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Posting Guidelines
- Guidelines
Please adhere to these simple
guidelines while utilizing this forum:
1) Please execute a search
regarding the potential topic you are considering posting (located in
the upper right corner). There are hundreds of threads on various
topics that may answer your question existing in the archives. Topics
posted which already exist in the archives will be removed without
explanation.
2) Please review which topics
are available before posting your question. There are several
categories available which may directly focus on your question.
Questions posted in inappropriate topics (i.e. General Discussion)
that would be better addressed in another category will either be
transferred or removed altogether.
3) Coarse language or personal
attacks of any kind will not be tolerated. Please be professional at
all times when posting within this forum.
4) Please give as much detail
as possible when posting your questions. Forum members will only be
able to answer your questions if you supply them with the facts. Use
clear and descriptive Subjects, no "Urgent, or Help Please"
subjects allowed.
5) Please do not directly
contact the moderators of the forum unless you have a specific
question regarding the forum itself. All Quality questions should be
posted in the applicable category.
6) Do not post advertisements,
resumes or job descriptions on any forum. If you have a job
description or are looking for a job, post your resumes and jobs to http://www.qajobs.net.
7)
Use the CC to email lists
and comp.software.testing newsgroup sparingly and only if the original
message originated from the email list or newsgroup.
8) Most Important: Please
enjoy the forum! 
These same rules are now being
emailed to our new members along with their login information.
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- QA
Forums
- Our Forums are provided as a collaborate
help & support service. There, userprs can share their expertise, problems and difficulties.
Forums serve as online message bulletin boards. Most forums are product
specific, and some are designed for general use. You can post a new
topic, or reply to an existing topic. When posting messages, there
are a list of options to pick from. To enable these options, please
register by clicking the register
link on the forums page. The first option enables you to CC the
tool's email list. When checking this option please note that your
message will not be posted to that email list unless you are
registered on both the email list and our forums.
- The following email
lists are supported:
- The second option
gives you the ability to post to news groups. Currently, the USENET news group:
[comp.software.testing]
is supported. Please use this feature carefully and follow the posting
guidelines. Please avoid spamming, since posting to news groups results in wide circulation and
distribution. Spammers will be permanently banned from using this site.
Also note that your email address will be altered and a ".nospam"
suffix will be added to it to decrease the chance of getting on spam
email lists.
- The third option
which is enabled only when posting a new topic, allows you to
receive email notifications when somebody replies to your
message.
- The last option
allows you to paste your signature at the end of your message. Your
signature can be added through clicking the profile
link on the top of the forums page.
*Note that our policy to CC the
newsgroups and email lists has changed. It's now enabled for members only. A
member is a registered user with at least 25 posts. Note this is due to the unnecessary
use and abuse of this feature. Please use this feature sparingly or if the post
actually originates from the email lists and/or newsgroups. The same restriction
applies to the ability to attach files to posts.
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Do I have to register?
Registration may be required if you plan to post new topics or reply to existing topics (depending on the particular forum you are using). Registration is free, and you are not required to post your real name. You are required to post your actual email address, however.
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How can I use smilies?
Smilies are keyboard characters used to convey an emotion, such as a smile :) or a frown :(. This message board automatically converts certain smilies to a graphical representation, which we call graemlins. You can use our Instant Graemlins buttons for automatic generation. For example, if you type :o in your post, it will automatically be converted to  - a shameful face. The following graemlins are currently supported:
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:)
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Smile
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:(
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Frown
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:o
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Embarrassed
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:D
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Big Grin
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;)
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Wink
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:p
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Razz
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:cool:
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Cool
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:rolleyes:
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Roll Eyes
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:mad:
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Mad
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:eek:
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Eek!
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:confused:
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Confused
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::|:
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Blank Face
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How do I use HTML and UBB Code?
You may be able to use HTML and/or UBB Code in your posts, if your administrators and moderators have those options turned on for each forum. Some forums may have either HTML or UBB Code turned off, or both turned off. Only your message board's leaders can set this. Every time you post a new note, you will be told whether UBB Code and/or HTML is enabled for that particular forum. If HTML is on, you may use any HTML tags, but please be very careful that you use proper HTML syntax. If you do not, your moderator or administrator may have to edit your post. UBB Code is similar to HTML, but offers just a few basic functions, such as hyperlinking, image display, bolding and italicizing. Complete details on UBB Code are listed here.
