So what is this bulletin board / forum?

• A bulletin board (which has forums on it) is a place to discuss things with many people.
• Here at City Line, the forum is used for general talk, small groups, ministries, and more!

Why use it?

• See everyone's responses on a topic, all in one convenient place.
• Reduces email clutter.
• Be transparent in discussions.
• Let others join in.
• Automatic archiving for later use.

What should I do with it?
      That's entirely up to you! Here are some suggestions:

• Any church-related communication you currently use email for.
• Post or read church announcements. (i.e. "I'm looking for an apartment" or "Who wants to play soccer tomorrow?")
• To communicate with your small group. Decide who is bringing what, arrange rides, and use polls to track who's coming.
• Talk about whatever you want; church-related or not. Like meeting after service, but available 24 hours a day.
• Organize your ministry (i.e. "Who's going to do what for Praise Team this week?")
• Everything you used to use the City Line Yahoo! Group for.

• Yes, it's secure! (At least as secure as email.)
• Only those who register can get access to read or write on the board. We expect only those affiliated with City Line Church to register.
• What you write will NEVER show up on search engines.
• In general, everything you write on the board can be read by all board members, except for Private Messages. Don't put in writing something you wouldn't want shouted from the rooftops. The board has powerful tools to customize access though. For example, if you'd like a private forum (i.e. Pastors Only), just tell the Board Administrator and he/she can set that up.

How do I use it?
      The buttons on the forum are pretty self-explanatory once you know the concepts. Here they are:

• Post - A single message from a single person. Like an individual email sent by someone.
• Topic/Thread - A collection of posts. "Topic" and "thread" are synonymous, and mean a single discussion on one topic. (i.e. Jesse's Small Group For Friday 6/20)
• Forum - A collection of threads that are related. (i.e. Jesse's Small Group)
• Board - A collection of forums that are related. (i.e. The City Line Church Board)
• Private Message - A message that can be seen only by those it is explicitly sent to, just like an email.

      And below are some helpful tutorials on the essentials (courtesy of phpBB). Our board looks a little different, but the concepts are the same.

• Registering An Account
• Editing Your User Profile
• Creating A New Topic
• Replying To A Topic
• Creating A Poll
• Sending Private Messages
• Using The Search Function

TIPS for use:

• To view or post to the forum, you'll need to register. Just click "Register" in the top menu bar.
• If you want to be notified by email when a new post is made:
  • For an entire forum: Click "Digests" in the top menu bar and select which forums and how often (daily or weekly). If you would really like instant notification on an entire forum, please let Alex know and he'll try to make that possible.
  • For a single topic (discussion): Click "Watch Topic" at the bottom of the topic, and you will get an immediate email when a new post is made there.
  • Manage your subscriptions by clicking on "Digests", or at the bottom of each topic.
• Profiles can be seen by all members who click on your name when you post. It also controls your "avatar" (small picture of your choosing, displayed on each of your posts). To make or modify yours, click on "Profile" in the top menu bar.
• New Forums are available if you'd like them. Just ask Alex. He could even make them private, so that only you and those you invite know that they exist.
• Each forum could have moderators who have special permissions. Just click "moderate this forum" at the bottom of the forum you are teh moderator of. Moderators can.
  • Edit other peoples' posts and topics.
  • Delete other peoples' posts and topics.
  • Make "Sticky" topics which appear at the top of the first page in the forum.
  • Make "Announcement" topics which appear at the top of every page in the forum (if there are so many threads in your particular forum that there are multiple pages.)

If you have any questions, requests, or comments, please email the Board Administrator (currently Alex Moseson) at forum_admin@citylinechurch.net. ENJOY!