| Concerning The WordTickler Libraries |
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As outlined in the Mission Statement, The WordTickler Libraries are "a location on the Internet where writers of all genres can hone and exhibit their craft in a controlled environment, void of petty and frivolous barriers to their creativity."
All writers tickle words. They caress and mold collections of words to convey thoughts. The Libraries are essentially forums for the works born of these thoughts. A library is a collection point for works from many writers (word ticklers). WordTickler (Kerry B. Rogers) is the librarian for these collections of works. Opening the doors of The WordTickler Libraries is his way of giving back--paying it forward-- to the community that so helped him realize his love for the written word. He is giving empty shelves to the writing community to fill with their own creations.
Writers all across the Internet are finding that they are fast becoming "writing refugees". Social networking web sites lure writers to their servers with grand promises of a place they can effectively practice their craft. When the smoke clears, these writers are finding that they have become part of an online sales blitz as their works compete with onscreen advertisements that essentially scare away lovers of the written word. In effect, these revenue-greedy social networks are making money from the blood, sweat and tears of unwary writers. Life for a writer is hard enough without throwing this kind of deception into the mix.
At The WordTickler Libraries, there are no advertisements. WordTickler, himself, carries the cost of the site in his effort to "pay it forward". Additionally, graphics are scarce on the site in an effort to remove the glitz of multimedia from the faces of potential readers and allow them to focus on the purity of the written word.
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Well, for now they are. But, hey, these forums are like blank paper, ready to absorb your mental ink. Over time, the main web site will be fleshed out to be a summary point of all that is going on in The WordTickler Libraries.
The most important thing was to get the forums up and running. We have to have a place to tickle our words, right?
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If you are referring to content such as erotica and adult-themed prose, yes; go right ahead. If you are referring to provocative and disturbing words, well, yes to that, too. However, if you are talking about pimping adult material from adult porn sites in an effort to make some porn money, absolutely not. If members do not want to tolerate your writings, that's too bad. However, if I (WordTickler) feel your writings are counter-productive to this community's ability to "pay it forward", you're history. See the Mission Statement for clarification on why "paying it forward" is so important at WTL.
You are welcome to write and post whatever you desire as long as it does not break any laws, place this web site or its owner in any legal jeopardy or impeded my ability to "pay it forward". Freedom of speech can be a wonderful thing when it is not abused.
As you know, Society does not react well to the public display of erotica. Broadcast TV is a good example of this. Because anything with adult content must be hidden behind a veil that is only accessible by adults, you must be very careful where you post your words. If your words are only to be read by adult audiences, you will need to ensure that they are only visible in the "Members Only" areas of the site: Your Members Only Blog, Your Members Only Gallery or in the Members Only Forums. When your words are displayed in the Members Only areas, only those over the age of 18 will see them since WTL requires members to be at least 18 years of age (as defined in the Membership Registration Agreement members must agree to in order to become and/or remain a registered user).
You need only request and you will be give a Members Only Blog and/or Members Only Gallery.
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| The WordTickler Libraries QuillAward™ System |
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A Quill is the award unit used by WTL to allow members to recognize the merit of others' words. It is similar to a rating or point system's unit of value.
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The QuillAward System is the system in place at The WordTickler Libraries that manages the storage, transfer, tracking and tallying of Quills as they are moved from member to member.
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The word "Quillable" refers to the status of a posted message in the WTL forum system, insofar as its ability to receive Quills through the QuillAward System. By default, every Post at WTL is Quillable.
However, the author of a forum Post can elect to make the Post "Unquillable" by checking the checkbox at the bottom of the Post that says "Disable Quilling for this post". At any time, the author of a Post may edit the Post and turn its Quillability on or off (without affecting its previously accrued QuillTally).
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Every member of WTL has a virtual QuillCache associated with his or her membership account. This is the imaginary "bank account", if you will, for a member's cache of Quills. At any time, when logged-in, a member can see the total number of Quills in his or her QuillCache on the left at the bottom of the screen. As Quills are received or awarded, this number adjusts accordingly.
