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Frequently Asked Questions About the New Message Boards/Forums

These are the questions most frequently asked by beta testers about our forum system when it was in development. If you have questions not addressed here, there is a link at the end to an expanded help file as well as other suggestions for further resources. We also want to hear your feedback on improvements to this FAQ! Thanks to all our beta testers for their help and suggestions.


Q. What are the basic differences between the old forums and the new forums?

The basic differences are navigation and search capabilities, and some new features. Navigation is easier, we have many more options for how you want the posts and threads to be displayed, and the search now includes all current posts, not just archived messages, and allows you to search by keyword, date and time, or username. You can view just posts new since your last log in, or the log in before that, or within a given time frame, or only today's posts.

There are other differences including improved ability to report abuse on the forums, and also some improved adminstrative functions that should make the forums easier to moderate. Also, the new system will enable us to modify features and redesign things as we go, so we can update the forums without having to start from scratch next time.

Some of the new features include the ability to email a thread or a single post to yourself or someone else, the ability to sign up to get email notification when someone replies to your post, automatic signature files, a wide variety of user preferences, and more.

Q. Will I need to register again?

A. No. The username and password you used on the old forums, and in the photo galleries, will work on all the new forums too.

Q. What is the "User Preferences Area"? And how can I create an automatic signature?

A. At the top of each board/forum, click on the Prefs link and it will take you to another screen with a signature block where you can create an automatic signature. If you choose to not have your signature added to a particular post, simply uncheck 'automatically attach your signature' when creating a post.

There are also other options in the Prefs area that allow you to edit whether or not you want the original post added to the message window in order to quote that message, if you want expanded view of the boards or not, order of threads, and post header styles.

The link to each site's user preferences area (log in required):

  • http://forums.cathobbyist.com/prefs.php
  • http://forums.doghobbyist.com/prefs.php
  • http://forums.kingsnake.com/prefs.php
  • http://forums.birdhobbyist.com/prefs.php
  • http://forums.aquariumhobbyist.com/prefs.php
  • http://forums.exotichobbyist.com/prefs.php
  • http://forums.horsehobbyist.com/prefs.php
  • http://forums.insecthobbyist.com/prefs.php
  • http://forums.pethobbyist.com/prefs.php

    Q. What is the difference between expanded view and collapsed view?

    A. Expanded view shows all messages on a forum, including replies to those messages. Collapsed view only shows the first message in each thread and indicates in red to the right if there are any replies to that post and how many.

    Q. What is the difference between "threaded" and "unthreaded"?

    The "Threaded" option will display the discussions in the same way that the old forums did, arranged in sub-threads where replies are listed under the post that was open when the "post a follow up" button was clicked. "Unthreaded" will display the posts in simply chronological order, similar to the digest version of an email list.

    Q. How do we add photos to our messages?

    A. It is done the same way as on the old forums, and there are three options to adding a photo:

  • Upload a photo elsewhere on the Internet and type the URL at the bottom of the message you want to add in the 'Image URL' block.
  • You can use our variation of HMTL code in the body of the message to add a photo you have uploaded elsewhere. See the "Tools and Toys" link for instructions.
  • Upload a photo to the photo gallery and select it from a drop down menu of the photos you have in the gallery. This is the best option since a lot of sites will block you from using your photos elsewhere.

    Q. Can we still use HTML?

    A. You can't use regular HTML on the new forums like you could with the old forums. We had to implement this in order to resolve certain technical issues with unclosed HTML tags. These forums use a variation on HTML. You can find a link to the different codes, right below the message window when you post a message, called 'Tools and Toys'. You will also find a link in the user preferences area. Some elements of HTML are not available right now, but we can add those as we get requests for them.

    The link to each site's "Tools and Toys" area:

  • http://forums.cathobbyist.com/tools-and-toys.php
  • http://forums.doghobbyist.com/tools-and-toys.php
  • http://forums.kingsnake.com/tools-and-toys.php
  • http://forums.birdhobbyist.com/tools-and-toys.php
  • http://forums.aquariumhobbyist.com/tools-and-toys.php
  • http://forums.exotichobbyist.com/tools-and-toys.php
  • http://forums.horsehobbyist.com/tools-and-toys.php
  • http://forums.insecthobbyist.com/tools-and-toys.php
  • http://forums.pethobbyist.com/tools-and-toys.php

    Q. Can we have replies to our message emailed to us?

    A. Yes. In order to have replies emailed to you check the box below the message window when you post a message that asks, 'Have all replies to this post emailed to you?' This will generate an email letting you know when there is an response, and including a link to that response.

    Q. Is there a way to search for only new messages instead of going back through old ones?

    A. Yes. If you click on the 'Today's Post' link above each forum or above the forum main page it will take you to a new screen with a list of new posts toward the bottom of the page. You can also use the "Find New" link to show posts only since your last log in, or the previous log in, however, you will have to log in for this function to work.

    Q. I share a computer with someone else, or use a computer at work. How do I log out, to prevent someone else from accessing my account, or to allow someone to log in with a different username?

    A. Click on the Logout link at the top of each forum, and it will log you out while taking you to a screen where someone with a different registered name can then log in.

    Q. How can I get all those smilies to come up in my message?

    A. You can find the commands to help you create the smiles in the 'Tools and Toys' link below every message window when you post a message, just scroll to the bottom in the new popup window to view how to do them.

    Q. You didn't cover my question, what should I do?

    You can view our Expanded Help File. If that doesn't answer your question, you can email PHPHWyvern.

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