Posting Messages Posting Important Note! There is a huge difference between message boards and blogs. Message boards are communities. Blogs are in your personal profile. If you want a particular community to see your post, make sure you are actually at that message board when you're making your post.
If you do not see the name of the message board at or near the top of the page, then you are most likely not at that message board.Article Contents
1 Posting at a Message Board
1.1 Starting a New Topic
1.2 Creating a Poll
1.3 Replying to an Existing Topic
1.4 Previewing
1.5 Formatting
1.6 Additional options
2 Posting in Your Personal Blog Posting at a Message Board
If you are not yet a member of the message board you wish to post at, there may be special requirements before you can post. The easiest way to find out is to try. See: Joining a Message Board 🔗 for more information.
Before posting at a message board, you should look to see if there are any rules posted that are specific to that board, and also familiarize yourself with the people there by reading quite a few posts. Participation in existing topics and threads is a sign of proper etiquette unless there's an introduction forum where everyone has started an introduction topic of their own. In which case the introduction topic is the best place to start. Message board owners differ on their forum layout and choices, so it is best to do some reading on a board before you make your first post.
A Typical Posting screen at a message board.
● Starting a New Topic If you want to start a new topic, make sure you're in a forum that is appropriate for that topic, then click on the "New Topic" link. The wording on this may differ, or there may be an image instead of text, depending on the customization for that board.
● Creating a Poll When you create a new topic, you can turn it into a poll by clicking on the "Show poll options" link below the submit and preview buttons. You will not be able to edit the poll later, so don't submit it until you know you have it the way you want it.
● Replying to an Existing Topic There are a few different ways to post replies to a topic:
● Click on the "Add a Reply" link near at the bottom of the page, or
● Click on the "Reply" link to the left of a post, or
● When responding to a particular post, you can click on the "Quote" link to the left of the post.
The third (quote) option will include the post you are responding to, and enclose it in [quote][/quote] code with the original poster's username. If you only want to respond to part of that post, you can remove anything that isn't pertinent but try not to take what they said out of context.
● Previewing You can preview your post before submitting it, by clicking on the "Preview" button. This is especially useful when creating a poll, because you cannot edit the poll once you have created it.
● Formatting Most message boards have clickable smileys you can insert into your post by either clicking on them or typing in the code for that smiley.
If you want a smiley next to the subject line of your post, most boards have a list of post icons above the area where you compose your post.
Between the post icons and the post composition area, you will find BBCode buttons. Just click on one and follow any directions that may show up, or see BBCode on how to add the codes manually.
● Additional options ● Get notifications when someone replies? — If checked, you will receive an email the next time someone replies to
that topic. If there is more than one reply made to the topic before you view it again, you won't receive another
notification for that topic until you view it again.
● Use BBCode? — If checked, BBCode 🔗 will format your post. If unchecked, BBCode will display in your post as text.
Unchecking it can be helpful if you're trying to tell someone else what BBCode to use to accomplish what they're trying
to achieve.
● Use Emoticons? — If checked, clickable smiley codes will show up as images. If you are trying to post a link (for
example) and part of it keeps showing up as a smiley, un-checking this box will make it possible to post your link.
Posting in Your Personal Blog
You may use the same BBCode 🔗 in your blog that can be used in message board posts. For information on posting in blogs, see: 'Making a Blog Post.'🔗
contributors: Pastor Rick
sources: Runboard wiki archives, Runboard Knowledge Base, Lesigner Girl