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The QuillAward Button is the button on every Quillable Post that can be clicked to award a Quill to that Post. Note that some Posts may not be Quillable and will, therefore, have no QuillAward Button.
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In the header of every Post, the QuillTally for that Post displays the total number of Quills the Post has earned for its author.
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QuillWhining is the not-so-affectionate phrase WTL members use to describe unecessary or unfounded complaints about the QuillAward System. Being a QuillWhiner is not a good thing. It could affect your ability to earn Quills as members tire of hearing QuillWhines.
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Here's why:- 100 Quills are not that many in the big scheme of things. As some members post thousands of topics and replies, those 100 Quills will be distributed sparingly and carefully.
- 100 is a great supporting number for performing statistical analysis. It's a great deal easier to check the math on a system factored with the number 100 than, say, 87. The number 100 is mathematically "pretty" as even the slightest mistakes will show up at-a-glance (even well past the decimal point).
- Using only 1 Quill as the default would cause too great a strain on the generosity of members. Using 1000 default Quills would encourage members to be too reckless with their QuillAwards.
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Although this was originally considered, the answer is a resounding "no". There are only two ways to gain Quills, here at WTL:- as a gift when joining
- as an award from another member
There is only one way to lose Quills: by awarding them to other members' Posts.
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By default, any Post created here at WTL is eligible for Quilling. However, Quillability for a given Post is not possible under the following circumstances:- The author chose to keep the Post Unquillable at the time the Post was submitted.
- The author chose to edit a Post he/she created and change its Quillability.
- You are the author of the Post. Authors cannot award a Quill to their own Posts.
- You have already awarded a Quill to the Post.
- The Post was submitted by a Guest (anonymous user). Guests neither have nor can they receive Quills.
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No. For a given Post, you can only award a single Quill--ever. Note that once awarded, the Quill may not be taken back. QuillAwards are irreversible.
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No. Within the QuillAward System, QuillAwards are irreversible. You can, however, work something out with the author of the erroneously Quilled Post, but you are entirely on your own in that respect. At no time will WTL administrators or moderators assist in any way while you try to recover an erroneously awarded Quill. As far as WTL is concerned, once awarded, a Quill no longer belongs to you. It belongs to the new owner, 100%.
Again, if you insist on retrieving the Quill through your own negotiation with the new owner of the Quill, you are entirely on your own and at the mercy of the new owner's generosity. Any QuillWhining in this situation will not be tolerated.
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No. Your Quill was earned by the contents of the Post at the time that Post displayed those contents. Since there is no tangible way to determine if editing has improved or damaged a Posts Quillability, the contents of the Post at the time of its Quilling are decidedly the reason for its QuillTally.
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A Post does not have any Quills.
Quills are transfered from one member to another. The QuillTally on a Post merely indicates how many Quills it has earned for its author.
Therefore, nothing happens to the Quills. Since they are not attached to a Post, the Post can disappear without affecting any Quills that it was associated with.
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In the near future, members will be able to see their QuillStats™ by going to the Member List and clicking on their member name.
What you see in your QuillStats will not be the same information presented to the general membership. You will also see private information not available to anyone else.
An announcement will be made when the QuillStats System is finally in place.
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In the near future, members will be able to see members' QuillStats™ by going to the Member List and clicking on a member name.
What you see in your own QuillStats will not be the same information presented to the general membership. You will also see private information not available to anyone else.
An announcement will be made when the QuillStats System is finally in place.
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First of all, you don't "own" your account. WordTickler does.
Second, WordTickler does not encourage nor condone multiple accounts at WTL. If you elect to create more than one account, WordTickler does not want to know about it and will certainly check for irregularities in Quilling if he finds out about your "dual personality". It's essentially a "don't ask, don't tell" policy.
Please see the FAQ Section "Login and Registration Issues" and look for the question "Can I have multiple accounts here at WTL?" for more information on this issue.
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Why on Earth would you think you would be given a useful answer to that question?
