How to use BBCode on HST

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ERIC
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How to use BBCode on HST

Post by ERIC »

Very sorry to have to resort to asking this, but I have
scoured the FAQs, done searches (which don't seem to offer specific
sentence options and produce scores of any old combo), tried numerous
experimental attempts in "edit" function of one of my posts, etc., and come
up with zero!

I am trying to:

1. Find this place, link, explanation, whatever - and I quote here from the
original source in FAQs titled "What is BBCode?"

..."For more information on BBCode see the guide which can be accessed from
the posting page"...

Where on earth is this guide??? I can't find it anywhere...as it may answer
my other question which is:

2. How do I "quote" a member in a post so that they know they have been
mentioned and may want to see what was said, etc.???
I have tried using the quotes " " box at the top menu when in edit
function. Also the </> option. Just get huge boxes with their names in when
review to see if it worked. Not what I recall from a few years back (and
cannot seem to see now).

That was it. Truly sorry to bother you with what may be my blind trivia,
but I have no other great ideas on this...I really would like to be able to
use the BBCode & posting system properly. That tantalizing "Guide" sounds
just the ticket...but where oh where is it?!

Thanks much, @michaelzim
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ERIC
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Re: How to use BBCode on HST

Post by ERIC »

1. Find this place, link, explanation, whatever - and I quote here from the
original source in FAQs titled "What is BBCode?"

..."For more information on BBCode see the guide which can be accessed from
the posting page"...

Where on earth is this guide??? I can't find it anywhere...as it may answer
my other question which is:
Good question. There really isn't a "guide" link on here, but the shortcut buttons in the post window, when hovered over, do give examples for their use. For more information on other BBCodes, please refer to this guide by PHPBB: https://www.phpbb.com/community/help/bbcode
There are a few special BBCodes incorporated into this site. Try searching BBCode in this forum for details.
2. How do I "quote" a member in a post so that they know they have been
mentioned and may want to see what was said, etc.???
I have tried using the quotes " " box at the top menu when in edit
function. Also the </> option. Just get huge boxes with their names in when
review to see if it worked. Not what I recall from a few years back (and
cannot seem to see now).
In the post window, when you type "@" and then begin typing a username, if typed correctly, the name should show up in a pop-up to select from. What this does is provide that member a notification to the post when they next visit the site. If properly done, it should transform your @whomever to:

Code: Select all

[mention]whomever[/mention]
Just a reminder to everyone to please post your questions here, rather than email or PM them privately. That's what this forum is for! :nod:
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michaelzim
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Re: How to use BBCode on HST

Post by michaelzim »

OK then @ERIC here goes. Ummmmm...Whoa, the pop-up list of user-names with yours at the top is following me across the page here as I type which is a bit bizarre - but figure it will disappear later. No it did not, until pressed Enter..then a big mash of "ERIC" stuff happened! See next here that follows:
So thank you for @ERIC[/menti@ERIC[/men@ERIC
And a review of the website link looks like it has all the answers re how to format in BBCode, so thanks for that too @ERIC....@ERIC too.

OK, you can see what happened as I have posted what I saw in "Preview". I decided to do this as maybe others will attempt what I am doing and be as befuddled. Thus, let me try and try and figure it out so it helps all who might get this result, as clearly the @ symbol activates all the following typing, and somehow changed the font colour too?!
Note - Putting @ before a username creates all that weird bracket stuff at the end of a sentence once I use Enter to finish a line or paragraph.

A second attempt without the @ symbol right before ERIC and doing the brackets code either side instead resulted in:
@ERIC thank you for all the info AND I should have thought to make it a post question here instead of a moderator question!

As you can see, the @ went in before ERIC, but font stayed red.

Now, c/o the link ERIC gave for help with BBCode I am going to attempt to rectify this colour change manually using their instructions - it will be successful if it changes to blue![/color=blue]

And back to black! ...OK, so any weirdness can be fixed by a bit deeper use of BBCode. However, I cannot seem to rectify the change to bold font though...or the desire for it to continue in red unless I change it manually again.[/color=black]

Sorry if this illustration is being pedantic, but as said I may not be alone when weird results happen and figured I would share the fix.
Please Note! This whole mish-mash did not happen in the same way when I just went into a previous post of mine in "Edit" function, and put the @ before the members I had referred to. It behaved! I did not get a drop down box that followed my typing across the screen, and the @ feature went in as ERIC described it should...Just the members' names went red and none of the following text. Will have to see if that holds when type in an @ and name in a new post v. putting it into an existing text already in black. Next time!

