Forum Beginners Thread
At one point we were all forum beginners, (or noobs) and had no idea how a forum works, and how you can do certain things in a forum.
This thread is to answer the commonly asked questions by forum beginners.
Firstly watch this;
"It is always better to post in an existing thread than to start a new one"
Contents
HOW TO
How to create a new Thread
How to post Pictures
How to create a new FOR SALE Thread
How to donate.
How to post Videos
How to PROPERLY search the Forum
ABOUT
User Tagging/Mentioning
User Reputation
WHY?
Thread bumps
Technical Modification Questions - http://www.ozmpsclub.com/forum/new-m...tml#post291362
by @SarcasticOne
Creating a new thread;
If you're new to Oz MPS, the first thing you should do is create a new thread in the "New Members Section" and say hello! This is here --> New Members Area <--
To create the thread;
Select the applicable prefix. This will be displayed in front if the title of your thread.
Tell us as much or little as you want about yourself and your new ride!
Pics are generally a nice addition to your post, so check out below how to include them.
Submit your thread. You have made your first thread in OzMPS, welcome!
Posting Pictures;
THE most common question asked by a forum beginner is "How do I post a picture in a thread?" (Yes I asked it myself)
The forum allows you to attach images, but only pictures small in file size and that can be annoying. The best way to post an image is to host it on an "image hosting website" and then link that image to your post.
There are many websites out there that will host your images for you for free, so choose whatever one you like to get started!
Here is a list of some free image hosting websites;
(I will show how to post pictures uploaded to the mentioned websites into your post)
imgur: the simple image sharer
Photo and image hosting, free photo galleries, photo editing
Welcome to Flickr - Photo Sharing
ImageShack® - Online Photo and Video Hosting
Note: You can also link your pictures from Facebook to your post if you like to upload your pictures to there.
Note2: There is a forum app for Android and Apple phones through which images can be posted too
Sign up to your image hosting website, and then upload the image/s you want to put in your post.
IMGUR
Firstly select the image you want, then;
then paste the link into your post and you're done! The way that Imgur sets up it's links is so that the image code is already attached to the location of the link making it easy as!
PHOTOBUCKET
Photobucket sets up its links in a similar way to Imgur so select your image;
and then paste the link into your post. Photobucket is nice because when you click on the link it automatically copies it
Note: Photobucket has an app for Android (I'm not sure about iOS) and you can upload images through this app, then copy the image tag and paste into your post from your phone
FLICKR
Flickr is a LITTLE different, select your image;
and then your image will appear.
IMAGESHACK
Select your image
To upload an image from facebook, copy the image URL
Tapatalk
Lastly there is another way to insert an image into your post and it is with the Tapatalk app. It is available for Android and Apple devices.
It is not a free app, however only costs a few dollars.
It's a great app, allowing you to sign into many forums and gives you alerts on the go
You can see how i'm logged into 4 forums and have elected to receive notifications for various things from each forum.
Open your post, and you will see the screen shot on the left with tapatalk 2, middle with tapatalk 4 (on an android phone) or on the right a shot from an iPhone
It will then ask you how you want to host it, select "Tapatalk Hosted". (or select "Upload to Tapatalk" as seen on the iPhone)
This uploads the image to the tapatalk server and links it automatically from there. Thats why I think this is the easiest way to do things.
In short:
When you click the "Insert Image" icon and paste the URL, all this does is add the tags [IMG ] ... [ /IMG] around the link you posted. So in other words, you can just copy the direct link of the image into your post and write [IMG ] before the link and [ /IMG] after the link (without the spaces in the tag) and you're done.
Creating a For Sale Thread;
I often hear people say "why can't I post on the for sale section?" This is because there is slightly different criteria that you have to fulfil to create a new thread in the For Sale section of the forum.
It is still exactly the same process as creating a normal new thread, but due to the need of tighter rules on the forum in the for sale section, to post a For Sale thread you need to be either a CONFIRMED member, or a VIP member.
To be a confirmed member you need to have a minimum post count of 25 posts. (Spam posting to reach your 25 post count is not tolerated.)
To be a VIP member you need to have donated to the forum. To donate to the forum read below;
Before posting a For Sale thread, it would be a good idea to read the rules found here --> http://www.ozmpsclub.com/forum/membe...ing-forum.html <--
Also when creating a For Sale thread, you are required to USE THE TEMPLATE!
The template helps set things out clearly making them easily readable. It can be found here --> http://www.ozmpsclub.com/forum/membe...-must-use.html <--
Or here:
Item:
Location:
Item Condition:
Reason for selling:
Price and price conditions:
Extra Info:
Pictures:
How to become a VIP donor;
Donating to the forum has its advantages and helps keep this place running. It doesn't have to cost much but every little bit just helps.
"Proceeds from donations go towards hosting, domain, license fees and maintenance only. Anything that is surplus to this will be given back to our community in the form of prizes, assistance with cruises and social events. We are not here to make money! We promise to give back to the community that helps us to grow!"