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This is not really a question that can be answered authoritatively. There is too much opinion involved. For this reason, when time permits, WordTickler will be writing an essay comparing various award, rating and scoring systems around the Internet. This will give you some perspective on the issue. Keep checking "WordTickler's Public Gallery" and "WordTickler's Public Blog" for the appearance of this essay.
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There is no difference. In the eyes of the QuillAward System, a Post is a Post, whether it is a Post that starts a topic or a Post that is a reply to another topic-starting Post.
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No.
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Please see the rules of each contest for the effect (if any) Quilled Posts have on the outcome. This is determined on a case-by-case basis for each contest at WTL and will be clearly spelled-out in the rules of a given contest.
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Basically, you have two options:- Write something that draws enough attention to compel members to award Quills to your Post.
- Use a Private Message to beg someone to award a Quill to one of your Posts.
Note that the second option explicitly mentions using a Private Message. Do not use a Post as a mechanism for your begging. Keep it private. Rest assured, begging will get old rapidly as it is considered a form of QuillWhining. You do so at your own risk.
Obviously, for the good of WTL, you are encouraged to use the first method.
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No. This is not programmaticaly nor mathematically possible.
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Yes. Before you click the "Submit" button and send your Post to WTL for posting, you can check the checkbox at the bottom of the unsent Post that says "Disable Quilling for this post".
Also, at any time, the author of a Post may edit the Post and turn its Quillability on or off with the aforementioned checkbox. Previously accrued Quills will continue to follow a given Post whether it is Quillable or not.
By default, this box is always unchecked.
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No. Only members may award or receive QuillAwards. At present, guests (non-members) cannot post in the forums here at WTL, therefore, there will never be an issue where a post by a guest could be awarded a Quill.
Note: When the board was first started, Guests were allowed to post. Unfortunately, too many of them were concerned about announcing the advantages of using Viagra™ and other products. The Guest-posting feature was promptly turned off. Only members are allowed to Post and, consequently, award or receive Quills.
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Any post that compelled a member to award a Quill to it is considered to be QuillWorthy. It is simply a term used to conversationally separate Posts that merit Quills from those that do not, in the opinion of the reader.
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There are only two ways to get Quills:- Join WTL as a member (every member is given a one-time gift of 100 Quills at the time he/she becomes a member)
- Another member must donate a Quill to a Post you submitted.
That's it. No other ways exist.
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No system is in place (nor planned) to allow the transfer of Quills between members.
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Most likely, the author of the Post elected to keep the post out of the QuillAward System by checking the "Disable Quilling for this post" checkbox before posting it (or editing the post and performing the same act).
If you are the member who submitted the Post that you are trying to Quill, then that is the root of the problem. You cannot award Quills to your own Posts.
If neither of these situations exist, it is most likely because you have already Quilled the Post. Members can only award a one-time single Quill to a given Post--ever.
Whatever the reason, the QuillAward button should be visible, even if it is disabled (in which case it should spell out why it is disabled).
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This feature is in progress. Members will be able to generate a list of all the Posts they have ever Quilled. Note that only you can see the Posts you have Quilled. This is considered private information.
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This feature is in progress. Members will be able to generate a list of all the Posts they generated that earned Quills. Note that this information will be available to anyone as it is not considered private information.
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This feature is in progress. Members will be able to generate a list of all the Posts anyone generated that earned Quills. Note that this information will be available to anyone as it is not considered private information.
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Who knows? At best, I can give these examplesą:
Example 1: Jane is emotionally moved by a topic John started. She decides that John deserves some kind of reward for his efforts, say $1. Jane locates the post that John submitted, starting the topic, and clicks the "Donate to John" button under John's avatar. She donates $1 via PayPal from there.
Example 2: Maggie has decided to become a "self-published author". She is selling her cookbook on eBay™, Amazon.com™ and other venues. She often visits The WordTickler Libraries and strikes up conversations about her cookbook with WordTicklers here. In any of her posts, she can benefit from an "impulse buy" when a reader clicks on the "Donate to Maggie" button. The reader can simply PM her and say, "I'm donating $10 for a copy of 'How to Properly Cook Iguanas'. Thanks for a great book. Please send it to [blah blah blah]."
