So, you've clicked on our message boards, ready and roarin' to post, and then disaster strikes. Registered users? Signatures? What's it all mean? Can I figure it out? Will Merlin type a sentence that doesn't end in a question? Hopefully this guide will help get you through the basics of VBulletin's awe-inspiring yet numerous features and options.


 Registering:

So you're sitting at the boards, looking at all the zillions of messages, just itching to post. You find a thread you want to comment on, but you're told you must register first. Here's how:
     1. Go here
     2. Be sure you're over the age of thirteen, if so click on the left-most link. If not, follow all that COPPA stuff and everything will be just peachy and we'll take care of you.
     3. Fill in the appropriate information boxes. They should all be self-explanatory, except for maybe the Signature field, but I'll get to that in a minute.
     4. You're all set! Now go back to our boards and login. The login and password fields are at the lower right corner of the forum index. You should never have to login again unless: your browser does not support cookies (which it probably does), you asked it not to, or you logged out.
     5. If you ever want to edit your settings for your profile, preferences etc, click on the "Control" button when you're logged in.


  Making A Signature:

Now you're all registered and posting like a madman, but then you glance around, all these people have cool little things at the end of their posts, even *gasp* pictures! What shall we do? It's time to join the club.

     1. Go to your Control Panel (first button) at the Forum main page.
     2. Click on "Edit Profile"
     3. Scroll down to the "Signature" field, you'll see a large box.
     4. Now type whatever you want into the big box. Movie quote, philosopher, RPG, your own witty motto, whatever, as long as it complies with our Forum Rules. Keep in mind that VBulletin will automatically add a horizontal break line before your signature begins. If you want your sig to skip a line (like if you want it to be a dialogue) then just hit the Enter key for every new line.
     5. Make sure you click on "Submit Modifications" when you're satisfied.

Your signature should now be done! Here's how one of my signatures looked like in the sig box if you want an example:

<br>
<img src=http://www.angelfire.com/ma3/merlin3649/merlin/merlin.gif>
<br>
Those who expect to reap the blessings of freedom must, like men, undergo the fatigues of supporting it.
<br>
-Thomas Paine

And here's how it looks at the bottom of my post:

 
Those who expect to reap the blessings of freedom must, like men, undergo the fatigues of supporting it.
-Thomas Paine

   Including *ominous chord* Picture Links in a Signature:

This is the part we get the most questions on, and chances are you need this help the most. How do all of us manage to include pictures in our signatures? Well here's how.

     1. Find an image online (.gif and .jpg files are the best choices, .bmp files won't work) that you want to be in your sig.
     2a. Find a service online (homestead will work but they make you pay now, angelfire works but .jpgs won't show, geocities will not work) to host your picture.
   ---OR---
     2b. E-mail me your picture and I'll host it for you (depending on size) on RPGC's server. <--This is probably the better option unless you want a ton of pics at your disposal or don't trust us :P
     3. Once I tell you the file is uploaded (or you find your own service to get it uploaded) do this:
     4. Go to your preferences menu ("My Control Center"-->"Edit Preferences" at the forum page)
     5. Scroll down to your signature box (the large one), making sure the "Enable HTML in Posts" option is checked.
     6. Type this line of code where you want your picture to show: <img src=http://s5.rpgclassics.com/rpgcsigpics/____> and type in the name of your picture file (ie, locke.gif, zero.jpg etc) where that blank line is.
     7. If you aren't using our hosting options then replace the url with the url of your picture on the Internet, (example: <img src=http://www.whydidntyou.use/our/pichostingoption.gif>)

     Post Ranks:

People will occasionally ask what the ranks are at the RPGC Forums. Here they are, with the approximate number of posts required for each level...

   Conclusion:

That should be all there is to it. I'll keep updating this when the staff tells me what I missed out or did incorrectly, also when testing out your signature and picture, check the preview option next to the post button, this way you can see how it looks and it keeps the more authoritarian moderators/admins out of your hair. Sometimes it takes a couple of tries to get it to show the way you like it, just keep messing around with it.

Please let me know if there are any other issues you have, and welcome to our Forums! Who knows, maybe by sticking around on the boards you'll build up enough of a reputation that you can be faster considered to join the staff (like I did). Enjoy yourselves and have fun running your fingers raw typing!


-Merlin      :P