1. What is the identity of this site? Is it one of the many websites of the Salesians of Don Bosco?

This is the official international website of the Salesians of Don Bosco. There are now thousands of websites owned by Salesians of Don Bosco in different parts of the world. Some present the work of a particular province. Others describe a particular House or project. This website contains links to many of these sites. It is the main Internet hub for the Salesians across the world and contains official documentation and information as well as useful links.

2. Why do the Salesians need such a website?

During the first meeting of the General Council elected by the 25th General Chapter in June 2002, a decision was taken to expand the existing website of the Congregation which was in then only in Italian. The aim was to organise a central source of information and communication on the Internet; facilitate interaction between the centre and the provinces and the updating of the various Salesian sites.” (AGC 380, 4.3).

The General Council found that the Internet provided the unique advantage of uniting an international, multi-ethnic Salesian society (and a growing number of Salesian Famnily Groups) around a single point in cyberspace, where all could meet to find information and to interact through the sharing of ideas, experiences and creativity. The portal was inaugurated a year later on 24th May, 2003 and has since undergone considerable expansion. Closely linked to it now as AGORA and SDL which are not restricted to 5 languages as the main site is, and which enable greater interaction and availability of documentation. The site underwent major reconstruction in 2009 to bring it into line with a Web 2.0 approach.

3. What are the functions of this website?

As a reference point for the Salesian Society in the realisation of its mission to young people, the Site has a three-fold function:

• to provide information, ranging from the popular (About us) to the official (Documents)
• to facilitate interaction, ranging from sharing resources (Resources) to expressing opinions (Forums)
• to serve as a workspace (via registration according to levels of access) and a channel through which work is assigned to members wherever they are-

4. Why is this space often referred to as a 'portal' instead of a website? What is the difference?

Though we often use the word 'website' or 'site' when we refer to sdb.org, we actually mean 'portal'. We call this space a 'portal' because it fulfils many of the requirements that portals usually have, such as: volume of content, many links, a robust search engine, and a variety of services.

sdb.org is a window on the international Salesian Society. When you enter it a whole world opens up to the visitor. There are links to websites of Salesian institutions across the world. The portal also uses a Google search engine to help the visitor trace material from anywhere within its pages. Forums and blogs are visible in the public domain and registered members can contribute.

5. Is there any best way to view the portal?

Not really. sdb.org attempts to meet all standards in web design, especially those that guarantee the widest possible access.

6. What are the criteria that influenced the design of sdb.org?

The website was redesigned with a simple criteria in mind: to warm the hearts of the confreres! It keeps in mind Web 2.0 principles and tries to respond to the techncial circumstances of users in many parts of the world including those with lower bandwidth.

7. What were the criteria for choosing the 5 languages?

The five languages chosen were: Italian, English, Spanish, French and Portuguese. The decision was taken after considering the results of the random opinion poll (in October 2002) that showed a clear preference for these five. Besides, apart from Italian, the language of the congregation, the other 4 languages had the advantage of being known beyond the countries of their origin, thus enabling the benefits of the portal to serve a wider global audience. But almost all documents are also available in SDL which has not language restrictions. In fact, the most obvious restriction, languagewise, is the capacity to find translators.

8. Is there a way I can open up sdb.org in the language of my choice?

sdb.org always opens up in the language you had chosen when you left it. Therefore, when concluding your visit, ensure that you are in the language you wish to see when you re-enter.

9. How do I navigate sdb.org?

The data in the portal is divided into SECTIONS, SUBSECTIONS and DETAILS

The SECTIONS are divided into 5 groups that are placed on the banner at the top of the Home Page:

A click on any of the above sections opens up a bar on the left of the page that reveals the SUB-SECTIONS under the respective section. Some of these subsections open further into DETAILS.

For instance, a click on the section ‘ABOUT US’ reveals the following list of SUB-SECTIONS. A click on the sub-section ‘Statistical Data’ reveals further DETAILS.

To return to the Home Page click on the title "Salesians of Don Bosco", situated at top left corner of the portal.

An easy way to find data on sdb.org is to go directly to the ‘SITE MAP’. Here the tree-structure of SECTIONS, SUB-SECTIONS and DETAILS enables the visitor to locate information faster.

10. How do I send a page to a friend? How do I print a page?

At the bottom of each page facilities for bookmarking, sending and printing pages are available. Respectively these functions are represented by appropriate icons…

11. How often is sdb.org updated?

The work of updating the site continues each day. It consists of corrections, additions, structural changes, etc. But these updates or changes are announced via the sdb.org newsletter every 1st and 15th of each month.

12. Who decides the content of sdb.org?

The content of sdb.org is the result of decisions taken by the various offices at the Salesian Headquarters. The members of the General Council are in charge of their respective sections (Departments, Regions) just as those who have responsibilities for auxiliary offices (eg. Saints, Archives, Salesian Family, ISS). The web coordinator and his team are directly responsible for the interactive areas of the portal (eg: Focus, Resources, Forums, Reserved Area) the structural adjustments and the daily maintenance.

13. What are the latest statistics of sdb.org?

Click here to see the latest statistics.