Using Drupal-SMF - Quick guide for users

• Accessing your Drupal-SMF site
• Setting or editing your profile
• Adding a photo so it appears every time you post
• Reading site content
• Reading blogs
• Posting to your blog
• Adding comments or replies to a blog
• Adding a user to your buddylist
• Removing a user from your buddylist
• Adding a folder or file to the fileshare
• Removing a folder or file from the fileshare
• Accessing the discussion forum
• Creating a new topic in the discussion forum
• Replying to a post in the discussion forum
• Quoting other posts in the discussion forum
• Attaching a file to a post in the discussion forum
• Removing or modifying posts in the discussion forum
• Stopping new message/content emails

Drupal-SMF is a content management system that facilitates blog-based communication. Simple Machines Forum (SMF) is a threaded discussion forum that can be used in conjunction with Drupal-SMF if required.

Note: Mac users will need to open Firefox as their browser when using Drupal-SMF.

Accessing your Drupal-SMF site

Note: You must have cookies enabled to log in to a Drupal-SMF site. To enable cookies on your computer, refer to the Enable cookies for PC users quick guide or the Enable cookies for Mac users quick guide.

• To access a Drupal-SMF site that has been set-up in DSO:
  1. Open a new browser window.
  2. Type in the URL for Deakin Studies Online (DSO) i.e. http://www.deakin.edu.au/current-students/
  3. Type in your Deakin username and password and click the OK button. You will be logged into DSO. Click on the appropriate unit name in the My Sites widget.
  4. Navigate to and click on the link for the Drupal site.
• To access a Drupal-SMF site that has been set-up independently of DSO:
  1. Open a new browser window.
  2. Type in or copy and paste the url of the Drupal-SMF site.
  3. Login to the Drupal-SMF site. Depending on which access method you have been advised to use, either:
     
     • Type your Deakin username and password into the grey authentication box and click OK.
     • Type in the username and password you have been given and click OK.

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Setting or editing your profile

1. Click on My account in the main menu to the left of the window. Your User account page will appear.
2. Click on the Edit tab.
3. Click on the Profile link that appears below the tabs.
4. Type your name (eg John Smith) in the Full Name text box.
5. Type brief introductory information about yourself in the About text box.
6. Click the Submit button.

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Adding a photo so it appears every time you post

1. Click on My account in the main menu to the left of the window. Your User account page will appear.
2. Click on the Edit tab.
3. Scroll down to the Upload Picture field and click on the Browse button. Note: it is advisable to use an image that is 30KB or less and 130 x 130 pixels or smaller.
4. Select the picture file you wish to use and click Open.
5. Scroll down to the bottom of the page and click the Submit button.

Note: If it seems that your changes have not been made correctly, you may need to clear your browser cookies and cache.

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Reading site content

• Click on the link in the main menu to the left of the window to access the page you wish to read.
• To close a page, either:
  • Click on another page.
  • Click on the Home link or other breadcrumb link.
  • Click the browser back button.

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Reading blogs

1. Click on Blogs in the main menu to the left of the window.
   • To access your own blog, click the My blog link that will appear under Blogs in the main menu to the left of the window. Your blog page will then appear.
   • To read other people's blogs, scroll through the postings on the main blogs page until you find a posting from the person you are looking for. Click on the link to their blog under the posting (e.g. john's blog).
   • To access recent blog posts, click on one of the Recent blog posts links to the top-right of the window.

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Posting to your blog

1. Click on Blogs in the main menu to the left of the window.
2. Click on the My blog link that will appear under Blogs in the main menu to the left of the window. Your blog page will then appear.
3. Click on Post new blog entry in the middle of the main window.
4. Type the required information into the Title and Body fields.
5. If you wish to add an attachment, click on the File attachments link below the Body field. Click on the Browse button, select the file you wish to use and click Open.
6. Click the Attach button.
7. Scroll down to the bottom of the page and click the Submit button. Your new post will then appear in the main window.

Note: Copying and pasting directly from Ms Word may cause display issues. To overcome this issue, you should first select and copy all the text from Ms Word and paste it into a text editor eg Notepad (Start->All Programs->Accessories->Notepad) on PC , TextEdit (Application->TextEdit) on Mac. Then, select and copy the text from the text editor and paste it back into your blog.

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Adding comments or replies to a blog

1. Click on Blogs in the main menu to the left of the window and scroll down until you find the blog posting to which you wish to add a comment or reply.
   • If no-one has yet posted a comment, click on Add new comment beneath the blog posting.
   • If others have posted comments, click xcomments (e.g. 2 comments) beneath the blog posting and then click Add new comment.
2. Type the required information into the Subject and Comment fields and click the Previewcomment button at the bottom of the window.
3. Scroll down and click on the Post comment button to post your comment. You will be returned to the Add new comment form where you will see your comment at the bottom of the window.

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Adding a user to your buddylist

1. Click on User list in the main menu to the left of the window.
2. Locate the person you wish to add to your buddylist. You can use the alphabetical letters to navigate to their username or real name (if the user has updated their profile). Note: you can also access a user you wish to add via the hyperlinked username at the top of their post.
3. Click the on their username or real name link to access their profile page.
4. Click the Add username to my buddylist link.
5. A confirmation window will appear. Click Add to confirm the addition of your new buddy. Note: the user will be notified of the change.