Example 3: John posted a huge manuscript in his Gallery. Jane and Sally have been relentlessly ripping it up, helping him get it ready for a publishing house submission. Although many people have donated their time to the editing effort, Jane's and Sally's efforts stand out far above all others. He goes to a post left by Jane and donates $10 there, sending a thankful PM saying "Thanks for your help! Here's a drink on me!" He then repeats the same procedure for Sally.
Example 4: Sally read an opinion piece posted by Jane that was, in her opinion, just ridiculous. She chimed in with her take on the situation in the replies to Jane's post. Her insight was so profound that five people wanted her to know it. They clicked the "Donate to Sally" button on the specific reply Sally posted and donated $1 apiece. Sally's rebuttal earned $5 for a new box of soap.
These are just some examples off the top of my head. I'm sure there are many others.
ą These examples use fictional people, obviously. I simply tried to avoid so many occurances of the generic, slashed "he/she" reference.
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Yes. As a matter of fact, that's the only way you can donate here at WTL.
When you click the "Donate to..." button on a given post, the specific Post URL (link to that post) is passed along in the transaction to PayPal so that the author will know where the generosity originated.
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Absolutely. Donations here at WTL use PayPal's system, which allows you to use any one of several major credit cards.
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Alas, yes. In its effort to corner the market on ePayments, PayPal now requires you to be a PayPal member in order to send money through their service. Sorry, it's all we have to work with, for now.
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When you click the "Donate to..." button under the poster's avatar on a given post, you are donating to that specific poster.
Please take note that you are not donating to the topic starter (unless you donate using a button on the topic starter's post). Donations in forums are specifically for a given post, topic posts as well as replies.
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Since all transactions go through PayPal, you would have to check with PayPal on their policy concerning tax issues. You may also want to check with the recipient of your donation, if this could be an issue with your transaction.
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Since all transactions go through PayPal, their policies dictate how you get to the donations.
At the time of this FAQ entry, a PayPal donation shows up immediately in your PayPal account. If you do not have a PayPal account, you would have create one to access its funds.
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Donations are actually sent to you via the e-mail address you use at PayPal. If you do not have a PayPal e-mail address, PayPal will still be happy to hold your interest-bearing donation in their own account (ready to deliver to you on the day you decide to sign-up with their service and retrieve it).
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Yes. The limit is imposed by your wallet (I kill me).
Okay... PayPal may have limits. Since we pass you on to their system, you would have to check with PayPal on transaction limitations.
(What a nice problem to have to worry about!)
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Your transaction actually takes place over at PayPal. No transaction information is tracked here at WTL.
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| So You Want to Have Your Own Blog? |
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Wikipedia has a great piece on the origin of the word "Blog". This link opens that entry in a separate tab or window.
Essentially, a Blog is a chronicle or diary that is visible online to other people.
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Well, first, you must be a member. Only members can have a Blog at The WordTickler Libraries (WTL). If you are not currently a member, you can register as a member by clicking on this link (or by clicking "Register" in the header of this page).
Any member may have his or her own Blogs. I say "Blogs" because each member is allowed both a Public and Private Blog. All one needs do is send me a private message. In your message, please indicate whether you want a Public Blog, a Private Blog, or both. I'll be happy to create both, either or one of them for you. You'll need to include two things for each Blog you want:
1. The Name of the Blog
2. The Description of the Blog
Let's use an imaginary user, Kermit, to see what he'd have to do to get Blogged.
1. Kermit would register as a member. He receives a confirmation e-mail and, after confirming his e-mail address, he would be a full-fledged member.
2. Kermit would then login to WTL. He'd use the "Log in" link in the upper right area of the forum area at WTL.
3. Let's say Kermit wants both a Public and Private Blog. He would send me a private message saying:
"Hey, WT. Let me have a Public Blog called 'Kermit's Public Blog' and give it a description saying 'Musings of a Green Amphibian'. I'd also like a Private Blog called 'Kermit's Private Rants' with a description that says 'My Belly's On the Lily Pad'."
