Start Here...Tips For Using SaveSurface...

Jstn · **Posted:** Mon May 22, 2006 2:34 pm

In the interest of using this site efficiently, I will be posting tips that you may find helpful.

Jstn · **Posted:** Sun May 28, 2006 2:57 am

How to format text...

Basically you have to highlight the text you wish to format each time you select an option. (color, size, italics, bold, etc.)

This is a little time consuming however, the following should help. First when dragging the clicked mouse to highlight, start at the end of your writing and go to the beginning. Also, at the end of your writing add some blank spaces (7-10) This will not affect the way your text looks in the post.

In the case of using multiple options (such as color and size) this will make it easier if you do the following. First place the cursor at the end of your blank spaces and ad your first option. Then place the cursor in between your last word and the code which now exists and highlight back to the first word again to make you second change. Those blank spaces make it much easier to correctly place the cursor to cover all your letters than trying to squeeze it in between a word and a piece of code.

For example, which is easier to place a cursor between...

this represents your text[/color]

...or (please ignore the dots below, I needed them to force the space to display)

this represents your text..............[/color]

Once you get a little practice this will become a pretty fast proceedure. I do this and even customize two codes, within about a minute.

Edited in: I strongly suggest you check out Dragons post (2 down from here) regarding an alternate method of formatting text.

TheDragonReborn · **Posted:** Sun May 28, 2006 5:39 pm

To get custimized colors for your text.

Write your text and then highlight it and select a color from the list.
After the equal sign and a # and a combination of 6 characters from a-f and 0-9. then press preview to see what color you have.
You will want to do that if you got a color that cannot be seen well on this website.

e.g. hi = [color=#8b3cd4]

TheDragonReborn · **Posted:** Sun May 28, 2006 5:51 pm

Another tip. When moving the cursor around the posting box to go from word to word hold down control and press the arrowkeys and you will go from the beginning of the first word to the beginning of the second word. Makes things a lot quicker sometimes. Also works in most Word processing programs.

Edited in by Jstn: Recently, I have come to fully appreciate Dragon's excellent tip here, more and more.

Place the cursor at the end of your post. Hold down the shift button and use the arrows or even better the Home and Page Up keys, to highlight large amounts of text instantly. The up arrow does whole lines at a time. Furthermore, doing it this way, allows you to make several code changes WITHOUT having to highlight the text more than once. Try it, you'll like it. Thanks again for reminding me about that, Dragon.

suzi · **Joined:** Sun May 14, 2006 10:16 pm **Posts:** 2784

Any tips for successfully posting a web address that people can just click on? I do the [url] address[url]. Sometimes it works, sometimes not. :?:

Jstn · **Posted:** Mon May 29, 2006 6:41 pm

If you are using Windows, just highlight the address in your browser (the one that you wish to post), and right-click on the highlight. select Copy. Then while making a post here, simply place your cursor in the box and select Paste and it will add a clickable link in your post.There is no need to apply the url button.

Edited in: It is very important to always leave a space at the beginning and end of the web address, or it will not be "clickable" even using code around it requires that space...

[b]http

will not work

[b] http

will.

You cannot add color to a link, however you can resize it. (Remembber to leave that space)

Also remember that when you apply codes they must be placed in the reverse order when turning them off. In other words they should appear like this...

Code:

[color=#000000][size] Your text here [/size][/color]

Jstn · **Posted:** Wed Jun 07, 2006 11:58 pm

When posting a thread, do not use an apostrophe ' in the thread title or PM title line.

If you do every letter after the puncuation will not be displayed, if you edit your post.
For example:

He's A Lousy President...

would display as

He

Jstn · **Posted:** Thu Jun 08, 2006 12:13 am

Adding pictures - Pictures can be added to your post by linking to a picture on the internet. From my experience, pictures in which the address ends with html will not work, however ones ending in jpg will. To add them while posting add the following codes to your post.

Code:

[img] your internet link here [/img]

No space is needed between your address and the code punctuation. I just put it there to make it easier to read.

As we have some server space problems, please do not add pics to your signatures any more, Only text. Please use avatars instead.

Edited in: I will make exceptions for small pictures in sigs on a case by case basis

Avatars - Avatars are done the same way as the pictures. There is a field near the bottom of your Profile page that let's you add an address from the net.

If you want to use something from your computer, upload it to photobucket.com You can link to it there. (Sign up, use, and tools are free, clickable link below)

No code is needed in this case. Simply paste the picture address (listed when you upload a photo) into that field and hit Submit

This may take a time or two to get used to, but soon you will have your very own personal avatar.

