| Who's Who on the TimeBanks USA Forums |
| What are Webmasters? Webmasters are people assigned the highest level of control over the entire forum. These people can control all facets of forum operation which include setting permissions, creating usergroups or moderators, etc. They also have full moderator capabilities in all the forums. Back to top |
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| What are Moderators? Moderators are individuals (or groups of individuals) whose job it is to look after the running of individual forums from day to day. They have the power to edit or delete posts and lock, unlock, move, delete and split topics in the forum they moderate. Generally moderators are there to prevent people going off-topic or posting abusive or offensive material. Back to top |
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| Login and Registration Issues |
| Why can't I log in? Have you registered? You must register in order to log in. Have you been banned from the forum? (A message will be displayed if you have.) If so, you should contact the webmaster (sysadmin@timebanks.org) 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, contact the webmaster -- they may have incorrect configuration settings. Back to top |
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| Why do I need to register at all? Creating community is one of the main motivations for TBUSA to set up and run these forums. By registering you will acknowledge that you are either 1) interested in time banking but not yet part of a time bank, 2) a time bank member or 3) a time bank coordinator. We have a LOT both to teach each other and to learn from each other. It only takes a few minutes to register, so please join us! Back to top |
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| Why do I get logged off automatically? If you do not check the Log me in automatically box when you log in, the forum 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 forum from a shared computer, e.g. library, internet cafe, university cluster, etc. Back to top |
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| How do I prevent my username from appearing in the online user listings? In your profile you will find an option Hide your online status; if you switch this on, , then when you Log in, the only person who can see that you are online will be the forum moderators and yourself. If you look at the bottom of the forums screens, you will see a summary of who is logged on to the forums at the time. One of the categories is Hidden Users. You will show up as one of the hidden users. Back to top |
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| I've lost my password! 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. Back to top |
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| I registered but cannot log in! First check that you are entering the correct username and password. If they are okay then one of two things may have happened: when you were registering, if you clicked the I am under 13 years old link, the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) support has been enabled. You will have to follow the instructions you received before you'll be able to log in. The second possibility is that your account may need activating. The TimeBanks USA forums requires all new registrations be activated by the webmaster 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 forums anonymously. If you are sure the email address you used is valid then try contacting the webmaster (sysadmin@timebanks.org). Back to top |
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| User Preferences and settings |
| How do I change my settings? All your settings (if you are registered) are stored in the database. To alter them click the Profile link at the bottom of each Forums page. This will allow you to change all your settings. Back to top |
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| The times are not correct! The times you are seeing may represent 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! Back to top |
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| I changed the timezone and the time is still wrong! 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 forums are 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. Back to top |
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| When I click the email link for a user it asks me to log in. Sorry, but only registered users can send email to people via the built-in email form. This is to prevent malicious use of the email system by anonymous users. We encourage you to register and gain access to the e-mail feature. Back to top |
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| Posting Issues |
| How do I post a topic in a forum? Easy -- click the button 'New Topic' on either the forum or topic screens. You need to register before you can post a new topic. 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) Back to top |
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| How do I edit or delete a post? Unless you are the 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 webmasters edit the post (they will leave a message saying what they altered and why). Please note that normal users cannot delete a post once someone has replied. Back to top |
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| What is watching a forum or topic? You can set a watch on a forum or topic if you want to be notified by e-mail anytime someone posts a reply to that forum or topic. By default, new topics in a watched forum will also be watched. You have the option to turn the watch off on topics. To set a watch, go to the Forum home page and look to the far right column titled Watch. Click the arrow icon in the row of the forum or topic you want to watch. The icon will change to a pair of eyes. Whenever you want to stop watching that topic, just click the eyes, and the icon will revert to an arrow. Back to top |
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| How do I add a signature to my post? To add a signature to a post go into your profile (at the bottom of each forum page) and compose what you'd like it to say. Once created you can check the Add Signature box on the posting form. 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. Back to top |
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| Why can't I access a forum? Some forums may be limited to certain users or groups. If you would like to join a particular Usergroup, contact the webmaster (sysadmin@timebanks.org). Back to top |
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| Formatting and Topic Types |
| What is BBCode? BBCode is a special language that allows users to post their messages, for example, in bold or color. An important benefit of BBCode is that you can post a web address that will automatically bring a user to your time bank's website (hyperlink). For more information on BBCode see the guide which can be accessed from the posting page. Back to top |
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| What are Smileys? 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. Back to top |
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| Can I post Images? Images can be shown in your posts. Any image that you post must be stored in your computer first, then uploaded to a site like Flickr, PhotoBucket or Picasa and then linked to from your post. Back to top |
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| What are Announcements? 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 webmaster. Back to top |
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| What are Sticky topics? Sticky topics appear below any announcements when viewing a forum and only on the first page. They are often quite important so you should read them where possible. As with announcements the webmaster determines what permissions are required to post sticky topics in each forum. Back to top |
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| User Levels and Groups |
| What are Usergroups? Usergroups are a way in which the webmaster can group users around special interests or attributes. For example, many local time banks have AVISTAs working with them, and the AVISTAs have their own Usergroup. Each forum user can belong to several groups and each group can be assigned individual access rights. This makes it easy for the webmaster to set up several users as moderators of a forum, or to give them access to a private forum, etc. Back to top |
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| How do I access the Coordinators' Corner? The Coordinators' Corner is open to up to a dozen members of a Time Bank that is a formal Affiliate of TimeBanks USA. If your time bank is interested in becoming an Affiliate, please send an e-mail to info@timebanks.org. Back to top |
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| Other Questions |
| Who wrote this bulletin forum? This software (in its unmodified form) is produced, released and is copyrighted phpBB Group. It is made available under the GNU General Public License and may be freely distributed; see link for more details Back to top |
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| Whom do I contact about abusive and/or legal matters related to this forum? You should contact the webmaster (sysadmin@timebanks.org) of this forum. Back to top |
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| Where did you get the picture at the top from? We were given permission by Sunflowery to use this picture on our forums. She took this picture at the 2004 MDA Stride and Ride, an annual event organized by the Muscular Dystrophy Association. We are grateful to Sunflowery for her permission to use this image. Back to top |
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