by Gather’s navigational features. In addition to meeting Gather’s User Terms of Service (TOS), all banners must adhere to the following guidelines:
  • The group banner space may not be used for commercial purposes. No group owner will be allowed to sell or profit from this space without prior written consent from Gather.
  • The banner may not infringe on any patent, trademark, copyright, trade secret, or other proprietary right of any party, unless you are the owner of the rights or have the permission of the owner to post such content.
  • The banner may not contain adult content, and Gather retains the right to remove any banner that is objectionable or otherwise violates Gather’s TOS.
• Group Icon — You can upload an icon to represent your group. The icon will appear in your group area, as well as on the Gather Groups page, if your group is listed. Your group icon must be a .jpg .gif, or .png image that is a maximum of 6 MB. Square images work best; otherwise, your icon may be scaled or truncated.
• Group Background — You can upload a .jpg, .gif, or .png image up to 300 pixels wide that will be tiled to add a background to your group. Your custom background will replace the default background associated with the theme applied to your group.

Add or Edit Custom Group Graphics

1. In your group dashboard, select “group layout,” then “group appearance.”
2. Browse for the group banner, icon, or background you want to upload.
3. Upload the graphics, then save your changes. Your images will appear on your group pages once it has been processed.

Group Owner View
As the group owner, you see your group homepage with special module controls, dashboard options, and modules that are turned off. To view the group as members will see it, use the “member view” option in the group dashboard.

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Learn More

Click the links below to learn more about group creation and management features:

Creating a Group
Learn about setup options and how to create a group. learn more

Managing Your Group
Find out more about editing group and moderator settings. learn more

Managing Group Members
See how to moderate members and manage member settings. learn more

Managing Group Content
Learn how to moderate, feature, and remove group content. learn more


Creating a group on Gather is easy. Get started now! Create a group