She turned me into a newt.
Frequently Asked Questions

  • Getting Started

    1. Why should I register? How can I do it?
    2. Is my information safe?
    3. I never received my activation email.
    4. I can't log in. What's the deal?
    5. Some pages don't seem to be displaying correctly.

  • Posting

    1. Ok, I'm logged in. How do I post?
    2. How can I create a new topic?
    3. What are Polls? How can I use them?
    4. How can I post photos?
    5. How can I post videos?
    6. How can I quote other users?
    7. How about Wikipedia?

  • Tags

    1. What are tags?
    2. What can I tag?
    3. How do I enter tags?
    4. What good are they?
    5. How can I find tagged content?

  • Groups

    1. What are groups?
    2. Why can't I join some groups?
    3. I think there should be a group for <XXXXX>.

  • Instant Messaging

    1. How does Instant Messaging work?
    2. How can I send IMs?
    3. What if I'm not logged in?
    4. Are my messages saved?
    5. User <XXXXX> keeps bothering me!
    6. Someone sent me SPAM via IM.

  • Blocks and Filters

    1. What are Blocks?
    2. What are Filters?
    3. I changed my mind. How do I unblock/unfilter someone?

    • Profile

    1. What is My Profile?
    2. How can I choose an avatar?
    3. How can I use Photos?
    4. How can I choose Friends?
    5. How does my Blog work?
    6. Where do I write up my Bio?
    7. Explain my stats to me.
    8. How do I personalize my profile?
    9. Can I change my username?
    10. I only want to see certain forums on the front page.
    11. Is there a quick way to jump to a user's profile?

    Marks

    1. What are marks?
    2. What can I mark?
    3. How can I mark stuff?
    4. Why bother?

    Feeds

    1. What are feeds?
    2. How can I subscribe to a feed?
    3. What feed format do you use?

    Search

    1. What can I search for?
    2. How does search work?
    3. Any advanced search tips?

    Other Stuff

    1. Where did you get your icons?

    • Getting Started

      1. Why do I need to register? How can I do it?

        If you do not register, you're only a passive viewer of this site — you cannot post or contribute. When you register, you can become an active participant! Registration allows you to post messages, create your own custom profile, upload photos, and connect with others. Registration is free and quick. To register, follow this link, and fill out the short form. You'll need to provide a valid email address, as we'll send you a verification email with an activation link in it. Once you receive the email, follow this link to activate your account. [top ↑]

      2. Is my information safe?

        All we ask for is an email address for authentication purposes. If you forget/lose your password, this lets you securely reset your password to get back in. We won't sell your email address, and it won't be publicly visible. You won't receive any additional spam because of us — we hate it as much as you do. You can hold us to it. [top ↑]

      3. I never received my activation email.

        If you have a spam filter, make sure our messages did not get caught by it. The activation email is sent from the address mail@htuner.com. If you use a whitelist setup, you may need to add this address to your allowed senders list. You can always have the activation email re-sent by following this link. [top ↑]

      4. I can't log in. What's the deal?

        Make sure you have both JavaScript and Cookies enabled. We use both to make the site work. [top ↑]

      5. Some pages don't seem to be displaying correctly.

        Htuner.com should work with Internet Explorer 6+, Firefox, Opera 9, and KHTML based browsers. If you're still having trouble, try upgrading your web browser. We recommend Firefox. It is fast, free, and available on all modern platforms. You can get it at www.getfirefox.com. If you're using Internet Explorer, understand that Microsoft web browsers have many shortcomings and bugs that make them poor choices for general web browsing. [top ↑]

    • Posting

      1. Ok, I'm logged in. How do I post?

        To reply to a topic, click the Reply button next to the post you wish to reply to (at the far right). If you wish to reply to the topic in general, click the reply button next to the first post. The system tracks which post you clicked Reply on so that others can track who is replying to what. If you want to quote the contents of a post, click the « button and choose Reply with Quote. If you make a mistake, you can edit your post by selecting Edit Post from the same menu.

