Introductie

Gefeliciteerd, je bent terecht gekomen op een forum dat is gebaseerd op SMF software. Misschien ben je op de index pagina al een bericht tegen gekomen dat je vertelde dat je jezelf moet registreren alvorens je van dit forum gebruik kunt maken.

Sommige forums staan niet geregistreerde gasten toe om berichten te lezen en soms zelfs om berichten te plaatsen, terwijl andere forums eisen dat je jezelf eerst registreert voordat je berichten kunt lezen. Ook een aantal handige opties zijn op een groot aantal forums alleen beschikbaar voor geregistreerde leden.

Omdat SMF zeer flexibele forum software is zullen de mogelijkheden en rechten per forum verschillen. Hier onder vier hoofdrubrieken die normaal gesproken tot je beschikking staan.

Hoofd Menu

Je bent hier terecht gekomen als gast (Of je hebt jezelf wel geregistreerd maar bent op dit moment niet ingelogd). Het Hoofd Menu (dat op iedere pagina getoond wordt) bevat normaal gesproken vijf of zes knoppen/tabs (of tekst links):

• Home, Dit brengt je terug naar de board index.
• Help, Dit brengt je naar een handleiding hoe het forum te gebruiken.
• Zoek, Hiermee kan je op het forum zoeken naar alle berichten/topics/informatie wat je maar wilt.
• Kalender, Dit brengt je bij de kalender van het forum (indien vrij gegeven).
• Leden, Dit toont de complete lijst van alle op het forum geregistreerde leden. (indien vrij gegeven)
• Inloggen, Wanneer je al geregistreerd bent op het forum kan je hiermee inloggen.
• Registreren, Dit stelt je in staat om jezelf bij het forum te registreren.

Wanneer je geregistreerd en ingelogd bent ziet het Hoofdmenu er iets anders uit:

• Home (zie boven).
• Help (zie boven).
• Zoek (zie boven).
• Profiel Dit stelt je in staat om wijzigingen aan te brengen in je persoonlijke profiel en forum instellingen.
• Mijn Berichten Dit brengt je naar het beheer van je persoonlijke berichten (indien vrij gegeven).
• Kalender (zie boven).
• Leden (zie boven).
• Uitloggen, Dit stelt je in staat om desgewenst uit te loggen van het forum.

Forum beheerders zullen nog een extra knop zien, de "Beheer" knop. Deze stelt hem in staat het forum te beheren en alle instellingen en rechten op het forum te regelen.

Board Index

While the board index (forum home page) is full of information and links, the core of the interface (at least in the SMF default theme) normally looks something like this:

• The forum name links back to the top of the board index.
• If the category is collapsible, clicking the category name collapses or expands the forums in a category, enabling you to see the category name but not see the forums within the category when collapsed.
• The board name links to the message index for that board.
• The board description describes the board's content, and may also include links to child boards and/or specify the board's moderator(s).
• The New Posts and No New Posts icons, usually in the leftmost column, show registered members whether there have been any new posts to the board since they last read it. Most forums also use another different icon to indicate that there are new posts in one or more child boards of a parent board without the parent containing any new posts of its own. By clicking the New Posts button, a registered Member can view all of the latest unread posts of that board.
• The Mark as Read button enables registered members to mark all posts in the entire forum as 'read'. This will clear the list of posts in the Unread Posts section.

Message Index

Like the board index, the message index interface is quite straightforward when reduced to its essential components.

• Some forums show the navigation tree at the top in a space-saving horizontal mode.
• The page numbers link to further pages of the board, and may be accompanied by Go Up and Go Down buttons linking to the top and bottom of the current board's page.
• The Mark as Read button enables registered members to mark all posts in this board as "read".
• The Notify button enables registered members to subscribe to email notification of replies to topics in this board.
• The New Topic and New poll buttons are for starting new topics and polls, as described in the posting article.
• The Subject, Started by, Replies, Views and Last post links enable you to sort the columns by these parameters (with Last post also toggling between descending and ascending order as indicated by the little arrow).
• The Topic icons in the leftmost column are explained by the key below.
• The Post icons in the next column are sometimes used to draw attention to the mood or purpose of the topic.
• The Topic subject links to the start of the topic, with extra links for subsequent pages and new buttons to take registered members straight to their first unread Post of the topic.
• Double clicking on the topic subject column will allow you to edit the title of the topic straight from the message index, as long as you have quick-moderation enabled in your profile and that you have permission to edit your own posts - to edit your topic titles, and permission to edit everyone else posts - so you can edit titles of topics not started by you.
• Where the Topic has been started or last replied to by a registered member, their names link to their respective profile.
• The Jump to menu provides a convenient quick method of navigating the forum. It will allow a user to quickly "jump" to any Board that they have access to view.