Why donate and become VIP? Here is a list of things you get when you donate;
- A snazzy VIP Member logo under your username (this will appear in all posts)
- Your username will appear green, to signify your status
- Access to the exclusive VIP Site Supporter Forum
- Access to the ARCADE!!
- Instant access to Chat box and Member Buy & Sell (i.e. bypass 25 post minimum)
- Access to special offers and first option on club organised Group Buys
- Increased album size to 250 images
- Increased allowed picture size in album to 800 x 800
- Increased PM mail box to hold 200 messages
(This is also the same with sticker sales and advertising revenue)
To donate you will find the button up the top of the page;
From there you can choose your amount you would like to donate (minimum $10) and Pay!
You can elect to pay a one off payment, or a recurring payment either weekly, monthly or yearly.
Posting a Video
The easiest way to post a video is to copy the URL of where the video is located (YouTube etc);
This will make the video appear in your post in exactly the same way that the video appears at the top of this post.
SEARCHING!!!!
Something that many people should know how to do (and new people should learn right away) is how to properly search.
There is a search box at the top right of every forum page. Utilise this. Underneath is the "Advanced search" button. You can refine your search using options selected here.
HOWEVER, there is another way to search the forum! Yes, when I leant this it was a hallelujah moment that's for sure.
Eg,
You are new to the forum and your turbo car and want to run a blow off valve (these are not recommended on our cars in the Vent to Atmosphere function by the way) and want to find what blow off valve to run.
You search with the search button but dont find exactly what you're looking for. Before you start a new thread, try searching the forum with google.
Yes thats right, go to google and type in
Look at that, I see LOTS of relevant useful topics for Blow off valves, so read away.
Anything you want to search for, just enter "sitezmpsclub.com" and then your search criteria and it works wonders
User Tagging/Mentioning
Tagging or mentioning a user can be a very a very handy feature. It notifies the user you tagged them in the thread, and specifically the POST that you tagged them in.
This can be useful if you want their opinion on a topic, or want them to see something you have posted.
To do so, type the "@" symbol, and then the username of the person you want to mention.
When you write the username, the mention function is not case sensitive so if the persons username has some capitals and some lowercase, this does not matter.
When you mention the person, it will turn their username into a hyperlink in your post. You can click on this link, and it will take you straight to their user profile.
Mention shown here, ----> @GibbA <------ (Clicking this will take you to my profile)
When you have mentioned someone, they will get a notification shown like this;
Clicking on that will take you to your mentions list;
User Reputation
User reputation is a relatively new feature to the forum.
The following is a brief description of the rep system. For a more detailed explanation of this system, read this link; ---> http://www.ozmpsclub.com/forum/annou...ozmpsclub.html <---
"Reputation allows members to gauge the reputation of fellow members and at the same time encourage users to be more helpful with each other. User reputation is a ranking of how the community scores a user's benefit to the forum. Its basis comes from the opinions of all of the forum users that choose take part in it. Each member's current reputation level is displayed within each post, just below the avatar and other user information. Reputation appears as a series of small green cubes for positive reputation and red for negative reputation. Hovering a mouse cursor over a user's rep blocks will display a brief comment about the user's current reputation status.
Users gain and lose reputation based on how their posts are scored by other forum participants. Users with the ability to affect reputation will either give or take away points by approving or disapproving with a post's content. To see the comments other users have left for you, visit your User CP."
Ie; It you think this post is helpful or beneficial to the forum, you may want to click the sheriffs badge at the bottom of the post and add to my reputation...
(Or you can thank or like the post)
Thread bumps
I was asked why people post the word "bump" in for sale threads, so here is why.
When a new thread is created, it automatically is placed at the start of the section of the forum it was placed in. Ie, you are a new member and post a new thread in this section, it will be placed first in this section. (After any sticky threads. These are threads that will always appear at the top of the section). Once other new threads are created, your thread will be pushed down the page, eventually to the next page and then seemingly in then into the lost pages of eternity.
HOWEVER, when a new post is submitted to your thread, it will be "Bumped" back to the top of the section. This means the thread at the top of each section is the thread with the MOST RECENT activity in it.
Now you may see why this is useful in the for sale threads. When selling an item, you want as many people to see your thread, and hence, your item for sale as possible. You have a greater chance of people finding your thread if it is at the top of the page of "For Sale" threads.
This is why people post in their thread, to bump it up the top.
Some people like to get creative with their bumps, one i've seen i like is;
In regards to bumping threads, rule 6 from the rules of the classifides on OzMPS states; ---> 6. “Bumping”. One (1) "bump" is allowed per day. <---
(It just gets annoying if you bump all the time, and some people may try abuse this to increase their post count....)
Note: Before selling on OzMPS, be sure to read the rules, found at ----> http://www.ozmpsclub.com/forum/membe...ing-forum.html <----
If anyone has any comments about this post, Ie, additions/improvements, let me know and i'll add it.
I want this to be a resource to new members so they can learn how to use the forum easily!
Enjoy OzMPS!
Cheers.