Using the SWLT website

What do I need to participate in SWLT?

SWLT.ca is our website. It has articles, videos and audio recordings that show you how to find compatible homemates.

What you’ll need

• A computer, tablet or smartphone. Any kind will work.
• A web browser. This is the program on your device that shows web pages, such as Chrome, Safari, Edge or Firefox. If you can look at any website, you already have one.
• An email address. We use it to send you notices from SWLT and to let you know when someone has written to you in the chat.

Finding your way around

Websites look a little different on a computer, a tablet and a phone. If you can’t find something, look for this symbol: ≡. It is called the menu icon, and you will usually see it in the top right corner of your screen. Tap or click it to see a list of what’s on the site.

Looking for something specific?

1. Tap or click the menu icon (≡).
2. Choose SEARCH.
3. Type a word or phrase, such as “moving” or “budget.”
4. You’ll see a list of every place on the site that mentions it.

Our Members’ Chat

Members can also use our private chat, where you can talk with other women. Only SWLT members can get in.

You can use the chat in two ways. You can use it in your browser, with nothing extra to install, and it works the same as it does on a computer. Or you can download the chat app if you would rather have it on your device. Either way works.

You only need one login for both the website and the chat. It is your username or email address, plus your password.

A tip for using chat: reply in the chat, not by email

When someone writes to you in the chat, you may get an email letting you know. Please don't reply to that email. Instead, use the email as a reminder to open the chat (in your browser or the app) and answer there.

Chat works best this way because you can see the whole conversation and who else is taking part, and everyone can follow along. Replies sent by email can get lost, or may not reach the rest of the group.

Your privacy

• We use Canadian services wherever we can.
• We use open source software, which means the code is public and not owned by one company.
• We own and control our own information.
• We never share or sell our lists of members, donors or mailing addresses to anyone.

Need help?

Tap or click any title below to open a help article.

Sign up/edit your profile

When you're ready to join us and look for homemates, you need to start by completing our profile questionnaire. 

Video file

 

Add an image to your profile / Change your password or email.

There's a link on the Edit your profile page to update your login information and add a picture to your profile. 

Video file

To change your password or email, when you're logged in, click on the menu, then go to For Members and Edit My Profile.   'If you have a profile and want to change your password or photo when you're logged in, edit your user account.'  

When you get to your account (you'll see your username, and if you already have a photo, it will show up there), then you can click on Edit. 

To change your password, enter your current password and then your new password twice. 

If you don't remember your current password, you can click on Reset password on your user account page or on the login page. 

To add a picture, you click on the Upload a file button, and choose a file from your local computer and upload it. Any GIF or JPEG file or PNG can go in that place, and then that will be your profile picture for your login account, your profile display and your chat account. 

After changing anything, scroll down and save to make these changes take effect.

You see an Access Denied message instead of content

All of our subscriber content (profiles and chat) require you to be logged in. 

If you see Access denied, then you are not logged in, or your account doesn't have the correct role (if you see Logout on the menu but still can't access content, contact web@swlt.ca to check your account). 

Go to the menu at the top of the screen - if you see Logout, you are  logged in. If you see Login you have to log in to see private content. 

Image

Image

Forgot your password? 

If you don't know your password, it can be reset by email. 

On the login screen, select Forgot password, and then enter your email address or username and click Submit. 

In your email, find the reset message, and click on the link (it can only be used once). 

On the website, click on the Login button. This will land you on your login user page. You will have to enter your Password twice, then scroll down and Save.

 You're already logged in, so you can proceed to Subscriber resources or chat.

Video file

Searching through Profiles

Now you can start to look for other people who you might want to meet at https://swlt.ca/profile-search-26 (on the For Members menu - Find other members).

Video file

Meeting online

We use Jitsi for our video meetings. You can access a meeting set up by someone else by clicking on the link they give you and proceeding in your browser, but some devices may benefit from using the app (on phones you have all of the same features, but the menus are optimized for the small screens). 

Specific instructions may be different for different devices and browsers, but in general, you will click a link or type a URL like https://meet.jit.si/swlt-tech-support (the meeting room name will be different). When you get to the meeting screen, you will have to allow your microphone and video to be used and shared. You might want to test on your system if you've never used this before (just like any new software or service). 

 

Join us in chat 

The place to chat with other users is in Discourse (chat.swlt.ca). 

There's a button on most logged in pages, as well as a link under Subscribers in the menu and user profiles. Your chat account will be activated as soon as you click on any of these links. 

Image

In chat, you can create and reply to Topics (discussions in categories that may be seen by all subscribers), Group chats (join open groups or invite others to a more private conversation), and DMs (direct messages between you and another person). 

Note: If you find a profile that looks interesting, but can't find the username in chat, that means that person has not clicked on the link. Please send a DM to @swlt_web with the username you're looking for and we'll check it out. 

You should set notification preferences to receive email when you're mentioned, or a topic you're following is updated. You may reply by email, but remember that just places your reply in the system -- it doesn't show you the context (what other people may be talking about). 

Chat.swlt.ca uses Single Sign-On with our website, so now, when you have a profile on SWLT.ca, you automatically get an account on SWLT's Discourse as soon as you go to chat to activate. It uses the same username as your profile. To change your username, please contact Kathryn (@swlt_web in Discourse, web@swlt.ca by email). 

We'll all be learning together, so talk to the women in your region's category, and ask questions and share tips in the Technical Support Category.

There are some video tutorials at /using-chatswltca

Getting help

If you need tech support, contact web@swlt.ca by email or @swlt_web in https://chat.swlt.ca to ask a question or arrange a video call.