Intro Guide to the Biggest Loser Forum

Welcome to the Biggest Loser Forum! This post is aimed to give you some info on how to use the Forums and the best ways to find the threads you're interested in.

Browsing the forums
You do not need to be logged in to view the Forum. But to get off the fence and become involved in the forums you should sign-up as a [insert show name] member. Click the “MEMBERS” tab in the top navigation bar to join.

Once you have created a user account, you can choose to create an online profile so others can learn a little more about you. You can select an Avatar and let the other forum users know a bit more about yourself.

So, you’re probably very keen to start posting now, but hang on! Read on to learn how you can avoid some of the more embarrassing forum slip ups.

Posting
To reply to a thread subject, use the “POST REPLY” button. This will take you to a screen where you may enter your post. Once you are ready to submit your post, click the Submit Reply button.

Quoting
If you wish to reply to a specific post within a thread, you should quote the original post. To do this click "REPLY" on the post you wish to quote. Once the post message screen appears, click the "RICH TEXT" tab. The click the "SPEECH BUBBLE" icon (this can be found to the left of the "SMILEY FACE" icon. This will insert the quoted text and you can continue to post as normal.

Watching Threads / Staying Informed
If you want to be reminded anytime a particular thread or forum has been updated, you can opt to “watch” the thread or forum by clicking on the “WATCH THIS THREAD” icon above the first post in a thread. You can choose when you'd like to be emailed about forum updates. It's a great way to stay informed about updates to your favourite Idols Fan Clubs, especially if you only have a small amount of time available. To stop receiving updates, simply click “STOP WATCHING THREAD” icon in the thread.

Searching
Before starting a new thread give the search function a whirl. More often than not, it’ll discover a relevant thread or two which will save you having to suffer the moans and groans from the regular forum users who’ve seen it all before.
 
Moderators
The Biggest Loser forum has volunteer moderators who help to maintain the balance, encourage lively discussion, and promote healthy debate.

Whatever people’s opinion of moderators, the forum is a much more hospitable and organized affair thanks to their tireless efforts to maintain order in a sometimes chaotic environment. Please assist them in making the Biggest Loser forum a happy place by co-operating with requests they may make from time-to-time.

The content on the Biggest Loser forum is moderated based on the Biggest Loser House Rules. It's important you read the House Rules so that you know what you can and can't do in the forum. Click HERE to have a read.

If you see a post that doesn’t abide by these guidelines, report it to a moderator by clicking the small warning triangle in the top right hand corner of the post.

Spamming
Don’t spam the forums. Spamming is the irksome art of posting duplicate threads across two or more forums. Some people think this is an effective way to get their message across. Co-incidentally these same people are generally loathed by the majority of forum users. No-one wants to read the same message twice, it’s boring.

Advertising/Selling
Advertising is not tolerated on the Biggest Loser forums, full stop. No matter how “amazing” your business opportunity is, please don’t post it on the forum. It will be promptly deleted.

Newbies
New members to the forum quite often accidentally commit a forum slip up and become labeled a Newbie/newb/n00b. Newbies are like learner drivers. We’ve all been one at some point, but we still can’t help but chuckle when we see one.

If you’re new to the forums, a good idea is to dip a toe in by participating in some existing threads to get a feel for things before diving in at the deep end and starting your own thread

Newbies also are quite often confused by some of the slang terms used on the forum. If you come across a slang term you don’t understand make http://www.urbandictionary.com/ your friend.

Thanks for taking the time to read the Biggest Loser Forums guide. If you have any specific questions about how the forum works or about what is acceptable that isn't covered here, then post a question in the COMMUNITY HELP forum.