Frequently Asked Questions - Forum

WAB only allows images from the Gallery or Image Library to be shown in forum posts - why?

To Upload Your Images in the Image Library

1. Click on the Images link at the top of the screen 

2. Click on the 'Upload Photos' link and follow the instructions to upload your images

3. Your images should now appear on the front page of the image library, or click on the 'My Photos' link to view your recent uploads

To place your images in forum threads...

1. When starting a new thread or replying to a post, click in the text box where you would like to add your image (before, after, or in the middle of some of your text)

2 Click on the image library icon

A pop-up window will appear to show your recent image library uploads

3. Click on any of your images and photo input code will be added into your post

When you save your forum post, the code will change into a small clickable image that will link back to your large photo in the image library

Troubleshooting

Q. My images don't appear when I've uploaded them
A. Your images must have a filesize less than 0.5Mb (512kB) and preferably a lot smaller

Q. The photo input in my forum post is showing up as code and not as a clickable thumbnail
A. Check that you haven't added/deleted any characters in the original code, as this will break the link to your image library photo

To help create a more usable site that's easier to navigate, and better for search engines to search and place us high in the rankings, please help by adding good titles to your threads.

Hopefully, the recent addition of the graphic on the 'new thread' and reply pages will help produce better titles...

...it's obviously a bit tongue in cheek, but some have been spectacularly offended by it If it does the trick then we'll obviously remove it...let's hope we don't have to make it even bigger, brighter and more gaudy looking than it already is.

P.S. We can change as many as a dozen titles a day, so unfortunately it's just not feasible to pm everyone and let them know of the change.

Registered members can send each other Private Messages. Private Messages (PMs) are similar to email, and enable members to have conversations without publishing the content in the main forum.

To send a private message to another member on the forum...

• Click on the member's name to view their profile page
• Clink on the 'Send Message' link to view a drop-down menu with messaging options
• Choose 'Send a Private Message to...'

All forum rules apply to the content of Private Messages and members must not use the messaging system to send spam or offensive content etc. Members must not publish the content of private messages, or pass on private messages to other members, other than the moderators.

Note: In order to protect our members, the forum Administrators are able to read all private messages.

The following guidelines should help to make the forum easier for everyone to use.

Thread Titles

Please use short, but meaningful, titles that explain the thread within a few keywords. For example, rather than making a thread title 'Where to go?' when you want ideas on travelling around Scotland to take photographs, please add a title like 'Places to Photograph in Scotland'

If you're looking for an identification, rather than 'What's This?', make the title something like 'Unidentified Green Butterfly'. This should help members and search engines to find your threads more easily.

Ask a Moderator

If you're not sure whether or not you can post a certain topic, add a link, promote an event etc, PM one of the moderators first, rather than having your thread/post removed. There's a good chance we'll allow the thread, but if we remove a thread, there's probably little chance of it being allowed back again.

Adding Images

After you've posted your images in the gallery or the Image Library, click on the 'My Gallery' or 'My Images' links 

Do Not Feed the Animals

It doesn't happen too often, but if you get into a heated debate with other members, it's some times easiest to just walk away from the thread. We invite members to post opinions from every side of every argument, and so there will always be disagreements. Occasionally, you may even come across a troll who will make controversial posts simply to get a reaction. If necessary, simply report the post and the moderators will deal with it.

For lots of really good reasons, images in the forum can only be linked from the Wild About Britain Gallery or the Wild About Britain Image Library and not external websites.

To add an image to your forum post:

1. Find the image in the Gallery or Image Library. and make sure you are viewing at full-size, rather than the small thumbnail image.

2. Right-click inside the 'Forum Code' box under the image and choose 'select all' from the drop-down menu - the code should turn blue:

[url=http://www.wildaboutbritain.co.uk/pictures/showphoto.php/photo/539]....[/URL]

3. Right-click in the box again and choose 'copy' from the drop-down menu

4. Go to your forum post and right-click in the text input area where you would like to add the image then choose 'paste' from the drop-down menu.

5. To add more images, press return a couple of times in your post to move down a couple of lines then repeat steps 1-4. 

When you press 'submit' to add your post to the forum, the code will create a thumbnail of the image that will link to the full-size picture in the gallery or image library. 

Note: To help find your own images more quickly, please use the 'My Gallery' and 'My Image Library' links in the forum post text editor.

Members can edit their posts for 30 minutes after the initial posting, but they cannot delete their posts.

