11.09.2010
BibelCenter starting page
–  Foren F A Q

Foren F A Q

Following are some F A Q concerning the BibelCenter forums. There are questions and answers about technical aspects as well as how to post and how to use the information provided in the forums.

 

Questions about technical matters and functions of the forums

How does a forum work?
  • Forums use a "bulletin board" technology, which allows registered users to read messages from other users and to write messages as well as answer messages from other participants.
  • Each forum may have different topics, and messages are then posted under the topic. Users can also suggest and arrange for new topics.
  • Some forums are set up for specific groups and are protected by password. Anyone interested in participating needs to contact the moderator and arrange further details about becoming a member of the group.
  • The forums at the BibelCenter are "part-moderated", that is, messages and replies are either posted directly - that is, without any further check by another - to the forum or they are forwarded first to a moderator of a forum and will then be forwarded to the forum. Moderating of forums is used to prevent misuse and spamming or at least to limit it.
  • If there are technical or other problems with a forum, the moderator will take action to inform others and to help.
Forums and their topics
  • The forums at the BibelCenter have been arranged to provide a means for exchange among believers in various categories and topics. For example, there is a forum "Bible" with sub-categories and topics where all topics with a connection to the Bible can be discussed. There is a forum "Church" where topics about the church, church life, etc. can be discussed. There is a forum "Christian Walk" for questions and exchange about how to live as a Christian, daily application of biblical truths, etc.
  • Should it become necessary or be more effective to set up a new forum or a new topic for certain questions and discussions, participants can contact the moderator and make suggestions concerning these matters.

 

Questions about organisation and procedures of forums

How do discussions in a forum happen?
  • Discussions and exchange in a forum depend on the interests and initiative of the participants; topics are usually not initiated from the BibelCenter. If participants do not write anything, the forum rests until someone becomes active and posts again. It depends on the participants, that is, how many there are and how active they are, whether a forum has a lot of traffic and contributions or not.
  • Participants suggest new topics, write posts about a topic, reply to questions, etc. When replying to another message, the user can quote the original message or parts of it for reference
Are contributions being censored?
  • Contributions to the BibelCenter forums are only moderated (censored) for the purpose of protecting the forums from spam and misuse. For this purpose, posts from newly registered users and users who are not personally known to the moderator are at first moderated. Otherwise, posts are forwarded directly to the forum. The forums are thus generally not censored. Should it become necessary, posts from users can be moderated and it then is the responsibility of the moderator to approve a post for the forum or else reject it.
What is the purpose of a moderator?
  • A moderator is a registered user who is a "regular member" of a forum and in addition to that function will pay attention to the forum activities to ensure that things are done decently and in order.
  • The moderator is the contact person in case of problems with a forum, no matter what kind of problem has arisen. The moderator will step in in case of technical problems, and also take care of situations if perhaps undue arguments or fighting between users arises.
Are there "rules of conduct" for the forums?
  • Yes, there are some rules of conduct for the forums, and all rules could basically be summarized in one word, "Treat the other person as you would like to be treated by them!"
  • "Netiquette" -- Internet etiquette -- is the term here, details and some more relevant information is given on the Netiquette page.

 

Questions about specific problems

What do I do when too much is going on?
  • With exchange in various forums and topic and if many users are actively participating, it can happen that there are many new posts and replies in a forum. There are links to mark all posts in a forum / topic as read, and you can set an option that you will not be notified by e-mail when new posts and replies to a thread are posted.
  • Please note: Nobody has to read all posts, nor does everyone have to write a reply. It is best to concentrate on those topics and threads that are of interest and to only actively participate in those while ignoring what is going in in different topics or reading those posts at a later time.
  • If one does participate in a thread and cannot reply right now, it may be a good idea to write a short note to let others know that one will get back at a later time so they know why there are no answer to a question at this particular time
"Dialogue" inside or outside a forum?
  • Participants determine what happens in a forum. Each participant has the same right to write and discuss as any other, but he also has the same duties as any other, that is, to be considerate of others.
  • If only two (or very few) particpants are interested in a discussion, it could still be that there are many others who are just reading along "sliently" and who benefit from the exchange.
  • Also, other particpants can easily pick up a new topic and start a new discussion about a different topic where they then can actively participate.
  • If one is not interested in such a "2 people dialogue", one can simply ignore the thread.

