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B> Are you new to eBay's Discussion Boards? Come on in! Please take a look around and get acquainted with other eBay members. We will be happy to answer your questions and get you started on a wonderful new adventure. If you are not an eBay registered user, please register here first - it's fast and free! Otherwise, start a discussion or enter an existing thread.

eBay Discussion Boards Help

Do I have to be registered to use the Discussion Boards?
Anyone, registered or not, may read content of the eBay Discussion Boards. However, to interact (do things such as post, report a post, ignore a member etc.), you must be a registered member on eBay and logged in.

How do I log in?
To log in to the community, click "Log In" on any boards page, or you may opt to log in using the Sign in/out link in the page header. You will be returned to the board page as a logged-in user. (Note: You must have cookies enabled for this feature. Your log in information is encrypted and stored in a cookie. If you've logged in using the Sign in/out link you will be able to see your status, at the top left of your screen, right next to the eBay logo.

What do I do if I forgot my password?
To retrieve your password, click the appropriate link on the login page, enter your user ID in the input box and click Continue. A message detailing the necessary steps to confirm the password reset will be sent to the e-mail address listed in your account information.

What are boards?
Boards are discussion areas that allow members to share ideas, opinions and information quickly and easily. Organized by topics in an easy-to-follow format, boards are designed so you can quickly locate information, find other knowledgeable members and participate in conversations. Your community has standards of conduct that explain the rules of posting; please familiarize yourself with the rules prior to posting by reading the Board Usage Policy.

What are Community Values?
eBay is a community that encourages open and honest communications among all its members. Its community is guided by five fundamental values:

We believe that people are basically good.
We believe everyone has something to contribute.
We believe that an Honest, open environment can bring out the best in people.
We recognize and respect everyone as a unique individual
We encourage you to treat others the way you want to be treated.

Good community values and respectful interaction between individuals promotes a positive environment. And in a good environment, all benefit. Learn more about eBay's Community Values.

How do I navigate through the boards?

Pagination: Once on the main board of your choice, you can view the Thread titles/topics of each discussion on that board. You can adjust your view under settings to show up to 50 thread titles/topics per page. As more topics are added to a board, older ones will drop off the main board and onto subsequent pages. These threads may be accessed by using the pagination count located at the bottom of each page. For boards or threads with multiple pages, you don't have to scroll through the entire board or thread to get to the last page. Instead, put the page number you want in the open text box at the bottom of the page and click "Go". If at any time, you feel you are not seeing all the posts in a thread, click "Go" and the page will reset to show all posts.
To Post a Topic: Click the "Post a Topic" button at the top of the board. This will open a window where you can create the thread title of your discussion or question and your post text. Once you post your message it will take you back to your post. Additionally, refreshing your Browser window will update the current page you are viewing and will allow you to see any responses made to your topic.
Breadcrumbs: To go back to the main page to view your Topic, click on the board name located in the breadcrumbs link located horizontally across the top left corner of a page. For example: Home > Community > Discussion Boards > Ask a Member In this example, clicking on, "Ask a Member" will take you back to the main topic page. Using the breadcrumbs can also be a quick option to take you back to the Discussion Boards Index page where you can discover other eBay Discussion Boards.
Sort Order: The post order you set under your Settings options allows you to set posts to appear "oldest first" or "newest first."
- While on a discussion board, you have the option to change the order of thread titles by clicking on the "Discussion" link found in the gray bar right below "Recent Topics."
- When you click the Discussion" link, you will see the thread titles sorted alphabetically from A-Z followed by threads with any special characters such as * or ".
- If you click sort again, the order will reverse and begin with threads starting with special characters and then threads Z-A.
- If you want to return to the original sort order found in your settings, click on the Discussion Board name in the breadcrumb trail, for example: Home >> Community >> eBay Discussion Boards >> Category-Specific Boards >> Antiques
Go Back link: On some pages (such as the settings page) you will find a link title "Go Back." Clicking this link lets you return to the earlier page you were reading prior to navigating away from it.
Feedback Requirements for Discussion boards use: You will find that some boards are restricted to use by members with 5 feedback or more. An example of this can be seen on the Recent eBay News board. All boards that have feedback requirements will have the following in the description:
"Please Note: There is a minimum requirement of 5 feedback to view and post to this board". You will not be able to view boards or make a post on these boards if you don't have more than 5 feedback on your account.
Restricted Post boards: There are boards that limit the number of posts a thread can have. An example of this can be seen on the Ask a Member board. All boards that have posting limits will have the following in the description:
"Please note that there is a limit of 20 posts per thread"

