Do I need to be a member to post in the forums?

Yes. Please visit our join page to sign up now!

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How do I post in the forums?

First, in order to post, you'll need to be a MomSquawk member. Please visit our join page to sign up. Once you have an account, to reply to an existing thread (topic), click the reply button. To start a new thread (topic), click the new thread button.

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Why can't I access a forum?

Some forums are reserved for premium members. To become a premium member, if you are not already a member, please visit our join page. If you are already a basic member, and you'd like to upgrade to premium membership, please visit the my account page, and once logged in, select the upgrade account link at the bottom of the page. If you are already a premium member, or have reason to believe that you should otherwise be able to access the forum in question, please contact us either using our contact page or by emailing us at (please be sure to include your username and the forum in question in your message).

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Why do some threads mess up my screen?

Chances are, if you see something that is not pleasing to the eye, it's a bug. We would tremendously appreciate it if you would report all bugs you find by contacting us either using our contact page or by emailing us at (please be sure to include a link to the broken thread).

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I don't see a link for the forum control panel. Where is it?

You will not see the link for the forum control panel unless you are logged in. If you are logged in, it is found in the brown forum control bar.

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How do I change my forum profile?

To change your forum profile, visit the forum control panel.

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Is there spell check?

At this time, spell check is only offered for Internet Explorer users through a program called iespell. IE users will be prompted to download iespell the first time they attempt to spell check a post (by clicking the button with the ABC checkmark in the post editor).

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Where do I upload my signature?

To upload a signature, visit the forum control panel.

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How do I upload a signature?

Signature instructions - Basic Members
To add a picture or graphic to your signature make sure you are logged in and go to the Edit Signature page.

From here, you have two options:

1. Enter the URL to the Image on Another Website.
• From a photo hosting site such as Photobucket, enter the URL of the picture/graphic you'd like to use as a signature.
• Hit "Preview Signature". The graphic you selected should appear in the "Your Current Signature Picture" box.
• Click the "Insert Signature Picture" hyperlink next to your graphic. The [SIGPIC] [/SIGPIC] code should appear in the "Edit Signature" text box.
• Click "Preview Signature" again. The graphic you selected should now appear above in the "Preview Signature" box.
• Click "Save Signature".
2. Upload Image From Your Computer
• Click the "Browse" button to select a photo or graphic from your computer.
• Hit "Preview Signature". The graphic you selected should appear in the "Your Current Signature Picture" box.
• Click the "Insert Signature Picture" hyperlink next to your graphic. The [SIGPIC] [/SIGPIC] code should appear in the "Edit Signature" text box.
• Click "Preview Signature" again. The graphic you selected should now appear above in the "Preview Signature" box.
• Click "Save Signature".

NOTE: The maximum size the custom image for basic users is 400 by 300 pixels or 97.7 KB (whichever is smaller). There is a limit of 10 lines of text (including URL links) in signatures for basic users. Animated signatures (.gif files) are reserved for premium members.

To enjoy greater signature space and capabilities, become a premium member today! To become a premium member, if you are not already a member, please visit our join page. If you are already a basic member, and you'd like to upgrade to premium membership, please visit the my account page, and once logged in, select the upgrade account link at the bottom of the page.

Signature Instructions -- Premium Members
Follow the same basic instructions as given for the Basic Members.

Additionally, you can paste additional IMG Code from graphics hosted on sites like Photobucket to add additional graphics to your signature! (Place the additional text before and after the "SIGPIC" code in the Edit Signature box.)

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I looked at the instructions above, but I don't see any link that says "Insert signature picture"? What gives?

In short, we're not sure (it's a bug that's been hard to kill). However, if you type [SIGPIC][/SIGPIC] in the edit signature box where you want your signature to appear (that is, in relation to any text you've also put in your signature), it should fix the problem.

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How do I select an avatar?

Basic members may select from one of the preloaded MomSquawk avatars; to do so, visit the forum control panel. Premium members may upload a custom avatar, which is also done by visiting the forum control panel.

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What is a profile picture?

The profile picture is the picture that will be displayed in your public profile. Your public profile can be viewed by users by either visiting the members list or clicking on your username displayed to the left of your posts. To upload a profile picture, visit the forum control panel. Please note: the ability to upload animated profile pictures is reserved for premium members. To become a premium member, if you are not already a member, please visit our join page. If you are already a basic member, and you'd like to upgrade to premium membership, please visit the my account page, and once logged in, select the upgrade account link at the bottom of the page.

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How do I send private messages?

The private messaging function is reserved for MomSquawk premium members. To become a premium member, if you are not already a member, please visit our join page. If you are already a basic member, and you'd like to upgrade to premium membership, please visit the my account page, and once logged in, select the upgrade account link at the bottom of the page. If you are already a premium member, be sure you are logged in to the site and click "Send Message" on the brown forum control bar.

