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CR4 FAQ Items
What is CR4?Conference Room 4SM (CR4) is a forum for engineers, scientists and technical researchers to discuss engineering news, seek technical help and get answers to burning questions. CR4 is a community site supported by GlobalSpec, the Engineering Search Engine. What are the rules and responsibilities of a CR4 member?Click here to view the CR4 Site Use Policy. Why did you change the site?Simply put: it was time. CR4's growth over the last year put a lot of strain on both the existing software platform and the moderation team. We also kept getting complaints about the unfriendliness of the site in terms of registration and story submission. Instead of tweaking the platform, we decided to rebuild it from the ground up. If you're curious about the specific differences between the two versions, check out this document. And, of course, let us know what you think about the changes we've made and any additional revisions you'd like to see in the future. What is the relationship between CR4 and GlobalSpec?CR4 is an engineering community site sponsored by Globalspec, Inc. The majority of the administration team is Globalspec employees, but this site in no way represents or speaks for GlobalSpec. The words of all administrators and indeed every CR4 user are their own. How do I register?Registering at CR4 is easy and free. Simply click the "Register" link.(Hint: It's on the right-hand side of the red bar near the top of the CR4 home page) Then follow the steps. Why would I register?By registering with a username, you will be able to subscribe to posts and threads that are of interest to you, and receive and send private messages. You will also be able to edit your profile and preferences. You will get the most out of your time here if you change your profile to suit your individual tastes. There are lots of options in your profile to make your experience here more enjoyable, so please take a few moments to personalize the various settings. I am registered at GlobalSpec. Am I also registered here (and vice versa)?No, you are not. The two sites are completely different in terms of registration. Both sites use separate passwords and security systems. If you register at GlobalSpec.com, you are not automatically registered at CR4. Conversely, if you become a registered member of the CR4 community, you are not registered at GlobalSpec.com. To become a member of both sites, you have to register separately at each. I've forgotten my username / password?Click here and follow the steps. How do I contact the CR4 Admin?Email us at cr4admin@globalspec.com Do you use cookies?Yes. Cookies are used to track your username / password and to identify the posts you've read during your current session. If your browser does not accept cookies, some CR4 functions won't work properly. A lot of people are paranoid about cookies (and not without reason), but the simple fact is that this is how we know it's you from one click to the next. If you don't want to use cookies, you don't have to. You can still post anonymously, but you will not be able to use all of the advanced features of CR4 (story tracking, story rating, user preferences, etc). How do I login?If you have registered an account (username) within these forums, you must login in order to take advantage of the personalization features. To login, look in the upper right-hand corner of your screen for the Login link. This link will take you to a page where you can enter your username and password. Keep in mind that the password is case-sensitive. This means that the software considers 'S' and 's' to be different. How do I update my profile?You can click "Edit Profile" within your own user profile or at the bottom of the site wide right-hand navigation bar. (Hint: The link is in a box that's labeled "Logged In".) From within the Edit Profile action area, you may:
How do I post to a forum?Click either "Ask a Question" (to ask / post a question) or "Start a Discussion" (to report / post news, tell a story, etc.) in the right-hand navigation bar. Enter a title and your message (including related links, if applicable), then select the appropriate forum for your entry. Click "Preview Thread" to see how your submission will look. If everything looks good, submit your entry; you can also edit your post if you find errors. Once the post is submitted, it will appear live on CR4 in the forum that you selected. Are there specific rules for posting?While you are free to post whatever you wish, as long as it does not violate the CR4 Site Use Policy, we ask that you follow these guidelines when posting or commenting on CR4.
