Frequently Asked Questions

Frequently Asked Questions 1

Login Issues
Why can’t I login?
There are several reasons why this could occur. First, ensure your username and password might be correct. Your account might have been marked as expired due to inactivity, maybe you registered but never logged in and your account has been removed. You might have been banned or refused an account upon registration.  If in doubt read the advice page here.

Why do I need to register?
You don’t, you can read and post comments on the blog as a guest, however certain areas and services will not be available to you, for example you will not be able to post on the forum. Registration will give you access to additional features not available to guest users such as definable avatar images, private messaging of fellow users, user group subscription, etc. It only takes a few moments to register so it is recommended you do so.

Why do I get logged off automatically?
If you do not check the Log me in automatically box when you login, the board will only keep you logged in for a preset time. This prevents misuse of your account by anyone else. To stay logged in, check the box during login. This is not recommended if you access the board from a shared computer, e.g. library, internet cafe, university computer lab, etc. If you do not see this checkbox, it means the board administrator has disabled this feature.

How do I prevent my username appearing in the online user listings?
You cannot.

I’ve lost my password!
Don’t panic! While your password cannot be retrieved, it can easily be reset. Visit the login page and click I’ve forgotten my password. Follow the instructions and you should be able to log in again shortly.

I registered but cannot login!
There might be a number of reasons why you cannot log in. As the registration process states, this website and forum are privately funded and operated, there is no guaranteed right of access.  All registrations are manually approved. Therefore, after you have completed the regsitrtaion, you will not be able to log in until your application is manually checked. If  approved, you will be notified via e-mail, only then will you be able to log in. If your request was rejected you will not receive a reason or a notification.

Lets assume you were accepted as a member, if you did not receive an e-mail, check your e-mail client, the e-mail may have been picked up by a spam filter.

Other reasons

  • Invalid e-mail address supplied
  • BT internet e-mails are a problem, see here.
  • New verified registrations that are not logged in within 2 days of activation, will be removed. Why register and then not complete? Check e-mail, check spam, make contact.

If you are sure all is correct, try reading the advice page here.

I registered in the past but cannot login any more?!
It is possible an administrator has deactivated or deleted your account. Also, many boards periodically remove users who have not posted for a long time to reduce the size of the database, though we rarely do that here. First check the members list and see if you can find yourself, you can fuzzy match search with just 3 characters. If your account is not present then try registering again and being more involved in discussions.

Why can’t I register?
It is possible the website owner has banned your IP address or disallowed the username you are attempting to register. The website owner could have also disabled registration to prevent new visitors from signing up.

How do I revoke Radios-TV cookies?
Via your browsers tools.

How do I change my settings?
If you are a registered user, all your settings are stored in the board database. To alter them, visit your account which is available under “My Profile” a link can usually be found at the top of site menu. This system will allow you to change all your settings and preferences.

The times are not correct!
It is possible the time displayed is from a timezone different from the one you are in. If this is the case, visit your User Control Panel and change your timezone to match your particular area, e.g. London, Paris, New York, Sydney, etc. Please note that changing the timezone, like most settings, can only be done by registered users. If you are not registered, this is a good time to do so.

How do I show an image along with my username?
There are two images which may appear along with a username when viewing posts. One of them may be an image associated with your rank, generally in the form of stars, blocks or dots, indicating how many posts you have made or your status on the board. Another, usually a larger image, is known as an avatar and is generally unique or personal to each user. It is up to the board administrator to enable avatars and to choose the way in which avatars can be made available. If you are unable to use avatars, contact a board administrator and ask them for their reasons.

What is my rank and how do I change it?
Ranks, which appear below your username, indicate the number of posts you have made or identify certain users, e.g. moderators and administrators. In general, you cannot directly change the wording of any board ranks as they are set by the board administrator. Please do not abuse the board by posting unnecessarily just to increase your rank. Most boards will not tolerate this and the moderator or administrator will simply lower your post count.

How do I post a topic in a forum?
To post a new topic in a forum, click the relevant button on either the forum or topic screens.

How do I edit or delete a post?
Unless you are a board administrator or moderator, you can only edit or delete your own posts. You can edit a post by clicking the edit button for the relevant post, sometimes for only a limited time after the post was made. If someone has already replied to the post, you will find a small piece of text output below the post when you return to the topic which lists the number of times you edited it along with the date and time. This will only appear if someone has made a reply; it will not appear if a moderator or administrator edited the post, though they may leave a note as to why they’ve edited the post at their own discretion. Please note that normal users cannot delete a post once someone has replied.

How do I add a signature to my post?
Via the control panel and your user profile.

How do I create a poll? (polls are now disabled)
When posting a new topic or editing the first post of a topic, click the “Poll creation” tab below the main posting form; if you cannot see this, you do not have appropriate permissions to create polls. Enter a title and at least two options in the appropriate fields, making sure each option is on a separate line in the text area. You can also set the number of options users may select during voting under “Options per user”, a time limit in days for the poll (0 for infinite duration) and lastly the option to allow users to amend their votes.

Why can’t I add more poll options? (polls are now disabled)
The limit for poll options is set by the board administrator. If you feel you need to add more options to your poll than the allowed amount, contact the board administrator.

How do I edit or delete a poll? (polls are now disabled)
As with posts, polls can only be edited by the original poster, a moderator or an administrator. To edit a poll, click to edit the first post in the topic; this always has the poll associated with it. If no one has cast a vote, users can delete the poll or edit any poll option. However, if members have already placed votes, only moderators or administrators can edit or delete it. This prevents the poll’s options from being changed mid-way through a poll.

Why can’t I access a forum?
Some forums may be limited to certain users or groups. To view, read, post or perform another action you may need special permissions. Contact a moderator or board administrator to grant you access.

