Welcome to the User/Visitor Help and Guide
Users functions:Use this manual to learn how to use a this forum (such as registering and posting).
1. Registering a User Name
| • Register
Overview • Registering |
When you have set up your forum or are visiting a forum you will want to register your user name. This allows you to keep the same identity while posting on the forums. You can also keep track of your post count, fill out a profile, and receive instant messages.
RegisteringWhen calling up forums in a browser you will see a menu across the top which should have images for "Home", "Help", "Search", "Login", and "Register". Click the link/image that says register. You will be taken to a screen where you can select a user name. Depending on what administrator of that particular forum has chosen, you can either fill out your password and information or if they have email registration turned on you will be prompted for your desired user name and a valid email address.
If your desired user name is available you will either be able to login or you will receive an email with a temporary password - again this depends on what type of registration the administrator has set the forum to.
You can then proceed to login!
2. Logging In/Out
| • Logging
In • Logging Out • Forgot Password |
Once you have registered, or if you are returning to a site, you can login to the site. In the menu bar on the forum you will find an image/text that says "Login". If it says "Logout" you are already logged in. This can happen if you've already logged in before and chosen to have the forum remember who are you are. This places a cookie on your system. Once you choose "Login" you will be prompted for your user name and password. If the combination is correct you will be allowed to navigate the forum as a user, rather than a guest.
Logging OutIf you are done browsing the forum you may decide to logout. Perhaps you share a workstation with someone else, in this case you would want to log out of the forum upon leaving. When you are logged in you will see "Logout" in the forum menu, select this and the forum will log your user name out.
If your desired username is available, you will either be able to login or you will receive an email with a temporary password - again this depends on what type of registration the administrator has set the forum to.
If you're trying to login to the forum but you forget your password or have lost it, you can retrieve it using the lost password tool. On the login screen, next to the username field, it says "Forgot password?" Click this to be taken to the "forgot password" form. Enter your username on this screen and press the Send button. Your password will be sent to the email address registered to that username.
3. Posting
| • Creating a new thread • Posting a reply • Forums Code • Emoticons |
In order to start a discussion on a subject, you must create a thread, you can do this by clicking the start new thread button on the board index page.
Posting a replyTo reply to a post, you can click the post a reply button at the top or at the button of the table. If you want to insert a quote to which you are replying, you can click the quote button of the post.
For obvious reasons standard HTML code cannot be used in posts. Instead Forums allows the use of Forums Bulletin Board Code (Forums Code) in posts. Forums Code is similar to HTML, but safe and standardized for bulletin board use.
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| Type This | For This | ||
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| [hr] |
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| [url=http://site.com]SITE[/url] | SITE | ||
| [url]http://site.com[/url] | http://site.com | ||
| [img]http://site.com/image.gif[/img] |  |
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| [img width=80 height=40]http://site.com/image.gif[/img] | |
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| [b]Bold[/b] | Bold | ||
| [i]Italic[/i] | Italic | ||
| [u]Underlined[/u] | Underlined | ||
| [s]strikethrough[/s] | |||
| [color=Red]Red text[/color] | Red text | ||
| [move]stuff[/move] | |||
| [shadow=color,glow width, #characters wide]TEXT[/shadow] | Shadowed Text
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| [glow=color,glow width, #characters wide]TEXT[/glow] | Glowing Text
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| [flash]http:/site.com/flash.swf[/flash] | Flash Movie | ||
| [quote]Quoted text[/quote] |
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Emoticons are a fun way to express your emotion in your posting. They can help you indicate whether you are joking, happy, sad, or a variety of other things. Each Forums emoticon uses standard chat-style key-strokes, so it requires no thinking on your part.
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4. Profile
| • Profile
Overview • Editing Profile • Profile Options |
Forums allows you to fill out a profile which tells people about you. You can have your name, age, instant messenger information, personal avatar, and more!
Editing ProfileTo change your profile, click the "Profile" option in the forum menu.
- Password
Passwords have no restrictions, but it is recommended that you type at
least 6 characters, using a combination of characters and numbers. Both
password fields must be the same, simply as a check that you typed it
correctly.
Example: xd8bill
- Name
This is your real or displayed name. This is what will be shown
throughout the forum, in place of your username.
Example: John Doe
- Email Address
This must be valid to register, and things may be sent to this email
address by the forum, such as topic notifications. It is also required
if you ever wish to retreive a forgotton password.
Example: me@mydomain.com
- Gender
You get two choices. Male or Female ;) This is an optional field to
provide other users with your gender.
- Birthdate
Your birthdate, in MMDDYYYY form. The birthday is only used to ensure
that you are old enough to register on the forum. It also allows Forums
to display special items on your birthday.
Example: 07 31 1981
- Location
This is an optional field. You may type your current location or where
you live in this field. It is displayed in your profile for other
visitors to see.
- Time Offset
This is a + or - number to add or subtract to the current time showing
on the forum. The forum's server may be in a different time zone than
your computer.
Example: Forum time shows 13:28, but your time is 14:28.
Time Offset would be +1
- Signature
This is a brief message or list of urls's that you may type in. Forums
Code
code is allowed in your signature. Signatures are shown at the bottom
of each of your posts.
Example: | my site
| my other site |
5. Instant Message
| • Instant Messaging |
Forum is about community and communication. And there are plenty of ways to communicate: Posting on the boards, Instant Messaging, E-mail, ICQ, AIM and YIM. Of course, all methods of communication are only available to members. An exception is when the Forum Staff decides to allow guests to post on the boards: in this case all unregistered users are NOT allowed to do is viewing the Member List and sending Personal Messages to members.
While e-mail is a good way to correspond privately with
members, it has several drawbacks: You must open your e-mail
application to write and send the message; the recipient must open
his/her e-mail application; check his/her mail and your message will
mixed in with all the other mail and it can take sometimes several
minutes to an hour for mail to reach the recipient.
As an alternative to e-mail, Forum offers a faster, more private
method.
Instant Messaging on the boards provides instantaneous delivery to the
recipient's Private Mailbox. The mail is sent and received entirely
through Forum, so neither you nor the recipient have to open another
program or leave Forum. Instant Messaging also gives both the sender
and
recipient greater privacy: No one's real e-mail address is revealed.
Instant Messages show only the handle and name of both parties.
If a recipient isn't online, Instan Messages wait in the member's IM
box until the next time s/he logs in and manually reads and/or deletes
them. Forum Instant Messages is a self-contained, highly private e-mail
system.