Site Article How-To

[bszopi]

The following article is basically just a tutorial to show how an article could be set up using our articles system. Articles can be simple, or they can be extreme. It really just depends on how much time you want to put into it, and how much information you have to add. Obviously, the more, the better. But sometimes even simple articles are enough to help people out.

Anyway, enough talk. Lets get into the meat of how to set this up!!

This first page is just a simple introduction page. Say whatever you want here to describe the article. If the topic is basic, then it may only be a single page. But if it is a How-To article, there may be several pages to help keep everything organized.

To create a new page, type the following BBCode, except leave the spaces out around the "break" command:

 [ break = Whatever you want the next page to be called]

[break=Step 2 of How-To]
Ok, so often there are multiple things that will be covered in the article. I think one of the easiest ways to do this is with a bulleted list, like this:

• Parts List
• Disassembly
• Reassembly

Again, to do this, it is just simple BBCode as follows (again, without the spaces between the brackets):

 [ list ] [*]Step 1[*]Step 2[*]step 3
etc...

If you want to list them numerically, just replace the asterisk with numbers. You can also do letters.

I will explain how to use a table instead of a list on the next page...
[break=Step 3 of How-To]
Ok, lets see how to do a table. These can be kind of a pain, but they really do help organize things. I copied this over from a garage tutorial I had created, hence the audio list, but the concept can work for just about anything. I used it for all of the specification sections.


Ok, to create the above table, the code looks like this:

[ table="head;width=100%;]{colsp=2}[ b]Equipment[/b]|[ b]Price[/b]|[ b]Rating[/b]|[ b]Picture[/b]
{colsp=2}Sony In-Dash CD Player|$300|8.5/10|
{colsp=2}Sony 6-Disc CD Changer|$400|9/10|[ url=http://60degreev6.com/backup/hlperf/Beretta/Audio/6%20Disc%20CD%20Changer.jpg]Pic[/url]
[/table]

As you can see, any BBCode can also be used inside of a table. It really has almost unlimited possibilities. Of course, the fancier you make it, the harder it is to type it in and get it to work right.


[break=Step 3 of How-To]
Finally, there are several ways to add pictures to your article as well. If you already have a way to store pictures online, feel free to just add them into your article. You can also add up to 10 attachments to the article just like you do to a normal thread. They will show up as attachments just like below.

I think the best way to do it though, it to use the site Photo Gallery (accessible via the left site menu). Upload your photos to the specific catergory in the gallery, or create a subforum under the catergory. I'm not sure how I currently have the access restrictions setup, so if you can't upload photos, just email me (bszopi@60degreev6.com), and I will set something up for you.

Then, you can setup thumbnails on a page and it will pull the pictures directly from the site photo gallery. I'll use Marty's photo gallery as an example:


[break=Any Questions?]
I guess that is about it. Simple enough? Hopefully its not too hard. I think for the most part, everyone who wants to will be able to create an article without any problems. For those that want something more detailed, go for it! If you have any questions about how to set something up or you are having issues with formatting with BBCode, just send me a PM or an email and I will try to help you out.