Why can’t I add attachments?
Attachment permissions are granted on a per forum, per group, or per user basis. The board administrator may not have allowed attachments to be added for the specific forum you are posting in, or perhaps only certain groups can post attachments. Contact the board administrator if you are unsure about why you are unable to add attachments.

Why did I receive a warning?
Each board administrator has their own set of rules for their site. If you have broken a rule, you may be issued a warning. Please note that this is the board administrator’s decision. Contact the board administrator if you are unsure about why you were issued a warning.

How can I report posts to a moderator?
If the board administrator has allowed it, you should see a button for reporting posts at the top of every post. Click on it and fill out the form.

Why does my post need to be approved?
New members are placed in the “New Members” group, its posts are moderated, once confidence is established you will be moved to the “Registered” user group and will be able to freely post. The board administrator may have decided that posts in the forum you are posting to require review before submission. It is also possible that the administrator has placed you on moderation. Please contact the board administrator for further details.

How do I bump my topic?
You cannot, the feature does not yet exist here. It is also possible to bump the topic simply by replying to it, however, be sure to follow the board rules when doing so.

What are Smilies?
Smilies, or Emoticons, are small images which can be used to express a feeling using a short code, e.g. 🙂 denotes happy, while 🙁 denotes sad. The full list of emoticons can be seen in the posting form. Try not to overuse smilies, however, as they can quickly render a post unreadable and a moderator may edit them out or remove the post altogether. The board administrator may also have set a limit to the number of smilies you may use within a post.

Can I post images?
Yes, images can be shown in your posts. If the administrator has allowed attachments, you may be able to upload the image to the board. Otherwise, you must link to an image stored on a publicly accessible web server, e.g. http://www.example.com/my-picture.gif. You cannot link to pictures stored on your own PC (unless it is a publicly accessible server) nor images stored behind authentication mechanisms, e.g. hotmail or yahoo mailboxes, password protected sites, etc.

What are announcements?
Global announcements contain important information and will arrive via the private messaging system. You should read them whenever possible, a notification will appear at the top of the page.

What are Notifications?
Notifications arrive in two ways via e-mail and popups on the forum, you will also see a bell icon on the forum indicating how many. You will receive emails from wordpress@radios-tv.co.uk. These notifications might be telling you that you have an private message, or that a topic on the forum you subscribed to has had a reponse and it will show that response.

What are sticky topics?
Sticky topics within the forum appear at the top only on the first page. They are often quite important so you should read them whenever possible. As with announcements, sticky topic permissions are granted by the board administrator.

What are locked topics?
Locked topics are topics where users can no longer reply and any poll it contained was automatically ended. Topics may be locked for many reasons and were set this way by either the forum moderator or board administrator. You may also be able to lock your own topics depending on the permissions you are granted by the board administrator.

What are Administrators?
Administrators are members assigned with the highest level of control over the entire board. These members can control all facets of board operation, including setting permissions, banning users, creating usergroups or moderators, etc

What are Moderators?
Moderators are individuals (or groups of individuals) who look after the forums from day to day. They have the authority to edit or delete posts and lock, unlock, move, delete and split topics in the forum they moderate. Generally, moderators are present to prevent users from going off-topic or posting abusive or offensive material.

What are user groups?
User groups are groups of users that divide the community into manageable sections board administrators can work with. Each user can belong to several groups and each group can be assigned individual permissions. This provides an easy way for administrators to change permissions for many users at once, such as changing moderator permissions or granting users access to a private forum.

Why do some user groups appear in a different colour?
It is possible for the board administrator to assign a colour to the members of a usergroup to make it easy to identify the members of this group.

What is the “Default usergroup”?
New members which is moderated

Private Messaging
I cannot send private messages!
There are three reasons for this; you are not registered and/or not logged on, the board administrator has disabled private messaging for the entire board, or you have not made 5 posts on the forum. Contact a board administrator for more information.

I keep getting unwanted private messages!
You can block a user from sending you private messages by using message rules within the private messaging settings. If you are receiving abusive private messages from a particular user, inform a board administrator.

I have received a spamming or abusive e-mail from someone on this board!
We are sorry to hear that. The e-mail form feature of this board includes safeguards to try and track users who send such posts, so e-mail the board administrator with a full copy of the e-mail you received. It is very important that this includes the headers that contain the details of the user that sent the e-mail. The board administrator can then take action.

Searching the Forums
How can I search a forum or forums?
Enter a search term in the search box located on forum homepage.

Why does my search return no results?
Your search was probably too vague and included many common terms which are not indexed. Be more specific.

How do I search for members?
Visit to the “Members” page and click in the “display name” box, type in who you are looking for and then click “search”.

How can I find my own posts and topics?
Your own posts can be retrieved via your control panel, click on the profile icon.

How do I subscribe to specific forums or topics?
To subscribe to a specific topic, click the “Subscribe topic” link upon entering the thread. To subscribe to a topic, reply to the topic with the subscribe checkbox checked or click the “Subscribe topic” link within the topic itself.

How do I remove my subscriptions?
To remove your subscriptions, go to your “My Profile” and click on subscription and follow the links to your subscriptions.

What Attachments are allowed?
Only images are allowed.

How do I find all my attachments?
To find your list of attachments that you have uploaded, go to the post topic box and click on “My Media”, a user interface will load showing all your attachments.

Who do I contact about abusive and/or legal matters related to this board?
Any of the moderators should be your point of contact for your complaints. If this still gets no response then you should contact the owner/administrator.

Why can’t I access the data library?
The VIP data library is reserved for active participating members only. This was clearly laid out in the rules of joining. It is suggested you reacquaint yourself with them. More specifically for the data library, read this.

Finally
Don’t forget to check out all our many specific guides in the FAQ section of the forum, see here