FAQ and Posting Guidelines

Full Version: FAQ and Posting Guidelines

Bitter But Brilliant > ABOVE THE LINE > Announcements, Guidelines & FAQ

potmeetskettle

25th October 2006 - 08:01 PM

Frequently Asked Questions ...

How do I change the picture under my name? (Avatar)

Are there any restrictions on usernames?

How can I view only new messages?

What about emoticons and signatures?

How do I change the appearance of the font in my posts?

How do I use the QUOTE tags?

Are we allowed to post photographs?

How do I use Spoiler Tags?

How do I start new Topics?

What do you mean by "stay on topic"?

potmeetskettle

25th October 2006 - 08:03 PM

Q. How do I change the picture under my name (avatar)?

You should have your avatar already hosted somewhere (imageshack and photobucket offer free image hosting - imageshack can automatically resize images for avatars).

Click the My Controls link at the top of the page.
Click the Edit Avatar Settings link on the Menu on the left side of the page.

Enter the address for the image you wish to use. Make sure you are hosting the image yourself - DO NOT hotlink (bandwidth thievery!) to someone else's site.

If your image is not exactly 120x120, check to see what the dimensions are and manually input the width and height in the fields provided.

You may also choose to upload an image from your computer to the site, but there's no guarantee it won't be lost. (We lost our other online avatar gallery.)

Important Avatar Guidelines:

Maximum avatar size is 120x120
Do not upload graphic images (no blood, gore or NSFW images)
Do not upload animated images (TPTB will delete animated avatars)

NOTE: When you change your avatar, it will change on all your older posts, too.

**Please Be Aware**

Take a good, long look at the avatar you plan to use and think about what you're trying to say with it. If you're unhappy with how this board is managed, if you feel you've been treated unfairly, PM a mod. Don't use avatars to signal your protest.

This will be the only announcement I make regarding appropriate and allowed avatars. I'd like people to examine their profiles and make changes where appropriate. If I see avatars that aren't appropriate, I'll delete them and start handing out warnings, suspensions, etc. Because at that point, you're just being a jerk about it.

potmeetskettle

25th October 2006 - 08:05 PM

Q: Do you have any restrictions on user names?

Only a couple.

1) Nothing profane
2) No names that are so long they screw up the column width. If you aren't sure, keep your name under 15 characters.
3) Nothing that leads people to believe you are a TWoP Staff member.

Q: What if I choose to ignore the restrictions?

Well, well probably ask you to change it. Or, you know, delete it.

.

potmeetskettle

25th October 2006 - 08:10 PM

Q: How can I view only the new messages?

The easiest way to read only new posts is to log in to the site. Then, look at the very top - right of the main screen. You will see a link that says "View New Posts". Click on that link, and the board will automatically search for new posts since your last visit.

You can also tell where new messages are by looking at the column on the left of the main page. If the circle is dark blue, there are new messages and you should click on the topic link. (This also only works if you are logged in.)

Once in the thread, look for a small blue square to the left of the thread name. Click on the blue square, and it will take you to the newest message in the thread.

If you don't want to read the thread, you can click on the blue circle, and it will clear the new message indicator for you.

You can also click "My Assistant" at the top right and the first option is "There are _ new posts" and a link to click that puts all the posts together on one page.

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potmeetskettle

25th October 2006 - 08:11 PM

Q: I love emoticons but the board will only allow me to use one per post, why?

Because one is more than enough. Don't push it. We'll take the one away.

Q: What about signatures? I have the cutest little sparkly fairy I and 8 line poem I like to have in each and every post.

No. A world of No. No signatures. No sparkly crap. This isn't MySpace.

.

potmeetskettle

25th October 2006 - 08:12 PM

Q: How do I change the look of the font to Bold, Italics or Underline?

Directly above the post window you should see several buttons (B, I, U that are used for modifying text. You can highlight text that you have already written and click once on the button corresponding to the option you want and it will automatically perform that function for the text you have highlighted.

If you cannot use the options in the above manner, you will need to click on the option you want BEFORE typing the text you wish to modify, then you will need to click the button again to close the tag when you have finished.

