General Questions

Our help system is divided by areas, shown on the right. Get started with our tutorial.
Have a question? Ask the greeters. A complaint? Ask the moderators.
Search answers for
Looking for a user? Search here, or in the bottom right sidebar.

Want to remove some of your trophies?

Want to give someone points?

See a list of the moderators.

The current allpoetry time is September 05 11:37AM. The 'end of day' is 2 am.

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:) How do I make the smileys?
Please check out our column on the subject.

Do we get points for comments?
Yes. Your comment is given an initial "rating" based on the length of it, from 2 to 4 stars. You get two points for each star.

The poem owner can then re-rate your comment, which will add or remove the point difference from your account.

Sorry that this system is somewhat confusing - we plan to revise it over the next few months.

You get 4-10 points for 2-5 rating stars (two per star), and no points for 1 star.

Only poems are eligible to get points. If you've already gotten rating points for a comment, you won't get more for a second comment on the same item.

You also get bonus points for commenting on a poem in the featured box, in the lower right section of the screen.

How can I keep non members from viewing my poetry?
We feel that you'll get more views on your poetry if it's searchable by google and visible to the outside world, so the default is that all poetry is visible to non members.

If you really hate this, you can add the special category 'noguest' to your poem, and it'll prevent visitors from seeing it.

How do I find my way around the site?
There are five main navigation areas: 1) The top of page navigation, 2) The main navigation links, 3) the top of sidebar (right side of page), 4) the bottom of sidebar, and 5) the bottom of page links
1. Top of page navigation: "Your links" to your poetry page, favorites, etc.
2. Main navigation links: Links to the main 'sections' of the site. Poetry lets you browse poems. Contests lets you browse and enter contests run by fellow site members. Groups are writing groups that help people exchange critiques. Forums are a place to get to know your fellow users. Click the Allpoetry logo to go back to the start, 'overview' page of the site.
3. Top of the Sidebar: These are links relevant to the current "section" of the site you are in. Sometimes they'll have other headings too, like "Owner Options".
4. Bottom of the Sidebar: Things that are always there, like our messaging system and featured poems. The chatterbox is a place where you can talk with other people currently on the site. "Send message to" lets you send an instant message to another user on the site. "Show online" show or hides the list of other users currently on the site. "Browse Categories" lets you browse poems on a certain topic from anywhere on the site.
5. Bottom of page links. Useful links like "Content Complaint"- a method to alert moderators that a page has inappropriate content, our chatroom, a 'random' link to a random poem, and our terms of use that all members agree to by joining and using the site.
Allpoetry is a big place, and it's easy to feel lost! Hang in there, ask for help from a moderator or fellow poet online, and read our help sections. Each main page has a green question mark along the right edge, or click Help along the top of the page.

How do I Post a poem and add an image
This is a simplified step-by-step guide to posting a poem, choosing a background, and for Silver and Gold members, how to add an image to your poem.

http://allpoetry.com/column/show/2333257

How do I send someone a message?
Allpoetry has a messaging system we call Instant Messages, that let you talk with your friends whether or not they are online.
- Start with the person's name you want to send a message to.
- If they are one of your friends, you can choose → Show online, then → Show offline friends if they're not online currently.
- Hover your mouse over the name. A box should appear below it - choose 'send message'.
- The user's name will then appear in the box under Send message to.
- Type your message in the box below it, then hit <tab> + <enter>, or click Send Message
- The area around the Send message to line will update, saying that the message was sent, and showing you any new messages from others.
- Hint: You can click the user's name directly, which will (on most pages) visit their author profile. On some pages (like your Messages page), it will start a message to them. Try it!

How do I Upload a Secondary Image and Post them
Want to add a secondary image to your poem or author page? (For Gold memberships) Here is a step by step guide of how to...

http://allpoetry.com/column/show/2333219

How do I Upload and use Custom Backgrounds
Confused with using custom backgrounds?
Here is a step by step guide to help you through the process.

http://allpoetry.com/column/show/2333269

How do I upload my poem under a Creative Commons license?
Add the category 'CreativeCommons' to your poem, and the standard copyright notice will be replaced with:

Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0.

