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General Board Usage FAQ

Register / Login / Search Issues

User Preference / PM / Subscription / Address Book (My Control Panel)

Reading Messages

Posting Messages



Register / Login / Search Issues
Why do I need to register?

It is strongly recommended that you register first in order to fully utilize the abilities of the forum. Depending on the forum administrator, some forums may require you to register first before you can post new topics or replies.

Registration takes only a couple minutes, and allows you to access additional features (not available to guest users) such as the followings:

  • Post / reply messages
  • Edit your posts
  • Edit your profile and choose avatar
  • Receive email notification of replies to posts and threads you subscribe
  • Send private messages to other members
  • Access private forums

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How do I register?

To register, you will need to specify a username and password, and a valid email address. Depending on the registration system setup, you may be required to verify your e-mail address (Admin has the ability to specify the requirement). In that case, a notification e-mail will be sent to you immediately after you registered. Please confirm your e-mail address by clicking on the confirmation URL printed in the notification e-mail. Once you confirmed your e-mail address, you will be able to log in, view, post, and use other features (such as vote, rate message, etc.) in our member-only forums.
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How do I unregister?

Any registered user of these forums will be deleted automatically after one year (365 days) without creating a post. If you wish to be removed previous to this please e-mail a moderator or administrator so that you can be removed.

Upon this request, an e-mail will be sent to the address you used for registration for confirmation. If we recieve a reply from the address to confirm that you would like to unregister, you will be removed. Otherwise, if no response is recieved you will continue to be a registered user until you go one year (365 days) without creating a post
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How to Log-in?

You may log in using the link located at the top of each forum page. A pop-up window will open upon click. At the bottom of the login window, there is a check box called "Save as Cookie" (please refer to our user manual for detailed information), and you can check the box so that you don't have to manually input login information every time you come to the forum. Remember, do not use this feature if you are using public terminals to access the forum.

After you logged in, you will see your current login status at top right corner of each page.
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Why can't I login?

You must register in order to login. If this is not the case, then you might be entering the wrong username and password; or you might be banned from the forum admin (a message will be displayed if you have). In any case, you should contact the forum administrator to find out why.
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Why do I get logged off automatically? Can I log off manually?

If you do not check the "Save as Cookie” box when you log into the forum, the system will automatically log you off 20 minutes after you close the browser. This prevents misuse of your account by anyone else. To stay logged in check the box during login, but this is not recommended if you access the board from a shared computer, e.g. library, internet cafe, university cluster, etc.

To log out anytime, simply click on the logout link at the top of each page, and the forum will erase your session information and bring you back to the homepage of the web site (this is configurable by administrator).
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I do not wish to appear in the online user listings, can I choose to hide my online status?

This option is configurable in your profile, you will find an option "Hide from online user list". Please note that Administrator has the ability to turn "hiding from online status" off.
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What is the member list and how do I use it?

The Member list displays total number of registered members and some of their basic information. You can sort the display order by playing with the arrow keys and , or searching member alphabetically.

This page also allows you to send private messages, send e-mail, visit member’s homepage, or add member to your contact list (address book/block list) using a combination of check boxes.
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Can I search the board, or do you have Full-Text Index search?

You may search for specific posts based on words or phrases that are found in the subject or message body. You may also search by author name, date range, search within a particular forum or within an entire category. To access the search feature, click on the "Search" link at the top of each page.

You can only search forums that you have permission to read.
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User Preference / PM / Subscription / Address Book (My Control Panel)

How do I change my user settings?

You can change your personal information easily by clicking the "My Profile" link located at the top of each page. Any changes you make to your profile will take effect immediately after you hit "OK" or "Apply".

You can customize the forum display to suit your needs (threaded tree style, flat style, or simplified flat style), edit your personal profile, choose/upload an avatar for yourself, or link/upload your own profile photo! In addition, you can add a signature and have it displayed under your posts.
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Can I adjust the forum time zone?

You can adjust the forum time zone by setting the time difference (in hour) between your local machine's time and the server's time.
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How do I add an avatar/profile photo?

Your Profile photo will be displayed in your public profile, and your chosen avatar will be displayed beside your posts under your username.

Our avatar system allows forum members to select an avatar (a small image) from our avatar collection, or to upload their own images to use as their avatars.

To select an image from our avatar collection, please click on the “Click to choose avatars” link located in My Profile page. Once you click on the link, a window titled "Click on the avatar you like”, will pop up and will show you a list of all the avatars to choose from.