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What are user titles?
Each registered member has a title that reflects his or her "rank" on this board. Administrators are given the title "Administrator". Moderators are given the title "Moderator". Some members are given special titles by the administration. All other users are given their titles based on the number of posts they have made:
| Posts |
Title |
| 0 |
New Member |
| 15 |
Member |
| 150 |
Advanced Member |
| 300 |
Guru Member |
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What are moderators?
Moderators control individual forums. They can edit, delete, or prune any posts in their forums. If you have a question about a particular forum, you should direct it to your forum moderator.
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How can I change my registration profile?
You may easily change any info stored in your registration profile, using the "profile" link located near the top of each page. You must be logged in in order to update your profile.
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Are cookies used?
This bulletin board uses cookies to store the following information: the last time you logged in, your login identification, and your preferred "topic view." These cookies are stored on your browser. Cookies are not used to track your movement or perform any function other than to enhance your use of the message board. If your browser does not support cookies, or you have not enabled cookies on your browser, many of these time-saving features will not work properly and you will not be able to post new messages.
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How can I clear all cookies set on this board?
If you ever experience login problems, you may have a problem with the cookies that have been set in your browser. If this happens, you can try clearing all cookies set on this message board by clicking here
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What do those icons next to each topic mean?
These icons provide information on the state of each topic:
| New Posts |
Old Posts |
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![[new]](http://www.qaforums.com/closedb.gif "[new]") |
![[old]](http://www.qaforums.com/closed.gif "[old]") |
An open topic |
![[new]](http://www.qaforums.com/bang.gif "[new]") |
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An important topic |
![[new]](http://www.qaforums.com/poll_new.gif "[new]") |
![[old]](http://www.qaforums.com/poll_old.gif "[old]") |
An open poll |
![[new hot]](http://www.qaforums.com/hotclosedb.gif "[new hot]") |
![[old hot]](http://www.qaforums.com/hotclosed.gif "[old hot]") |
Topic with more than 10 replies |
![[new closed]](http://www.qaforums.com/redlockfolder.gif "[new closed]") |
![[old closed]](http://www.qaforums.com/yellockfolder.gif "[old closed]") |
A closed topic or poll |
![[new closed]](http://www.qaforums.com/moved_new.gif "[new closed]") |
![[old closed]](http://www.qaforums.com/moved_old.gif "[old closed]") |
A moved topic or poll |
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Can I edit my own posts?
You may edit or delete your own posts at any time. Look for the edit icon on the post to be edited. No one else can edit your post, except for the forum moderator(s) or the message board administrators. A note is generated at the bottom of each post that is edited so that every one knows when a post has been edited. Note that if your post was the start of a new topic, deleting your post will result in the removal of the entire topic (all replies after your topic will also be deleted). Please note that your board administrators may disable the ability of members to edit or delete posts. Only registered members can edit or delete their posts.
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Can I use a signature?
You may use a signature (commonly used in email messages) on your posts. You may set your signature in your member profile. Once you have a signature stored, you can choose to include it with any post you make by checking the "include signature" box when you create your post. This message board's administrator may elect to turn the signature feature off at any time, however. If that is the case, the "include signature" option will not appear when you post a note, even if you have stored a signature. You may change your signature at any time by changing your profile, unless a message board administrator locks your profile.
Note: You may not use HTML in your signature file, but you may use UBB Code. Note that the board administrator may disable the UBB Code Image tag.
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Can I attach files?
For security reasons, you may not attach files to any posts. You may cut and paste text into your post, however, or use HTML and/or UBB Code (if enabled) to provide hyperlinks to outside documents.
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Can I search?
You may search for specific posts based on a word or words found in the posts, by a particular registered member, by date, and/or by forum. Just click on the "search" link at the top of most pages.
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What are member ratings?
The administrators of this message board may permit members to rate each other. Only registered members may be rated and they can only be rated by other members. Even if ratings are being used on this board, you may elect to not have other members rate you. To turn off member ratings for yourself, just change your profile settings. This option can be disabled by the board administrators.
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What are private messages?