4. That's pretty cut and dried--albeit weird. I'll then go off and create the two Blogs for Kermit and notify him when it's done. It only takes a minute or two.
Kermit will then become the moderator of his own Public and Private Blogs, able to add content, manage comments and move things around as he sees fit.
For instance, he may wish to move a work from his Private Blog to the Public Blog for a "viewing" he wishes to give to a prospective agent, editor or publication interested in syndicating or outright buying his words.
Conversely, he may wish to move something from his Public Blog to his Private Blog because it has recently been submitted to a publisher who requires it be removed from the public eye.
Whatever the reason, he will have complete control of his Blogs' contents and comments.
I highly recommend you include the word "Public" somewhere in the name of your Blog title so that members who comment on Blog entries will always know whether or not their comments will be seen by members only or visible to the entire Internet (search spiders included). Perhaps Kermit would want to name his Public Blog "Green Frog Public Blog" (heh, I kill me).
As you can see at the top of every page on this web site, you now have the ability to use RSS and Atom Syndication with your Blog. If your Blog is picked up by a search engine spider, it will only be visible to the Internet if it is a Public Blog.
Private Blogs will not be accessible by search engines as they will not be able to access the RSS/Atom Syndication URL since it is directly linked to the viewer's ability to access the forums. Even if someone publishes the RSS/Atom Syndication URL for your Private Blog, it will still be inaccessible by non-members (search engines included).
However, Private Blogs that are syndicated via RSS or Atom are visible to bona fide, registered members of The WordTickler Libraries.
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This is an easy one. Two words:
Effortless Exposure
That's right, effortless. There is a feature built-in to The WordTickler Libraries (WTL) forums that give you a powerful angle of exposing your Blog elsewhere. It is the BBCode "[web]" feature.
When you place a link in a forum post surrounded by "[web]" and "[/web]" (quotes not included), the web page the link points to is embedded within the body of your post. Take a look at this example (which opens in another tab or window):
A Lipogram: A Story of Over 50,000 Words Without Using the Letter 'E'
See how the off-site web page appears to be embedded within the body of the post? This means that you can edit and maintain a Blog somewhere out there on the Internet and actually embed it, live, here--where it will be displayed with all your edits and changes at the off-site link.
Essentially, you're getting free exposure to work that you only have to accomplish once--elsewhere.
To use this feature is simple:
1. Create a new post in your Blog area.
2. In the body of that post, put nothing except for the single line "[web]http://www.myoffsiteblog.com[/web]".
3. Be sure to replace "http://www.myoffsiteblog.com" with the actual URL to your off-site Blog.
4. Do not include the double quotes around the example in step 2.
That's it!
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| So You Want to Have Your Own Gallery? |
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A Gallery is a Forum completely controlled by a member where that member can exhibit his or her works as Topics within the Forum (Gallery). The member can allow replies (comments) or lock the exhibited work where no replies may be added. Additionally, the member can determine whether replies are allowed by members only or everyone, including anonymous visitors.
Members are allowed one Public Gallery and one Private Gallery.
Public Galleries are visible to the entire Internet. This would be a good place to exhibit works that one wishes the whole world to see. Anonymous visitors and search engine spiders can see every word in a Public Gallery.
Private Galleries are only visible to registered members of The WordTickler Libraries. Any work exhibited in a Private Gallery is hidden from non-members and search engines. Only members will be able to see Private Gallery contents.
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Well, first, you must be a member. Only members can have a Gallery at The WordTickler Libraries (WTL). If you are not currently a member, you can register as a member by clicking on this link (or by clicking "Register" in the header of this page).
Any member may have his or her own Galleries. I say "Galleries" because each member is allowed both a Public and Private Gallery. All one needs do is send me a private message. In your message, please indicate whether you want a Public Gallery, a Private Gallery, or both. I'll be happy to create both, either or one of them for you. You'll need to include two things for each Gallery you want:
1. The Name of the Gallery
2. The Description of the Gallery
Let's use an imaginary user, Kermit, to see what he'd have to do to get Galleries.
1. Kermit would register as a member. He receives a confirmation e-mail and, after confirming his e-mail address, he would be a full-fledged member.
