How do I participate in the Forums?

If you are new to online Forums then some of the terminology may be confusing and you many not know where to begin to participate in the forums. Our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) section is a great resource for learning more about:

• User Maintenance
• General Forum Usage
• Reading and Posting Messages

Just click on one of those links to learn more, but here is a quick primer on participating in our forums.

Definitions:
Category - A group of discussion Forums of similar topics or interests.
Forum - A group of discussion Threads of similar topics or interests.
Thread - A line of discussion that contain Post(s).
Post - An individual Comment or Reply within a Thread.

Okay, it is as clear as mud now right? It works like this. I go to a specific Category to find a Forum containing discussion Threads about a subject that I want to either create a New Thread about or Reply with a Post about an existing discussion Thread.

Our Forums are organized in three (3) Categories:

1. General Topics
2. Boat Forums
3. On the Water

Within those three categories are twenty-six (26) different Forums to discuss specific topic areas. Within each of those discussion Forums members can create New Threads of discussion or Reply to existing threads.

When you enter a Forum you will see a list of existing Threads and a large New Thread button above them. You can choose to create a New Thread to start a new discussion that falls within the topic scope of that Category. Or you can click on the link to one of the existing Threads which will take you to that discussion Thread where you will see all the Posts made by members in Reply to the original Thread starters Post.

When you enter an existing Thread you will see a large Post Reply button. If you click this then you can create a Post message in Reply to the posts made by other members in that Thread.

If you create a New Thread you will need to enter a Title and Message before selecting the Submit New Thread button. PLEASE make your Title as content relevant as possible so it will be easier for others to quickly discover what your Thread Post is about and to make Searches more successful. You should also use our Search tool on the home page and located in the Navigation Menu above to check to see if someone has already started a thread on the subject you wish to post about. You may find that your question is already answered or that you want to add a Reply post to a Thread that someone has already started. If after searching you don't find a similar Thread proceed to start your own. After you have searched a topic a few times you will grow to appreciate the use of content relevant Thread and Post Titles.

Now back to posting options....you will notice several formatting options within the Message block and above the Message edit window. You can choose Font, Style, Bold, Italics, Underline, Align Left, Center, Right, lists, web links, email address links, photo links, quotes, etc. in those formatting choices. To the right of the Message edit window you'll see Smilies. You can use these to attempt to communicate an emotion related to your post. Whether you are happy with the or Shocked with the these can be fun to add to your post. If you move your mouse and hover over each one you'll find out what each smiley is called. You can also choose a Post Icon from the group under the Message Edit window. These will show up beside your Post Title when listed.

There are Additional Options available to you before you submit your new post. These are located below the Submit New Thread or Submit Reply buttons. You can choose to Show your Signature, Parse links in the text of your message, Disable Smilies in your message, Attach Files (like Photos), set your Subscription notification preference for this thread, choose a folder to save it in and/or Post a Poll. After making all your choices simply select Submit New Thread or Submit Reply and you've added your thoughts and opinions to the membership.

This may all seem very strange and confusing at first, but hopefully it will begin to make sense once you try it a few times. "The best way to learn is to jump in." My dad used to say that as he threw us in the water! Before you know it you'll be an old pro. I'm confident of it! Thanks for participating in our forums.

To see an Archive list of our Categories and Forums click the Archive link at the bottom of each page.