Edited in: With the new software, after you set the avatar pixel size in your User Control Panel all pistures will automatically be resized to that size. 200 X 200 is usually a good place to start, adjusting for height or width distortion) The basic rule is don't stretch the page when it's displayed.

http://www.photobucket.com

Jstn · **Posted:** Sat Jul 22, 2006 1:18 pm

Astarena gave me these links on another thread, which I put here to help you all get a selection of personal colors to chose from.
At the bottom of the page, from the first link, you will find a chart of colors and the code for each. (Use the highlight to read hard to see ones)Don't forget the # symbol before the numbers when you substitude it for a regular color. have fun.

Thanks to Star for this info.

http://www.htmlgoodies.com/tutorials/co ... hp/3479001

http://www.htmlgoodies.com/tutorials/co ... hp/3478961

And how to make your own html color code:

http://www.htmlgoodies.com/tutorials/co ... hp/3478951

Jstn · **Posted:** Fri Aug 25, 2006 4:51 pm

Using the Private Mail System

At the top, right, of the page you will see a Private Messages link.
It also has a new message counter.

If you click it, it will take you to your Inbox. From there you can read whatever mail you have received, or send mail.

To send mail

1/ Hit the New Post button there.

2/ Type in the screen name of the poster, you wish to contact.

3/ Add a subject line (This is very important or you will lose anything you have written)

4/ Write your post. It works exactly like a post here on the board.

From there you can also save your mail to your Savebox

Go to the Outbox and edit mail not yet delivered.

Read mail that has already been received in the Sentbox

At various places on the board, you will find posters names. Clicking on them will take you to their profile, where you can use the PM button to launch a PM. Again do not forget the subject line.

You can do the same thing from the Memberlist above.

Thanks. - Jstn

Jstn · **Posted:** Wed Aug 30, 2006 4:55 am

I just cleared 3 pages of chit chat and tech questions from this thread. It is designed as a quick and easy way for people to learn how to do things. (I was as guilty as anyone of chatting) So, I have decided to lock it.

If you have suggestions you'd like to make about using this site more efficiently, contact me by private mail, and I will open it long enough for you to post your hint.

If you have tech questions there is a thread in the Off Topic section, just for such questions.

Thank you - Jstn

Jstn · **Posted:** Sat Nov 11, 2006 4:19 am

I just thought about mentioning this, since it took me a while to notice this, myself.

When you are writing a reply to a post, you can scroll down below the box you're writing in and read all the previous posts on the thread. That can come in really handy in remembering what someone else said, in order to write a response.

I've never seen that feature on another board. Another great thing about this site.

Jstn · **Posted:** Thu Nov 16, 2006 5:45 pm

http://www.december.com/html/spec/color3.html

Graze came up with this excellent link, and suggested we share it with all of you as a way of brightening up the boards a bit.

Just use the codes (including the # symbol) in place of the default colors here. This particular link leads to the blues available, however, there are other colors there available within a click or two. Have fun

Jstn · **Posted:** Sat Oct 20, 2007 5:38 pm

How to customize a link (and call it whatever you'd like)

It's amazing that after being on this board for a couple of years, there's still stuff to learn about it's workings. I'd like to thank the B-man for his instruction on this.

OK just remember whenever I use parenthisis marks ( substitute the bracket [ in the code for it to work correctly. I have to switch them so that you can actually see the coding displayed.

This is the link coding (url) (/url)

Start by adding the link address to the (url) part with a equals sign =

For example...

(url=http://www.savesurface.com)

....would begin to get you to the Surface home page. After that write in what you want to call it, for example Nim's Home.

Thus far we would have this...

(url=http://www.savesurface.com)Nim's Home

...then simply follow that with the closing code (/url) so the finished product should look like this before you post it...

(url=http://www.savesurface.com)Nim's Home(/url)

OK let's sustitute the brakets [ and try it out this is what it should appear like after posting. Try the link.

Nim's Home

Always remember to leave a space between a link and any other text or it won't work.

Of course, you could always just type in...

http://www.savesurface.com

....to link there, but what fun is that? LOLOL

Jstn · **Posted:** Tue Oct 23, 2007 7:39 am

Just found out something else fun.

Instead of using a written description, such as "Nim's Home" in the last post, you can use images from your photobucket account to click on.

Dont forget to add the [img] coding to the image link.

Sample...

Jstn · **Posted:** Sun Aug 17, 2008 7:50 am

Since we upgraded the software, these instructions could use a "makeover" however basically they are still good.

We have another feature, I notice that many people are not using. Instead of posting pics directly in your posts, you can now "attach" pics (and even other types of files) to the end of posts or inside them, directly from your computer. This method bypasses Photobucket and their associated problems.

When you make a post here, open the text window for it. Scroll down below that window and you will see a section with a button that says "Browse" (which you use to find the pic on your computer) and a button that says "Add The File" (which you push after you find said pic)

JPG, GIF, and PNG type files load much faster than bitmaps (BMP). I suggest converting them first with Window's Paint program or something similar.