2. Kermit would then login to WTL. He'd use the "Log in" link in the upper right area of the forum area at WTL.
3. Let's say Kermit wants both a Public and Private Gallery. He would send me a private message saying:
"Hey, WT. Let me have a Public Gallery called 'Kermit's Public Writings' and give it a description saying 'Black Ink from a Green Amphibian'. I'd also like a Private Gallery called 'Kermit's Private Scribblings' with a description that says 'Webbed Content for the Eyes of Members Only'."
4. That's pretty cut and dried--albeit weird. I'll then go off and create the two Galleries for Kermit and notify him when it's done. It only takes a minute or two.
Kermit will then become the moderator of his own Public and Private Galleries, able to add content, manage comments and move things around as he sees fit.
For instance, he may wish to move a poem from his Private Gallery to the Public Gallery for a "viewing" he wishes to give to a prospective agent, editor or publication interested in buying his words.
Conversely, he may wish to move something from his Public Gallery to his Private Gallery because it has recently been submitted to a publisher who requires it be removed from the public eye.
Whatever the reason, he will have complete control of his Galleries' contents and comments.
I highly recommend you include the word "Public" somewhere in the name of your Gallery title so that members who comment on Gallery entries will always know whether or not their comments will be seen by members only or visible to the entire Internet (search spiders included).
As you can see at the top of every page on this web site, you now have the ability to use RSS and Atom Syndication with your Gallery. If your Gallery is picked up by a search engine spider, it will only be visible to the Internet if it is a Public Gallery.
Private Galleries will not be accessible by search engines as they will not be able to access the RSS/Atom Syndication URL since it is directly linked to the viewer's ability to access the forums. Even if someone publishes the RSS/Atom Syndication URL for your Private Gallery, it will still be inaccessible by non-members (search engines included).
However, Private Galleries that are syndicated via RSS or Atom are visible to bona fide, registered members of The WordTickler Libraries.
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This is an easy one. Two words:
Effortless Exposure
That's right, effortless. There is a feature built-in to The WordTickler Libraries (WTL) forums that give you a powerful angle of exposing your writings that exist elsewhere. It is the BBCode "[web]" feature.
When you place a link in a forum post surrounded by "[web]" and "[/web]" (quotes not included), the web page the link points to is embedded within the body of your post. Take a look at this example (which opens in another tab or window):
A Lipogram: A Story of Over 50,000 Words Without Using the Letter 'E'
See how the off-site web page appears to be embedded within the body of the post? This means that you can edit and maintain content somewhere out there on the Internet and actually embed it, live, here--where it will be displayed with all your edits and changes at the off-site link.
Essentially, you're getting free exposure to work that you only have to accomplish once--elsewhere.
To use this feature is simple:
1. Create a new post in your Gallery area.
2. In the body of that post, put nothing except for the single line "[web]http://www.myoffsitecontent.com[/web]".
3. Be sure to replace "http://www.myoffsitecontent.com" with the actual URL to your off-site content.
4. Do not include the double quotes around the example in step 2.
That's it!
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| Login and Registration Issues |
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Have you registered? Seriously, you must register in order to log in. Have you been banned from the board? (A message will be displayed if you have.) If so, you should contact the webmaster or board administrator to find out why. If you have registered and are not banned and you still cannot log in, then check and double-check your username and password. Usually this is the problem; if not, please send an e-mail to wordtickler@wordticklers.com explaining your dilemma.
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WordTickler, the owner/operator of these forums had made registration a requirement for those wanting specific privileges. Registration will give you access to additional features not available to guest users such as definable avatar images, private messaging, emailing to fellow users, usergroup subscription, etc. It only takes a few minutes to register so it is recommended you do so.
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If you do not check the Log me in automatically box when you log in, the board will only keep you logged in for a preset time. This prevents misuse of your account by anyone else. To stay logged in, check the box during login. This is not recommended if you access the board from a shared computer, e.g. library, internet cafe, university cluster, etc.
