Forum Guide and "How-To"

vespoli · 07-05-2007, 12:18 AM

** This is very much a work in progress, if you see errors or have ideas for more content, please PM me. **

Last updated January 8th, 2008

Welcome to Notebook Review! If you are here to ask advice regarding a notebook purchase, need help with a software or hardware issue, or just want to hang out with some cool people

, you’re in the right place. As of January 8th, 2008, we have over 115'000 members from many different countries: this makes us one of the best and fastest-growing resources on the Internet for laptops. This primer’s aim is to help the new and novice user become acquainted with our forum and the wealth of knowledge it contains.

Table of Contents:

Viewing the forum
Signing up
Creating threads
Posting replies
Attaching images
Adding a signature
Very useful links
Reputation and user titles
Using the report post feature
Adding a hyperlink
NBR Dictionary

vespoli · 07-05-2007, 12:18 AM

Viewing the forum:

If you’re reading this, you have probably found out our web address, but I’ll post it here just in case: http://forum.notebookreview.com/. It would probably be a good idea to bookmark this page for future reference.

This is what you see upon viewing the forum homepage:

<img alt="" src="http://www.notebookreview.com/assets/24324.jpg" border="0" height="321" width="440"> (view large image)

There is quite a bit going on, as you can see. Let’s go through it and take a quick tour of where everything is:

<img alt="" src="http://www.notebookreview.com/assets/24347.jpg" border="0" height="330" width="440"> (view large image) 

On the top of the page we see several things to note:

1.) This is where you will click to register an account (more coming later)
2.) This box contains the most recent posting and forum activity; click on a link to visit that thread.
3.) Where you log in. Enter your username and password to gain posting privileges. You have the option of having your login information “remembered”, if you check this box (and it is enabled by default) you will not have to re-enter your information every time you browse. Obviously, if you are using a public computer or a machine that is not your own, you may want to disable this option.
4.) Titles/categories. In the image you can see two groups boxed in: “Hardware, Software and Accessories” and “Notebook News, Reviews and Deals.” Both of these broad categories contain several sub-forums; item five is a grouping of the forums contained by “Hardware, Software and Accessories.”
5.) Sub-forums. You’ll want to find the most appropriate forum to ask your questions. Take a look at the title and description before entering; the better job you do in deciding where to ask, the better chance you have of having your question answered.
6.) This box contains the latest thread being discussed and lists the user who has made the post.

Moving down the page, you will see the rest of the forums which compose notebook review. Toward the bottom a few new things emerge:

<img alt="" src="http://www.notebookreview.com/assets/24320.jpg" border="0" height="330" width="440"> (view large image)

1.) “Site Suggestions, Help and Announcements” This specific forum is the place to ask questions, receive the latest information or give advice about what we can do better.
2.) This link will take you to the forum leaders. Here you will find moderators, reviewers and admins listed. To the right of the moderators and admins’ names you will find what forum they are responsible for as well as a button to send a PM (private message; more later) If you have questions related to a moderation, troublemaker, or just want a little more guidance, ask them.
3.) This list contains all of the members who are currently online and have not enabled “invisible mode”. Moderators and Super Mods are green; Admins are red; Reviewers are black; Lead moderators are purple. Clicking on a name takes you to their user page which gives you various options.
4.) This lists general statistics such as how many members, posts, and threads we have as well as the latest member.
5.) If you desire, you may enable a birth date in your control panel (more later), this allows people to see when it is your birthday (and how old you are if you want).

vespoli · 07-05-2007, 12:19 AM

Signing up:

OK, enough talk; let’s go on to signing up for membership. Click on the register button (see item 1 on the first image).