        If you still want to have the original topic as a reference while replying, you may find it more convenient to right-click the Reply button, and select Open in New Window. [top ↑]

      2. How can I create a new topic?

        First, navigate to the forum you wish to post your topic in. Once you're certain, click the New Topic button at the top to load the new topic page. You'll need to supply a meaningful title for your topic (to be listed in the forum) and the topic body. [top ↑]

      3. What are Polls? How can I use them?

        Polls work much like traditional polling systems. Users are presented with a list of choices, and can select only one. The system tabulates the votes and displays a bar graph with the results. Polls are attached to topics and are displayed in the first post. When creating a topic, you can add a poll by clicking the + icon next to Polling and filling in the fields. You can define the different poll options in the provided text boxes. As you type in each box, a new box will be provided for an additional option. You may have the option to select Open Poll and/or Public Poll. Open Polls allow other users to provide new (or all, depending on how many you provide) options for the poll. This allows for more free-form polling. Public Polls are just that — public. A » button will be given for each option, and clicking this button will display all users who voted for that option. [top ↑]

      4. How can I post photos?

        Photos can be either hosted somewhere on the web, or they can be uploaded to your Htuner.com profile. If you've already uploaded the photo you want to post to your profile, you can simply use the Photo button shown on the posting page. This will bring up a list of the photos in your profile. Clicking a photo will insert the necessary markup into your post. If you'd rather insert the full-sized photo as opposed to a thumbnail, uncheck the Insert thumbnail option box on the photo popup. To upload a new photo while you are composing your post, click Add Photo on the photo popup. This will open a new window to let you upload the photo. When you're done, click Refresh on the photo popup to reload your photo list.

        If you'd rather post an image that's located somewhere else on the web, you can use the [IMG] button. Copy and paste the URL of the photo from your web browser into the Body box. Highlight the URL with your mouse, and then click the [IMG] button. This will enclose the URL in the necessary markup to display the image. [top ↑]

      5. How can I post videos?

        You can embed flash-based videos into your posts. Currently, Youtube and Google video are supported. To embed these videos, you will need to locate the unique video identifier for the video you wish to post. This is usually the last piece of the URL at the video's page. For example, if you wish to embed the Youtube video http://youtube.com/watch?v=d8JGJw8cnD, the unique identifier is d8JGJw8cnD. Copy and paste this identifier into the Body of your post. Highlight the identifier, and then click the [Video] button. This will enclose the identifier with the necessary markup.

        By default, the Video button inserts markup for Youtube. If you wish to embed Google Video, you will need to change the markup from [video=youtube][/video] to [video=google][/video]. [top ↑]

      6. How can I quote other users?

        If you wish to textually quote a post made by another user, there are several ways to go about it. If you want to quote an entire post by a user, the easiest method is to simply click Reply with Quote on the « menu next to the post. This will bring you to the reply screen and give you the full text of the post surrounded by the necessary quote markup. You will notice that this will embed a tag of the form [quote=<Username>:<PostId>]<Quoted post here>[/quote]. This allows the quote to be titled with the user you are quoting along with a link back to the original post.

        There is a quick shortcut if you only wish to quote part of a post. On the topic page, locate the block of text you wish to quote and select it with your mouse as if you were going to copy and paste. Then click the Reply button next to the post. Only the text you selected will be quoted in your reply.

        The final method for quoting is free-form and can be used to quote even off-site resources. While composing your post, simply use the [Quote] button to insert quote markup. For example, if you wish to quote Abe Lincoln, paste the text you wish to quote, select it, and click [Quote]. Then change the opening quote tag to read [quote=Abe Lincoln]<text here>[/quote]. [top ↑]

      7. How about Wikipedia?

        Wikipedia is a free online encylopedia that anyone can edit. You can visit it at http://www.wikipedia.org. Htuner.com includes some quick tricks to link directly to Wikipedia entries. For example, if you are reading the Wikipedia article on the Piston at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piston, you can include this link in any post by using the simple format [[Piston]]. All text enclosed in double brackets will be linked to the article of the same name on the English Wikipedia site, and will appear with special link color. For example, [[Air_fuel_ratio]] will show in your post as Air_fuel_ratio. [top ↑]

    • Tags

      1. What are tags?

        Think of tags as a free-form way to categorize things. For example, if you were to describe this page, a few key words may come to mind, such as: help, faq, question, and answer. These would be great tags to describe this page. Likewise, tags allow you to categorize content based on basic association. [top ↑]

      2. What can I tag?

        Currently, you can tag topics, photos and blog entries. [top ↑]

      3. How do I enter tags?

        When creating a new topic, editing a photo, or posting a blog entry, you'll notice a Tags box on the page. Expand this box with +, and you can enter up to 5 tags, delimited by spaces. Tags must be composed of only word characters (A-Z), and each cannot contain spaces. For example, if you were creating a new topic titled "Which cams are the best for a turbo B18C1?", good tags would be "cams", "turbo", and "b18c1". To supply these tags, just enter "cams turbo b18c1" in the box.

