A couple things bout the forum itself...

The first thing is:

I was reviewing the option settings at:

https://forums.majorgeeks.com/profile.php?do=editoptions

When I wanted a better understanding of the available display modes. But clicking on the "help page" link in the text:

brought me to:

https://forums.majorgeeks.com/faq.php?faq=vb_board_usage#faq_vb_threadedmode

But all I really got was:

http://i62.tinypic.com/2evrtqu.jpg

Which didn't mention how the "administrator" prefered to be notified...

The other thing is:

I'm having trouble with the formatting controls and smilie inserting icons:

I mean If I can remember the actual "BBCodes" involved I can insert them but depending on which browser I'm using...or {some such thing} the controls to do that for me are NOT working....
I've tried both with the "Standard Editor - Extra formatting controls" and with the full WYSiWYG interface.

The smilie controls at least worked for me reciently I might have been using Mageia Linux at the time, In which case I might have been using Opera...

Otherwise I'd have been using Firefox, And if I wasn't using Mageia, it was because I was {just like I am now} running from a Puppy Linux Flash drive where I was certainly using firefox.

With firefox I install exactly one add-on. Namely "NoScript" But if that was the problem the selecting "Temporarily allow all this page" Should have worked.

But for some reason whether I'm using the Slacko 5.6 Puppy in my desktop's usb port. Or the Precise Puppy 5.7.1 I keep in my laptops usb port, I can't get those controls working here...

I note, I opened another tab to

https://forums.mageia.org

Where these kind of controls work in their forum message composer, And likewise they work at:

http://murga-linux.com

Any suggestions as to what I might need to do to get them working here?

I mean using the puppy linux composer as a sourse to extract BBCode for smilies gets inconsistant results here...

:shock: :? 8) :lol: :cry: :x :evil: :twisted: :roll: :wink:

As are the smilie codes from Mageia's forum...

:shock: :? :roll: :twisted: :evil: :cry: :x :lol: :!: :?: :idea: :arrow: :| :mrgreen: :geek: :ugeek:

 

Well it's mostly that since the formatting control and smilie buttons exist. It bothers me a little that Firefox can't let me use them.

I can remember enough of the BBCodes that work on most forums to manualy insert most the formatting commands I actually use.

Though I'm never sure I got it right till I use the preview...

The smilies though are harder to guess. For example: several forums use

Code:

:roll: 

for which I've discovered useing Seamonkey {a browser with a UI I dislike using} that this forum uses

Code:

rolleyes

Though I doubt I'll remember the different specific codes for that next week etc...

I'd just like to be able to use the buttons with firefox...

http://i59.tinypic.com/5yuk9e.png

To which the only "Extension" I've added is NoScript, and since even this result of selecting "Temporarily allow all this page" about three times untill the 3rd party javascript sites stopped adding more javascript sites to the list:

http://i62.tinypic.com/aywm7c.png

didn't help with the buttons, So I'm kinda doubting that NoScript it the reason This firefox can't select them buttons in your editor window.

 

This is starting to look like a Puppy Linux issue...

Why would the above firefox version installed to a Precise Puppy 5.7.1 Linux on a Flash drive, {which does work for simular buttons on other forums} Fail to be able to select them here, when This version:

http://i61.tinypic.com/14ch5z8.png

installed to a Mageia Linux on the Hard Drive works perfectly???

 

OK Now I'm confused...
After I checked that the formatting buttons worked from Mageia, I rebooted the Precise Puppy 5.7.1 to test if anything had changed before posting my last message... And the buttons still didn't work....
So I decided to ask the Puppy forum about it. For which I wanted one more piece of info. So I booted a different Flash drive with Slacko 5.6 Puppy Linux on it, {which uses a version of Firefox closer to Mageia's than the Ubuntu based one Precise Puppy uses.} And noticed that THAT Firefox also worked properly here, At which point I rebooted into the same Precise Puppy 5.7.1 I'd had still had the problem with 1/2 an hour ago to begin composing for the Puppy Linux foruum {Because that Flash drive had all my notes on the toppic locked up in it's save file...} But when I again opened a message here, with the same Ubuntu based Firefox I'd had the trouble with {just to extract the TinyPic URLs of the firefox About snapshots} Lo and behold Suddenly all the formatting controls are working???confusedconfused

Don't suppose somebody change something here? Or should I maybe chaulk the whole thing up to my imagination?:-o:-o

Well anyway, it's all good now...:-D:-D:-D:-D

PS: Don't worry, I won't normally clutter up most of my posts with such extreme mis-use of the formatting controls as the above. But I was feeling dizzy with the formatting power at my figertips and just had to play with it a bit.

 

Hmmmmnnnn. And the confusion continues... I decided to test the Precise Puppy I keep in my laptop's usbport. Which should only be different from the one in my desktop in that it's been configured to use the wpa2-psk protected wireless connection and a different screen resolution than the one in the desktop's usb port... And with the copy of firefox installed to this Puppy, the formatting buttons still fail to function...:-o:-o So I rebooted into this Laptop's Mageia installation, And tested that copy of firefox. And the button failed again...

I don't know what makes this so unstable, But I'm thinking my solution will be to make a cheat sheat with all the applicable formatting and smilie BBCodes and put it in an email that I can keep in the "hold" folder on an IMAP account I use. That way, anytime the formatting controls fail me I can open said mail message and copy/paste the durned things

 

Thanks, I did extract a few more for my personal forum cheat sheet from that.

Though a couple of the "silly" ones are just rude amd politicaly incorrect enough that I'm surprized their use isn't :*** in the forum. <snicker>

 

Not being rude but why would anyone bother using smilies in a post or an email?

 

Why wouldn't they?

 

Well that depends... smilies are, in my opinion, a specialized form of
emoticon. Some people felt that unadorned text based communication lacked emotion.
So they looked for a way to include something to substitute for the facial
expressions that you don't get in an email...

I don't think they would be appropriate in most business email correspondence.
But an email exchange between family or friends can feel more personal with them.

In a "forum" though it depends on the general attitude of the people who use
the forum involved. If it's a friendly place, and doesn't have a policy
against them, then they can enhance the experience of all readers.

Most of the time I think that in a help forum, they should only be used
sparingly, to avoid detracting from the actual exchange of information...

But sometimes adding a little feeling to a comment is desirable. And
that's when they shine. :-D There are other ways of doing it of course:

Code:

|   ---   ___ 
|   <0>   <-> 
|       ^     
|    ~\___/~  

But some think asciiart wastes too much bandwidth... <sigh>