To set up your profile photo, you can either put in a link or upload your own image to our server. To upload a profile photo, you can click on the “Upload my picture” link. A pop-up window will appear for you to upload the image from your local hard disk drive.

Once you have made a change to either avatar or profile photo, remember to scroll down to the end of the page and click on "OK" or "Apply" button to save the changes. Please also note carefully as we have image dimension limits for both avatars and profile photos.
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What is the signature for?

While you register, you may have noticed a field that asks you to enter your signature. You can reset your default signature in My Profile later on. It might be a piece of text or a phrase that you would like to be inserted at the end of all your posts.

You can also manually turn the signature on and off on a per-post basis by checking the “add signature” box when you post/reply/edit your messages.
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What is the Private message system?

All Private Messages are stored in "My Inbox". This function allows you to send private messages to other members in the forum. It works just like your everyday e-mail system, but are limited to registered members. You have the ability to send, to read, to create/edit/delete folders, to move messages between folders, and also to delete unwanted messages.

Of course, you can send private messages to multi-recipients at once by inputting their user names (separated by comma) in the recipient textbox, or simply checking the box beside their name from your address book and hit "Send Private Message".

Please note that some members may disable the private message system (editable in My Profile), or put you in their "block list". In these cases, you won't be able to send PM to them.
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What is the PM Status?

"PM Status" bar at the bottom of the My Inbox page lets you know how many messages you have stored and whether you have reached the storage limit. Once your PM folders are full, you won't be able to take PM anymore. If this happens, simply delete some old PM's to free up the space.
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Can I track whether a PM message has been read by its recipient or not?

When you are sending private messages, you can check the box called "Save a copy to sent folder?". This function allows you to store messages you sent, and to check whether your messages have been read by the recipients or not.

To check the PM Read Status, simply go to your "Sent" folder, and click on the recipients' names. A window, "Checking PM Read Status", will pop up and show you the result of the read status.

With our latest release, you can choose to “Always save PM to sent folder” (editable in My Profile), so you don’t have to check the box of "Save a copy to sent folder?" every time you send private messages.
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How can I subscribe to a forum or thread?

My subscription allows you to track the activity of a thread or a forum. By subscribing to a forum or thread, you will be notified through e-mail once there is a post. The notification e-mail contains a link to the newly posted message, and you can just click on it to view the new message.

To subscribe to a forum or thread, simply click on the Subscribe icon located right below your login status, and the forum will take you to the subscription control panel for further customization. This page allows you to review your subscription, and you can also remove any subscription you no longer need.
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How do I use My address book?

My Address Book stores all the members you have added to your contact list. This function works side by side with private messaging system. When sending PM's to a group of users, you can bring up "quick address book" for easy access to your contacts. You can even block any member you don’t like into the "Block list". Like My Inbox, here you have the ability to create/edit/delete groups, and to move members between these groups.
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How do I add members to my address book / block list?

There are three ways you can add members to your personal address book. First of all, in other members' public profiles, right beside the member name there is aicon which you can click on to add him to your address book. Secondly, you may also add members to your contact list/block list from the Member List interface. The last method allows you to add other member's to your contact from the message display interface (please refer to this FAQ). Adding members to your block list works in the same way.
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What is the online buddy list?

"Online Buddy List" (located both in My Inbox and My Address Book) allows you to view members in your address book who are currently online. You can send them PM's or E-mails from the online buddy list as well.
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Can I block someone because I do not wish to receive any PM sent from them?

Block list is designed for the need of some members who do not wish to receive private messages from certain people. If you put some members into your block list, you will not be receiving any messages from them because they won't be able to send PM to you. Messages posted by these people will be hidden from you as well (please refer to this FAQ).
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Reading Messages

I have heard of threaded and plain discussion boards. Which formats do you support?

This forum can be viewed in 2 different formats: Flat Style (Posts are laid out in plain format) or Tree Style (Threads can be expanded and collapsed to show the posts within the thread). Members can switch between these two styles with a single mouse click. Members can also set their default viewing style in their profile.
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Do you have any shortcut that can take me to the first unread post in a thread?

Clicking on will take you to the first unread post within the thread.
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What do I click to go to the latest post in a thread?

Clicking on will bring you to the latest (last) reply of that thread.
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Why some messages are being flagged?

Threads that have been replied within the last 24 hours will be flagged with after the message subject.
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What are message icons?