        If you wish to use a phrase that is normally two words as a tag, i.e. "new york", simply concatenate the words into a single word: use "newyork" as your tag. [top ↑]

      4. What good are they?

        If you supply proper tags, it can make it much easier for others to find your topics, photos, and blog entries. Say you post "Which cams are the best for a turbo B18C1?" in a civic forum. Only users that regularly browse this forum would normally see your post. However, if you tag the post with "cams turbo b18c1", any user that is browsing topics tagged with "turbo" will find your topic.

        Similarly, you can easily cross reference content when it is properly tagged. If you're looking at a photo tagged with "b18c1", you can click the tag link and view all other photos also tagged with "b18c1". Tags are also taken into account when users use the search feature to look for content. [top ↑]

      5. How can I find tagged content?

        The easiest way is to use the top tags page located here. This lists the top tags for topics, photos, and blogs in alphabetical order. Tags that are more popular are shown in a larger font and distinctive color. This sort of tag view is commonly known as a "tag cloud". Following any link on this page will list content that has been specifically categorized with the given tag.

        If you want to look for a particular tag that is not listed, enter it in the appropriate box on the right side of the page and click Go. [top ↑]

    • Groups

      1. What are groups?

        Groups are small sub-sections of Htuner.com that you can choose to join. Groups can let others know your interests and affiliations, and make it easier for others to find you. Some groups may also have group-specific forums associated with them. For example, there may be a group that caters to a particular geographical region, and forums for those members to discuss in. To join a group, click the Join this Group button at the top of the group page.

        The groups that you are a member of are listed on your profile page, at the bottom right. [top ↑]

      2. Why can't I join some groups?

        Some groups are private, so you'll need special privileges to join them. Most private groups are for special users, such as Moderators and Administrators.

        In addition, you may need to be a member of a group to post in forums in that group. [top ↑]

      3. I think there should be a group for <XXXXX>.

        4. Let us know! We're always open to adding new groups. Post your suggestion in our Feedback forum and the community can discuss it. [top ↑]

    • Instant Messaging

      1. How does Instant Messaging work?

        Instant Messaging allows users to contact each other privately in real time. If you have used services such as AOL Instant Messenger, Google Talk, or MSN Messenger, you'll be familiar with our instant messaging feature.

        If you're sent an IM while you're logged in, you will see a separate popup window display (very similar to a standard IM window). To respond, simply type your response in the small text box at the bottom, and hit the enter key. As long as you keep this window open, you'll maintain a real-time conversation with the user on the other end. If you close the window, make sure you keep a Htuner.com window open somewhere on your computer — this keeps your computer connected to Htuner.com for new messages. [top ↑]

      2. How can I send IMs?

        To send a message to a user, navigate to their profile and click the IM button at the top right. You can also select the Open Instant Message option from the « menu. Type your message in the small text box at the bottom, and hit the enter key. [top ↑]

      3. What if I'm not logged in?

        Others can still send messages to you, even if you are not logged in. If you log in shortly after a message was sent, it will pop up on your screen as if you had been online to receive it. However, if it has been too long, the messages will be marked as "Missed". When you log in, you will be greeted to a popup window listing the number of messages you have missed. To view these messages, click the View button and you will be taken to your profile to view them. If you accidentally close this window or wish to return to your missed messages, you can always return by clicking the My Missed Messages link available under your profile edit page. [top ↑]

      4. Are my messages saved?

        Currently, all messages are saved for 45 days from their send date. At any time, you can navigate to the My Messages link to view your messages.

        After 45 days, these messages will be permanently purged from the server. If you have an important conversation you wish to save, you can download it as a text file to your computer. Navigate to the particular conversation under My Messages and click the Download as Text button at the top right. This will send the conversation to you in chronological order. [top ↑]

      5. User <XXXXX> keeps bothering me!

        If a particular user will not leave you alone, feel free to use the block feature. Click the Block button at the top right of the IM window, or use the Block User menu option under the user's profile « menu.