After the pic is "added" you will see it listed. It will be displayed after your post, when you hit submit.

If you'd like it to display in your post. Push the button that says "Place Inline"

You can do multiple attachments, but, please limit yourself to about 3 pics per post, in the interest of load time issues for slower connections.
When doing more than one photo, they will be displayed "Last to First" so the one you want to be seen first, should be attached last.

You must type something in the text box as well, or it will error. Using the "Place Inline" feature prevents that error however.

You are still free to post pics inside the text section of the post the old fashioned way using Photobucket or the equivalent.
_______________________________________

Here's a sample...

Jstn · **Posted:** Wed Oct 28, 2009 1:05 am

To use the new background button, simply format the text for size and color as usual, then while the entire thing is highlighted, click the Background button.

It should look something like this (except use brackets instead)

(background=)(size=150)(color=blue)(b} Sample text (/b)(/color)(/size)(/background)

Now, just add a color, like red or #FF0000 next to the equal sign after the word Background

Like this...

(background=red)(size=150)(color=blue)(b) Sample text (/b)(/color)(/size)(/background)

Providing you switch to brackets your text will be large, blue, and on a red background.

Like so...

Sample text

Just keep in mind that the colors must look good together, so that the text is readable against the background you chose.

By all means use the Preview button until you get what you are looking for.

Also, Yellow text on a Black background is reserved for moderators.

Jstn · **Posted:** Wed Oct 28, 2009 1:23 am

I have also added a youtube button which allows the player to load into the post directly.

The following link would be clickable, but I disabled it so you can read it...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xz6OGVCdov8&feature=player_profilepage

Simply take the ID number, in this case - xz6OGVCdov8 (Note I removed everything before the equal sign and the part which reads "&feature+player" etc. from the end)

Highlight the ID number and click the youtube button and viola!!!!

It should look like this, but with brackets instead...

(youtube)xz6OGVCdov8(/youtube)

It will post like this...

It may take a little practice, esp. figuring out the ID number, but use the Preview button until you get it right. Have fun.

Please do not make a video automatically play, should you figure out a way to do that. It's unfair to those on dial-up.

Jstn · **Posted:** Sat Jan 23, 2010 1:05 am

Two buttons available when posting are the "list" and "list =" buttons.

The following is a rundown on how they are used.

Generating lists

Creating an Unordered list BBCode supports two types of lists, unordered and ordered. They are essentially the same as their HTML equivalents. An unordered list outputs each item in your list sequentially one after the other indenting each with a bullet character. To create an unordered list you use

Code:

[list][/list]

and define each item within the list using [*]. For example to list your favourite colours you could use:

Code:

[list]
[*]Red
[*]Blue
[*]Yellow
[/list]

This would generate the following list:

Red
Blue
Yellow

Creating an Ordered list The second type of list, an ordered list, gives you control over what is output before each item. To create an ordered list you use

Code:

[list=1][/list]

to create a numbered list or alternatively

Code:

[list=a][/list]

for an alphabetical list. As with the unordered list, items are specified using [*]. For example:

Code:

[list=1]
[*]Go to the shops
[*]Buy a new computer
[*]Swear at computer when it crashes
[/list]

will generate the following:

Go to the shops
Buy a new computer
Swear at computer when it crashes

Whereas for an alphabetical list you would use:

Code:

[list=a]
[*]The first possible answer
[*]The second possible answer
[*]The third possible answer
[/list]

giving

The first possible answer
The second possible answer
The third possible answer

Btw, simply using

Code:

[list]Your text[/list]

without the [*] will indent your text without bullets like so...

Code:

My favorite colors are 

[list]
Blue
Red
Green
Gold
[/list]

will get you...

My favorite colors are

Jstn · **Posted:** Mon Feb 01, 2010 11:06 am

How To Make A Poll (New software version)

When starting a new thread you can add a poll. To do so, look below the text box and the attachment box and you will find the set-up section for your poll.

Add a poll question

Add a series of responses up to 20. Add one on each line.IF you have a long statement it will word wrap. Using the enter key will start a new response.

The new software allows for multiple choices for those who read your poll. The default is one. I suggest checking that box for most polls, as people sometimes lean towards to answers.

You may also allow for revoting. Since people sometime change their minds during the course of a discussion, that can be a handy feature.

You can set a diven number of days for a poll to run. The default is zero, which allows the poll to run indefinitely. In most cases this is desirable.

One last thing. Please add an "Other (Please explain)" option when appropriate. Often the answers suggested may not quite fit with a person's viewpoint. This allows them vote and explain on the thread how their thinking differs from the specified question.

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