1.) Read though and decide if you will be able to abide by the general terms of use (ToU).
2.) If you accept the ToU, click “register”

<img alt="" src="http://www.notebookreview.com/assets/24343.jpg" border="0" height="165" width="440"> (view large image) 

1.) Please enter your desired username. Remember, we operate a family-friendly forum and rude, racist, sexist, or hateful names will not be tolerated.
2.) Please enter and re-enter a password. Please choose a secure password
3.) Enter a valid e-mail. This e-mail will not generate any spam; it simply serves to prove that you are a real, breathing human being. You will need to confirm your account before it will be activated.
4.) Enter the combination of letters and numbers that appear to the right. Again, this is meant to discourage spam.
Please fill the rest out as you see fit.
As soon as you click “complete registration”, an e-mail should be sent to the address you provided. Once you open the e-mail, you will see a link to follow in order to activate your account. Follow that URL.
If you see this image:
<img alt="" src="http://www.notebookreview.com/assets/24322.jpg" border="0" height="104" width="440"> (view large image)

Your account has been activated successfully!

Before you start posting, let’s take a few minutes to set up your account properly:

<img alt="" src="http://www.notebookreview.com/assets/24335.jpg" border="0" height="356" width="440"> (view large image)

1.) UserCP: clicking this button from anywhere in the forum will take you to the page you are now viewing. Here you may change many settings regarding your account; it is a very powerful place. If you want to alter something, look here first.
2.) If you want to change your e-mail or password, click here. It is a good idea to go rotate passwords occasionally for safety’s sake.
3.) Enter your birthday if you desire.
4.) If you want to make any IM handles available to forum members, this would be a good place to do so.
5.) You may enter a few things about yourself.
6.) Various control panel menus. As mentioned earlier, take a look here once in a while.

vespoli · 07-05-2007, 12:19 AM

Creating threads:

After going through all that, you are probably ready to post a question. Since the majority of members create an account to ask advice regarding what notebook to buy, let’s make a mock thread.

<img alt="" src="http://www.notebookreview.com/assets/24345.jpg" border="0" height="212" width="440"> (view large image)

1.) Stickies. These so-called “stickies” stay at the top of the forum and often contain valuable information that you should read before posting. PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE read this stuff first, lest I bust out the ban hammer (hopefully this is removed in the editing process.

)
2.) This bolded statement at the top of the page lists which forum you are currently browsing.
3.) This magic button is what you click to create a new thread. A quick note: before creating a thread, please search (more later); often questions have been answered many times before. And no, you cannot upgrade your GPU!

Click “new thread”

<img alt="" border="0" height="367" src="http://www.notebookreview.com/assets/24349.jpg" width="440" /> (view large image)

1.) Enter your thread title here. Please take care when naming threads: something like “HELP” is not descriptive. Something along the lines of “Dell E1505: No sound” is better. Without getting too technical, a descriptive topic title goes a long way.
2.) NBR offers a pretty rich forum-we have a lot of formatting options. If you’re not familiar with vBulletin code, HTML or other languages (and you’re probably not if you’re reading this), don’t worry: simply mouse over each little icon for an explanation of what it does. Commands usually have a start and stop tag, with the contents inside. Just play around; eventually you’ll figure everything out.
3.) Smilies. Use these judiciously to accent your mood. They are a good addition when used sparely. Used out of context or excessively, they can be disruptive.
4.) After you have entered your message and named your thread appropriately, preview it to make sure that everything looks right and then post it.
5.) This is where your message will go: make it readable (no slang, 1337 speak, swears) and try to punctuate to the best of your ability.
Now you just have to wait patiently for a reply! Don’t bump excessively!

vespoli · 07-05-2007, 12:20 AM

Posting replies:

Have the answer to someone’s question? Great! Posting a reply is very similar to posting a thread.
At the bottom of the thread (scroll down until you reach the last post), you will see a few different things.