        When a user is blocked, they will not be able to send messages to you, respond to your topics, send friend requests to you, or post on your blog.

        If you're getting a lot of unwanted IMs, consider setting your IMs to "Friends Only" under the My Settings section of your profile. [top ↑]

      6. Someone sent me SPAM via IM.

        Please let us know! Post the username of the offending user in our Feedback forum. We ban and block spammers aggressively. [top ↑]

    • Blocks and Filters

      1. What are Blocks?

        Blocks allow you to prevent annoying or abusive users from contacting you. When you block a user, they will be unable to send Instant Messages to you, respond to topics you have created, send friend requests to you, or post on your blog.

        To block a user, select the Block User menu option under the « menu at the top right of the user's profile. You can also click the Block button at the top right of an IM from the user. [top ↑]

      2. What are Filters?

        Filters auto-collapse posts made by a user in the forum. If you'd prefer to not see comments by a particular person, filter them by selecting the Filter Posts option under the « menu at the top right of the user's profile.

        When reading topics, if you wish to view a collapsed post, just click the + icon at the left to expand it. [top ↑]

      3. I changed my mind. How do I unblock/unfilter someone?

        Navigate to your My Home page via the Edit Profile link at the top right of your profile page. Select the Blocks and Filters link. You'll be presented with a list of users you have blocked and filtered. Check the users you wish to remove, and then click Removed checked at the top right. [top ↑]

      • Profile

      1. What is My Profile?

        Your profile is your "page" on Htuner.com. You can write a bio about yourself, upload photos, choose friends, and write a blog. You can also personalize your page with the colors and graphics to make your page "you". [top ↑]

      2. How can I choose an avatar?

        Navigate to your profile edit page by clicking Edit Profile at the top right of your profile. Then click My Avatar to go to the avatar page. You can upload a file from your local computer, or provide a URL to an image that is already on the web. Currently, only JPEG and GIF files are supported. Your image will be automatically resized. [top ↑]

      3. How can I use Photos?

        When you upload photos to your profile, you can use them in posts, your blog, and on your info page.

        To upload photos, click the View button in the photo section on the left side of your profile page. Then click Add Photo at the top right. You can either select an image off your local computer, or provide a web address to an image that is already on the web. Currently, only JPEG and GIF files are supported. Click Save to upload the photo.

        After you have some photos in the system, you can edit and organize them. To re-order your photos, click the Edit Photos button at the top right of your photo page. You can then drag-and-drop the photos in the order your prefer. To send a photo to your top 10, drag to the green box. To delete a photo, drag to the red box.

        To edit an individual photo, click the image thumbnail on your photo page to view the full photo, and then click Edit Photo at the top right. You can provide a title for your photo, a caption, and tags. All of these fields are checked when others are searching for photos. [top ↑]

      4. How can I choose Friends?

        To add a friend, you must first be approved by that user. Navigate to your friend's profile, and click the Send Friend Request option under the « menu at the top right.

        Your top 10 friends will display in the top right column in your profile. If someone wants to add you as a friend, you will notice a <XX> friend requests link at the top of your friends column on your profile page. Click this link, and you will be taken to your profile friends page, where you can approve or deny the requests.

        To re-order your friends, click the Edit Friends button at the top right of your friends page. You can then drag-and-drop your friends in the order your prefer. To send a friend to your top 10, drag to the green box. To delete a friend, drag to the red box. [top ↑]

      5. How does my Blog work?

        Your blog lets you create entries about anything that interests you. You can post a How-To, a story about your life, new pictures of your car, et cetera.

        Your most recent blog entry will be shown in its entirety in the center column of your profile page. To post an entry, click the More link at the top right of the center column on your profile page to view your blog. Then click Post New Entry at the top right. You'll need to provide a title and blog body. You can include photos and videos if you wish. If you provide tags, your blog will be listed under the given site-wide tags.