To edit your posts, click the button by the post you want to edit. After you have made your modifications, a note will appear, which notifies other users that you have edited your post. Administrators and moderators can also edit your messages.

The reason for the edit time window is that without it we used to have posts being made, then someone would add a reply, then the original poster would change their original post. This was fairly common in debates where someone would change what they originally said then claim they'd never said it :(

In the forums, click on the title of the relevant category (British Birds, Insects and Invertebrates, UK Weather etc), then click on the 'New Thread' button

Note: Please use a short but descriptive title for you thread, so that visitors know what the thread is about and will be able to easily find it again in the future.

Members can edit their posts for 30 minutes after the initial posting, but they cannot delete their posts.

To edit your posts, click the button by the post you want to edit. After you have made your modifications, a note will appear, which notifies other users that you have edited your post. Administrators and moderators can also edit your messages.

The reason for the edit time window is that without it we used to have posts being made, then someone would add a reply, then the original poster would change their original post. This was fairly common in debates where someone would change what they originally said then claim they'd never said it :(

When Wild About Britain was setup we allowed members to upload animated avatars. Unfortunately, an increasing number of the avatars were offensive, very distracting or contained adverts that flashed up every 10 minutes or so. As a result, we decided to block animated avatars, but allow existing members to keep their animated avatar as long as it didn't break any rules.

If a member breaks the rules, or appears to have broken the rules, then their account will be frozen until we are satisfied that any related issue has been addressed and rectified.

If you forget your password, you can click on the 'Forgotten Your Password' link on any page that requires you to fill in your password.

This will bring up a page where you should enter your registered email address, and an email will be sent to that address instantly, with instructions for resetting your password.

When member post in the forum, or upload images to the gallery, their post count goes up and their title will change to:

Under 25 posts = New Member

25 posts = Active Member

100 posts = Wild Member

250 posts = Member of the Wild Empire

500 posts = Officer of the Wild Empire

1,000 posts = Commander of the Wild Empire

5,000 posts = Knight of the Wild Empire

10,000 posts = Knight Grand Cross of the Wild Empire 

Just a bit of fun :D

When members make a post, they can also automaticaly show a small image (called an avatar) next to their username. This helps other members to quickly recognise who's posted in the thread. If you're logged in, you can click here to add/edit your avatar.

You can change your profile by clicking on the icon when you are logged into the forum and choose the various option from the 'Your Profile' menu on the left hand column. You cannot change your username.

Unfortunately, members can't change their username as many areas of the site are linked by username information that would lead to many broken links if the name is changed.

You can add a signature to your forum posts via your Forum Profile Page, which you can also access via the 'My Profile' icon at the top of the forum pages.

Signatures can only be displayed by members who have made more than 25 posts.

With the exception of WAB moderators and gallery editors, members may only display a single link or link text after displaying an active and easy to find direct reciprocal link to Wild About Britain from their website...except where the the signature is linking to the member's WAB gallery images or WAB blog page. Once you have added a link in your signature we will check that you have linked back to Wild About Britain from your website, and then either activate or delete your signature link where appropriate.

Signatures must be no more than two lines of default-sized black text and cannot advertise organisations, products or services, or highlight content with UPPERCASE, added characters ***>>> or 'Look at my website' style content.

You may clear all your cookies by clicking here.
If you return to the forum homepage and you are
still logged in, you can have to remove your cookies manually.

In Internet Explorer 6 on Windows XP:

1. Click the "Tools" menu.
2. Select "Internet Options" from the menu that appears.
3. Click "Delete Cookies" on the dialog box that appears. It will be in the center area of the "General" tab.

In Mozilla Firefox:

1. Click the "Tools" menu.
2. Select "Options" from the menu that appears.
3. From the dialog box, select "Privacy" on the left.
4. Find "Cookies" on the main pane, and click the "Clear" button adjacent to it.

Your cookies should now be removed. You may want to restart the computer and revisit the forums to be sure.

There are several ways that you can stop receiving notifications emails for threads that you've subscribed to in the forums. One of the easiest ways is to follow the - 'Unsubscription information:' instructions at the bottom of the email.

Alternatively, you can click on the icon in the forums and choose 'Edit Options' to change your account settings. Go to the box marked "Default Thread Subscriptions mode" and select an option from the drop-down menu. Scroll to the bottom of the page and 'Save' your new settings.