How do I return to the last post I read?
There are three different scenarios in which a logged in user who's post order is set to 'Oldest First' will be able to return to the last post they've read. For example, assuming a thread has 3 pages:
1.) If a user views Page 1 and Page 2 of a thread, and all the messages on those pages are older than 30 days, the user will return to the top of Page 1 on their next visit to the thread. In this case, the user will have to use the page navigation to navigate to the last post in the last page read in the thread.
2.) If a user had previously visited up to Page 2 of a thread, and Page 2 contains at least one message posted within the last 30 days, the user will be returned to the bottom of Page 2 on their next visit to that thread.
3.) If a user had previously visited up to Page 3, which contains at least one message posted within the last 30 days, and subsequently views either Page 1 or Page 2, on their next visit to that thread, they will be returned to Page 3.

How is content organized?
Content is structured as follows:

Categories: A category is a collection of boards or other categories. Categories organize boards into a tree structure so that members can find discussions more easily. An example of a Category is "Connect and Learn."
Boards: Boards are the areas where individual discussions take place as a listing of topics. An example of a discussion board is "Ask a Member."
Topics: Topics (also known as "threads") are the discussions, consisting of one or more posts displayed as a list, or in a tree structure of posts and their replies.
Posts: Posts are the individual discussion contributions made by community members.
Replies: Replies are posts made in response to other posts.
Additionally at the bottom of each Board Main Page is a Legend of icons used on the boards. These are as follows:
A topic that is New to you.
A topic that has been Updated since your last visit
A topic that has been posted to by eBay Staff member
A topic that has been Tacked to the top of the board
A Locked topic/post that is read only
A topic that is on your Watch list

How do I create a topic or post a reply in the boards?
Members with fewer than 10 FEEDBACK, can post up to 10 posts a day. Members with more than ten feedback can post an unlimited number of posts per day.
To start a new topic, choose the appropriate board and click "Post New Topic". Type your topic header in the subject line and type your text in the message box. Before you submit your post, you can spell check your text by clicking "Spell Check". When you are satisfied with the text, click "Preview" to see how your post will appear when published. Or, you can post without previewing by clicking "Post Topic".

To post a reply to a topic, click the "Reply" icon next to the post to which you would like to reply. You may use the formatting options to stylize your post.
If you want to quote the post you are replying to, click "Reply with Quote" and the quoted text will automatically appear in your reply. You can edit the quoted text appropriately if you don't want to include the entire post.
To quote a comment in your reply, click "Reply with Quote" and that text will automatically appear in your response. You can edit the quoted text appropriately if you don't want to include the entire post. If you'd like to navigate back to an original post, click on the MemberID inside the quoted comment.
You can also click on the "Reply to this Topic" button located in the menu bar near the top of the board.

How can I format the text of my post and replies?
To format text (bold, italics, underline, etc.), use the format buttons in the posting view. Type your message and highlight the word(s) you want to format and click the appropriate button. Small bits of code indicate the formatting, such as in this example: "This is [b]bold[/b] text, and this is [i]italicized[/i] text" text" will appear as "This is bold text, and this is italicized text" in your post. To insert a smiley face, first click the "smiley button" and then the expression you want to use.

How do I create text links?
If you opt to enter a URL in the body of a post, it will automatically display after submission as the word 'link'--the 'link' text will be a clickable link to the URL you entered.
If you want to create your own text link, type the appropriate text in the post, such as the name of the website associated with your link, highlight the exact text you want to have as the link, and click on the link icon. Then, enter the URL in the space provided, and save. After you submit your post, the text you highlighted will be displayed as a text link.

