There are quite a few questions that the average new-comer to the site has when they are getting started. Here are many of the common ones that people have along with their answers.
This FAQ is undergoing an overhaul, so if things appear a little bit disorganized, please bear with us.
The Essentials
General:
- I've tried to register with Simtropolis, but I never received my registration email. How can I use my account when I can't activate it?
- Do I have to fill out my profile when I register?
- How does Simtropolis protect my privacy?
- I'm receiving spam/scam messages here on Simtropolis. What should I do?
- What are the various positions in the site staff, and what does each position do?
- Whoa, that sounds cool. Who do I need to contact to become a staff member?
- Is there any other critical stuff I need to know?
Home Page:
- I submitted news to the home page, but it isn't there. Where is it?
- There are posts on the forums that aren't in the Latest Replies section. Is this a glitch?
Forums:
- What is a private topic?
- Some of the forums are clumped into groups while others are not. Why is that?
- A few of the forums want me to provide a password before entering. How do I get in the forum if I don't know the password?
- How do I become a part of one of those teams?
- What is that colored text message that appears under a person's name in their posts?
- I've tried to format my posts with HTML coding, but it doesn't work. Why not?
- When I click on the reply button, nothing happens. What's wrong?
- I don't see any special features in the message editor. Where are the features?
- Can I insert smilies into posts I'm making with the Quick Reply field?
- How do I find posts by a particular person?
- I have just rated a topic, but it still does not have a rating. How has this happened?
Chat:
- Why is that thing that monitors who is in the chat wrong?
- Do I have to have Java to run the chat?
Simtropolis Exchange (STEX):
- How do I view more than just a few pages of the STEX?
- I just uploaded something to the STEX, but it's not there. What happened to it?
- Is there any limit to how much stuff I can download?
- I made something I would like to share with the community, but I have some questions about the uploading process. Who do I need to contact?
- What is the maximum allowed file size for an upload to the STEX?
- What are these "dependency files" and what do I need them for?
Omnibus:
- What is the Omnibus?
- Why can't I reply to threads in the Omnibus?
- Why do I need to reply to STomnibus in some of the articles and not others?
- How do I submit an article to the Omnibus?
Modds & Downloads:
- Who do I need to contact to get a modd I made uploaded?
Donating:
- How can I donate to Simtropolis?
- Where do I need to send donations too?
- I want to donate for a STEX Collector's disc, but do I need to donate the money in Canadian currency or American currency?
General:
I've tried to register with Simtropolis, but I never received my registration email. How can I use my account if I can't activate it?
This problem seems to affect people who try to register with a hotmail address. The first thing to do is to check the spam folder to see if hotmail processed your email to there. If you don't find anything there, the next thing you should do is attempt to register with the same desired username, but with an email address from some place like Yahoo or Google. If you are told that your desired username is already taken, odds are that your registration was processed. At this point, you should contact the administration at st-admin@simtropolis.com for further assistance.
NOTE: A word about emails and the subscription feature. Make sure that if you subscribe to a topic in the forums that the email address that you used to register with ST is still valid. Bounce back email processing sucks up system resources at an unbelievable rate.
Do I have to fill out my profile when I register?
You don't have to fill out anything but the required fields when you register. If you don't see a red asterisk (*) next to a field, you can come back later and fill it in by clicking on the profile tab in the toolbar towards the upper-right part of the page (highlighted in green below).
How does Simtropolis protect my privacy?
Naturally, we are concerned with protecting your privacy, so there are options to help prevent sensitive information from being seen by prying eyes. In your profile, under the personal options tab, you'll notice that there is an option label "email visibility." This is set to off by default and as such, only Moderators and Administrators will be able to view your email address. Rest assured that we don't publicly share this information and only use it in the rare event that we need to contact you through some method other than a Private Message. It is also possible to disable your profile so that no one can read it on the forums.
I'm receiving spam/scam messages here on Simtropolis. What should I do?
You should contact a Moderator or Administrator immediately. Be sure to include a copy of the message and who you received it from. We take things of this nature very seriously and will not hesitate to take action against the perpetrator. A complete list of the staff members can be found here.
What are the various positions in the site staff, and what does each position do?
There are three different types of staff members here on Simtropolis: Administrators, Moderators, and Chat Operators. Below is a break down as to the duties and powers of each position.
Chat Operators:
More commonly referred to as "the ops," a chat operator's job is to maintain peace in the chat room and see to it that everyone follows the chat rules. Their powers include the ability to warn, freeze, kick, or ban anyone who is breaking the rules. These various functions are explained here:
Warn: Displays a message saying that you have been warned along with the name of the person who warned you.