 

Glossary of terms used in E-Mails and forums

Attachment
A file attached to an e-mail
Emoticons/Smilies
Small icons, made up of colons, semicolons, brackets, etc which are to help communicate certain emotions(vgl. Smilies, etc.)
Flaming
Sending offending messages, sometimes not meant seriously, sometimes to "heat up" a discussion, etc. Such contributions are not to be used in the BibelCenter forums!
Footer / Header
Footer or header lines are not really to be used in messages. The use of a "signature" is possible, but should not be overdone.
Forward
Forwarding of a mail. In most e-mail software there is an automatic function for forwarding e-mails.
Hoax
A wrong information. Often these are "virus warnings", etc. Such forwarded messages in form of chain letters often contain instructions to do certain things which may ill effect your computer, similar to what an actual virus might do.
PLEASE DO NOT SEND such virus warnings to the BibelCenter. Information about hoax mails can be found on websites of anti-virus software providers, such as the following:
http://www.tu-berlin.de/www/software/hoax/
http://www.hoaxinfo.de/
Mail-Reader / E-Mail Client
The E-Mail sofware used to receive and send e-mails.
Moderator
The person helping with a forum. In a "moderated" forum, the moderator will receive messages for the forum, read them and then decide about approving or rejecting them. Generally, a moderator will be available for help with any questions and problems concerning a forum.
Newbie
A new person - someone not yet used to the various procedures and functions of a forum.
Quotation
Quotes - the original message or part thereof to which one is replying is quoted automatically, when using the "quote" function of the forum.
Quotes should contain only those parts relevant to the reply as well as some identifying line to know who originally posted the message; one should not quote complete messages
Reply / answer
The answer to a previous note or message of another user. Replies / answers are written by using the appropriate button for the reply function in the forum.
Signature
A signature section which can be automatically added to each message of a user. The signature can be set in the "profile" section by each user.
Messages to the BibelCenter forums should be signed by users with their real name (not some "fantasy" name or "nick"). In addition, signatures should not be unnecessarily long and should not contain any third party advetisement.
Subject / topic
Contributions should be posted in the forum, topic where they best fit. Please use a "subject" line that will be appropriate for the content of your message, so that others can better recognize what the message is about.
Thread
"thread" - the term used for all messages within a certain "subject". All messages and replies for the same subject are gathered in a thread and can be displayed accordingly.
Topic
The topic or theme of a forum or thread, discussion.
off-topic
"off-topic" are messages that do not actually belong or address the subject being discussed in a particular thread. These should normalle be discussed somewhere else, or at least should be marked as "off topic" so others know that the content has nothing to do with the thread.

Glossary of abbreviations

ACK
Acknowledgment
AFAIK
As far as I know
aka
Also know as
BTW
By the way
CNR
Could Not Resist
SCNR
Sorry Could Not Resist
CU
See you -
CUl8r
See you later
EOD
End of discussion
EOT
End of thread
FW
forward
FYI
For your information
GBY
God bless you
PTL
Praise the Lord
HAND
Have a nice day!
IIRC
If I Remember Correctly
IRL
In Real Live
IMHO
In my humble Opinion
MOMPL
MOMent PLease
OIC
Oh, I see
OT
Off Topic
Re
Reply
RFC
Request For Comment
RFD
Request For Discussion
LOL
Laughing Out Loud
ROTFL
Rolling on the Floor laughing
ROTFLBTC
(rotfl)... biting the carpet
RTFM
Read the f*ing manual
Spam
Send Phenomenal Amounts of Mail -
TCOY
Take Care Of Yourself
<g>
grin
<bg>
big grin
<vbg>
very big grin
<eg>
evil grin
<gd&r>
grinning, ducking & running
<s>
sigh

Emoticons

(...)
no comment!
\o/
same as PTL
yyyyyyy
champagne for all!

If your have further questions, please write a note to the forum admin.
Contact to the BC Foren admin