Alternately, you can manually enter the tags (without spaces):

Bold = [ b ] Bold [ /b ]
Italics = [ i ] Italics [ /i ]
Underline = [ u ] Underline [ /u ]

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potmeetskettle

25th October 2006 - 08:13 PM

Q: How do I use the QUOTE function?

As with the font functions, depending on your system, you may be able to highlight text and click the QUOTE button.

If that doesn't work for you, you must either:

a. Click on the QUOTE button before typing or pasting the desired text in, then click the QUOTE button to close the tag; or,

b. Manually enter the QUOTE tags:

QUOTE

The QUOTE tags will look like this (without spaces) .. [ QUOTE ] TEXT [ /QUOTE ]
<br>If you are responding to a post on this board you can:

a. Click on the "Quote" button at the top of the post you wish to quote and the text will automatically be included in your post; or,

b. Manually copy and paste selected text to quote. (If you do this, you need to modify the QUOTE tag to reflect WHO you are quoting. This is done by adding the following text AFTER the opening QUOTE tag: =nameofpersonbeingquoted)

Sample:

QUOTE (->

QUOTE

potmeetskettle

25th October 2006 - 08:15 PM

.
Q: Are we allowed to post photographs?

Yes .. within the following guidelines:

~ Pictures should not be pornographic or graphic (bloody, gross, NSFW, etc.)
~ Images should be NO LARGER than 400x300
~ Pictures should not be animated
~ Images posted should have something to do with the subject of the thread

If you want to share YouTube stuff, videos, flash images, etc., post links - and the links should describe what you are linking to.

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potmeetskettle

27th May 2007 - 08:14 AM

Q: I don't see spoiler tags, how do I post spoilerish information?

Since we don't have true spoiler tags, and since we don't have enough available 'levels' to create spoilers for every single show thread, please use the following guidelines if you have spoilers to post:

1) Use "Quote" tags for the spoiler information.

2) In the opening tag, before the closing bracket; add "=SPOILER" (without the quotes) Like this: [ QUOTE = SPOILER ] (without spaces)

3) Within the "Quote" tag, change the font color to "white". (White is not on the drop down menu, but you can manually change it.)

Here's how your spoiler tags should look (remove spaces):

[ QUOTE = SPOILER ][ color = white ]This is how the faux spoiler tags will work.[ /color ][ /QUOTE ]

And the result would be:

QUOTE (SPOILER+)

This is how the faux spoiler tags will work.

<br>.

potmeetskettle

27th May 2007 - 08:47 AM

Q: How do I start a new topic?

Please follow these guidelines when starting new topics (where allowed):

1) Please check to see if a Topic already exists for the subject you wish to discuss.

2) The Topic Title should be the name of the show/subject: "HEROES"

3) If the subject is a TV show or film, it's also helpful to put the title of the show as the first line of your post in BOLD .. but you don't have to.

4) If the subject is a TV show or film, include a brief 1 or 2 sentence description of the show in the opening of your post.

5) Add your thoughts on the subject.

6) Keep the thread on Topic.

Once a topic has been started, keep replies within that Topic specific to intended subject. If the discussion veers off into something else altogether or you want to discuss/review a different show in the same genre, by the same network, with the same cast, etc., please start a new topic using these guidelines.

For instance, if the Topic is "The View", and the discussion goes from being about what was on the show to the war in Iraq, then it's time to move the discussion to the appropriate thread.

This will make it easier for people to find your topic and help reduce the number of duplicate threads.

Thanks.

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potmeetskettle

27th May 2007 - 11:28 AM

Q: What do you mean by "stay on topic"?

When posting on the site (and especially in the TSux, Jr. sections) the discussion should be about the topic of the thread AND for the benefit of the general audience. The discussion should not carry on about things that make no sense whatsoever if the general audience is not following the particular show or TWoP threads in question.

If rants go on too long or if things get too clique-y or fannish with respect to particular shows, etc., then the conversation might best be directed to the thread for the specific show in question, or Bitch Bitch Bitch, or wherever is most applicable.

Look at it this way .. if the past few posts haven't mentioned the topic/show at all, then the conversation has veered off-topic and needs to move on or be taken elsewhere.

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