Frequently Asked Questions

Here are the answers to a few questions that have been asked about the Link and Think project. After reading this FAQ and the other pages on this site, if you still have questions, feel free to ask by sending e-mail to help@linkandthink.org.

Do I have to take down my whole website to participate in Link and Think?

No! In fact, the whole idea behind Link and Think is to leave your existing personal weblog, journal, diary, newspage, blog or whatever in place and use it for your personal response to HIV/AIDS.

If you keep a links-based newspage, for example, you could choose to seek out only AIDS-related news for the day, with associated personal commentary about the articles you selected and what you learned from them.

If you publish a journal or a diary, you might choose to write an entry about your own experiences with HIV/AIDS, tell about a friend living with HIV who inspires you, remember a loved one who died, or tell a story about how you learned about AIDS or what you do to protect yourself and those you love.

There are hundreds of possible ways to participate, but the main objective is to create -- if only for a day -- a personal response to the AIDS pandemic in the form of a weblog entry. If you "take down" your page on World AIDS Day, you may be squandering an opportunity to educate and enlighten your own unique readership.

Is displaying a badge or banner required?

A few Link and Think Images are provided if you wish to display one on your website, but it isn't required. You may even wish to create your own graphic image or display none at all. If you do use one of the Link and Think Images on your website, please consider making it a link back to the main page at http://www.linkandthink.org/ so other folks can learn about the project and perhaps participate themselves!

I forgot to sign up? Can I still participate?

Of course. This isn't a club or clique or anything like that. If you sign up to let us know you're taking part, we'll include your site on the list of participants, but it isn't required. We encourage everyone to observe World AIDS Day in whatever way they feel is most appropriate for them.

I can't seem to make the Participate form work. How can I let you know my website is taking part?

If you are having difficulty using the web form, you may send e-mail to participate@linkandthink.org. Please be sure to include the name of your website and the URL. If your website is published in a language other than English, please let us know that too.

Why doesn't my website appear in the Participants list?

It may take a while after you submit your website for it to appear in the list of participants. That's because this isn't an automatic process. Your submission is reviewed by real live human beings before being added to the list. (Don't worry, we're not looking for ways to reject you! We just check each link to make sure it resolves correctly and that it isn't a commercial site, spam factory or commercial porn link.)

If your website hasn't appeared in the participants list within 48 hours of submission, something may have gone wrong. Go ahead and submit your site again. If you have questions, send an e-mail to help@linkandthink.org.

Why do you want my e-mail address?

If you sign up to participate in Link and Think, an e-mail address is required, but we will never, ever misuse it.

Here is how we use your e-mail address: After you sign up, you'll receive a confirmation e-mail to let you know we received your submission. A few days before World AIDS Day (December 1), we'll send a reminder e-mail to all participants. Finally, after December 1, you'll receive a wrap-up message thanking you for taking part and passing along any special news about the project. Next year, you'll get a reminder a few weeks before World AIDS Day, encouraging you to participate again if you like.

That's it! Four whole e-mails and then we throw out the list. Your e-mail address is never published on the web (the participant list includes only your site name and URL) and never shared with any company, organization or individual.

If something truly extraordinary happens concerning the project or if there is some problem with your submission, we might send out an additional message or two, but we take very seriously every effort to make sure that you're not spammed, solicited or otherwise bothered just because you trusted us with a little info. If you have any concerns about this policy, send us at e-mail at help@linkandthink.org.

This is just some sort of popularity thing, isn't it?

No. Participating in Link and Think shouldn't be seen as a way to drive traffic to your website or to make you more "popular" in the weblog or journal communities. One of the keys to this project is that each participating website has its own unique audience -- usually friends, family members and peers of the publisher. By speaking directly to your own readers and linking to sites about HIV/AIDS that you have discovered and trust, you magnify the potential to reach a much more varied constituency than any one site could do independently.

Signing up to participate in Link and Think doesn't automatically add you to any secretive "A-List" or make you part of some elite clique. The purpose of this project is simply to raise awareness about HIV/AIDS and its effect on the world. If you are considering signing up simply to increase your hit count or to curry favor with a group of "popular kids," you may wish to reconsider.