Message Icons (appear on the left of each topic) will show the "mood" of the post. You can select the desired message icon that best describes your mood when you post.
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Do you support other message sorting systems?

In the message list, you can click on the any column header to sort the messages (both ascending and descending). There are also two drop down lists: One of them allows you to choose the time filter, and the other allows you to filter topics base on the status of the topic (all messages, polls, or FAQ's).
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How can I print out the message I want?

You can click on the Printable Version link on the top right corner of the message interface if you want to print out the page.
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How do I edit or delete a post?

The post options are Delete; Reply; Edit; Forward;Report Abuse; Bookmark this page.

You can click on the icons beside each post to edit, delete, and forward that post. Please note that in some circumstances, forum moderators or administrator may edit your post. Whenever a post has been edited, an indicator at the bottom of the edited post will be displayed.
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What are those tools located next to my post?

These convenient user tools are located next to your posts in the forum above the author name: View User’s Profile; E-mail User; Send Private Messages; Add Member to Contact List; Block this guy and hide his/her messages; Un-Block this guy.

Block/Hide from certain user's messages is a newly added feature to enhance your experience when using the forum. Click on the block icon under the user info field to block/hide all his/her messages, and place him/her automatically into your "block" list. To un-block this user and view his/her post, simply click on the unblock icon.
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What are Sticky topics?

Sticky topics appear at the top of the message list. They are often quite important so you should read them when possible.
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What are locked topics?

Locked topics are set this way by either the forum moderators or board administrators. You cannot reply to locked topics and any poll it contained is automatically ended. Topics may be locked for many reasons.
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What is post revision?

Admin can specify whether to enable post revision for each forum. If post revision is enabled, every message being edited will have “Revision: 1” link showing at the lower right of the post.

When a message is edited, the previous version will be stored and available for viewing. This is a very flexible feature because Admin/Moderators can decide whether or not a message should be revised when they edit a message, thus overriding the default setting in the admin panel.
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Posting Messages

How do I post a topic in a forum?

To post a new thread, click on the located at the top left of the message list. A pop-up window will appear and you can write your messages in it. Every forum has its own permission setting, and therefore, if you don’t see a post link, please don’t panic, because you may just forget to log in or simply do not have the right permission to post. Your permission to the forum can be viewed at the bottom right corner of the forum.
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How do I add a signature when composing my post/reply?

You may choose to include a signature in your post. If you would like to add signature to all posts, you can have this preference set in My Profile (just check the box right under where you type your signature, and remember to submit the change).
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What is e-mail notification?

This option allows you to be notified once someone replied to your post. A notification link will be sent to you via e-mail.
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What are message icons?

Message Icon will appear next to each topic. It gives members the ability to associate a "mood" with their posts.
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What are PGD codes? How do I use these special codes?

PGD Codes are designed to provide simple and effective formatting methods in a post. There are 16 pre-defined codes, so you don't really have to type the codes yourself. You can also format a text block by first highlight a text block and hit the PGDCode button. Detailed descriptions for all available PGDcodes can be found by clicking on the "?" link.
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How do I insert the smiley faces to my post?

To add a smiley face in your message body, just click on the smiley face icons on the left, and the smiley faces will be inserted at the current cursor position.
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Can I upload an image or attachment to my post?

You may attach a file to your post. The allowed file format and the maximum file size will be displayed when you click on "Click here to upload".

For graphical files (jpeg, gif, bmp, png), you can embed the uploaded picture in the post directly by checking the box: “Embed picture in post”.
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Can I preview my post before submitting?

Preview your message before submitting. After you finish previewing, click on "OK" to submit the post or "cancel" to go back to where you left off in the posting window.
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How do I create and vote in polls?

Creating new poll works just like posting messages. By clicking on , a pop-up window will appear and you can enter your Poll Question and vote choices in it. If you would like to create a poll that allows multiple selection (checkbox instead of radio button), check the “Allow Multiple Selection?” box. Enter the poll choices below the message body text box.

Once the poll is submitted, members will be able to vote, view result, edit poll, or even strip poll (some of these options only applies to the poll creator and the forum moderators). There are many options provided when editing your poll. You can change your poll question, add/edit/delete poll choices, and change multiple selections to single poll selection, etc.
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Please Note: In order to post a message on the forums, you will need to become an Encore Forum Member. Click on the Register link on the top of this page and follow the instructions to become an Encore Forum Member.

If you are a new member and need help using these forums, please click on the FAQ link at the top of this page.

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