Forum Rules

[Simon Lloyd]

Please read and adhere to these simple rules!

1. Use concise, accurate thread titles. Your post title should describe your problem, not your anticipated solution. Use terms appropriate to a Google search. Poor thread titles, like Please Help, Urgent, Need Help, Formula Problem, Code Problem, and Need Advice will be addressed according to the OP's experience in the forum: If you have less than 10 posts, expect (and respond to) a request to change your thread title. If you have 10 or more posts, expect your post to be locked, so you can start a new thread with an appropriate title.

To change the title of the thread, click EDIT on the original post, then click the Go Advanced button, then change the title. If two or more days have passed, the EDIT button will not appear, and you need to ask a moderator to change the title.

2. Don't post a question in the thread of another member -- start your own. If you feel it's particularly relevant, provide a link to the other thread.

3. Use code tags around code. Posting code without them makes your code hard to read and difficult to be copied for testing. Select your code and click the [#] button at the top of the post window (if you are editing an existing post, press Go Advanced to see the [#] button). The result will appear like this in the post window:

[code]
your code here ...
and here ...
and here
[/code]

... and appear like this when posted:

your code here ...
and here ...
and here

You can also type the code tags in manually if you prefer. For more information about these and other tags, click here.

4. Don't Private Message or email questions to moderators or other members. The point of having a public forum is to share solutions to common (and sometimes uncommon) problems with all members.

5. Don't duplicate posts. We have seven question forums: Miscellaneous, General, Programming, Worksheet Functions, Charting, Excel 2007 Help and New Users. Please choose the appropriate forum, and post your question in ONLY one.

6. Common courtesy is the order of the day. Avoid coarse language (meaning any words you didn't hear in Sunday school), provide feedback to suggested solutions, and take the time to thank those who took their time to help you. If you solve a problem yourself before anyone else has responded, please take a moment to describe your solution -- chances are some other member will benefit. Never edit a thread in which someone else has responded.

User names that are deemed offensive or in poor taste are subject to being changed or banned pending discussion between the forum leaders and the user in question.

7. Don't ignore requests by Administrators, Moderators, or senior members of the forum. If you are unclear about their request or instructions, then send a private message to them asking for help. Do not post a reply in a thread where such a request (e.g., title change, code tags) is pending.

8. Don't cross-post without a link. Cross-posting is when you post the same question in other forums on the web. You'll find people are disinclined to respond to cross-posts because they may be wasting their time solving a problem that has been solved elsewhere. We prefer that you not cross-post at all, but if you do (and it's unlikely to go unnoticed), you MUST provide a link (copy the url from the address bar in your browser) to the cross-post. Expect cross-posts without a link to be closed.

9. Acknowledge the responses you receive, good or bad. If your problem is solved, please say so clearly, and mark your thread as Solved: Click Thread Tools above your first post, select "Mark your thread as Solved". Or click the Edit button on your first post in the thread, Click Go Advanced, select [SOLVED] from the Prefix dropdown, then click Save Changes. If more than two days have elapsed, the Dropdown option or Edit button will not appear -- ask a moderator to mark it.

11. Don't post questions regarding breaking or bypassing any security measure. Such posts will be deleted, and repeat offenders will be banned. This includes posting of links to sites that offer software, code or services to do this or posting of code to remove passwords.

12. Don't quote whole posts -- it's just clutter. If you are responding to a post out of sequence, limit quoted content to a few relevant lines that makes clear to whom and what you are responding.

13. Cross-promotion of, or links to, forums competitive to this forum in signatures are prohibited.

Want to get your question answered quickly?

• Ensure your question is not too vague. Don't assume anyone is familiar with your problem. While you can upload small attachments, describe your problem in the body of the post. We are fortunate to have several Excel gurus, but few mind-readers.
  
• On the other hand, skip irrelevant details. Be descriptive and concise. Short, direct, and to-the-point questions with apt thread titles are almost always answered promptly.
  
• Keep the scope reasonably narrow. Questions like, "How do I set up an accounting system in Excel?" might be a long time waiting.
  
• Explain what you've already tried. ("Calculation is set to automatic, but formulas still don't compute") so helpers don't waste your time or theirs.
  
• Post a WORKBOOK. Nobody wants to type data from a picture or paste text from your post into a spreadsheet as a prelude to helping. To attach a file, push the button with the paperclip (or scroll down to the Manage Attachments button), browse to the required file, and then push the Upload button.
  
• If your question has not been answered within a day, consider adding another post with any additional information you believe is relevant. If you think your post is good as is, just reply to your own thread with the words "Bump no response", which will bring it to the top of the forum.

General suggestions:

• Don't put your email address in a post unless you're dying for more spam in your inbox.
  
• Don't ever post personal or confidential data in a workbook. If you inadvertently do, then click here and post a message to the moderators to have the data immediately and permanently deleted. Include a link to the post in the message.

Once you have been registered for 60 days and posted 100 posts your user title will change from Registered User to Forum Contributor, you will be able to upload a non-animated avatar. When you get to 120 days registered and 200 posts, your title will change to Valued Forum Contributor and you will be able to upload an animated avatar. When your title reaches Forum Guru you can upload a profile picture, we will leave you to wonder how long you have to be registered and how many posts for that!.