Several unique terms and phrases describe the features of services we review on this site, some easier to grasp than others. This list briefly defines terms relevant to Forum Services.

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Forum Features

Hosted by Service

The service hosts the forums on their site or on their servers.

Can be Hosted on any Website

Service supports the ability to have the forum hosted on any site.

Supports Frames

The forum can be incorporated into a site that utilizes frames or appears as frames.

Unlimited Posting

Service does not limit the number of entries that can be posted on a forum. However, there are usually size or memory limits.

Supports Multiple Forums/Categories

Service allows the forum administrator to sign up for multiple forums or the program supports forums with many categories.

Ad Free

Forums are displayed without advertisements.

Appearance

Threaded

These type of forums display posts in such a manner that makes it easy to follow a discussion.

Non-Threaded

A non–threaded forum does not provide threads that organize a topic of discussion.

Customization

Colors

The forum background color, line or font colors can be changed.

Import/Create Logo

Company logos can be imported into the forum header or the site supports a service that will help you build a logo.

Buttons/Icon Choices

The forum program offers a choice of buttons or icons and allows them to be imported.

POSTING OPTIONS

WYSIWYG Editor

The posting tool offers a view that shows what the post will look like instead of the code.

BBCode

This type of code is Bulletin Board Code. It is generally used on sites that do not allow HTML coding. It is intended to limit site vandalism.

HTML Editor

The forum will allow HTML posting or lets the administrator add their own HTML coding to insert logos, images or to change the layout.

Smilies/Emoticons

Posters can add smilies or emoticons to their posts; some services also support the uploading of unique smilies.

File Uploading/Attaching

Members can attach files to their posts or upload files to the forum.

Can Insert Photo/Graphics into Posts

Posters can insert images into their post or profile.

Spell Checker

Posting tool includes a spell checker for checking post content.

Preview

Before a post is submitted members can look at how the post will look published.

Quote

Posters can use a quote tool that automatically copies the content from the post they are commenting on.

Email Posts/Replies/Notifications

Service supports the ability to post through an email. The service will send a notice to a poster's inbox if someone replies to one of their posts or will send a notification to their inbox when a new post is submitted.

Personalization

Profiles

Members can create private or public profiles.

Avatars

Posters can upload an image that will be displayed with their profile or as a small icon next to their posts or user name.

Signatures

Members can create a unique signature that will display at the bottom of their posts.

Other Tools

Search Tool

The forum can be searched by keywords.

Private Messaging/Emailing

Members can contact each other through private messaging or by email.

Message Ranking

Users can vote on posts.

Buddy Lists

Members can create buddy lists of their forum friends.

Polling

Posters can create polls to submit to other readers.

Can Sort Messages by When Posted

Members can sort messages from newest to oldest or by a specific date.

Multiple Languages Supported

Forum service offers forums that support a choice of languages.

ADMINISTRATION TOOLS

Set Member Registration Requirements

Administrator can set member registration requirements. Most services also allow an administrator to manually approve members if they want.

Edit/Delete Posts

Approved moderators and/or administrator can edit or delete posts before and/or after they are posted.

Edit/Delete Members

Moderators and/or administrator can edit member profiles or delete members completely.

Assign Member Titles/Rank

Administrator can set a number of posts to a member rank, for example they can set it so that once a member posts 20 posts they are called a "Casual User"� and once they reach 100 posts, a "Forum Fanatic."

Group or Organize Users

Forum host or moderator can group members and work with an entire group at once, so for example they could send an email to just "banned members."

Assign Moderators

Administrator can assign users a moderator status and access abilities.

Lock Threads, Forums, Topics

Moderator and/or administrator can lock topics so they can no longer be commented on.

Archive Messages

Service offers archiving or backup services.

Email Notifications

Forum manager can be notified when new messages are posted.

Access/Approval Rights

Forum administrator can assign access restrictions on members or groups of members.

Communication Tools

Email Lists

Forum service can compile the email addresses of users into a list.

Automatic Mass Email Supported

The service supports a function that will allow administrators to send out bulk email.

Calendar

Forum includes a calendar, so administrators or users can announce events.

Pin Threading/Sticky Messages

Messages or posts can be set to always display at the top of a thread or notes can be placed at the top of a forum, such as announcements or other forum business.

Traffic/Search Engine

Activity Statistics/ Tracking

Service captures visitor information such as number of visitors, page view counts and so on.

Content Syndication (RSS)

Forum information can be submitted to RSS feeds.

Meta Tag Support

Forum supports the use of keyword or tag information to be used by search engines.

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