The administrators of this message board may permit members to send private messages to each other. A private message is not email. Private messages are one-to-one communications that can only be read by the recipient. You can read private messages in your profile section. You can also elect to be notified by email whenever someone sends you a private message (you can set this in your profile). You can also prevent anyone from sending you a private message (also configurable in your profile). Only registered members may send private messages. This option can be disabled by the board administrators.
To send someone a private message, look for the private message icon on a post a person creates. You can send a private message through the person's member profile, or from your Buddy List, if you have added the person to your Buddy List.
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What is an Ignore List?
Ignore lists apply to private messages only. Anyone you add to your ignore list can no longer send you a private message. You can put someone on your ignore list by viewing the member's profile and clicking on the "add to ignore list" link. Private messaging must be enabled on this site in order to use buddy lists.
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What is a Buddy List?
Buddy lists apply to private messages only. Anyone you add to your buddy list is stored in a handy location, so that you can easily send the person a private message. You can put someone on your ignore list by viewing the member's profile and clicking on the "add to ignore list" link. Private messaging must be enabled on this site in order to use buddy lists.
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Are there any censor features?
The message board administrators have the power to censor certain words that may be posted. This censoring is not an exact science, however, so certain words may be censored out of context. Please realize that the censoring, if any censoring is being performed, is being done by a computer based on the words that are being screened. Words that are censored are replaced with asterisks.
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What do I do if I forget my login ID and/or password?
Retrieving your login ID and password is simple, assuming that email features are turned on for this message board. All of the pages that require you to identify yourself with your username and password carry a "lost password" link that you can use to have your username and password emailed instantly to your email address of record.
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Can I be notified by email if someone responds to my topic?
If you create a new topic, you have the option of receiving an email notification every time someone posts a reply to your topic. Just check the email notification box when creating a new topic, if you want to use this feature. Only registered members can use this feature.
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What are Today's Active Topics?
When you visit this message board, you will see a link at the top of the list of forums called "Today's Active Topics". Clicking on this link will provide you with a list of topics in all open, public forums that have been posted to during the current day. Private forums posts are never included in this listing.
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Can I search private forums?
Yes, if you have permission to access the particular private forums you wish to search. Note that you must be logged in to search private forums.
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What are posting icons?
Depending on the configuration of your forums, you may be able to associate an icon with each post that you make. There are currently 14 icons, each expressing a different emotion or identification. These icons range from a simple note to sadness to warning. These icons appear next to each topic in a forum listing and on each post. If you do not see icons, your forum administrator may not be allowing icons on this particular forum. (Thanks to Kombat03 for the icon idea!)
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How can users get in touch with me if I hide my email address?
If you would prefer that your email address not be publicly available, but you want users to mail you through this message board, you may choose to do so by editing your mailing preferences. To do this, click the "my profile" link above, then click the "View/Update Profile" link. Choose the "No, but allow members to mail me through the board" preference.
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How can I report an inappropriate post?
If you see a post that you believe requires immediate attention from a moderator or administrator, click this icon:  . You can then write a brief note explaining why you are reporting this post. The alert goes to the forum moderator(s) and the board administrator via email. Note that this feature may be disabled by the board administration.
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What is Recent Visitors?
Recent Visitors is a display of users browsing the forums and topics on this board in the past 300 minutes.
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I just visited a forum or topic. Why am I not on the list of visitors?
The recent visitors information is only updated every few minutes to reduce server load. As a result, you may not immediately see yourself or others.
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Why do I appear in more than one place at once?
Recent Visitors keeps track of the forums and topics you have looked at recently, not where you are at the current moment.
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How do I take my name off the list of recent visitors?
You may make yourself invisible to the Recent Visitors list by entering your my profile page, selecting the Update Profile link, and changing your Hide from Recent Visitors feature? preference.
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What do the numbers on the details page mean?
Recent Visitors keeps track of the forums and topics that users have viewed recently. This allows a user to appear to be in more than one place at once.
The number of recent visitors inside a forum is reflected by the Visitors column. The Popularity column is a percentage of all of the visitors currently browsing the board that have visited that forum.
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How can I tell where a certain user was last seen?
You can view the user's last known location by viewing his or her profile. If the user has not been here recently, this information will not be available.
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