What is My Content?
My Content is a drop down link located at the top right of the Discussion Board action bar. It is only visible when a member is logged in to the Discussion Board. This section organizes all of the user's Discussion Board activities from Tags and Watches to Topics and Preferences. The data under my content will also show up in the My Topics box when logged in.

What are Helpful Topics?
Helpful Topics are located in the left sidebar and are links to threads with information such as identifying collectibles, best member practices, or other community oriented information. Helpful Topics replace some threads that were formerly tacked to the top of the discussion boards. To access a thread linked in Helpful Topics, click on the thread title. You can hide Helpful Topics by clicking on the minus sign in the Helpful Topics header.

What are Tags?
Tags are a list of keywords that a member has chosen to help describe a topic that allows it to be found again by browsing or searching. Tags are chosen informally and personally by the author. A window appears every time you post, allowing you to add a tag to that posting. You can see what tags a thread has by clicking on the "Tags" drop down menu. The top grouping of tags are the most popular tags for all discussion boards. The bottom grouping are tags for the thread you are currently reading.
Tags are viewable by all members so when choosing tags, think of key words that others will easily think of when searching. Please remember that tags are considered community content and are subject to the Board Usage Policies. Please refer to How do I search the Discussion Boards? for more details.

What are My Topics?
My Topics are a list of posts the member has recently authored. The list is sorted, with most recent posts at the top of the list.

What is Ignore and how does it work?
If there is a user with posts you don't wish to see, you can ignore them. The "Ignore" link is located directly under the user's avatar in the thread page. Clicking the ignore link will take you to a list of people you are currently ignoring. Use the "go back" link or simply hit the back button on your browser to return to the discussion.
If you choose to ignore another member, you will still see them posting, but the actual text of their post will not show to you. The link, "end ignore" will appear under their avatar, giving you the option to remove the ignore block whenever you want. You can also stop ignoring someone by clicking on "My Content" and selecting "Manage Ignore List".

What are Watches and how do they work?
What are Watches? Watches are a list of topics a member has elected to follow. The topic that a member chooses to watch will be added to the watch list under My Content. To receive email when a topic is updated/edited, you must update the "My Subscription" section and select email immediately or digest delivery in order for messages to be sent to your personal email account for the watched topics.

How do Watches work? While in the specific Thread you want to watch, click on the "Menu" drop down section located at the top right corner of the sub-header and select "Watch Content" to begin watching the thread. This will take you back to a page with the first and last post. If you wish to see all of the posts again, you can click "Go" at the bottom of the post list. Once you do this you will see a message "You are watching this content" at the top of the thread. Watches have some default settings you need to be aware of when setting up your preferences. "No email" is the default. Be sure to change that to "email immediately" or "digest delivery" if you want to receive an email when the thread is updated. Then click the "save" button to set your preferences.

How do I stop Watches? If you no longer want to receive updates on a thread you are watching, you can do any of the following:

Click on the keyword link titled "Watching" found in the "You are watching this content" phrase located at the top left corner of the Thread page directly above the sub-header and remove the thread from the list by checking the "Delete" box next to the thread name and then clicking the ìDeleteî button at the bottom of the screen.
Go to the "Menu" bar located at the top right corner of the sub-header and select "Stop Watching Content" from the drop down.
Go to the "Watches" option in your "My Content" section located at the top right corner of the page, directly above the sub-header. You will need to check the delete box and click the delete button to confirm the watch thread removal.

How do I set my Preferences?
A member can set personal preferences in the settings drop down link located at the top right of the Discussion Board action bar.

What are Settings?
Settings are a group of preferences that make it easier for you to navigate the boards. Under the "settings" link you will find options including the number of posts/topics to view per page, the time zone you wish to view posts in, and the sort order (posts display oldest to newest or newest to oldest).

How do I set/change my Avatar?
In order to have your avatar show in eBay Discussion Boards, you will need to upload an image in your My World Profile. To find your My World page click on your User ID in the left column or click on the "settings" link found in the menu bar then choose "My Photo". It may take several hours for the image to update. If you choose to upload your own image, use an image that is 150 pixels wide by 150 pixels high or the image may appear distorted.