        After you've created a blog entry, others can post comments at the bottom of it by clicking Add Comment below your entry. Comments must be short and cannot contain any markup or photos. You can edit comments that you make, and you can remove any comment that has been posted to your blog. If you wish, you can restrict comment posting to only your friends via the Comment Mode setting under My Settings in your profile. [top ↑]

      6. Where do I write up my Bio?

        Your Bio is shown under your info page. You can view your info page by clicking the More button in the info panel at the top left of your profile. The left column of your info page shows your forum and profile statistics. The right column is a free-form section that you can fill with whatever you wish. Photos and videos are allowed.

        To edit your Bio, navigate to Personalize on your profile edit page. Fill out the text box under Bio with your desired content. [top ↑]

      7. Explain my stats to me.

        In the left column of your Info page, you'll notice your forum and profile stats. Topics and Posts refer to the number of topics and posts you have created in the forum, respectively. Posts per day is calculated by dividing your number of posts by the number of days you have been a member. Last post offers a link directly to your last post on the forum.

        Marks received is a count of the total number of marks you have received on posts you have created in the forum (i.e. "Mark this Post as Helpful"). Marks left is the number of marks you have left for others on their posts. Score is a number that reflects how much of a contributor you are to the site, and affects your placement on the contributors list. It is proportional to the number of post marks you have received divided by the number of posts you have made. That is, if you have lots of posts but very few marks, your score will be low. However, if you have made only a few posts but have received many marks on them, your score will be high.

        Your profile stats are very self explanitory. [top ↑]

      8. How do I personalize my profile?

        First, navigate to Personalize on your profile edit page. At the top, you can provide a quote. This is shown at the top of every page of your profile — it's a sort of eye catcher to let people know about you. Below this, you can enter your location if you wish. This is a free form string and you can be as descriptive as you wish. Next, you can provide your Bio, as described above.

        You may select profile styles. Styles override the default look and feel on your profile pages, changing the buttons, borders, and other elements. You can leave the default settings to keep the general Htuner.com look, or change them as you desire.

        You can also override the colors on your profile. Background sets the page background color, and Background Text likewise sets the color of text shown on the background. Similarly, Panel sets the color of panels in your profile (such as the photos and friends lists), and Panel Text sets the color of text shown on panels. Title sets the color of the large title text on pages. Link and Link Hover set the color of navigation links, including blog and friend links. Finally, Sub Text sets the color of accent text used for dates, subtitles, etc. To quickly choose a color, click the » button next the color you wish to change. A slider popup will appear. Drag the red, green and blue sliders to choose your color. If you want to use a color you've found elsewhere on the web, paste the hex triplet (#RRGGBB) into the color box instead.

        Panel Opacity determines whether panels are displayed with transparency. For example, if set to 50%, half of the background image/color will show through the panels for a unique look.

        If you wish, you can select a Background Image. Provide the URL to the image in the provided text box. If you wish to use one of the photos from your profile, edit the photo and check Make this my profile background. X Position sets where your background image will be located horizontally, Y Position sets where your background images will be located vertically, and Repeat sets which axes (if any) your image will tile across. Attachment determines how your background is shown when scrolling down the page. Scroll causes the background to move along with the page, whereas Fixed causes it to be fixed in place.

        Show Panel determines whether a panel is shown behind your blog and info pages. If you have a background image set, this can greatly improve the readability of your profile by increasing contrast between the text and the background.

        Finally, you can optionally override the section names in your profile. If, for example, you'd rather call your photos "My Garage", simply enter "My Garage" in the box next to photos. [top ↑]

      9. Can I change my username?

        You can change your username at any time to any available username. Navigate to your profile edit page and click My Account. Change the username to your desired username in the username box. When you change your username, you must also change your password. You can use the same password you currently have, but you'll have to type and confirm it again. This is for security reasons. [top ↑]

      10. I only want to see certain forums on the front page.

        We have a solution. Navigate to your profile edit page and select My Forums. Check the box at the top, and you can choose only those forums you wish to see on the front page. You can even select group forums that would normally only be displayed on group pages.

