SurfGuitar101.com Site FAQ
From SurfGuitar101
Site FAQ List
Here is a FAQ list for the main site SurfGuitar101.com. If you have further questions, please send an email to admin@surfguitar101.com.
What is SurfGuitar101.com all about?
SurfGuitar101, or SG101 for short, is all about instrumental surf music and related genres. We have reviews, news, show reports, show announcements, an event calendar, and forums for fans and bands to interact. We have a database of web links and downloads. The site now has an IRC server for chatting, and this wiki you are reading! Basically, this site aims to be the one-stop shopping place for fans of instrumental surf music. Most features require you to register, but don't worry, it is free and we never give away your email or other personal information. Hop in and enjoy the site. Surf's up!
Who is behind this site? How do I get in touch with them?
Your host is Brian, aka "BN", a software engineer who digs surf music. Your feedback is appreciated. You can send email to admin@surfguitar101.com
How do I post a photo in the forums?
Get yourself an account on an image hosting service (flickr.com, google photos, photobucket, imageshack) if you don't already have a place to store photos online. Upload your photos there, then use the IMG BB Code tag in your forum posts like this:
[img]http://url-to-my-image-on-the-web.jpg[/img]
You can of course use a photo hosted by someone else, but some people get mad because you are stealing their bandwidth without visiting their site.
Make sure you don't link to a super large picture because it stretches the forums, and some people might still be on dial-up.
Here is another forum tip: if you ever wonder how someone posted a picture or did something in their post, just hit the quote button on it. It will show you what BB codes they typed.
How do I submit an article, news item, or review to the site?
- First of all, you have to be a registered user of this site to submit stories.
- Once registered and logged in, click on the "Submit News" link on the left side of the page in the Main Menu.
- A form will pop up for you to enter your submission. Pick a concise but descriptive title.
- In the Topic drop-down list, choose an appropriate topic. Don't worry if there isn't a good one that matches, the editors of the site may create one for you or pick the closest match.
- Now you have two boxes left, the Story Text and Extended Text. The Story Text box will be displayed on the front page of the site. If you have a short news item or show announcement, place all of your text in the Story Text box.
- If you have a long item, place the first part of your item in the Story Text box and the bulk of the item in the Extended Text box. The contents of the Extended Text box will be displayed when users click on the "Read More" link on the front page.
- If you have tablature, please place it in the Extended Text box, and use a non-proportional font like Courier so the tab displays correctly.
- When you are finished, you must click the Preview button. You can then make tweaks until you are happy.
- Click the OK button to submit the story to the site editors.
Your story may be edited slightly for content or grammar. If major changes are needed, you will receive a Private Message.
How do I submit an event to your calendar?
- Click on the "Calendar" link on the left side of the page in the Main Menu.
- Click on the "Submit Event Info" link on the top right of the calendar.
- Fill out the form, paying careful attention to the date.
- Make the title short, e.g. "Dick Dale (CA)".
- You can include images if you have them hosted elsewhere, e.g. photobucket
- Once finished, click the "Submit Event" button. The event will be sent to the site staff for approval.
What's the deal with the Outbox and Sentbox in my Private Messages?
When you send a private message (PM) to someone it goes into your Outbox until that person receives it. Once received, it shows up in your Sentbox. Thus, an easy way to tell if a person has not received your PM is to check your Outbox. If it's there, it has not been read yet. You can also delete the PM from your Outbox to "take back" a PM before the recipient can read it.
Why are the times in the shout box and forums wrong?
You need to set your timezone in your account preferences. Go into Your Account and then Your Info. There is a drop-down box to set your timezone. US Central time is GMT-6, Eastern Time is GMT-5, etc.
Note that other times besides the forum and shoutbox use the server timezone, which is currently US Central time.
Do you have RSS feeds?
Yes, we do for both the forums and news items. See the Feeds module.
I forgot my password, what do I do?
- You have to go here.
- The first time, just type in your username and leave the confirmation code blank.
- The site will then email you a confirmation code.
- Go back to that page and enter both your username and code and it will let you in to change your password (I think that's how it works - let me know if I am wrong...I've never had to do it).
If you still have problems please email the admin.
How do I use the IRC thing?
IRC stands for Internet Relay Chat, and it is a way to chat in real-time with your fellow SG101'ers. IRC has been around since the early 90's. You can read more about it on Wikipedia, for example. In order to use it, you need an IRC client. I created a forum thread on how to setup ChatZilla, which is an IRC client plug-in for the popular Firefox browser. ChatZilla will work on a PC or Mac, and it's free, so if you are just getting started, it might be a good choice. Please see the instructions here.
