Assembling the Technical FAQ Related to Using These Fora

[polly_mer]

Q: Is there a way to have private discussions on these fora?

A: You may send a personal message to select individuals using the My Messages feature.  Those personal messages (PMs) are private between the sender and recipient(s).  However, this is a public forum that doesn't require log ins to see posts.  Thus, no mechanism exists to block other users from seeing your posts.

[polly_mer]

Q: I inadvertently posted too much private information or signed my name or did something else to out myself and the editing window has passed.  Help!!!!

A: You can report your own post(s) to the moderator using the "Report to Moderator" link at the bottom of the post.  In the message box, explain what you'd like to have done.  For example, "please delete the name of institution and my signing my real name" or "please delete this whole thread I just started because I realized it was too revealing".

The "Report to Moderator" link is best because it goes to the whole moderation team so it's more likely your post will be edited/deleted as quickly as possible.  PMing just one individual moderator is less likely to get a quick response.

[polly_mer]

As an FYI to readers, I do intend to make this a more standard FAQ with the questions and answers in a nice list with no commentary but that's not happening this month.

Add your questions here as necessary and it's nice if you also bring an answer if you've figured out various features.

[polly_mer]

Q: How do I see the outbox for my PMs?

A: Use the "My Messages" tab at the top of the page.  Select the "messages" link on the left-hand side near the middle of the page (under the breadcrumbs) and you will have three choices.  "Sent Items" (the last of the three choices) is your outbox.  Click on it to see the outbox.  Click on "messages" again and select "Inbox" when you wish to return to your inbox.

[eigen]

Q: How do I see the outbox for my PMs?

A: Use the "My Messages" tab at the top of the page.  Select the "messages" link on the left-hand side near the middle of the page (under the breadcrumbs) and you will have three choices.  "Sent Items" (the last of the three choices) is your outbox.  Click on it to see the outbox.  Click on "messages" again and select "Inbox" when you wish to return to your inbox.

As a note, you may not see all sent items here: When sending a PM, you have the option to either save it to your sent items or not. If you don't choose to save it, it will not show up for you here.

To change your default settings with respect to sent items, go to "Profile" at the top of the page, then "Account Settings", then go to the "Personal Messaging" section on the left under "Modify Profile". Here you will find the options to set for default PM handling, including whether you want sent items to be saved by default or manually.

[eigen]

Q: Why is the forum on US West Coast Time, and how can I change that?

A: You can adjust your time zone under your profile settings- though do note that it will be visible to other users, as it was on the old forum.

Go to "Profile", then "Account Settings", then "Look & Layout". The first option lets you change the forum display theme, the second option lets you adjust either the time format, or provide an offset to adjust the times to your local time.

[fast_and_bulbous]

Q: How do I enter a URL as an active link without just pasting the url?

Code: [Select]


[url=https://thefora.org] This is active text that will fire up a new tab to the fora! [/url]


And this is what it would look like (hover over it to display the URL in most browsers, or just click away).

This is active text that will fire up a new tab to the fora!