        To choose forums, drag them from the left list to the right list. You can sort the forums in the order you wish by drag-and-drop as well. Now when you read the front forum page, you'll only see the forums you selected. To view all forums, click Show all at the top right of the front page. [top ↑]

      11. Is there a quick way to jump to a user's profile?

        Yes. If you know the username of a user and wish to go to their profile, point your browser to http://htuner.com/u/<Username> (minus the carets). For example, to find a user named "abc123", navigate to http://htuner.com/u/abc123. [top ↑]

      Marks

      1. What are marks?

        Marks are votes that content on the site is "helpful". Marks affect the rating of content. For example, when viewing a forum, topics can either be sorted by date or by score. Sorting by score takes into account the number of marks that have been given to posts in each topic. Scores for topics are actually calculated by dividing the total marks in the topic by the number of posts in the topic. Hence, topics with many posts but few marks will receive a low score, while topics with few posts but many marks will receive a high score.

        When viewing the site-wide topics, photos and blogs lists, content can either be sorted by date or by score. [top ↑]

      2. What can I mark?

        Currently, you can mark posts, photos, and blog entries. You cannot mark anything that was created by you. [top ↑]

      3. How can I mark stuff?

        To mark a post, click the « button next to the post and choose Mark Post as Helpful. To mark a photo, click Mark Photo as Helpful at the top right while viewing the photo. To mark a blog entry, click Mark Entry as Helpful while viewing the entry.

        Each user can mark each item only once. [top ↑]

      4. Why bother?

        Marking content allows users to find the most useful content on the site. When users browse topics, photos, and blog entries, it is customary to try sorting by score to find the most useful information.

        In addition, marking posts affects the ranking of users on the site-wide contributors list. Each user's score is calculated in proportion to their number of total marks (ever) divided by their number of total posts (ever). To increase your score, make sure the posts you make will motivate others to mark them as "helpful". [top ↑]

      Feeds

      1. What are feeds?

        Feeds are a means to syndicate content. That is, you can use them to get content off Htuner.com without having to directly visit it. Feeds generate XML that your computer can use to display the latest Htuner.com content. [top ↑]

      2. How can I subscribe to a feed?

        Currently, feeds are available for forums and blogs.

        When you see this icon, you'll know a feed is available for that page.

        To use feeds, you will need a Feed reader (Also known as an RSS reader, although we supply ATOM feeds). You can download a feed reader from the internet, or use the feed reader that is included in some web browsers. Some portal sites, such as Yahoo, include feed readers in their site. To use a feed reader, you must supply the URL of a feed. The feed icon is a hyperlink to the feed. You can either follow the link and copy the URL from your browser window, or you can right click the icon and click Copy Link Location. Paste this URL into your feed reader, and you're ready to go. [top ↑]

      3. What feed format do you use?

        Our feeds are currently ATOM 1.0. We do not supply RSS feeds. [top ↑]

      Search

      1. Where can I search for?

        Currently, you can search for forum topics, photos, blog entries and users. [top ↑]

      2. How does search work?

        When you search for topics, the search engine searches against the topic title and the posts in the topic. When a topic is first created, only the first few posts will be searchable, but eventually the entire topic will contribute to its ranking in the search results.

        When you search for photos, the search engine searches against the title and caption of the image. If you don't provide a title and caption for your photos, they will not show up in the search results.

        When you search for blog entries, the title and entry body are searched against. Blog comments are not indexed by the search engine.

        When you search for users, the server only does a prefix search against the username. For example, if you wish to find all users whose usernames start with the letter Z, enter "Z" in the search box. [top ↑]

      3. Any advanced search tips?

        By default, the search engine return results that contain all words that you specify. For example, if you specify "honda civic" (no quotes) as your search query, content that contains both the words "honda" and "civic" will be returned.

        If you want to search for specific phrases, enclose the phrase in double-quotes. For example, If you specify "honda civic" (including quotes) as your search query, only content that literally contains the phrase "honda civic" will be returned. For such a search, content that contained the phrase "civic honda" would NOT be returned.

        Logical OR and NOT are also available. If you wish to search for content that contains either "honda" or "civic", specify "honda | civic" (no quotes) as your search query (| is the pipe character on the backslash key). If you wish to search for content that contains "honda" but does NOT contain "civic", specify "honda ! civic" as your search query.

        You can chain multiple operators. To find all content that contains "piston" and also contains "civic" or "integra", but does not contain "vtec", specify "piston civic | integra ! vtec" (no quotes) as your search query. [top ↑]

      Other Stuff

      1. Where did you get your icons?

        We sourced our icons from FamFamFam. You can use them too as long as you give credit, as they are under a Creative Commons Attribution license. [top ↑]
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