Are there limits to the usernames that I can select?Yes, we ask that you avoid using registered trademarks, company names, or the names of real people (who are not you) in or as your username. Where does my post belong?It depends on what you are writing about. CR4 is divided into 10 sections, each with a forum:
What if I post to the wrong forum?Let the CR4 Admin know - he/she will be able to move it for you. Occasionally, an administrator will do this of his or her own volition upon finding a post that belongs in another area. This is most likely to happen in relation to items that belong in Commercial Space. What is the difference between a forum and a blog?In CR4, a forum is a specialized area within each section. It's a place where any user can ask a question or start a discussion. All CR4 users - registered or guests - can post and reply to posts within a forum. A blog is an online journal comprised of postings and links. The most recent postings appear at the top of the page. A blog is owned by an individual user or a small, selected group. Only the blog owner or owners can start a discussion within a given blog; however, all users can reply to posts. How do I reply to a forum post, blog entry, or comment from another user?To reply to a forum post, blog entry, or comment from another user, click "Reply" associated with the given entry. Enter your message in the box provided, them preview and submit your reply. How do I rate a post?You can rate any forum thread from 1 to 5 stars - 1 being poor and 5 being superlative. At the top of every thread are three gray boxes. Click "Rate this", select the desired number of stars, and then click "Add Vote". Your opinion of the thread will be instantly registered and added to the total. Please note: we do not display half or quarter stars. Instead, we round up or round down to the closet rating, so that an item rated 3.2 stars will physically show up as 3 stars, while something rated 3.7 will appear as 4 stars. You are welcome to change your vote at any time, but the system will only log your most recent vote for each individual story (i.e., if you vote that a story is a 2, but then go back and change it to a 4, your original vote of 2 is deleted). How do I post to a blog?You can only post entries to a blog if you are an approved member of that blog. You can, however, reply to entries within the blog as you would within a forum. Many of the blogs allow visitors to submit material for potential inclusion. So, if you are particularly moved, email the blog's owner(s). You are also are welcome to lobby the blog's owner to invite you in as a blog owner, but this will likely require demonstrated expertise on the subject as well as dedication to CR4 in terms of usage, rank and quality citizen-journalism. I want my own blog!So you think you've got what it takes to be a CR4 blogger? Well, then email the CR4 Admin from your profile and say that you'd like a blog on CR4. Let the administrator know what you'd like to write about and your experience / expertise in the field. The CR4 Admin will evaluate your proposal by studying your user rank, previous postings, and the work in your biography to see if you fit the CR4 blogger mold. What are pathfinder tags?Pathfinder tags are similar to keywords. They are added to a post to detail important topics within the post and to allow users to find a post more easily. Pathfinder tags may be added by the poster of the entry when the entry is first posted and, in extraordinary circumstances, by the CR4 administration team. What are user tags?Registered users can tag forum posts and blog entries so that they can find them later. User tags are visible to the general public, but do not have the prominence of pathfinder tags. Tagged items can be tracked and modified through your user profile. What do member titles mean?Member titles are a fun way to track user participation on the site. The more posts you submit to CR4, the higher you'll rise along the following scale:
Beyond that, we really don't know (and we're kind of scared...). You must be a registered CR4 member to accrue posts towards user titles. Any actions that you take prior to registering will not be carried over. When you register, you start as a "browser". If you registered previously at the old CR4 (prior to September 13, 2006), your information has been carried over and you will start at a level commensurate with your level of engagement with the old site. You may notice a number of folks with titles who are not on this list. They are CR4 Administrators and do not gain rank in this way. How do I subscribe to a discussion?There are a number of ways that you can subscribe to forum threads or discussions in blogs, but there is one unifying factor - you must be a registered member of CR4 to do so. You can subscribe when posting a question or story, or when replying, by making sure that the "Yes, email me as new comments are added" box is selected. You will then receive an email whenever someone responds to the post. You do not have to post or reply to subscribe to a discussion. All forum threads and blog entries have three gray boxes over them. Click the one that says "Subscribe" and then click the "Subscribe to this Discussion" button. You can unsubscribe from discussions by modifying your user profile and clicking "Default to 'Don't Subscribe'", or by clicking the "Subscribe" button in the forum thread and blog entry again, and then clicking "Unsubscribe from this Discussion". How do I report a post?All forum posts, blog entries and user profiles have a "Report" link. Registered CR4 members can use this to inform the CR4 moderation team of spam, inappropriate advertising messages, and problematic (harassing, fighting, or rude) posts. Please describe the exact problem in detail. How do I email a friend / send a private message?Occasionally, you may want to contact another user to discuss something in greater detail without the prying eyes of the rest of the community. Registered CR4 members can do so by sending a private message. You can do so by clicking "Send username a message" within his or her profile, or by clicking "Write New Message" from within your own mailbox. Note: this is not an email, but a missive sent within the CR4 system to another user. Use of the private messaging system is a privilege - not a right. Any registered user who violates the Private Messaging Code of Conduct risks losing the right to use the messaging system - or even expulsion from CR4. A quick, though not comprehensive list of unacceptable messaging behavior includes, but is not limited to:
How do I subscribe / unsubscribe from the Daily Digest?You may unsubscribe from the CR4 Daily Digest at anytime by:
Note: Unsubscribe may take up to 72 hours to take effect. You will likely receive at least one more edition of the CR4 Daily Digest, for which we apologize in advance. |
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