Hope this helped someone. It forced me to come to grips with BBCode, and that's a good thing for next time when I won't have to fall back onto potentially over-worked Mods!

Best ~ Michaelzim
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ERIC
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Re: How to use BBCode on HST

Post by ERIC »

This is a good discussion to have on here @michaelzim. Should have posted a tutorial long ago. Thanks for bringing it up.

BBCode, like all code, is very particular. You always need to be sure your brackets are complete and you have an opening and closing (with a /) in place. I can see that some of the code you've inserted has some errors. Below I've added screenshots of what you should see when using the @ feature. You type the @ symbol followed by the name, and once the name pops up you have to click on the name to insert the appropriate code. Once inserted, it should look exactly like the example I gave above with the exception of the name being whatever username you are trying to tag. Preview and post should look exactly the same. There is no difference between the two (or shouldn't be).

For bold or any of the other BBCodes you want to use that are buttons in the post window, you simply highlight the text you are trying to make the change to and THEN click the button. Notice that the brackets all have a beginning, and an ending (i.e. [ ] and [/]). For multiple effects, like bold and font color change, I've provided an example in the last screenshot. Notice that Bold, Size and Color all have beginning and ending brackets containing the text.
Bringing up the @
Bringing up the @
@ accomplished
@ accomplished
Bold BBCode
Bold BBCode
Bold BBCode LARGE RED
Bold BBCode LARGE RED
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michaelzim
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Re: How to use BBCode on HST

Post by michaelzim »

@ERIC Great! ...Thank you Eric for the enhanced update of all this, as indeed it makes things even clearer - which is a good thing for a "code newbie" like me.
I realize now however, that a good part of my post above was a one-time idiosyncrasy as it did not repeat and go crazy when I did the edit in one of my posts...OR HERE NOW as I am typing this! (No subsequent red font; not stuck in bold; etc.). Thus, I believe, something went goofy with all the back and forth, which confused the formatting or ???? as I did actually put the sequences in as you later did ERIC, but it did not change them or correct them. In plain English, I think my post got "stuck in a code tantrum".
Thus, I think that by just following the instructions from a fresh start, the BBCoding should behave and there will not be issues with font turning red, or stuck in bold, and so on. IF it does, I suggest closing browser (and maybe clearing cache and cookies) and starting again. Worked for me!

Thank's again ERIC...I'm glad this "problem" ended up with a solution; that I am now able to add usernames correctly, and can grasp some deeper rules about the text in posting in case I run into issues in future. Hope this helps others too.

Best ~ Michaelzim
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ERIC
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Re: How to use BBCode on HST

Post by ERIC »

michaelzim wrote: Wed Aug 05, 2020 9:08 pm @ERIC Great! ...Thank you Eric for the enhanced update of all this, as indeed it makes things even clearer - which is a good thing for a "code newbie" like me.
I realize now however, that a good part of my post above was a one-time idiosyncrasy as it did not repeat and go crazy when I did the edit in one of my posts...OR HERE NOW as I am typing this! (No subsequent red font; not stuck in bold; etc.). Thus, I believe, something went goofy with all the back and forth, which confused the formatting or ???? as I did actually put the sequences in as you later did ERIC, but it did not change them or correct them. In plain English, I think my post got "stuck in a code tantrum".
Thus, I think that by just following the instructions from a fresh start, the BBCoding should behave and there will not be issues with font turning red, or stuck in bold, and so on. IF it does, I suggest closing browser (and maybe clearing cache and cookies) and starting again. Worked for me!

Thank's again ERIC...I'm glad this "problem" ended up with a solution; that I am now able to add usernames correctly, and can grasp some deeper rules about the text in posting in case I run into issues in future. Hope this helps others too.

Best ~ Michaelzim
Just be sure your browser (and PC/phone) are up to date. If you're following standard BBCode rules, everything should work properly.
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