Topic Display

Sometimes referred to as threads, topics are actually where you find posted messages:

• Some forums show the navigation tree at the top in a space-saving horizontal mode.
• Some forums may also be configured with previous' and next Topic links.
• The page numbers' link to further pages of the topic, and may be accompanied by Go Up and Go Down buttons linking to the top and bottom of the current page.
• The Reply button enables you to Reply to the topic.
• The Notify button enables registered members to subscribe to email notification of replies to the topic.
• The Mark Unread button enables registered members to mark the Topic as 'unread', which means that it will still be listed as new and can be effectively 'saved for later'. Note that this button changes to Add Poll in the bottom button set for users with permission to add polls to existing topics.
• The Send Topic button enables registered members to send a link to the topic by e-mail.
• The Print button creates a simplified, printer-friendly rendering of the page.
• The author name links to the author of the post's own profile.
• The author details in the left-hand column may be accompanied by further personal information.
• The topic subject links back to the start of the topic.
• The Quote button enables you to quote the post.
• Furthermore, Modify and Delete options are normally provided to enable registered members to edit their own posts.
• Report to Moderator enables you to report abusive or wrongly-placed posts to the forum staff.
• "Logged" indicates that the IP of the author has been logged. The actual IP is only available to board administrators or those that have the permission to manage members of a forum.
• The "Jump to menu" link provides a convenient, quick method of navigating the forum. It will allow a user to quickly "jump" to any board that they have access to view.
• The "Quick Reply" section at the bottom of the topic's page allows members to post in a posting box located at the bottom of every page in a topic as an alternative to clicking the "Reply" button that leads you to a new page to submit a message.

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As a regular user

• Getting Started
• Registering
• Posting
• Searching
• Notifications

• Profile
• Logging in
• Personal Messages
• Help

• Bulletin Board Code (BBC)
• Calendar
• Memberlist
• How to view unread posts and replies

Board Index

While the board index (forum home page) is full of information and links, the core of the interface (at least in the SMF default theme) normally looks something like this:

• The forum name links back to the top of the board index.
• If the category is collapsible, clicking the category name collapses or expands the forums in a category, enabling you to see the category name but not see the forums within the category when collapsed.
• The board name links to the message index for that board.
• The board description describes the board's content, and may also include links to child boards and/or specify the board's moderator(s).
• The New Posts and No New Posts icons, usually in the leftmost column, show registered members whether there have been any new posts to the board since they last read it. Most forums also use another different icon to indicate that there are new posts in one or more child boards of a parent board without the parent containing any new posts of its own. By clicking the New Posts button, a registered Member can view all of the latest unread posts of that board.
• The Mark as Read button enables registered members to mark all posts in the entire forum as 'read'. This will clear the list of posts in the Unread Posts section.

Message Index

Like the board index, the message index interface is quite straightforward when reduced to its essential components.

• Some forums show the navigation tree at the top in a space-saving horizontal mode.
• The page numbers link to further pages of the board, and may be accompanied by Go Up and Go Down buttons linking to the top and bottom of the current board's page.
• The Mark as Read button enables registered members to mark all posts in this board as "read".
• The Notify button enables registered members to subscribe to email notification of replies to topics in this board.
• The New Topic and New poll buttons are for starting new topics and polls, as described in the posting article.
• The Subject, Started by, Replies, Views and Last post links enable you to sort the columns by these parameters (with Last post also toggling between descending and ascending order as indicated by the little arrow).
• The Topic icons in the leftmost column are explained by the key below.
• The Post icons in the next column are sometimes used to draw attention to the mood or purpose of the topic.
• The Topic subject links to the start of the topic, with extra links for subsequent pages and new buttons to take registered members straight to their first unread Post of the topic.
• Double clicking on the topic subject column will allow you to edit the title of the topic straight from the message index, as long as you have quick-moderation enabled in your profile and that you have permission to edit your own posts - to edit your topic titles, and permission to edit everyone else posts - so you can edit titles of topics not started by you.
• Where the Topic has been started or last replied to by a registered member, their names link to their respective profile.
• The Jump to menu provides a convenient quick method of navigating the forum. It will allow a user to quickly "jump" to any Board that they have access to view.

Topic Display

Sometimes referred to as threads, topics are actually where you find posted messages:

• Some forums show the navigation tree at the top in a space-saving horizontal mode.
• Some forums may also be configured with previous' and next Topic links.
• The page numbers' link to further pages of the topic, and may be accompanied by Go Up and Go Down buttons linking to the top and bottom of the current page.
• The Reply button enables you to Reply to the topic.
• The Notify button enables registered members to subscribe to email notification of replies to the topic.
• The Mark Unread button enables registered members to mark the Topic as 'unread', which means that it will still be listed as new and can be effectively 'saved for later'. Note that this button changes to Add Poll in the bottom button set for users with permission to add polls to existing topics.
• The Send Topic button enables registered members to send a link to the topic by e-mail.
• The Print button creates a simplified, printer-friendly rendering of the page.
• The author name links to the author of the post's own profile.
• The author details in the left-hand column may be accompanied by further personal information.
• The topic subject links back to the start of the topic.
• The Quote button enables you to quote the post.
• Furthermore, Modify and Delete options are normally provided to enable registered members to edit their own posts.
• Report to Moderator enables you to report abusive or wrongly-placed posts to the forum staff.
• "Logged" indicates that the IP of the author has been logged. The actual IP is only available to board administrators or those that have the permission to manage members of a forum.
• The "Jump to menu" link provides a convenient, quick method of navigating the forum. It will allow a user to quickly "jump" to any board that they have access to view.
• The "Quick Reply" section at the bottom of the topic's page allows members to post in a posting box located at the bottom of every page in a topic as an alternative to clicking the "Reply" button that leads you to a new page to submit a message.