How do I Search the Discussion Boards?
How To Search: If at any point you cannot find the Topic that you have posted, or may be looking for a specific topic, use the Search function available specifically for the boards. This can be done by clicking on the "search" drop down section located at the top right corner of the sub-header and then typing in the specific topic you wish to search for and clicking the "Go" button. This action will then search all posts on that board for that topic. Use the drop down menu below the search term to expand your search throughout all of the Discussion boards. If you want to search for a member, User ID or specific tag, please click on the "Advanced Search" link.

How Search Works: The "Search" feature ranks results by relevance base on the criteria used for the search based on the index order. To help refine results try the following options to narrow down your search by using special syntax within the search keyword phrase:
To search for a phrase, place the worlds inside double quotes. e.g. "vintage handbags"
To search for entries without certain words or phrase, place a negative sign ("-") before it, e.g. "vintage handbags" - Chanel
To search for entries with clarifying terms, incorporate the words AND, +, or, not. e.g "vintage handbags" + Gucci and Dior not Chanel.

Tag Search: In addition to the options available on the regular search form, you can also narrow your search is by using Tag search. This is found in the "Advanced Search" link. Tag search associates those tags with content and searches inside specific keyword tags. Once a search result is generated, you can further narrow that search by sorting on relevance or date. This option is located at the top right of the search results page with drop down choices of either sorting relevance or date.

User Search: Clicking the "Advanced Search" link will also allow you to search for posts by username. If you want to see what your favorite poster has to say, simply type in their username in the User ID field and click the search button.

How do I check the spelling of my posts and replies?
To check your text for proper spelling, click "Spell Check" on the post screen. If our Spell Check dictionary doesn't recognize a word in your text, the unknown word will appear in a box. You can correct it yourself by typing over what is displayed. If the dictionary has any suggestions, they will appear in the suggestion box. To choose one of the suggestions, select it and click "Change>".
When you finish checking your text, click "Post Message" to save your changes and post the text with your spelling corrections. If you want to continue editing text, click "Go Back" or "Edit" to return to the posting area.

How do I report board violations?
While participating in our discussion boards, and you see a post that violates the Board Usage Policy such as vulgarity, profanity, something illegal, obscene, pornographic, or if someone has posted personal information about another member, please click on the "Report" link found on every post of every Topic. Our Board Moderators will then review the post in question for violations and will take appropriate action.
If you don't see the violation covered in the menu, choose "other" and you will see a short input field where you can enter more information.
Self Reporting: Discussion board posts cannot be edited however, you can self-report a post to have it removed from the board.

What are RSS feeds?
What is RSS: An RSS (Really Simple Syndication) feed is an XML format that allows you to monitor frequently updated information from websites such as news sites, blog posts, and discussion boards. The information is sent to you in the form of a headline along with the URL and a short description. The individual subscribes by using special programs called feed readers or aggregators. These feeds alert you when new content is added to a discussion, blog or other online media. The RSS aggregator checks the subscribed content regularly for new updates and sends the information from all your subscriptions to your desktop, your mobile phone or other device. It allows you to stay informed and saves you time by retrieving current content without actually visiting the site.

How Do I Use an RSS feed?: In order to use an RSS feed you will need to download an RSS reader or aggregator. There are many commercial and free RSS readers available on the web. Popular RSS readers include AmphetaDesk, Radio UserL and NewzCrawler. Each RSS reader comes with information on how to install and manage the content. Once you've installed the RSS aggregator you can click on "Subscribe" whenever you see the RSS icon . There are two basic types of RSS feeders. One is web based which allows you to view content from any computer or web enabled device, the other is desktop which runs like any other program you have installed on your personal computer.

How do I control the content from an RSS feed?: RSS feeds are updated based on the website's preference. Some feeds are updated hourly and others are updated daily. You can choose from one to hundreds of sites to be aggregated by the RSS reader and it’s just as easy to cancel a subscription when content becomes stale or you lose interest. Scanning the headlines allows you to easily manage the amount of information received.

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