Freeze: Temporarily "freezes" you, thereby disabling your ability to do or say anything for one minute.
Kick: Kicks the user out of the room by terminating your chat session. A user that has been kicked can return to the room.
Ban: Likewise terminates your chat session, thereby kicking you out of the room, but forbids re-entry for the next fifteen minutes.
Moderators:
Moderators are kind of like the administrative representatives of a particular forum. They have the ability to move whole threads to different forums, pin threads, combine threads, delete threads, move individual messages to another thread, edit messages, and delete messages. They also have the ability to ban or unban members. However, their powers are limited to the forums they moderate. All moderators also have chat operator powers. If you have a question about something pertaining to a forum or want to report something that is inappropriate, contact the one of the forum moderators by sending them a Private Message.
Administrators:
Administrators are the chief leadership of the site. They have all the powers of a moderator, but unlike a moderator, their powers are site-wide. They also have the ability to create forums, modify forums, delete forums, edit site settings, edit special pages like this one, create announcements, and other such functions. Instead of chat operator powers, they have chat administrator powers. The basic chat administrator powers work much like chat operator powers, except that a ban from an administrator lasts one hour instead of fifteen minutes. They can also reverse some of the actions of the chat operators, as well as edit room settings, delete messages from the chat, and read the chat logs if they are so inclined. Odds are good that if they can't do something here on Simtropolis, it can't be done.
Whoa, that sounds cool. Who do I need to contact to become a staff member?
Staff positions are never given out by asking for them. When picking a new staff member, Administrators look for members who they believe would make a good addition to the team. As the saying goes, "Don't call us - we'll call you." If the Administrators believe that you have what it takes to be a staff member, they will contact you.
Is there any other critical stuff I need to know?
Spend some time just perusing the site to get a feel for how things work here. It'll go a long way in making that transition from a new comer to a well-liked member of the community.
Home Page:
I submitted news to the home page, but it isn't there. Where is it?
All news that is submitted to the home page has to be approved before it is published. That means that it may be a little while before your message appears - anywhere from a few minutes to several hours depending on how busy the admins are. Not all news submissions are actually published, and spamming the feature can have disastrous consequences. That isn't said to discourage submissions - just as a reminder to make sure they are of value.
There are posts on the forums that aren't in the Latest Replies section. Is this a glitch?
Not all forums are monitored by the Latest Replies section. Forum games and password protected forums are an example.
Forums:
What is a private topic?
A private topic is a topic that only certain people can access. You are automatically a part of any private topic you start, and you can allow other members to access your topic too. You have the ability to delete the topic or remove a person's access if you wish. You can edit the permissions list by editing your first post and clicking on the "users" link towards the bottom of the window. Before you create the topic, you'll have to fill out the following permissions list.
Some of the forums are clumped into groups while others are not. Why is that?
Since Simtropolis is a SC4 fansite, those forums directly related to the game were organized for easy access. By going to the categories, you can find various forums on particular topics like you see with the SC4 forums.
A few of the forums want me to provide a password before entering. How do I get in the forum if I don't know the password?
These forums are password protected because they are private rooms for various teams here at Simtropolis to work on their respective projects. Those people who are members of the team have the password, but no one else.
How do I become a part of one of these teams?
Many times, teams will have public hirings from time to time, or they will select members as they see fit. Other than this, there is no way to become a part of a team. Asking staff or team leaders if you can join the team is frowned upon.
What is that colored text message that appears under a person's name in their posts?
That is a Custom Member Label, or CML as they are more commonly called. These little treats are given out by the Administrators to members who they feel have had some sort of impact on the community. Again, these are not things that are given out by asking, so don't ask for one. (Reverse psychology doesn't work either).
I've tried to format my posts with HTML coding, but it doesn't work. Why not?
This forum doesn't support HTML coding. Instead, you'll have to use BB (Bulletin Board) codes. Most of the advanced BB codes don't work, so you'll have to use the special features in the message editor.
When I click on the reply button, nothing happens. What's wrong?
Simtropolis makes use of popup windows for various functions like that. You will need to adjust your popup blocker to allow Simtropolis to run them. We do not make use of popup ads or other things of that nature, so you don't have to worry about being attacked by tons of annoying ads.
I don't see any special features in the message editor. Where are the features?
If you are browsing the site from Safari or another one of the lesser used browsers, you are probably having incompatibility issues. This site was optimized to run on Firefox and Internet Explorer 6. As far as we know, no one has had any issues with the message editor when using those browsers.
Can I insert smilies into posts I'm making with the Quick Reply field?