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In your profile you will find an option Hide your online status; if you switch this on you'll only appear to board administrators or to yourself. You will be counted as a hidden user.
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Don't panic! While your password cannot be retrieved it can be reset. To do this go to the login page and click I've forgotten my password. Follow the instructions and you should be back online in no time.
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First check that you are entering the correct username and password. If they are okay then one of two things may have happened: if COPPA support is enabled and you clicked the I am under 13 years old link while registering then you will have to follow the instructions you received. If this is not the case then maybe your account need activating. Some boards will require all new registrations be activated, either by yourself or by the administrator before you can log on. When you registered it would have told you whether activation was required. If you were sent an email then follow the instructions; if you did not receive the email then check that your email address is valid. One reason activation is used is to reduce the possibility of rogue users abusing the board anonymously. If you are sure the email address you used is valid then try contacting the board administrator.
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The most likely reasons for this are: you entered an incorrect username or password (check the email you were sent when you first registered) or the administrator has deleted your account for some reason. If it is the latter case then perhaps you did not post anything? It is usual for boards to periodically remove users who have not posted anything so as to reduce the size of the database. Try registering again and get involved in discussions.
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Multiple accounts are neither encouraged nor condoned here at WTL.
However, to allow them the privilege to write freely and publicly without catching the attention of family, friends and acquaintances (perhaps via a search engine), members often choose to use a pen name. Pen names are fine; identities are not something we care about here at WTL. The reasons members use pen names are their own. Thus, WTL will tolerate more than one account for a person as they strive to remain anonymous.
But (and this is a big "but"), the moment a member reveals his or her true identity under a chosen pen name (in a forum post) or in any way reveals the ownership connection between two accounts, multiple accounts for that member will no longer be allowed. The member will have to accept that any privacy he or she might have been enjoying has been compromised and communicate to WordTickler which account will continue to exist. Any other account associated with that member will be unceremoniously closed.
Also, no member who has more than one account may use any of those accounts to Quill posts from the member's other accounts. Though not available to the general membership, every Quilled Post at WTL is stored with the member ID of the Quilling member. This type of dishonest activity will be caught and the member will be banned. Period.
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| User Preferences and settings |
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All your settings (if you are registered) are stored in the database. To alter them click the Profile link (generally shown at the top of pages but this may not be the case). This will allow you to change all your settings.
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The times are almost certainly correct; however, what you may be seeing are times displayed in a timezone different from the one you are in. If this is the case, you should change your profile setting for the timezone to match your particular area, e.g. London, Paris, New York, Sydney, etc. Please note that changing the timezone, like most settings, can only be done by registered users. So if you are not registered, this is a good time to do so, if you pardon the pun!
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If you are sure you have set the timezone correctly and the time is still different, the most likely answer is daylight savings time (or summer time as it is known in the UK and other places). The board is not designed to handle the changeovers between standard and daylight time so during summer months the time may be an hour different from the real local time.
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The most likely reasons for this are either the administrator did not install your language or someone has not translated this board into your language. Try asking the board administrator if they can install the language pack you need or if it does not exist, please feel free to create a new translation. More information can be found at the phpBB Group website (see link at bottom of pages)
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There may be two images below a username when viewing posts. The first is an image associated with your rank; generally these take the form of stars or blocks indicating how many posts you have made or your status on the forums. Below this may be a larger image known as an avatar; this is generally unique or personal to each user. It is up to the board administrator to enable avatars and they have a choice over the way in which avatars can be made available. If you are unable to use avatars then this is the decision of the board admin and you should ask them their reasons (we're sure they'll be good!)
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In general you cannot directly change the wording of any rank (ranks appear below your username in topics and on your profile depending on the style used). Most boards use ranks to indicate the number of posts you have made and to identify certain users. For example, moderators and administrators may have a special rank. Please do not abuse the board by posting unnecessarily just to increase your rank -- you will probably find the moderator or administrator will simply lower your post count.
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Sorry, but only registered users can send email to people via the built-in email form (if the admin has enabled this feature). This is to prevent malicious use of the email system by anonymous users.