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Removing a user from your buddylist

1. Click on User list in the main menu to the left of the window.
2. Locate the person you wish to add to your buddylist. You can use the alphabetical letters to navigate to their username or real name (if the user has updated their profile). Note: you can also access a user you wish to add via the hyperlinked username at the top of their post.
3. Click the on their username or real name link to access their profile page.
4. Click the Remove username from my buddylist link.
5. A confirmation window will appear. Click Remove to confirm the deletion of the selected user from your Buddy List. Note: the user will be notified of the change.

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Adding a folder or file to the fileshare

1. Click on Fileshare in the main menu to the left of the window
   • To add a folder to the fileshare:
     1. Click on Upload and New Folder Options.
     2. Type the name into the New folder name text box.Note: Do not use characters such as '~!@#$%^&*()/"+ when naming your folder.
     3. Click on the New Folder button.
   • To upload a file to the fileshare:
     1. Click on Upload and New Folder Options.
     2. Select the folder you wish to place your file in from the Select a target folder drop-down list. Note: Leaving the default selection will save the file in the root directory of the fileshare.
     3. Click on the Browse button.
     4. Select the file you wish to upload and click Open.
     5. Click on the Upload button.

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Removing a folder or file from the fileshare

1. Click on Fileshare in the main menu to the left of the window.
2. Navigate to the file or folder that you wish to delete.
3. Click the red cross next to the file or folder. A confirmation dialog box will appear, warning you that the deletion cannot be reversed.
4. Click OK.

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Accessing the discussion forum

Note: Not all Drupal-SMF sites have a forum. Please disregard these instructions if you do not see a Forums link in the main menu to the left of the window.

• Click on Forums in the main menu to the left of the window. The forum home page will appear. The forum contains some sections which are accessible via the forum navigation menu:
  • The home tab contains the discussion boards that are being used.
  • The help tab contains instructions, provided by the software vendor, on how to use the forum technology.
  The forum consists of categories, discussion boards, topics and posts.
• Click on the relevant discussion board link you want to access. The home page for that discussion board will appear as well as a list of discussion topics (subjects). You can:
  • create a new topic
  • add a post to an existing topic
  • delete or modify a post
  • add an attachment to a post
  • quote other posts in a discussion topic

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Creating a new topic in the discussion forum

Note: Not all Drupal-SMF sites have a forum. Please disregard these instructions if you do not see a Forums link in the main menu to the left of the window.

1. Click on Forums in the main menu to the left of the window.
2. Click on the relevant discussion board link you want to access.
3. Click on the New Topic button to the right of the window.
4. Type a subject into the Subject field and a message into the text editing area. You can format your text and add smilies using the editing toolbar.
5. When you have finished typing your post, click on the Post button. The post will now appear as a Discussion topic.

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Replying to a post in the discussion forum

Note: Not all Drupal-SMF sites have a forum. Please disregard these instructions if you do not see a Forums link in the main menu to the left of the window.

1. Click on Forums in the main menu to the left of the window.
2. Click on the relevant discussion board link you want to access.
3. Click on the subject title of the topic you wish to reply to.
4. Read the posts to ensure you are fully aware of the discussion in the topic.
5. Click on the Reply button.
6. Type your message into the text editing area. You can format your text and add smilies using the editing toolbar.
7. When you have finished typing your post, click on the Post button. The post will now appear as a discussion topic.

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Quoting other posts in the discussion forum

Note: Not all Drupal-SMF sites have a forum. Please disregard these instructions if you do not see a Forums link in the main menu to the left of the window.

1. Click on Forums in the main menu to the left of the window.
2. Click on the relevant discussion board link you want to access.
3. Click on the subject title of the topic you wish to reply to.
4. Read the posts to ensure you are fully aware of the discussion in the topic.
5. Click the Quote icon that appears above the post you want to quote. A Post reply window will appear. The content of the post you wanted to quote will appear in the text editing area.
6. Type in your post below the quote that appears in the text editing area.
7. Scroll down and click the Post button. The quoted text will appear in a shaded box in your forum post.

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Attaching a file to a post in the discussion forum

Note: Not all Drupal-SMF sites have a forum. Please disregard these instructions if you do not see a Forums link in the main menu to the left of the window.

1. You will first need to create a new topic or begin replying to a post.
2. Once you are in the text editing area, click on Additional options… that appears below the text editing area.
3. Click the Browse button.
4. Select the file you wish to add and click Open.
5. If required, click the (more attachments) link.
6. When you have finished adding attachments, click Post.

Note: Attachments will appear as links under your post. You can only add files that are 128 KB or smaller and you can attach no more than four files to a post.

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Removing or modifying posts in the discussion forum

Note: Not all Drupal-SMF sites have a forum. Please disregard these instructions if you do not see a Forums link in the main menu to the left of the window.

You can remove or modify your own posts in a discussion topic.

• To modify your post, click the Modify icon. Make the necessary changes and click Save.
• To remove your post, click the Remove icon that appears above your post. Note: you cannot delete the first post in a discussion topic if there are replies to that post. You must modify your post instead as discussed above.

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Stopping new message/content emails

Note: Automated emails are sent out daily to keep users up to date with what is happening on your Drupal-SMF site. They tell you when new postings have been made and new content added. To turn this feature off:

1. Click on My account in the main menu to the left of the window.
2. Click on the My notification settings tab and adjust the settings as required. For example, under Notify status, click on the circle next to Disabled if you do not wish to receive periodic e-mails when new content is posted.
3. Click on the Save settings button at the bottom of the window when you are finished.

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