Yes you can - if you know the codes. For a list of smilie codes, see the article on it here.
How do I find posts by a particular person?
The easiest way to do this (if you aren't looking at a post they made) is to go to the advanced search function, type the username of choice in the author field, and search. If you are looking at a post they made, then the easiest way is to open their profile, and at the top, you'll see a link that reads "view posts." That'll show every thread they've posted in.
I have just rated a topic, but it still does not have a rating. How has this happened?
The ability to rate topics has been disabled forum wide.
(Contributed by Camaron)
Chat:
Why is the thing that monitors who is in the chat wrong?
That little thing only updates every so often. If you see that someone is listed there, they may not be in the chat, but they were at some point. Those names in the list are according to their order in the participants list.
Do I have to have Java to run the chat?
Yes, Java is a requirement to run the chat. It has to be installed on the computer you are attempting to enter the chat from. Also, if you have any scripts for your browser that disable Java by default, you will have to allow Simtropolis to run Java commands. The chat isn't the only part of the site that uses Java, so it is best to enable the entire site to run it. Again, there is no need to worry about your computer being infected through Java usage on Simtropolis.
Simtropolis Exchange (STEX):
How do I view more than just a few pages of the STEX?
What you see when you meander over to the STEX is the most recently added files. To view older uploads, you need to click on one of the categories in the "File Types" section. This will allow you to see every file uploaded in that category.
I just uploaded something to the STEX, but it's not there. What happened to it?
The STEX has publishing cycles. Every few minutes, it checks the publishing queue and uploads anything it finds in there.
Is there any limit to how much stuff I can download?
There isn't a limit, but we respectfully ask that you don't download everything at once. Try to limit it to approximately 250 MB of stuff or less per day.
I made something I would like to share with the community, but I have some questions about the uploading process. Who do I need to contact?
While we tried to make the upload process fairly straight-forward, if you have any questions about uploading your work, feel free to contact a STEX Moderator. You can find a list of all the STEX Moderators towards the upper-right hand part of the screen. If you click on one of the names there, a popup will open where you can send that person a message.
What is the maximum allowed file size for an upload to the STEX?
Anything that is less than 10MB in size is ok. If your creation is larger than that, we respectfully ask that you seek permission from a STEX Moderator first.
What are these "dependency files" and what do I need them for?
For a complete explanation of dependency files, please read this article by north county dude.
Omnibus:
What is the Omnibus?
The Omnibus is where we keep our tutorials, reference articles, and other articles that the community might find of great interest. Whether you are looking for an article on how to create a better map or needing to find the statistics on a landmark, odds are good that we have that information in there. We also have interviews with some of the members, and other writings on various things from common quotes here at Simtropolis to conversations that members have had with Maxis.
Why can't I reply to threads in the Omnibus?
The omnibus is our knowledge base. In order to keep the information there and clean and clutter-free as possible, the ability to post there has been disabled. If you have questions about an article, send a Private Message to the person named in the article.
Why do I need to reply to STomnibus in some of the articles and not others?
Most of the time, when an article says that you need to contact STomnibus, it's because the author of that article is no longer an active member here. By contacting the STomnibus, you stand a much better chance of getting a reply than by contacting the author articles that say to contact the STomnibus.
How do I submit an article to the Omnibus?
Think you have an Omnibus-worthy article? If you would like to submit your writing to the omnibus, you can do so by contacting the Simtropolis Help Squad Senior Editors (Cheese89, Mikeaut1, and Beebs). They will help you through the process of getting your article polished up and ready for uploading. You will be credited as the author of your work. It can take a few days to get an article uploaded, even when you have your article exactly how you would like it. Also, since we are a SimCity4 fansite, please limit your submissions to articles pertaining to the game or Simtropolis. If it doesn't fit in any of the categories in the omnibus, odds are good that it doesn't fit with the omnibus at all.
Modds & Download:
Who do I need to contact to get a modd I made uploaded?
If you have any mods that you've made and would like to share with the community, please send a Private Message to dirk.
Donating:
How can I donate to Simtropolis?
Paypal is the preferred way (and you don't have to have a paypal account to use the service). You can also use a money order or mail in a donation. If you choose to mail a donation, please enclose the gift inside a few pages of paper or some other opaque material so the contents of the envelope aren't readily apparent.
Where do I need to send donations to?
Answer coming soon.
I want to donate for a STEX Collector's disc, but do I need to donate the money in Canadian currency or American currency?
There isn't that much of a difference between the two of them. Whatever is more convenient for you will be fine.
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More tips coming later.
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