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Easy -- click the relevant button on either the forum or topic screens. You may need to register before you can post a message. The facilities available to you are listed at the bottom of the forum and topic screens (the You can post new topics, You can vote in polls, etc. list)
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Unless you are the board admin or forum moderator you can only edit or delete your own posts. You can edit a post (sometimes for only a limited time after it was made) by clicking the edit button for the relevant post. If someone has already replied to the post, you will find a small piece of text output below the post when you return to the topic that lists the number of times you edited it. This will only appear if no one has replied; it also will not appear if moderators or administrators edit the post (they should leave a message saying what they altered and why). Please note that normal users cannot delete a post once someone has replied.
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To add a signature to a post you must first create one; this is done via your profile. Once created you can check the Add Signature box on the posting form to add your signature. You can also add a signature by default to all your posts by checking the appropriate radio box in your profile. You can still prevent a signature being added to individual posts by un-checking the add signature box on the posting form.
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Creating a poll is easy -- when you post a new topic (or edit the first post of a topic, if you have permission) you should see a Add Poll form below the main posting box. If you cannot see this then you probably do not have rights to create polls. You should enter a title for the poll and then at least two options -- to set an option type in the poll question and click the Add option button. You can also set a time limit for the poll, 0 being an infinite amount. There will be a limit to the number of options you can list, which is set by the board administrator
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As with posts, polls can only be edited by the original poster, a moderator, or board administrator. To edit a poll, click the first post in the topic, which always has the poll associated with it. If no one has cast a vote then users can delete the poll or edit any poll option. However, if people have already placed votes only moderators or administrators can edit or delete it; this is to prevent people rigging polls by changing options mid-way through a poll
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Some forums may be limited to certain users or groups. To view, read, post, etc. you may need special authorization which only the forum moderator and board administrator can grant, so you should contact them.
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Only registered users can vote in polls so as to prevent spoofing of results. If you have registered and still cannot vote then you probably do not have appropriate access rights.
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| Formatting and Topic Types |
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BBCode is a special implementation of HTML. Whether you can use BBCode is determined by the administrator. You can also disable it on a per post basis from the posting form. BBCode itself is similar in style to HTML: tags are enclosed in square braces [ and ] rather than < and > and it offers greater control over what and how something is displayed. For more information on BBCode see the guide which can be accessed from the posting page.
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That depends on whether the administrator allows you to; they have complete control over it. If you are allowed to use it, you will probably find only certain tags work. This is a safety feature to prevent people from abusing the board by using tags which may destroy the layout or cause other problems. If HTML is enabled you can disable it on a per post basis from the posting form.
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Smileys, or Emoticons, are small graphical images which can be used to express some feeling using a short code, e.g. :) means happy, :( means sad. The full list of emoticons can be seen via the posting form. Try not to overuse smileys, though, as they can quickly render a post unreadable and a moderator may decide to edit them out or remove the post altogether.
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Images can indeed be shown in your posts. However, there is no facility at present for uploading images directly to this board. Therefore you must link to an image stored on a publicly accessible web server, e.g. http://www.some-unknown-place.net/my-picture.gif. You cannot link to pictures stored on your own PC (unless it is a publicly accessible server) nor to images stored behind authentication mechanisms such as Hotmail or Yahoo mailboxes, password-protected sites, etc. To display the image use either the BBCode [img] tag or appropriate HTML (if allowed).
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Announcements often contain important information and you should read them as soon as possible. Announcements appear at the top of every page in the forum to which they are posted. Whether or not you can post an announcement depends on the permissions required, which are set by the administrator.
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Sticky topics appear below any announcements in viewforum and only on the first page. They are often quite important so you should read them where possible. As with announcements the board administrator determines what permissions are required to post sticky topics in each forum.
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Locked topics are set this way by either the forum moderator or board administrator. You cannot reply to locked topics and any poll contained inside is automatically ended. Topics may be locked for many reasons.
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button is a print pagination removal button (with the capability of invoking your browser's print feature from the re-pagination preview). It is used to cancelling the board's fixed pagination when printing, creating a more readable and printer-friendly output.