<img alt="" border="0" height="330" src="http://www.notebookreview.com/assets/24351.jpg" width="440" /> (<span onClick="displayWindow('http://www.notebookreview.com/picture.asp?f=24350','Picture',1470,1230,'');" style="color:blue; text-decoration:underline; cursor

ointer">view large image)

1.) Post reply. This button will take you to a new page where you will have many of the same options you had when creating a thread. It will also show the previous posts for reference.
2.) Quick reply is a way to jot down a response without having to click a couple of additional buttons. I use it quite a bit. It offers minimal formatting options, but if you know some bbCode (and you will eventually) or don’t bother with all of the fancy stuff, it’s much faster than regular “post reply.”
3.) Once you’ve entered your reply via the “quick reply” box, click the post button. You may have to wait a couple of seconds but should eventually see your addition tack onto the end of the thread.
4.) If you decide that quick reply just isn’t going to cut it, click “go advanced.” This option will take you (along with any text already entered) to the standard reply page. Useful if you get in over your head or decide that you want extra formatting or to attach an image.

vespoli · 07-05-2007, 12:20 AM

Attaching images:

Sometimes a post or thread would be much easier to understand if a user is able to post a picture(s) of the situation. NBR provides a way to attach images which can be shared. Please remember that this is a family forum and that any off-topic or offensive images will be removed and the perpetrator punished.

You’ll need to scroll down in the reply or create thread screen until you see a button labeled “Manage attachments” (It’s between misc. options and thread notifications). Click on it. A new window will open.

<img alt="" border="0" height="154" src="http://www.notebookreview.com/assets/24353.jpg" width="440" /> (view large image)
 

1.) Click the “browse” button to browse on your hard drive for a file to attach.
2.) Click upload once you have the proper file selected
3.) Only certain type and size files are accepted; check the key first.
Once you have uploaded the file(s) you want, you should see something like this in the manage attachments window:

<img alt="" border="0" height="500" src="http://www.notebookreview.com/assets/24355.jpg" width="440" /> (view large image)

Once you have all desired files attached, click “close window.” The extra window will close and you will now return to the reply or create thread screen. The attached files will now be shown in your post. You should see the file name listed under manage attachments.

<img alt="" border="0" height="500" src="http://www.notebookreview.com/assets/24357.jpg" width="440" /> (view large image)

vespoli · 07-05-2007, 12:20 AM

Adding a signature:

Most people like to add a little something personal to the end of their posts, whether a quote, small picture, or their notebook’s specifications. This, like many things, is changed via the CPanel. Remember, sigs must follow forum rules.

<img alt="" border="0" height="454" src="http://www.notebookreview.com/assets/24359.jpg" width="440" /> (view large image)

1.) This is where the good stuff goes. Type, format, and link what you want in this area.
2.) The preview button will allow you to see what your signature will look like without saving it. Look to the top (also item 2) to see the preview area.
3.) Click the “save signature” button when you’ve got everything just right.

vespoli · 07-05-2007, 12:50 AM

Very useful links:

There are quite a few very informative posts floating around: make sure to check out the Notebook Dummy Guide Articles forum.

In no particular order, check out these other guides:

Warranty guide
Cooling guide
GPU guide
Battery guide
Forum rules

vespoli · 07-05-2007, 01:00 AM

Rep and user titles:

If you're wondering about the difference between rep power and the number of green (or red) boxes or how you can change your user title, please visit this link.

vespoli · 07-05-2007, 11:53 AM

Using the Report Post feature:

If you see a post that is spam, offensive, flaming/trolling or otherwise violates forum rules, please take advantage of the "report post" feature to let moderators and admins know. When a post is reported, an e-mail is dispatched to let us know we need to take care of something. While many of us spend a significant portion of time on NBR, we can't be everywhere all of the time. This means that you, the member, have a responsibility to report unhelpful content.

<img alt="" border="0" height="114" src="http://www.notebookreview.com/assets/24361.jpg" width="440" /> (<span onClick="displayWindow('http://www.notebookreview.com/picture.asp?f=24360','Picture',1223,480,'');" style="color:blue; text-decoration:underline; cursor

ointer">view large image)

1.) In red notice the triangle with an exclamation point around it. This is the button you click to report a post. Once clicked, you will travel to a different page which contains a dialog box for you to enter the reason the post is offensive so we know how to deal with it. Please do not abuse the report system.

Example of appropriate use:
Letting us know about spam.

Example of inappropriate use:
Complaining that no one has answered your question and asking for additional help.