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How do I post a poll?

To post a poll, first click the create a new thread button, and be sure to title your post. Next, at the bottom of the screen under Additional Options, check the box that says "Yes, post a poll with this thread", and enter the number of poll options (possible answers to your poll question) that you would like to have. Click the "submit new post" button, and you will now be taken to a confirmation page, which will quickly redirect you to a form that will allow you to enter your poll questions and answers, as well as edit options for that poll.

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How do I attach a file to a post?

The ability to attach files to posts is reserved for MomSquawk premium members. To become a premium member, if you are not already a member, please visit our join page. If you are already a basic member, and you'd like to upgrade to premium membership, please visit the my account page, and once logged in, select the upgrade account link at the bottom of the page. If you are a premium member, click the paper clip button in the post editor (the place from where you write a post). Select manage attachments from the drop down list, and upload the attachment you'd like to post in the pop up screen that appears. Once the upload is complete, close the pop up, click the paper clip button again, and select your attachment from the drop down list. Your attachment will be stored in this list in case you want to attach it on other posts, or easily find it to delete it at a later date. To view and manage the attachments you have previously made, visit the forum control panel.

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How do I post an event on the calendar?

All members may post events on the calendar. To post events on the calendar, click add new event on the brown control bar, and select the type of event you'd like to add from the drop down box. A form will appear in which you can add the details of your event. Events will not appear on the calendar until approved by MomSquawk moderators.

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How do I subscribe to a thread?

Subscribing to a thread allows you to mark a thread to where you can be notified when new posts are made on that thread. It also allows you to view and manage your subscribed threads in one central place. To subscribe to that thread, while you are viewing that thread, click thread tools in the brown thread control bar, and select Subscribe to this thread from the drop down box. To manage or view your subscriptions, please visit the forum control panel.

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How do I change my notification options?

To change your email, thread subscription and private message notification options, visit the forum control panel.

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How do I change my thread display options?

To change your options as to how you view forum threads, visit the forum control panel.

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How do I make the timestamp for posts correct?

To set your time and date options, visit the forum control panel, and select your time zone. If you have done this and your time is still not correct (most likely off by an hour), ensure that the DST correction option is set to "DST corrections always on" (or, if that doesn't work, always off).

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What is all this text (e.g. [B] [/B] ) that appears around my text in my post editor box when I try to do things like bold, underline, or change the color of text?

The text that appears when you edit text in your text editor is the underlying BBCode tags that will give your text the desired appearance. If you would prefer to see your text as it will appear in your post (and not view the BBCode tags), visit the forum control panel and change your text editor to the Enhanced Interface - Full WYSIWYG Editing option.

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Can I use HTML?

In lieu of HTML, MomSquawk allows all members to use BBCode in their posts, which is a special version of HTML to be used with bulletin board software. Premium members can also use BBCode in their signatures. For a good explanation of BBCode, please visit phpBB's BBCode guide.

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What are the rules for posting in the forums?

MomSquawk strives to maintain a respectful and positive community for its members; however, we believe our members are all reasonable adults, and we try to interfere in the community as little as possible. Please use good judgment when deciding what to post; with the exception of "free speech zones" (which will be specifically marked), a good litmus test as to whether or not you would post something might be whether or not you'd feel comfortable explaining it to a nine year old. If you see a post that you feel is inappropriate for the MomSquawk community, please use the "Report a violation" button on that post to report it to the MomSquawk moderators. For more information on how this site is to be used, please visit the MomSquawk Terms of Service.

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How do I ignore a user?

If you would like to avoid viewing posts from a particular user, find that user's member name in the members list, click it to view that user's profile, and select "Add to your ignore list" (found in the brown box under the user's last activity). To manage or remove users on your buddy or ignore lists, visit the forum control panel.

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How do I view which members are online?

The ability to view which members are online is reserved for MomSquawk premium members. To become a premium member, if you are not already a member, please visit our join page. If you are already a basic member, and you'd like to upgrade to premium membership, please visit the my account page, and once logged in, select the upgrade account link at the bottom of the page. If you are a premium member, the list of which users are online will appear at the bottom of the forum list page.

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What are the various thread display options?

1. Linear Mode (Oldest First) - In this mode, posts are displayed chronologically from oldest to newest. Posts are shown in a flat mode so that many posts can be viewed simultaneously.
2. Linear Mode (Newest First) - This is the same as the above mode, except that posts are ordered in an opposite way (newest first).
3. Threaded Mode - In this mode, a tree is shown along with every post. This tree allows you to see the relationship each post has to others, in terms of who responded to whom. Only one post is shown at a time.
4. Hybrid Mode - This mode is a mixture of the linear and threaded modes. The post tree is displayed like in the threaded mode, but multiple posts are displayed simultaneously like in the linear modes.

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I have a question and I don't see it listed here. What should I do?

You can visit our contact page, or email us at .

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