Adding 'MyLicense' will cause it to show 'See Authors notes for copyright restrictions'

I can't login
Our site requires that you have a fairly new internet browser. Internet explorer version 6, Firefox, Safarai, and most ‘new’ browsers are supported. Internet Explorer version 5 is not, nor is the version included on Macintosh (use safari instead).

If you are unable to login, or the site doesn’t remember your login information:
Instructions for Internet Explorer:
- Up top in the pull-down menus (File, Edit, Tools etc.), click Tools, then ‘Internet Options’
- This brings up a dialog with 6 tabs across the top (General, Security, Content, .......)
- Click ‘General’ then look for ‘Temporary Internet Files’
- Click ‘Delete Cookies’, then click ‘OK’
- Click ‘Delete Files’, then click ‘OK’.
- This should clear all cached pages and cookies, which can sometimes cause the problem.
- Click the ‘Privacy’ tab along the top
- If it is not greyed out, click ‘Default’ to reset your security settings to the default (safe) level.

I want it to show all the trophies, not just 20 at a time
You can visit this link to toggle this option:

http://allpoetry.com/home/option/set_alltrophy

If you visit it again, it'll turn off again...

I want to leave the site
Sorry to see you go! You can delete your poems from their respective "edit" pages. Once you don't have any more poems, after you don't login for 3 months, your name will be cleared up for another to use.

I'm interested in becoming a moderator
Moderators help keep Allpoetry moving smoothly, by making sure users are not harassing other members.

We're going to start the moderation of Allpoetry slowly, and keep it as small as possible.

If you're interested, please contact us, and let us know why you'd be a good moderator, and any relevant experience you have.

Javascript Problems
Javascript is a useful part of the Internet, and lets websites do neat things, like start an instant message when you click someone's name, or quickly add a comment without refreshing the page. They can sometimes be annoying (popup windows, which we don't have), but are not dangerous.

Allpoetry requires javascript. To enable your javascript in Internet Explorer:
1. Click Tools, then Internet Options.
2. Click 'Security' from the tabs along the top.
3. Click "Default Level"

No Spamming in the Chatterbox
Requests asking for others to read your latest work in the chatterbox is not allowed.

It's fine to discuss your latest piece and any difficulties you had on it, etc, but please be careful not to spam other users of the chatterbox.

Paid memberships
Allpoetry will always be a free membership, which will include at least the ability to add poems, and add and receive comments.

Upgrades to add pictures and other features start at $5.95 per month, please visit our store

Something is broken!
Please post in the ‘site suggestions’ board with the error message you received, and we’ll get right on it!
We also automatically record errors as they happen, so will probably notice anyway.

Staying logged in (Cookie Problems)
If you got sent here after trying to log in, most likely your cookies are disabled.

Cookies let us remember who you are from page to page. This scares some people, because they aren't truly anonymous. But you aren't anonymous anyways, as we can tell your IP address, and cookies don't tell us any more information anyways. Cookies are not something to be afraid of, and if you are, you should read more until you are convinced otherwise. If you are still nervous, you can read our privacy policy.

Allpoetry requires cookies. To enable your cookies on Internet Explorer:
1. Click Tools, then Internet Options.
2. Choose Privacy from the tabs along the top.
3. Move the slider to "Medium".

What are our policies?
Using the site means you agree to the terms of use. Our privacy policy promises not to share your email with anyone.

What is the chatterbox? How do I use it?
The chatterbox is a way to chat with the other authors currently on Allpoetry.

There are actually two versions:
1. If you have Flash 8 installed, you will see a version that automatically updates when others say something. Just type in the box, then press <enter> - your message should appear!
2. If you do not have Flash 8 installed, it will update the area above the Send message to prompt each time you change pages or send a message. To send a message, enter 'chat' in the Send message to field, and your message in the box below it.

When I write a comment, it just disappears until I reload the page
Our new site is supposed to show you the new comment immediately above or below the form that you are writing it on.

This appears to be having some issues for some users. Please make sure you have javascript enabled, then let us know that you're having trouble. Please include what web browser you are using, and if you see an exclamation point in the very bottom corner of your browser. We're trying to fix it as fast as possible, and sorry that you were affected.